196. Skipper Ben Rebstock on the Second Era for Disney/MGM Studios

Skipper Ben Rebstock joins the Tomorrow Society Podcast to talk about the second era of the Disney/MGM Studios, including Star Tours.

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Disney’s Hollywood Studios has become a popular theme park due to headliners like Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, Slinky Dog Dash, and Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway. Most of us remember its early days as the Disney/MGM Studios, but we typically focus on classics like the Great Movie Ride and Studio Backlot Tour. What about the second era as the park slowly evolved into what it is today?

Skipper Ben Rebstock of the Marty Called podcast returns to the Tomorrow Society Podcast to talk about rides and shows from the middle era in the Studios’ history. He worked at the park on Muppet Vision 3D and has enjoyed attractions from every time period during the past 34 years. We dive into standout rides like Star Tours alongside forgotten shows like Here Comes the Muppets!.

There have been a lot of strange rides and shows (especially) at the park during the past three decades. This includes Dick Tracy Diamond Double Cross, which played at the Theater of the Stars for less than a year. That was part of the push to promote that big-budget film, which fell short of box-office expectations. We also talk about long-running shows like the Voyage of the Little Mermaid and Lights! Motors! Action! that are remembered more clearly than some of the short-lived presentations. Ben also talks about his recent California trip and gives his thoughts on Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Hollywood and Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure.