Category: Universal Studios
THURSDAY THEME PARK: Ghostbusters at Universal Studios
The recent release of The Real Ghostbusters cartoon series on DVD got me thinking about Universal Studios back in the early ’90s when they still had the…
Ghostbusters Spooktacular Show
In the early to mid 1990s, the Ghostbusters were the top stars at Universal Studios Florida, at least in my eyes. Not only did they drive Ecto-1 around the park fully-dressed for the occasion, but they also had a fantastic stage show featuring Slimer, the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man, and a whole lot of ghostbustin’.
Unfortunately, there aren’t a lot of great videos of the Ghostbusters Spooktacular attraction out there, as video cameras were not quite as common in the early ’90s as they are today. There are a couple of YouTube videos that are decent, but aren’t really something that you’d want to sit down and watch from beginning to end. Fortunately, Universal Studios released an official video called Universal Studios Florida: The Magic Of Movies that contains really great footage of the Ghostbusters in action:
It’s not the entire show but at least you can get a feel for it and remember what was so much fun about seeing Venkman, Stanz, Spengler, and Zeddemore blast away with their proton packs live and in-person.
There are actually 9 parts to that video on YouTube, taking you on a complete tour of Universal Studios’ attractions as they were in the early ’90s. Good stuff.
More great Ghostbusters Spooktacular videos can be found here, including a commercial for the attraction.
So what became of Universal Studios Florida’s version of the Ecto-1? It appears that it was sold in a stripped-down condition to a collector for around $45,000 and he’s been restoring it ever since:
Be sure to visit TheEcto1.com for photos of the restoration process (especially in this forum thread). I’d love to see this thing driving around on the streets.
Ultimately, the Ghostbusters attraction area was replaced with a show based on Twister and, until recently, the facade of the firehouse remained relatively untouched, with only the Ghostbusters-specific items removed from the outside. However, the upcoming Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit roller coaster has now carved giant a hole right through it, leaving little hope for a return to the ghostbusting days of old:
Such a sad sight to see.
Did you ever see the Ghostbusters attraction at Universal Studios? Do you miss it? Let me know in the comments.
TweetOrlando’s Most Popular Theme Park and Attraction Topics for 2008
From Orlando Attractions Magazine:
Since we have no way of knowing which of our magazine stories were the most popular in 2008 (although we could probably guess), here is a list of our top 10 blog entries for 2008 and our top 10 most viewed videos on YouTube of all time. Keep in mind that some of our stories and videos weren’t online as long as the others, so they’ve had less time to get views.
Top 10 Blog Entries
Most of these were exclusive stories, so that’s the reason they were most popular. Number one made it to the top because it was linked to from the popular site boingboing.net.10. Video: Animal Kingdom Celebrates 10th Anniversary
9. G-EAR-ing up for Toy Story Mania’s Launch
8. Walt Disney World unveils new vision for Downtown Disney
7. Busch Gardens Howl-O-Scream 9 2008 Review, Pictures, and Video
6. ICEBAR Orlando Officially Opens – Video, Pictures
5. Huge Crowd Gives Heartfelt Send-off to Adventurer’s Club
4. Halloween Horror Nights 18 2008 Review, Pictures, Video and Tips
3. Disney 2009 Celebration Concept Art, Disney Fairies Arrive in Orlando
2. Concept Art For Downtown Disney
1. Virtual Walt Disney World Launches on Google EarthTop 10 YouTube videos
It seems YouTube viewers are particularly interested in Halloween. Most of these were shot and edited by us, but three of them (10, 9 and 3) were provided to us by Universal and Busch Gardens.10. Bucs Cheerleaders visit Howl-O-Scream 2008 – 33,964 views
9. Halloween Horror Nights 18 Preview Trailer – 62,162 views
8. Cinderella Castle Lighting Ceremony Holiday Wish – 66,800 views
7. Halloween Horror Nights 18 Scare Zones – 75,716 views
6. Disaster! Grand Opening at Universal Studios with The Rock – 82,955 views
5. Halloween Horror Nights 18 2008 Opening Night with Bloody Mary – 83,218 views
4. Haunted Mansion Re-Haunting Reopening – 99,417 views
3. Halloween Horror Nights 2008 Bloody Mary – 132,609 views
2. Halloween Horror Nights 17 Opening Night – 169,471 views
1. Aquatica Water Park Opening Day – - 308,520 views
Looks like Halloween Horror Nights continues to be a hugely popular topic on YouTube, though the opening of SeaWorld’s Aquatica topped the list.
No surprise that the most popular blog post became the most popular courtesy of BoingBoing. (Thanks, Cory!)
TweetBack to the Future… the Ride to be on new DVD in February!
From bttf.com:
TweetLightning’s about to strike again! Universal Studios Home Entertainment announced today that they will be re-releasing the Back to the Future Trilogy on DVD this February as individually released editions. All three films will feature special foil packaging. The classic original film will be a two-disc special edition collection which also contains Back to the Future…The Ride, the infamous Leslie Nielsen special preview of Back to the Future Part II and the long-awaited documentary Looking Back to the Future!
Talking With… Universal Orlando marketing executive Alice Norsworthy
From orlandosentinel.com:
TweetQuestion: You come to Universal after stints at Walt Disney World and Royal Caribbean. Are there similarities between marketing cruises and theme-park vacations?
Answer: There are a lot of similarities. At the end of the day, we’re all providing great vacation experiences to a broad audience. Each of them has their own unique benefits and products, and their marketing and sales efforts reflect the personality of those products.
Q: What strategic differences have to be pursued to market and sell Universal Orlando during hard times versus good times?
A: The fundamentals remain the same: It’s really about knowing your audience, understanding your market and monitoring their reactions as you put your marketing programs in place, and then being adaptable and flexible to change your programs based on their response. We have a long history of providing a great value to our guest, and we certainly continue to do that through these times.
Q: A couple places around town see this as a time to add sales force. Is that something you’ll be doing as we move into harder times, to increase marketing and sales efforts?
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Christmas music specialist Mannheim Steamroller to join Universal Orlando program
From orlandosentinel.com:
Tweet
Mannheim Steamroller will perform two live concerts at Universal Studios on Dec. 6 to kick off the resort’s annual holiday program, Universal Orlando announced this morning.
The Grammy-award winning band, which puts a New Age-jazz spin on Christmas and other holiday seasonal music, will perform songs it specifically composed for the resort’s original hoiday stage show, “How the Grinch STole Christmas,” as well as new music from the band’s latest album release, Christmasville.
The concerts will take place at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. in the New York area and of Universal Studios and are included in park admission, which nomally is $75 per person.
The performances are the start of the month-long holiday festivities at Universal Orlando. Beginning Dec. 6 and running through Jan. 1, the resort’s celebration will include the specially themed Grinchmas show and Macy’s Holiday Parade.
