Disneyland's 46th Birthday and Lincoln Grand Opening
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Interviews - Page 2

Interview the Vice-Chairman and Principal Creative Executive at Walt Disney Imagineering

LaughingPlace.com: Why was Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln changed?

Marty Sklar: Well, we’ve always wanted to follow up on what Walt Disney did in creating this show originally for the New York World’s Fair. And having access to the latest audio and video technology really gave us an opportunity to create something that was brand new and make this a whole new experience like it has ever been before.

LP: I know you worked with Walt. Do you have an personal accounts of Walt’s affinity for Lincoln.

MS: Walt used to - one of the things he did, if you look at some of the film they have of Walt acting out the parts of all the characters of Snow White, for example. Well Walt did that with Lincoln with us. He got up in front of us. We had half a figure. It was all the internal mechanisms of Lincoln and he acted out how Lincoln should - how all his mannerisms and movements should be. And that still sticks in my mind and I remember it very well. It meant a lot to Walt. He actually performed Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address as a schoolboy. You can tell he was inspired by Lincoln as so many of us have been. And to be able to take the most famous speech in American history, the Gettysburg Address, and put it into a situation where guests can get totally immersed in it is really exciting

LP: Might we see this audio technology used in other places?

MS: I think we will use it in other places. We already have used it in Walt Disney World in several instances. It takes a specialized situation. You can’t use it in all shows. But this happens to work really well.

LP: Any specific upcoming uses you can mention?

MS: No, we really don’t. But we are interested. We’re storytellers number one and number two, to be able to take historical topics and bring them alive like this is a great opportunity for us.

LP: Do you think the new technology will bring in people who might otherwise skip Mr. Lincoln.

MS: I think this will be a rebirth for this show. I think school groups and families will hear about this through word of mouth and will come here. And it will be a great piece of entertainment and a great history lesson at the same time.