Disney Plus is finally here and with it comes an enormous catalog of content that ranges from nostalgic favorites to brand new originals. One of those originals is The Imagineering Story, a fascinating look behind the scenes of Disney parks and the magic that makes them possible.
The first episode of The Imagineering Story primarily focuses on the creation of Disneyland and how Walt Disney and some truly talented individuals helped bring the park to life. While many Disney fans are familiar with the story of Disneyland’s creation, the high-quality footage in the first episode is a sight to behold. It’s crazy watching a car drive through the canal that would later became the Jungle Cruise attraction.
As interesting as Walt’s involvement with Disneyland is, the real stars of The Imagineering Story are the imagineers who helped bring Walt’s visions to life. Hearing stories from Marty Sklar, Don Iwerks, Tony Baxter and Bob Gurr next to incredible footage of original Disney projects is both entertaining and inspiring. The group constantly pulled off the impossible, routinely inventing something brand new to achieve Walt’s lofty ambitions.
But the whole episode didn’t focus purely on Disneyland’s opening. Viewers had a chance to see what’s really inside the Matterhorn mountain as of today (a basketball hoop but not a full court) and learned how insanely difficult it was to build an audio-animatronic of Abraham Lincoln that was featured in the 1964 World’s Fair. The episode also provided some fun insight on the “it’s a small world” attraction, the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and gave artist Mary Blair some well-deserved recognition.
The Imagineering Story started off with a bang and promises to deliver even more insight into Disney parks around the globe in future episodes. It’s early, but the six-episode series has already justified the price of Disney Plus for many Disney fans. Here’s hoping that more content like The Imagineering Story is in Disney’s long-term plans for Disney Plus.
