10 Historical Facts About The Carousel of Progress

The Carousel of Progress is one of the most iconic and classic attractions at Walt Disney World. Known as one of Walt’s favorites, this attraction has a very full and rich history.

Within this rotating theater are a number of hidden details, fun facts, and secrets.

Follow along as we dive in and highlight ten of these lesser known details of the Carousel of Progress.

1. Holds a Record in American Theater History

You may not think of Carousel of Progress as being a stage show since there are no live performers. However, even though the show is made up entirely of audio-animatronics, the Carousel of Progress is considered a stage show.

Beyond being recognized as a stage show, it actually holds a record within American theater history. During the intro scene of the attraction, we learn that the Carousel of Progress has had more performances than any other stage show in America. This attraction first opened up in 1964 and Guests are still gathering to see the show today, over 60 years later.

2. It's Experienced Multiple Location Changes

Carousel of Progress was not originally designed for a Disney Park. Instead, it was made for the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair. The attraction came to be when General Electric (GE) came to Walt and asked him to create an attraction for their pavilion at the fair. Walt agreed to the partnership and had a hand throughout the entire creative process of the development.

After the New York World’s Fair, the attraction was moved to Disneyland, where it opened up in 1967. Unfortunately, due to Walt’s untimely death in December of 1966, he was unable to see the attraction take residence at his theme park.

As time went on, the popularity of the Carousel of Progress started to dwindle. GE became concerned due to the amount of money they had put into the attraction. Since most of the show’s audience was California residents who had seen it numerous times, GE requested that it be moved to Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, where new audiences could see it.

Disney agreed and the attraction closed at Disneyland in 1973. After the relocation, the Carousel of Progress opened up at Walt Disney World in 1975 and is still there today.

3. Not ALL General Electric Branding Was Removed

General Electric’s sponsorship contract came to an end in 1985. Rather than renewing, GE decided to let the contract expire. After the partnership ended, the attraction was temporarily closed while Disney World removed all of the GE branding from it.

However, if you take a look, you can see that there is still GE branding on multiple appliances in the show. During the 4th of July scene that’s set in the 1920s, you can see the GE logo on the vacuum as well as the fan. In the Halloween scene that’s set in the 1940s, the logo can again be seen on the refrigerator as well as the dishwasher.

A large GE logo also used to hang in front of the curtain during the opening and closing scenes. Today, you’ll see a Carousel of Progress gear logo where the GE logo once hung. However, it’s said that the GE logo was never removed and that the Carousel of Progress logo was simply placed on top of it.

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4. Unlike Any Other Ride at Walt Disney World

Since Walt passed away prior to the beginning of construction at Walt Disney World, he did not assist in the development of any of the attractions. While his inspirations were used for many of them, he was not physically there to be a part of it.

When the Carousel of Progress was moved to Magic Kingdom, it became the first and only attraction that Walt helped plan, design, and was physically involved with at Walt Disney World.

5. A Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow Was No More

The peppy, upbeat theme song that we hear on the attraction today is the same song that was written for the attraction back when it first opened. However, when the Carousel of Progress moved from Disneyland to Walt Disney World, it not only received a new location, but a new theme song as well.

GE felt like the song “There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow” would encourage Guests to think about buying new appliances tomorrow. Instead, they wanted Guests to think about buying appliances today and requested a song change. The Sherman Brothers, who wrote the original song, as well as many other songs for Disney, composed a new song for the attraction at GE’s request.

When the Carousel of Progress opened up at Walt Disney World, it was accompanied by the new theme song, “The Best Time of Your Life”. With lyrics such as “Now is the time. Now is the best time”, GE was confident that this new song would successfully encourage Guests to update their appliances now rather than later.

6. EPCOT Attraction Easter Egg

It’s very common for Disney attractions to have small nods or references in them as a tribute to rides or attractions from Disney’s past. In the final scene, the father is seen in the kitchen wearing an apron that says, “My Food Rocks”. This is a direct reference to an attraction that was once at EPCOT called Food Rocks.

Just like Carousel of Progress, Food Rocks was an audio-animatronic show. This show was located in The Land pavilion at EPCOT and was an updated replacement for Kitchen Kabaret. The audio-animatronics in the show were food items that had human characteristics. They sang songs that were parodies of well known songs by popular artists. The purpose of the show was to promote good nutrition and encourage the audience to make healthy eating decisions.

7. Same Face, Different Attraction

There have been many instances where Disney has used the same animatronic mold in order to cut back on costs. Because of this, you may see the same face on more than one character. The molds of multiple characters from the Carousel of Progress have been reused, resulting in these characters having doppelgangers on other rides and attractions.

These recreated characters can be found on two different Walt Disney World attractions – Spaceship Earth and Haunted Mansion. On Spaceship Earth, you can see both the father, John, and daughter, Patricia. They are both located in the Renaissance scene. Patricia is sitting down playing the violin and John is standing next to her playing the lute.

A copy of the grandmother from Carousel of Progress is located inside Haunted Mansion. Looking almost exactly the same, you can see this elderly Happy Haunt sitting on a rocking chair in the ballroom scene.

8. Easy to Miss Details

Some important dates can be found casually jotted down in the final scene of Carousel of Progress. During this portion of the show, the mother can be seen sitting down at a desk working on a laptop. On the wall to her right is a white board with a note that says, “Grandma and Grandpa Flight #1964 Arrives 10:01”. The flight number is a reference to the opening year of Carousel of Progress. It first debuted at the New York World’s Fair on April 22, 1964. The arrival time of 10:01 references the opening date of both Magic Kingdom and EPCOT – October 1st.

Another important nod can be found in this office area that the mother is sitting in. To the far right, you’ll see a bulletin board hanging up on the wall with a note that says “Marty Called. Wants Changes”. The name Marty is a reference to Disney Legend Marty Skarl. Marty was very involved in the creation of the Carousel of Progress. It was one of the first projects he worked on as a Walt Disney Imagineer. He was part of the team that Walt put together for the purpose of creating the industry-sponsored pavilions, shows, and attractions for the 64/65 New York World’s Fair.

9. Hidden Mickeys

Multiple Hidden Mickeys can be found on the Carousel of Progress, particularly in the final scene. Three of them are located within the Christmas decorations. The first can be found on the mantel above the fireplace. On the left hand side, there are four nutcrackers. One of them is a Mickey nutcracker! If you move your gaze towards the tree, one of the presents underneath it has a Mickey head silhouette on the side of the box. Nearby, hidden with the presents, is a Mickey plush!

Over in the kitchen, sitting on the island, you can see salt and pepper shakers that are adorned with Mickey heads!

Rare Hidden Mickeys

Not only can you find multiple Hidden Mickeys on the Carousel of Progress, there are also a number of Hidden Sorcerer Mickeys! The first one can be seen in the 1940s scene in the daughter’s room. To the right of her is a pointy hat. At first glance, you may just assume that it’s a witch hat for a costume. However, it’s actually a Sorcerer Mickey hat! If you take a close look, you can see the moon and star pattern on it.

Two more Hidden Sorcerer Mickeys can be found in the final scene. They’re both difficult to spot if you don’t know where to look for them. One of them is located on the wall that separates the dining room from the kitchen. On this wall, you’ll see an abstract painting. If you’re able to get a good look at it, you can make out the shape and color of Sorcerer Mickey. He’s in his classic pose where he’s standing on top of rocks directing the stars. The other Sorcerer Mickey can be found on a piece of trash. It’s located in the trash can next to the mother’s feet. On the left hand corner of one of the envelope is the image of Sorcerer Mickey, which looks identical to the image that’s used in the Walt Disney Imagineering logo.

10. Realistic Prediction

The last scene, which is set in the 2000s, may not seem as futuristic as it once did. The technological advancements, such as the Virtual Reality video game, voice command appliances, and computers are all things that we know and use today.

However, the fascinating thing about this scene is that it was last updated in 1993. While all of these things may seem completely normal to us now, they were completely unheard of in the early 90s. It’s fascinating that the dreams and ideas of the future that were put into this scene actually fabricated into our current reality.

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