Below you will find the restored film of my first trip to Walt Disney World in October 1980. I’m a tad over 6 years old in the film, a big time first grader that wears a sun visor without concern about his image. The Kodak processed Super8 film features sound and the run time is over 30 minutes. The sights and sounds included are amazing – The barker from PoC, a brand new Big Thunder, Adventureland Steel Drum Band, the Empress Lilly character breakfast and The Watchamacallit…to name a few…
But the content is not what is important here. My father filmed many events in our lives and I’m fortunate to have these memories preserved on film. The ability to see see my grandparents again is a gift I will treasure forever as they were the key inspiration for my fascination with WDW and now I want to share that gift with our followers.
As you spend time with the people you love, cherish the time you have with them. Remember the photos and videos you are taking aren’t just capturing the present but creating memories that will last a lifetime for all.
I wish you and your family all the best during the holidays and a wonderful new year!
-Todd
Wonderful! Thanks for taking me back. I especially enjoyed breakfast on the Empress Lily (which I can barely remember eating at when I was a youngster).
Thanks for the gift, and for the podcast (which is a lot of fun).
Wonderful stuff! I grew up going to WDW with my family in the 1970s (first trip as a five year old in 1975) and 1980s. Now my wife and I take our own children there, who have also grown up going to WDW on many trips. This glimpse into a bygone WDW is great nostalgia treat. No doubt my own sentiments are tinged by that nostalgia, but I do miss the “retro” parts of WDW that are forever gone: 20K Leagues Under the Sea; Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride; Eastern Airlines If You Had Wings; the House of Magic on Main Street USA; swimming in Seven Seas Lagoon; River Country; riding in the front cab of the Monorail; the old Lake Buena Vista shopping village; the Adventurer’s Club at Pleasure Island; etc. etc. I miss that “smaller, more intimate” WDW. Back when your resort choices were the Polynesian, the Contemporary, the Golf Inn, and the Fort Wilderness Campground. I miss when every store sold something different, not the same mass-produced Mickey sweatshirts in every store. I understand that changes must be made in the name of progress…but sometimes I really do miss that bygone WDW. Thanks again for the film…it really brought me back to the old days!
Love this!! <3