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Just How Well Do You REALLY Know Disney World’s Hollywood Studios?

Can you believe that Disney’s Hollywood Studios just turned 31 years old?!

Buzz Lightyear in Mickey’s Cavalcade at Hollywood Studios

While we remember some of the good ole’ days with the Backlot Tour and celebrate the new gems with Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, Hollywood Studios has SO many details that you might not know about.

We’re testing your Disney Parks knowledge to see if YOU know these fun facts about Disney World’s Hollywood Studios!

Crossroads of the World

This first area you see in Hollywood Studios might look like a spot to grab some pins, a map of the park, and more when you first enter  — but it has a bit of real Hollywood history to it! The Crossroads of the World is inspired by the real location of the same name with an…interesting past!

Crossroads of the World

The real Crossroads of the World in Hollywood was built as part open-air shopping center/part memorial for a gangster by the name of Charles “Goodtime Charlie” Crawford. He was shot dead in his office at the original Los Angeles location, and his wife erected the shopping center at the site in his memory in 1936. It was deemed “America’s First Outdoor Shopping Mall” when it opened.

Welcome to the Crossroads!

The Crossroads of the World statue in Hollywood Studios mirrors that same design as the real Hollywood location. While Mickey is a little magical addition to the top of the globe, unlike the actual version in Los Angeles, he also serves a purpose as a lightning rod, too! (Oh, Disney, you think of everything.)

Send Mail to Some Famous Hollywood Characters

Ever wanted to be a pen pal with some of the biggest names in Hollywood? If you check out the names on the crates outside of Dockside Diner, you can actually spot the “mailing addresses” of the greatest Hollywood characters that have ever graced the big screen!

Dockside Diner

We’ve spotted George Bailey from It’s a Wonderful Life, Rick Blaine from Casablanca, Scarlett O’Hara from Gone With the Wind, and more!

Casablanca Cargo

Sometimes they’ll actually change these crates out, so keep an eye out for new characters and names!

Hollywood Brown Derby’s Famous Treats

The Hollywood Brown Derby was THE spot for Hollywood glitz and glamour. Hollywood stars from all over the industry would visit the restaurant to wine and dine.

Hollywood Brown Derby

And, since the Disney World location is based on the ACTUAL Hollywood Brown Derby, the menu includes some of its most infamous items!

The Cobb Salad

The Cobb Salad is a wildly popular menu item at the restaurant, but did you know it originated by coincidence in the real Brown Derby? There are many versions of the origin story for the salad but the most common is that owner Robert Cobb developed the salad…

Famous Cobb Salad

…and later shared it with his pal Sid Grauman, the namesake of Hollywood’s famous Chinese Theatre (also recreated in Hollywood Studios!), who loved it so much he came back to the restaurant the next day asking for that “Cobb Salad” again!

Cobb Salad

The official Cobb Salad is made with finely chopped greens, turkey, bacon, egg, tomatoes, crumbled bleu cheese, avocado, chives, and Cobb dressing.

Grapefruit Cake

Back in the day in REAL Hollywood, popular gossip columnist Louella Parsons frequented the Brown Derby. One day, she let owner Robert Cobb know she thought all his dessert options were far too fattening and asked if he could offer something lighter for guests.

Grapefruit Cake at Hollywood Brown Derby

The story goes that Cobb told his head chef to “put grapefruit on something” since the citrus was widely considered to be “slimming” at the time. The result was a (not so) slimming dessert with heaps of cream cheese frosting and grapefruit flavors between layers of chiffon cake!

The Shirley Temple

Not every star who visited the Hollywood Brown Derby was a grown-up! Shirley Temple was one of the biggest Hollywood stars in the late 1930s. Since she was obviously too young to drink any alcohol at the parties or dinners she attended, a bartender came up with a “grown-up” drink just for her. 

Traditionally, the drink combined grenadine and ginger ale with a bit of lime (and of course a maraschino cherry or two!). Some versions use lemon-lime soda. (But those versions would be wrong.)

Shirley Temple

Multiple restaurants, including the Brown Derby, claim to have invented the drink for her, but a Hollywood restaurant called Chasen’s is widely regarded as the true originator. Temple dined frequently at the Brown Derby and stated that it was the spot that made the drink popular.

Oddly enough, while it’s become a fan-favorite, Temple actually said that it was too sweet for her to drink! 

Cobb Salad, Shirley Temple, Grapefruit Cake

You can get ALL of these iconic treats at the Hollywood Brown Derby in Hollywood Studios still! And, now they’re even better since you know the stories behind them!!

Fashion Icons, Adrian and Edith!

While you can easily spot Adrian and Edith’s Head to Toe shop in the park, you might not know that the names on the store are actual Hollywood costume designers’ names. Adrian Greenburg (who just went by “Adrian“) was best known for creating the costumes in The Wizard of Oz (including the famous Ruby Slippers!), which was referenced in the late Great Movie Ride (we miss you).

Adrian and Edith’s Head to Toe

Edith Head, on the other hand, received the most Academy Awards ever (8!!) for costume design (out of 35 nominations!!). Although you might recognize her work in Roman Holiday, Rear Window, and more, Edith is better known to the Disney community as the inspiration behind Edna Mode in The Incredibles.

You might recognize her signature black bob and round glasses on top of that acute sense for FASHION, dahling!

Edna Mode

And sorry Edna, but Edith Head TOTALLY used capes in her designs (and LOADS of shoulder pads!). ?

Carthay Circle

Alright, Disney trivia buffs! This one’s for you! The Carthay Circle might be one of the most famous theaters in Los Angeles, but it was also the home to the premiere of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937.

In honor of the place that showed Walt’s first feature film, both Disneyland and Disney World have their own version of the theater as a nod to Walt.

Once Upon a Time (and the Carthay Circle Building!)

While Disneyland has a restaurant version in Disney California Adventure, Disney World has a store in Hollywood Studios instead! We think it’s kind of a Disney pilgrimage to visit both spots on the coasts, don’t you??

Can You Find A113?

While we are all big fans of the “2319” situation in Monsters, Inc. (it even got its own ice cream cone last year in Disney World!), the filmmakers at Pixar actually hide the sequence “A113” in all of their movies.

What’s the significance of this, you ask? Well, A113 (actually, A1-13) happens to be the number of the Cal Arts’ classroom where the original Pixar artists and animators studied (Tim Burton and many others also graced room A1-13 around that time!).

Toy Story Land

You can actually spot the numbers A113 if you look REAL close in Toy Story Land! Outside of Woody’s Lunch Box, you can see some dominoes and blocks in a grass strip. The dominoes have a 1, 1, and a 3, while the letter A is the only one visible on the building blocks!

Woody’s Lunch Box area

You can visit A113 in real life without having to travel to Cal Arts! ?

A Net Full of Jello??

Muppet Vision 3-D is FILLED with wacky tidbits and little details that are super fun to find. However, one of the most unique (and well-thought-out) puns in the ride is something that most people don’t realize is a joke.

In the waiting area before you enter the theater, look up and you will see a net full of green and orange jello hanging from the ceiling.

Muppet Vision 3-D

While this might seem super random and weird (perfect for the Muppets), it’s actually a play on words! If you put them together or say them quickly, it’s “Anet Fullofjello…” OR “Annette Funicello,” who is the most famous Mouseketeer of them all! Whoever thought of that one is a GENIUS.

You Could Have STAYED in the Tower of Terror?!

Okay, so we’re still holding up for this dream somehow and some way…but, when the Tower of Terror started to get built, Michael Eisner (who was the CEO at the time) thought it would be cool to have rooms built into the attraction! Ummm, excuse us?? 

Tower of Terror Sign

That means, if things had turned out a little differently for the Hollywood Tower Hotel, you could have had a spooky night sleeping in The Twilight Zone-themed resort (maybe we would have had to take the stairs?).

Tower of Terror

However AWESOME that may seem, it would have literally been a nightmare to try and work out the logistics of guests staying inside the resort at night. Instead, they scrapped the Haunted Hotel idea and they just kept the Tower of Terror as an attraction.

A Tale (Er, Show) as Old as Time

When Beauty and the Beast was released in theaters on November 22nd, 1991, the live stage show in Hollywood Studios also debuted in the park on the same day! It was meant to get guests even more excited for the movie. And, it obviously did its job!

People fell so in love with the stage show (and the film) that it’s stuck around in Hollywood Studios for almost THREE decades!

©Disney

It’s still a fun way to pass the time in the park whether you’re looking for fun entertainment or a way to get out of the heat for a short bit of time. Plus, who doesn’t love singing along to “Be Our Guest??”

An Entire PLANET Full of Star Wars Easter Eggs

Honestly, there are so many details in Galaxy’s Edge, it would take HOURS for us to point them all out to you around Batuu! Some of our favorites happen to be the Dionaga (or trash compactor monster) in the water fountain

Regular water fountains?

Dianoga’s Lurk!

Queen Amidala’s head wrap and the Mandalorian’s helmet in Dok Ondar’s

Mandalorian Helmet

And of course, we can’t forget our old trusty StarSpeeder 3000 pilot from the OG Star Tours, R-3X! Did you know this little droid has always been voiced by Pee Wee Herman, Paul Reubens?!

DJ R3X

He’s one of the more obvious Easter Eggs in Galaxy’s Edge, having retired from piloting (he was replaced by C-3PO on the current Star Tours) and taking up DJing over in Oga’s Cantina. “Light speed to Endor!

Although Hollywood Studios may be three decades old, it’s still as timeless as ever! We can’t help but feel like the park always deserves a “HOORAY FOR HOLLYWOOD!” from us! ?

What are some of your favorite hidden gems in Hollywood Studios? Let us know in the comments below!

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: disney dining tips, Disney Entertainment, disney parks, disney’s hollywood studios, Featured, Walt Disney World, a net full of jello, a113, adrian and edith’s head to toe, annette funicello, beauty and the beast- live on stage, carthay circle, Cobb Salad, crossroads of the world, dionaga, Disney, disney dining, disney news, disney restaurants, Disney World, dockside diner, Dok Ondar’s, Galaxy’s Edge, Grapefruit Cake, Hollywood Brown Derby, Hollywood Studios, hollywood tower hotel, muppets vision 3-D, queen amidala’s head wrap, shirley temple, smugglers run, Star Wars Land, the mandalorian helmet, tower of terror, Toy Story Land

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Disney Parks Other

10 Things That Are Surprisingly SCARY in Disney World…

Disney World is the Most Magical Place on Earth! But, did you know that it can be one of the Scariest Places on Earth, too?? (Dun dun DUN!)

Cinderella Castle at Night

Although Disney creates SO much magic for guests of all ages, there are a few things in the parks that might creep you out when you’re visiting.

It doesn’t matter how old you are — these 10 things could scare anybody that dares to visit Disney World.

Meeting Kylo Ren

The moment you get to hug a Disney character and say hello is SO magical (and we miss it a LOT). And although many of the meet-and-greets in the park are super friendly, Kylo Ren is basically…the exact opposite.

Kylo Ren and Stormtroopers

Yeah, we get it — he’s a Dark Side villain and all. But, he’s a little terrifying since he just circles around you and gets up in your face. His voice is modulated and ominous, and he’s not exactly “huggable.” Plus, you can’t see anybody underneath all the black capes and Kylo’s iconic mask (so don’t expect any smiles, folks!).

Kylo Ren

Although he may look sinister, the actual dialogue he says is also pretty unnerving, too, like, he “will be the cause of destruction,” and he “senses the Dark Side within you.” YIKES.

However, while Kylo Ren can totally give you the creeps, he’s surprisingly sweet with your little ones.

A little Stormtrooper meets his character counterpart!

So, don’t be too afraid to bring them to meet one of the big baddies from Star Wars! But don’t say we didn’t warn you!

Navigating Your Way Through Crowds After Fireworks

Whether you’ve experienced this or not, trust us — the moment everyone is trying to exit the park after fireworks is one of the scariest parts of your Disney vacation. Especially on those crazy busy days!

While you’re hanging onto your party members’ backpacks, trying to see the exit over the sea of people, keeping your hands on any of your kids trying to go rogue in the crowds, and making sure you don’t trip over anyone, it can feel like you’re in an actual nightmare.

Fireworks Crowds

However, if you’re not in a rush to get back to your resort or leave Magic Kingdom at the end of the night, we recommend swinging back in the gift shops to wait for the streets to clear a bit. Or, you can even skip the fireworks and hop on some rides with shorter wait times instead (if you catch them before the park closes for the night!).

Magic Kingdom Crowds

We promise, waiting a bit for the sea of humanity to thin out will mean a more stress-free escape, less waiting for transportation, and an overall better experience (plus you can grab some pics of a near-empty Main Street, U.S.A.!).

No matter what you choose to do, we can still say that the relief of finally exiting the parks and being free of all that uncomfortable squished person-to-person contact is REAL.

Losing Members in Your Party

It can also be a pretty scary moment if you lose someone in the parks. While we are luckily living in the age of technology, sometimes your phone runs out of battery from all those snack photos, and you can’t contact your family or friends (we recommend grabbing a FuelRod for these times!). Or even worse — maybe you lost your child!

The Fountain is a Great Meeting Spot!

In a place as big as Disney World, it’s full-on freak-out time when you lose your kid. However, if you let a Cast Member know what happened, they are well-versed in finding little ones.

Walt Disney World Cast Members

Since it’s hard to set a meeting spot with young kiddos, let your children know to go to a Cast Member if they get lost. Tell them to look for the nice people with oval name tags and inform them that they’re lost.

Cast Member

We promise if this happens it’s WAY more nerve-wracking for you than it is for your kid (we’ve BEEN THERE! Cast Members are incredible at keeping your kiddos calm!), but trust that this happens more than you might realize and Disney World has a system in place to deal with it.

Your child will be taken to the Baby Care Center in the park if they’re under 10, and if older, they’ll be taken to Guest Relations to wait for you. You should be reunited with your child in no time. That said, keep an eye on those kids, Mom and Dad. You’ll be surprised how easily they can get away from you in Disney World!

Claustrophobia, Anxiety, and a Fear of Heights

While Disney World might be the Most Magical Place on Earth, it can also be stressful in certain situations for people who struggle with severe anxiety, get claustrophobic, or even have a fear of heights. Since there are constantly crowds around you, it might be difficult to really get a “breather” in the parks.

Toy Story Land crowds

Plus, some of those rides have very narrow queue line areas or put you in confined spaces for a long timem– not to mention that some of the ride vehicles themselves are pretty tiny (Mission: SPACE, anyone??).

Mission: SPACE

A few rides like the Tower of Terror and Expedition Everest or even the Skyliner Gondolas can also be rough for guests who have a fear of heights. If a member of your party could possibly feel claustrophobic or anxious, make sure to let a Cast Member know and they will help escort you out of the ride.

Tower of Terror

While you’re planning, you may want to keep in mind that rides like the Haunted Mansion, Dinosaur, Peter Pan’s Flight, and Splash Mountain could cause some distress if you happen to have any of these fears as well. Look up what each ride entails, watch a youtube ride-through, and decide before you go if you feel up for riding so you’re not caught off guard in the moment.

DINOSAUR

Disney World was intended to be a happy, enjoyable place — NOT a cause for stress and strife! So if you run into any worries on your vacation just speak to a Cast Member and they’ll do all they can to help you feel comfortable.

Constance Hatchaway

Haunted Mansion is just one of those rides that COULD give you the creeps in general — I mean, it’s a haunted house with ghosts, after all! ? While jump scares in the graveyard and the “huuurrryyyy baaaackkk” dialogue can give you hot and cold running chills, Constance Hatchaway’s story is possibly the creepiest thing about the ride.

Haunted Mansion Graveyard

Once you make your way into the attic, Constance makes it very clear that she decapitated all of her husbands after she married them (anybody else a little surprised that nobody noticed she was a murderess IRL sooner??). And, when she lets you know that she’s looking for her next victim, we SWEAR she’s looking right at us when she says it. YIKES!

Haunted Mansion

This makes us think back to our childhood days of covering our eyes for any frightful scenes in rides. If you’re more than a little unnerved by the murderous bride in her attic, just close those peepers for the few seconds the ride traverses through that scene (but we promise, it isn’t THAT bad! The older bride with no face? THAT was really creepy! ? ).

A VERY Creepy Hidden Ventriloquist Doll

The Tower of Terror is another attraction that has terrifying twists, turns, and killer drops. Although the plot of the Disney themed The Twilight Zone episode is nothing less than eerie, it’s the exit of the ride that creeps us out the most.

Tower of Terror Sign

As you’re leaving the elevator, you can spot the Caesar ventriloquist doll from the show’s episode “Caesar and Me.” In case you haven’t watched it, Caesar is a demonic doll that convinces people to do harmful things. 

Demonic Dummy

Yeah, so it’s on THAT cheery note that you get to go explore the rest of Hollywood Studios after you “drop in” to the Tower of Terror and spot Caesar! ?

(Oh and here’s a fun little piece of info! Tower of Terror cast members believe that if you don’t say hello and goodnight to Caesar each day, bad things will happen!)

Disney Basically Knows Where You Are 24/7

My Disney Experience is a REALLY helpful tool when it comes to vacation planning. You can book FastPasses for rides, keep track of your Advance Dining Reservations, and even check the wait times in the park. But, My Disney Experience also is a teensy bit stalker-ish if you think about it.

Capacity Message pop-up on My Disney Experience

During the times we’ve been in the parks, we’ve received push notifications and pop-ups welcoming us and suggesting activities to do nearby.

Plus, in combination with your MagicBand, if you’ve made FastPass+, dining, or room reservations, Disney practically knows where you’re going to be at all times.

If that majorly creeps you out, you can choose not to share your location with the app or only share it when you’re using My Disney Experience!

My Disney Experience screenshot

While a MagicBand can be incredibly useful while at Disney World, you can also opt to receive a room card in lieu of a MagicBand if you don’t want that full “big brother” vibe while you’re there.

Villains Taking Over Space Mountain

Villains After Hours is a BLAST! It’s one of the few times you get to see all the villains out in the parks. This extra-ticketed event happens on select nights in Magic Kingdom once the park has closed for the night, giving you access to shorter lines, great photo ops, and exclusive treats.

Queen of Hearts Photo Op

But, it wouldn’t be a party without some of those Disney overlays on rides! Although there are some pretty cool spots to check out (we LOVED seeing all the REAL buccaneers out at Pirates of the Caribbean), there are a few that we found to be a little frightening for the villains themed event.

Pirates of the Caribbean

During Villains After Hours, the stars are shut off in Space Mountain and the attraction is in complete darkness. Oh, and did we mention that it comes with a soundtrack of villains laughing and screaming (Yeah, they’re the kind of sounds that keep you up at night.)?

So, if you’re with your kids, you might want to skip the Villains After Hours overlay of Space Mountain if your little ones get scared easily.

Space Mountain

We’ve got to admit, we’re grown-up (kind of) and we STILL found this super scary!!!

Nanny Chairs

If you try to think of the most terrifying thing on earth and then multiply it by two, you’ve got the Nanny Chairs at Disney’s BoardWalk Inn. They’re based on real chairs from 19th-century carousels that nannies used so they could sit down while the kids they watched rode on the horses. But, they’re just terrifying looking with almost evil faces (look at that scary grin!!).

Boardwalk Nanny Chair

And, since Disney likes to pay attention to details, they’re VERY authentic to the original Nanny Chairs you could find on the carousels. You can spot four of the chairs, named Todd, Paul, Alix, and Carrie.

BUT, there are usually only two out by the fireplace in the lobby, so you never know where the other ones are lurking (AKA in our nightmares).

Boardwalk Inn Nanny Chair

In all truthfulness, these are really fun to watch “move” around the resort (Cast Members often move the chairs, so you never know where they’ll end up!). They’re pretty creepy to look at but they’re a fascinating piece of history!

Being Alone at Nighttime

It’s not a super common occurrence to be alone in a Disney Park — after all, there are usually crowds and Cast Members around! However, on an off chance you get to experience this, it can be kind of spooky. It’s that same feeling of “in space, no one can hear you scream,” but in a theme park.

Cinderella Castle

Plus, those moments where you’re waiting for one of the last Disney buses, walking to your car in a nearly empty parking lot, or making your way back to your resort room alone late in the evening can make the hair stand up on the back of your neck.

Main Street, U.S.A.

Like Peter Pan says, just think of the happiest things!! But remember to be safe. Just because it’s Disney World doesn’t mean nothing bad can happen. Stay aware.

There are so many experiences in Disney World that might give you the heebie-jeebies. Disney tries its best to be full of magic and happiness at every turn but sometimes, it’s still easy to get spooked! If you or a party member gets frightened easily, keep these in mind before you plan your next trip!

What are some of the scariest things you’ve experienced in Disney World? Let us know in the comments below!

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Disney Entertainment, disney parks, disney resorts, Featured, Walt Disney World, anxiety, caesar dummy, claustrophobia, Constance Hatchaway, Disney, disney crowds, Disney fireworks, disney news, Disney World, Disney’s Boardwalk Inn, fear of heights, Galaxy’s Edge, Haunted Mansion, Kylo Ren, magic kingdom, My Disney Experience, nanny chairs, seasonal overlays, space mountain, space mountain overlay, Star Wars Land, Star Wars Launch Bay, tower of terror, villains after hours