America The Beautiful (Circle-Vision 360) Articles

A major remodel of the theater began in early 1967 and lasted into June the attractions name changed again this time to Circle Vision 360.An all-new film by an all-new Disney motion picture technique.Visit historic landmarks and scenic locations throughout the nation, including journeys to Hawaii, Alaska, national parks and other interesting areas. The audience is completely surrounded by the spectacle of America through "Circle-Vision 360" Walt Disney Productions' technique

Specs:Capacity 3000 per hour -- Cycle Time 20:00 -- Load Time 1:00 -- Show Time 14:30 -- Dispatch Interval 20:00 -- Shows per hour 3

Shown on 9 large screens

From August 15, 1966 letter from Walt Disney Productions to AT&T

This is by way of being a progress report of the production of the now "America the Beautiful" film. You will recall that our objective is to follow the format of the existing picture, but attempt to introduce new scenes. Our procedure for making films of this type is to obtain photographic material which lends itself to the story that we are telling. Eventually, this material is assembled into a continuity which makes the best presentation of the story line being conceived. During this process, earns of the material would be eliminated because of either time limitations or because the scenes ire not appropriate in the story concept. This arrangement of scenic material then serves as the basis for the descriptive narrative. I would expect that this picture will roach the stage where a script consisting of continuity of scenes with descriptive narration will be available soon after the first of the year. In the meantime, you may be interested in knowing what scenes have been photographed and the photography which we plan to do later in the year.

SURFACE SCENES IN WHICH HAVE BEEN PHOTOGRAPHED

Disneyland. Christmas parade.

Pasadena. Tournament of Roses parade.

Sun Valley, Idaho, in winter. Village, sleigh ride. Ice skating, scenic view from Half Dollar Mountain with skiers and ski lift.

Yosemite Valley, California. Panoramic view from Tunnel Lookout Point. Half Demo from valley floor, village.

San Francisco, California. Fisherman's Wharf, Chinatown, cable cars, Lombard Street, Golden Gate Bridge, Golden Gate Park.

Hawaii. Scenic view from Pali, scenic view from Round Top, scenic view from Makapuu Point, University of Hawaii, Waikiki Beach, the palace, pineapple harvest. Moana Hotel banyan tree.

Miami Beach, Florida. Fontainebleau Hotel pool area, Indian Creek Road.

Charleston, South Carolina. Boone Hall Plantation. old town.

Anapolis, Maryland. Midshipmen on parade and noon assembly for orders.

Mount Vernon, Virginia. Various views of the Washington home-stead.

Washington, D. C. Capitol Building from Pennsylvania Avenue, Jefferson Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, White House grounds.

Gettysburg. Pennsylvania. Various views of Gettysburg battlefield.

New York City. Long Lines room. United Nations, Central Park. Park Avenue, Statue of Liberty from boat.

West Point, New York. Cadets on parade, changing class, and noon orders assembly.

Rockport, Mass. View of colorful harbor from boat.

Concord, Mass. Concord Bridge.

Strafford, Vermont. Vermont church, meeting ball, and park.

South Strafford, Vermont. Vermont village.

Norwich. Vermont. Vermont village.

Tunbridge, Vermont. Covered bridge.

Indianapolis. Indiana. Various views interior Western Electric works.

Springfield. Illinois. Lincoln's home, New Salem State Park.

Chicago, Illinois. Various views of Chicago and lake front from Lakeshore Drive.

New Orleans, Louisiana. French quarter, Canal Street. river activity from boat.

Houston, Texas. Scenes from expressway, telephone building with relay horns.

Colorado Springs, Colorado. Cadets in graduation parade and formations in the quad, airplane fly-by.

AERIAL SCENES WHICH HAVE BEEN PHOTOGRAPHED

Alaska. Anchorage, Mount McKinley, Yukon River, Matanuska Valley, Nome, Fairbanks.

Utah. Bryce Canyon, Zion Canyon.

Colorado. The Rockies, Glenwood Springs, Colorado River.

Wyoming. Teton Mountains.

South Dakota. Mount Rushmore.

Kansas. Farms on plains.

Texas. Petroleum industry cracking plants.

Oklahoma. Petroleum industry cracking plants.

New York City. Statue of Liberty, Last River, Hudson River, Fifth Avenue.

Florida. Cape Kennedy. Miami Beach, Key West. Causeway.

SURFACE PHOTOGRAPHY PLANNED

Sailing activity from boat in Newport Bay, California.

Cotton harvest in San Joaquin Valley, California.

City of Los Angeles.

Seattle harbor from cable ship if ship's schedule permits.

We have given some thought to the proposed 45 second lead-in, but we do not have any suggestions for your consideration at this time. Did I understand correctly that you hoped the load-in would somehow tie in with the preshow and, if this is the case, it might be helpful if we had your description of the preshow.

From 1967 Tomorrowland Info Packet:

Across America

The audience sees the Circle-Vision 360 screen in all directions —in front of them, to the side and behind—and view America the Beautiful as if they were actually at its scenic locations, which include Hawaii, Alaska, national parks, historic landmarks and cities. They also come face-to-face with the people of our nation.

From Mountains To Seas

America the Beautiful opens with a stirring aerial panoramic view of Mount Rushmore's famous sculptures of four former United States Presidents. The wheat fields of the Midwest are also seen as the audience hears the majestic and moving chorale, America the Beautiful: "Oh Beautiful for Spacious Skies, For Amber Waves of Grain..." Views of scenery from throughout the nation appear as the title and opening credits are projected. "For Purple'd Mountain Majesties Above the Fruited Plain ..." — a dramatic contrast to the flat-lands is experienced when cameras take the audience over ruggedly beautiful and pristine American wilderness characterized by the Grand Tetons. "America, America, God Shed His Grace on Thee..."—the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor—"... And Crown Thy Good With Brotherhood From Sea to Shining Sea."

PICTURESQUE NEW ENGLAND

The audience journeys immediately to another part of America and into another era as it enters a picturesque fishing port in New England. A rousing sea chanty accompanies sight-seers on a nostalgic return to the days of the great clipper ships. Cameras also take the audience into the countryside, across an old covered bridge and along a village green toward a classic New England church.

LAND OF LINCOLN

The tour continues down a country lane to an historic restoration of a pioneer Illinois town, New Salem, where Abraham Lincoln spent his young manhood as storekeeper and postmaster.

PRESIDENTS HOMES

Mount Vernon. the stately home of George Washington, over-looking the broad Potomac, is visited next. From the home of the nation's first president, Circle-Vision 360 then goes to the home of today's President—the White House.

CIVIL WAR REMEMBRANCES

The Gettysburg battlefield is then visited. The Battle Hymn of the Republic underscores scenes of the Lincoln Memorial with surging, dramatic music.

MILITARY TRIBUTE

From these patriotic landmarks. Circle-Vision 360 takes up the theme of military tradition through visits to West Point. Annapolis and the Air Force Academy.

GREAT LAKES TO THE GULF OF MEXICO

Cameras tour the city streets and major industry in Chicago then turn to the southeast—to Florida's Key West, Cape Kennedy and Miami Beach.

OLD SOUTH

Still another world is visited in this adventure, the old south, its mood established even more vividly with Stephen Foster's Swanee River. New Orleans' French Quarter and the city's waterfront are also on the itinerary.

WESTERN FRONTIER

The American portrait continues in Colorado. This is the American West. land of the legendary frontier, characterized by a tremendous herd of cattle in the rolling hills of the prairie country. The familiar melody of Git Along Little Dogies catches the spirit of the cattle drive.

MAJESTIC MOUNTAINS

"Aboard" a plane, audiences in the Bell pavilion sweep along the deep, narrow chasms of Zion Canyon in Zion National Park, then speed further west for a winter look at California's Yosemite National Park and Sun Valley, Idaho.

LAND OF THE MIDNIGHT SUN

Alaska is next. Here, in our nation's newest frontier, tourists visit the Yukon River, Anchorage, Nome, and one of America's greatest sights, Mt. McKinley, highest peak in North America.

WEST COAST

For a dramatic contrast, Circle-Vision 360 takes guests to one of the nation's most dramatic cities—San Francisco—for a ride down Lombard Street and a stop at Fisherman's Wharf.

CITY OF ANGELS

A different mood is brought to the screen as guests take a wild ride with a hook and ladder fire truck through the streets of Los Angeles. Other Southern California stops include a behind-the-scenes visit to a movie set in Hollywood, Balboa Bay and a vista shot of Los Angeles at night, a sprawling community of cities that is transformed into a storyland of sparkling lights.

PACIFIC PARADISE

Circle-Vision 360 focuses next on Hawaii, our 50th and newest state. The audience sees the bustling city of Honolulu, the sparkle of Waikiki Beach, the dominance of famed Diamond Head and the beauty of the University of Hawaii campus.

EPILOGUE

Once again. America the Beautiful is heard, and the show enters the epilogue. Scenes include the Capitol Building and the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C.. Miami Harbor, the City of Tulsa, apple blossoms on a country side, a village green in New England and the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor at dusk.

ALL NEW PRESENTATION

America the Beautiful is a completely new production of a long-time Disneyland favorite in Tomorrowland. The enlarged and redesigned pavilion houses the Circle-Vision 360 theatre and other areas in which presentations and demonstrations of communications techniques and devices of the past, present and future are featured.

THEME SONG

Inside The Bell System's pavilion, guests are greeted by the light-hearted strains of the show's theme melody, The Talk Song.

THE TELEPHONE STORY

A Bell hostess welcomes visitors to the attraction, then tells them the story of the evolution of Bell's activities, from the days of Alexander Graham Bell to the present. The PeopleMover journeys through this section of the Bell pavilion, giving passengers a view of the attraction's preshow area.

CIRCLE VISION 360 THEATER

At the story's conclusion, a 32-foot-long wall of doors opens up automatically, revealing the spacious Circle-Vision 360 theatre. Guests pass through the doors into aisles between conveniently located handrails.

PROJECTION TECHNIQUES

Nine synchronized, 35mm motion picture projectors are used to bring America the Beautiful to the completely circular screen which is formed in nine sections.

STEREOPHONIC SOUND

Stereophonic sound saturates the theatre from 19 speakers—nine in the walls and ten in the ceiling. Following the presentation of America the Beautiful, automatic doors again open to invite guests to move into the next area of Bell's communications pavilion.

COMMUNICATIONS OF TOMORROW

Here, visitors find amusing and interesting communications dis-plays, where guests can actually use advanced communications equipment.

VOICE MIRRORS

At two Voice Mirrors, visitors may hear and "see" their voices played back after recording them on an easy-to-use, self-operating recording device.

PICTUREPHONES

Though The Bell System's Picturephone Service, guests talk to and see the person to whom they are speaking. Every half hour, members of Bell's audiences are invited to demonstrate Bell's Picturephone Service by communicating with someone selected from audiences in the Associated Telephone Companies' pavilion at Expo ?, at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. or at Franklin Institute in Philadelphia.

HOMETOWN WEATHER

At the Weather Station, guests phone for the latest weather conditions in major cities throughout the United States.

FAMILY PHONES

Six Chatter Boxes enable the whole family to talk together over one line to any person anywhere.

KIDDIE PHONES

Nearby are ten Kiddie Phones, where youngsters telephone Disney characters, such as Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Snow White, whose portraits light up on a mural of Disneyland as they deliver prerecorded messages to callers.

DURATION

29 1/2 minutes (film, 17 1/2 minutes; preshow, 12 minutes).

From WED Disneyland Dictionary 1968
Is an all-new filmed visit by an all-new Disney motion picture technique to historic landmarks and scenic locations throughout the nation, including journeys to Hawaii, Alaska, national parks and other interesting areas. The audience is completely surrounded by the spectacle of America through "Circle-Vision 360," Walt Disney Productions' technique of projecting a motion picture on a screen that completely encircles the audience. Presented by The Bell System, American Telephone and Telegraph and Associated Companies, hosted by Pacific Telephone.

From 1970's Attraction Showmanship
This inspiring circle-vision 360 film tour of the United States is a favorite free exhibit in Tomorrowland. Visitors are surrounded by nine screens providing the effect of seeing in all directions at once. From Alaska to Hawaii, guests visit all the fifty states from a scenic point of view.

Many different types of vehicles were used in the filming. A station wagon was equipped with nine cameras and sound equipment for the land scenes--various cruising vessels were used for the water scenes--and the cameras were suspended through the hatch of a B-25 bomber for the aerial sequences.

Presented by the Bell System and American Telephone and Telegraph Associated Companies, the attraction is hosted by Pacific Telephone operators, wearing colorful red, white and blue costumes.

In 1982 Bell announced plans to discontinue sponsorship of the attraction. So Bell employees spent the next year training Tomorrowland hosts and hostesses to take over.

From Steve Birnbaum brings you the best of Disneyland 1982:
This 20-minute film is patriotic and somewhat sentimental, but as the film travels from one U.S. coast to the other, the scenery is so spectacular that it's hard to imagine how anyone could feel otherwise. This nation's beauty comes across all the more vividly because of the film technique, Circle-Vision 360, which involves nine projectors, nine 20-by-30-foot screens, and 12 channels of sound played through nine different speakers (one behind each screen), plus six others (one attached to the ceiling) to carry the narration. The experience is awesome, to say the least, and some of the flight scenes provoke a pretty fair case of vertigo in even the ordinary viewer. The film includes scenes from the United Nations, in New York City; Rockport, Massachusetts; New Salem, Illinois; Mount Vernon and Williamsburg, Virginia; Philadelphia; the Lincoln Memorial, the White House, and the Capitol, in Washington, D.C.; Gettysburg, Pennsylvania; the military service academies at West Point, New York, Annapolis, Mary- land, and Colorado Springs, Colorado; Chicago's Gold Coast and Michigan Avenue; the Overseas Highway, Cape Canaveral, and Miami Beach, in Florida; Charleston, South Carolina; New Orleans; St. Louis's Gateway Arch and its old courthouse; the Colorado River Valley; Zion National Park; Inspiration Point, El Capitan, and Half Dome, in Yosemite National Park; Sun Valley, Idaho; the frozen Yukon River, Mount McKinley, and Nome, Alaska-the last on a nice day in summer when the mercury has risen to 49° F; the Golden Gate, twisty Lombard Street, and Fisherman's Wharf, in San Francisco; a fire engine in Los Angeles; Balboa Bay in Newport Beach; and Hawaii. The Vermont village with the church at the end of the street is Strafford; the covered bridge scene was filmed in Tunbridge. And the movie set near the end is at Walt Disney's own studios. A presentation at the beginning of the show tells how the long-distance telephone system actually works-an interesting story well worth a few moments' attention. And the postshow area includes exhibits of various telephones now on the market, plus a whole bank of telephone booths where guests can converse over spiffy-looking speaker phones. Incidentally, the 144,000 square feet of carpet here pose one of the more interesting of the park's cleaning jobs. An ordinary vacuum cleaner just isn't practical here, so the custodial department acquired a fancy self-propelled cleaner with a brush that is 24 inches wide. Presented by the Bell System.

[live cast member introduction:] Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Circlevision 360 Theater. The one million men and women of the Bell System hope you enjoy your visit with us today at Disneyland.

To help insure that you do have a safe and enjoyable visit, we ask that you not sit on the floor, or on the lean rails. The lean rails will not safely support your weight or that of your children. And no smoking or refreshments, please.

We now present Walt Disney's magnificent look at our country. Our nine screens will completely surround you with many of the wonders of these United States. As we proudly present ''America the Beautiful.''

[music: ''America the Beautiful'']

[''America, the beautiful! O beautiful for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain. For purple mountain majesties above the fruited plain. America, America, God shed his grace on thee. And crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea. Ah-ah, ah...'']

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to ''America the Beautiful.'' Through the magic of Circlevision, you'll see it now as perhaps you've never seen it before: in the round.

As we take you on a magic carpet journey across the continent, we shall attempt to capture the American scene, in all its panoramic variety.

First stop: fabled Manhattan, city of dreams, and our gateway to adventure.

Standing before us: a monument to man's highest aspirations: the United Nations Building. Its towering form matches well this exciting metropolitan style.

This building is a busy place, crowded every day of the year, for it attracts visitors from all over the world.

[music: ''Song of the Fishes'']

This, too, is America: Rockport, Massachusetts, where a rousing chanty reminds us that its fisherman have followed the sea for generations.

[''Come all ye young sailors and listen to me, I'll sing you a song of the fish of the sea. Then blow ye winds westerly, westerly blow. We're prowed to the southward, so steady she goes.'']

Rustic America in Vermont, where the old covered bridge is still to be found. If you'll listen closely, in imagination, you may hear the hoofbeats of the countless horses that have passed this way.

A peaceful village green and a little country church, symbol of a God-fearing people who carved a nation out of the wilderness.

New Salem, Illinois. This typical village of the early 1800s has been recreated to remind us of our pioneer beginnings. Here it was that Abraham Lincoln spent his youth as storekeeper and postmaster.

Mount Vernon, the stately home of George Washington, overlooking the broad Potomac. Our first president loved this site for its serenity and its magnificent vistas.

Williamsburg, Virginia.

The Duke of Gloucester Street, Williamsburg, its appearance the same now as it was in prerevolutionary times--except for the modern day visitors.

Here in modern Philadelphia stands Independence Hall. In its chambers the Constitution was wrought and signed, and here was met the first government of the new nation so created.

The same historic building from Independence Square, and framed in the doorway: the Liberty Bell, which rang out at the declaration of independence, echoing the words encircling its crown: ''Proclaim liberty throughout all the land, and unto all the inhabitants thereof.''

[music: ''Columbia, The Gem of the Ocean'']

Now to the city bearing Washington's name in the District of Columbia, and citizens of all ages and many callings gathered on the mall to observe a pageant out of history.

[music: ''Hail to the Chief'']

In the shadow of the Washington Monument stands the White House, home of our present Chief Executive and symbol of the presidency.

Now along famous Pennsylvania Avenue, and looming up ahead, the Capitol Building on Capitol Hill. This, too, is America, where the laws that govern our land are enacted.

[music: ''The Battle Hymn of the Republic'']

In the peaceful countryside near Gettysburg, scene of the decisive battleof the Civil War, there stand in silent glory the monuments that honor the fallen.

The Lincoln Memorial: a nation's heartfelt homage to the president who preserved the union.

Abraham Lincoln, a man for the ages. A man who lives on in the hearts of free men everywhere.

The splendor of Niagra Falls. Here, too, is part of the American setting:natural grandeur whetted with power to serve a growing nation.

[music: ''Semper Fidelis'']

And this is America: Historic West Point, oldest of the service academies. Here, young men are trained for the tasks of tomorrow with the scholar's broad knowledge of yesterday and today.

And, here at the Air Force Academy in Colorado, we find more of these young men of tomorrow, soon to be off in that wild blue yonder.

[music: ''Semper Fidelis'']

At Annapolis, these midshipmen who will follow the sea, are trained in the same spirit of duty and sacrifice, and service to country.

Chicago's Lakeshore Drive takes us swiftly along the shores of Lake Michigan. As a residential area, this section known as the Gold Coast is one of the city's finest.

And now downtown, along Michigan Avenue, bridging the Chicago River.

And now the southern climes. Connecting Florida with Key West and its superb fishing grounds, is this 100-mile long causeway over the Gulf of Mexico.

Cape Canaveral: launching site for our astronauts. These towers are symbols of our nation's quest for new knowledge in outer space.

Fabulous Miami Beach. Along this narrow strip of sand the luxury hotels number at last count: 362--practically one for each day of the year.

[music: ''Swanee River'']

Now a journey into yesterday. A lovely setting outside Charleston, South Carolina, where the city actually had its beginning long ago.

In the colorful French Quarter of old New Orleans, American jazz was first heard, and to this day, Dixieland jazz still echoes through these quaint streets.

Along New Orleans Riverfront, ships and shipping create a busy scene, for the city is the port of entry for the entire Mississippi Basin.

Over a thousand miles upstream at St. Louis, Missouri, rises the elegantly simple Gateway Memorial, signifying that this was once the jumping off place for the pioneers. And at its very foot, standing with dignity in a city very much of today, is the old St. Louis courthouse: a graceful blending of the old and the new, at the midline of the nation.

And now, as the Colorado River leads the way, cutting through the mountains, we follow a trail into the great American West.

[music: ''Git Along Little Doggies'']

[''As I was out walkin' one mornin' for pleasure, I spied a cowpuncher a-ridin' along. His hat was thrown back and his spurs were a-jinglin', and as he approached he was singin' this song: Whoopee ti yi yo, git along you little doggies, it's your misfortune and none of my own. Whoopee ti yi yo, git along you little doggies, you know that Wyomin' will be your new home.'']

Now through rugged backcountry to one of America's great natural wonders:Zion National Park in the state of Utah. Here, in nature's workshop, is a spectacular scene of wind-carved cliffs and sunbaked rocks.

Fasten your seatbelts as we venture into Zion's deepest gorge. And now, our magic carpet must navigate with considerable care. Uh, please don't pickthe flowers as we pass.

Natural grandeur untouched and unspoiled: Inspiration Point, Yosemite,high in the California Sierras. And framing the scene: majestic El Capitan and Half Dome.

Sun Valley, Idaho, carved in a mantle of purest white. Here is a superb ski setting, known the world over.

After a strenuous day on the slopes, a pleasant interlude in the quaint streets of the alpine village.

Now off to our newest frontier: Alaska. Here is true wilderness, as we follow the frozen Yukon.

The city of Anchorage: Alaska's crossroads of the world. Here is the stopping point for nearly all air travel between North America and the Orient.

Mount McKinley, glorious in her glacial grandeur, 20,300 feet high: the highest point on the North American continent.

That sprinkle of buildings snowed in on the edge of the Bering Sea, is Nome, Alaska, a community standing literally at the ends of the earth. On a nice warm day in summer, the temperature here will average: 49 degrees.

Ahead of us, crowning its famous hills: San Francisco, city of light, city of elegance, and grace.

What other city can boast a street like Lombard Street, where one almost meets oneself coming and going? Here you don't need to turn your head to see the scenery.

To really know San Francisco's charm is to know it at dusk at Fisherman's Wharf. Here, a rich variety of seafare may be found in every door.

A different mood in a different town: a wild ride of hook and ladder company through the streets of Los Angeles.

Behind the cameras are the movie set. A scene that was once the real America has become make-believe America, recreated on every TV screen in the land.

America at play: on Southern California's Balboa Bay, white sails and blue water provide a picture postcard setting.

From atop the Hollywood Hills, a Circlevision view of Los Angeles: a sprawling community of cities that knows no end.

As evening falls, the vast metropolis is transformed into a fairyland of sparkling lights.

And now to our 50th and newest state: Hawaii, the pineapple basket of the world.

Aboard the telephone company cable ship Long Lines, we find ourselves approaching Honolulu Harbor. This is a very special ship. Her job: to help expand and improve the worldwide telephone network. Since she was launched, she has laid underseas cable across the Pacific, the Atlantic, and in the Caribbean.

And now, another view of Diamond Head, as we descend upon Honolulu from the heights above the city.

And below us, the University of Hawaii, whose East-West Center brings together students from every nation in the Pacific. Here on campus, amid the costumes and cultures of many lands, East does meet West.

This, then, has been our American portrait, a glimpse of a nation's splendor, infinite in its variety, rich in its tradition, and blessed in its heritage.

[music: ''America the Beautiful'']

[''America, America! O beautiful for patriot dream that sees beyond the years. Thine alabaster cities gleam, undimmed by human tears. America, America, God shed his grace on thee, and crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea. America, the beautiful, America!'']

[live cast member conclusion: ] Thank you, we hope you enjoyed the movie. I'd like to remind you to stop just outside and see our new charger call payphones and the colorful array of decorator telephones. The exit doors are open to your left, and have a nice day in Disneyland.