The WDW News Today Podcast - without News Today · Tom Corless & Eric Morton

Redesigning the Magic Kingdom - Frontierland - The WDW News Today Podcast: Episode 80

·48 min·3 clips

The hosts argue the Hall of Presidents should stay because it was Walt Disney’s dying wish.

1. The WDW News Today Podcast episode centers on redesigning Frontierland and Liberty Square at Magic Kingdom. 2. Eric Morton hosts with Tom Corliss, and Katie appears while they taste-test Kit Kat Mini Mix flavors. 3. The episode asks what should stay, move, or be rebuilt if Magic Kingdom’s western side is reimagined. 4. The hosts treat the Hall of Presidents as a major test case, not a throwaway discussion. 5. They argue about whether the attraction should keep the current president’s speaking role. 6. They bring up the Hall of Presidents film, its changing content, and the idea of keeping only the roll call and announcements. 7. They tie the attraction to Walt Disney’s wishes and Roy Disney’s role in building it. 8. Liberty Square Market is dismissed as “baked pitables,” and the ticket office by Sleepy Hollow becomes part of the redesign problem. 9. Sleepy Hollow is recast as a small transition land beside Haunted Mansion and Villains Land. 10. The Headless Horseman becomes the anchor for a low-profile wooden coaster idea. 11. The hosts discuss moving Sleepy Hollow refreshments into that new mini-land. 12. They also talk about bridge placement, river edges, and how the area could connect to the future land beyond Haunted Mansion. 13. Tom Sawyer Island becomes the site for a new New Orleans concept tied to Tiana. 14. The riverboat is imagined as a multi-use structure with counter service below and a show platform above. 15. The conversation then turns to a larger Western River Expedition concept and the challenge of fitting Big Thunder Mountain into it. 16. Eric eventually lands on Pocahontas as a replacement idea for Splash Mountain because of rivers, waterfalls, Miko, Flit, and Mother Willow. 17. The tone is conversational and argumentative, with long back-and-forth redesigning specific park spaces. 18. The format mixes snack tasting, park criticism, and spontaneous map-style planning. 19. Listeners who enjoy Disney parks planning and ride-imagining will get the most from it. 20. Listeners looking for a tightly structured, spoiler-free show review may skip it.

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