Disney History
Topic: Ethel Merman goes to Disney World

#	Author	Message
1	Rsey103 Sat 10/17/2009 4:49p	I've been reading Brian Kellow's biography of Ethel Merman. He describes a time when Ms. Merman took her grandchildren to Walt Disney World. Quoting Kellow: "She also took the two children on lengthy vacations in the summertime. In 1971 they all went to the newly opened Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. The marathon amusement park, which hadn't yet unveiled many of what would become its most famous attractions, was tremendously exciting for Barbara Jean and Michael. Ethel accompanied them on some of the more sedate rides--she loved It's A Small World and the Country Bear Jamboree--but she passed on the fast ones, such as Space Mountain." Never mind that Space Mountain didn't exist in 1971. I love the image in my mind of La Merman clapping it up for the Country Bear Jamboree...
2	FerretAfros Mon 10/19/2009 10:21a	That is a great mental image, but that wasn't open then either. WDW didn't open until October 1 of 1971, so unless she got a special sneak preview of the park (which I doubt, since it probably would have still needed a lot of work at that point), the date is just plain wrong.
3	Rsey103 Fri 10/23/2009 2:29p	October feels like summer in Orlando. But he probably got the date wrong. It might have been in 1972. Now I question what else he got wrong in the book...

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