Here we are with yet another edition of “Wednesdays with Walt.” This time, we head to the Magic Eye Theater in Tomorrowland to meet the “Man In Space.” Coincidentally, this particular “Wednesdays with Walt” was held on January 28, 2015, the 29th anniversary of the Space Shuttle Challenger explosion.
“Man In Space” was produced, directed, and co-written by animator and Disney Legend Ward Kimball. It was hosted by Walt Disney, Ward Kimball, Dr. Willy Ley, Dr. Heinz Haber, and Dick Tufeld of “Lost In Space” fame.
This particular episode talks briefly about the history of rockets, which date back to at least 13th century China. It was interesting to see how rockets had evolved over the last 700 years. This was shown through various animation sequences in a very humorous way. It had an almost “don’t try this at home” feel. Most seemed interested in this portion of the program, as it got too technical for some during the last half. The discussion of satellites and other forms of space exploration seemed to drag on for quite awhile. It was almost as if this was being presented to science students at CalTech or even professionals at NASA. However, this episode was very well received that President Dwight D. Eisenhower requested a print of the film to show to officials at the Pentagon.
Of course, Walt Disney passed before man walked on the moon. But even before that, Walt was always looking to the future. There have been space themed attractions at Disney Parks for nearly 60 years. Some of the sound and visual effects in this program were even used in Rocket to the Moon/Mission to Mars at Disneyland. Since then, Space Mountain has opened at every Magic Kingdom-style Park, and Mission: SPACE opened at Epcot in 2003. Space exploration may not have been a new concept in 1955, but it sure has progressed in the last 60 years.
And as always, you can find out what the next “Wednesdays with Walt” feature will be by following the Disneyland Annual Passholders page on Facebook.