Retro Disney World

These articles are written by The Retro Disney World staff and pertain directly to the day-to-day happenings, operations, and background/history of the site.

Podcast Episode 85: Mickey Mouse Revue

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We take you back to an attraction and for our fans that wanted us to go way back, we are going way back. The Mickey Mouse Revue which opened October 1, 1971 last about nine years closing in the fall of 1980. How is leading us this month which only means one thing: we are going super deep into this topic. He begins by going over the homophone of Revue vs. Review and also how little…Read More...

RetroMagic 2023: Resource Guide

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With less than a month to go, we are all gearing up RetroMagic to celebrate 40 years of EPCOT Center. Leading up to this celebration, we thought it would be beneficial to everyone who is either attending or not attending to prepare a little. We have put together a list of books, resources, podcast episodes, restored videos, and more so you can pack your brain before we see you in Florida. We hope you enjoy this...Read More...

National Disability Independence Day – Accommodations Guide at Walt Disney World 1972

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July 27th is National Disability Independence Day marking 33 years since President George H.W. Bush signed the landmark Americans With Disabilities Act into law in 1990. While visitors today are familiar with the myriad accommodations for individuals with disabilities available at Disney parks and resorts you may wonder what the experience was like in the Magic Kingdom’s opening year. To mark the occasion we are adding to our archive the very first accessibility guide produced for...Read More...

Flagler’s Breakfast Menu – Grand Floridian Resort 1988

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When the Grand Floridian resort opened and replaced the Contemporary as Walt Disney World’s flagship resort it had all the luxuries and decadence you would expect.  Fine dining venues abounded and Flagler’s was an upscale sit-down restaurant that specialized in Italian cuisine in the evening (because in the 1980’s fine-dining Italian was at its peak in popularity).  In the morning’s it was the place to have a nice breakfast away from the hustle and bustle of...Read More...

RetroWDW Presents: Platinum Movie Night on 4/15/21!

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The Lake Buena Vista Historical Society and RetroWDW are proud to present their first-ever Platinum Movie Night! This view-by-donation event will take place on April 15, 2021, at 8:00 pm Eastern and will feature some of the rarest historical films from Walt Disney World, rare and exclusive slides, give-a-ways, and more! The donation amount you choose will go to help cover the cost of the acquisition, transfer, and restoration of the films which was in the...Read More...

RetroMagic: A 50th Celebration Postponed

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Since the conclusion of our RetroMagic 2019 event, we have been discussing our plans to celebrate Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary the first weekend of October 2021. An essential benchmark to permitting us to host a 50th Anniversary event is the development of an effective vaccine against COVID-19. As a vaccine becomes closer to reality we discussed whether logistically we COULD host the event we have planned in eleven months and whether or not we were...Read More...

Christmas In July: RetroWDW Ornament Sale

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We have one case left of the limited edition ornament set created for our 2019 RetroMagic event. All attendees at the October event received a set and we’ve given them as gifts to all Lake Buena Vista Historical Society donors at the $50 or above level. It’s never too early to start thinking about the 2020 holiday season. While vaccines and the freedom to spend time with your friends and family is the first item on...Read More...

You’re Invited: Home Movie Night

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Mark your calendars and get the popcorn ready for this Thursday, July 23 at 8:30 PM eastern time and join us for our 8th live home movie night! We’ll have 3 newly restored movies to share with live commentary plus some Walt Disney World ephemera show and tell afterwards.Read More...

Thought You’d Never Ask – A Collection of WDW Dining recipes from the early years

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The first publication of a book of Walt Disney World recipes was in 1979. That year Dorothy Chapman, the food critic for the Orlando Sentinel, compiled some of the most requested recipes from Central Florida restaurants In “Thought You’d Never Ask”.She published weekly columns in the Sentinel and many of the recipes also appeared there. A dutiful volunteer archivist has been scanning those individual recipe publications in an ongoing process. We are pleased today to bring…Read More...

RetroWDW announces RetroMagic video release!

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On Sunday, October 13, 2019, the Lake Buena Vista Historical Society hosted RetroMagic at Disney’s Contemporary Resort – After months of editing by our volunteers, we’re now happy to announce that we’ll be releasing videos of the day’s stories and never before seen photos and artifacts from Disney Legends, Imagineers, Cast Members, music and more! All videos will be released on their respective dates at 8pm Eastern via our YouTube Channel and our special RetroMagic Playlist....Read More...