Theme Parks

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P1050668Own a piece of history! You can now buy the actual flying cow from the finale scene of Twister... Ride it Out at Universal Studios Florida. The cow, along with the flying Dororthy III from the end scene, are on sale at the newly opened Williams of Hollywood Prop Shop inside Universal Studios. You can own the high-wire cow for just a measly $4,999.99! That's all. The Dorothy III is a steal at only $2,999.99. That is, if they haven't been sold yet. These pictures were taken yesterday, Saturday January 9th. So hurry up! I also got some new pictures of the future home of Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon. See all the images below and stay tuned for more theme park updates all this week!

We got cows!
We got cows!
Third times the charm
Third times the charm

More prop images and Jimmy Fallon construction update below. ...continue reading →

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Main Sequence.Still019bAll of the track pieces for The Incredible Hulk Coaster at Islands of Adventure have been completely removed as the dramatic refurbishment continues. The ride is scheduled to re-open Summer of this year, and the very first pieces of new track supports are just now going up. No word yet on whether or not the track layout will change when the ride comes back, but the ride cars and the coaster's launch system will be coming back new and improved. The queue building is being completely redesigned as well. Rumors of on-board audio for the new cars being added have also been swirling around. See the video and images below for the progress on this rehab, along with comparison pics from before and after the track was removed. Stay tuned for more theme park updates!


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thumbI headed out to Universal's Islands of Adventure on a dark and gloomy December morning to get some new images and video of the construction progress for Skull Island: Reign of Kong. So much has been accomplished since my last update, but I imagine some of the more incredible work has been going on inside the building, beyond those massive gates. According to eye-witnesses, apparently those giant gates have been tested recently and are ready to go. When I came by they were locked open and covered in tarps, but lots of other work was being done: the outdoor ride path and set pieces are coming along nicely, the outdoor and indoor portions of the queue are taking shape, and little flourishes like skulls, spears, and torches have started to appear! Take a look at the images below and watch the video for more. Be sure to share the video and check back soon for more park updates.


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00000.MTS.Still016It has been a little while since I've had a chance to visit the parks, so I took a day to catch up on all the goings on at Universal Studios Florida, and grab some video as well! Since my last visit with a camera, Twister and Disaster have closed and themed construction walls have gone up around their locations where Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon and Fast & Furious Supercharged will be built, respectively. Themed construction walls have gone up around the future site of the Hello Kitty store/experience. This is the first actual confirmation that the new Sanrio themed store will definitely be taking over the former site of Lucy: A Tribute.

00000.MTS.Still045Some other minor work has been going on as well, including some sort of small building being constructed near Despicable Me, behind the main Studio Store. It looks like it might be storage or a permanent refreshment stand, either way, nothing too intriguing. Two new shops have opened in the park recently: the new Williams of Hollywood Prop Shop featuring props from various attractions and stores, and a new year-round Christmas store. And since it's December, the holidays are in full swing at the parks, with garland strung everywhere and large Macy's balloons littering the park. Check out the video for full coverage or the screenshots below for more details! And stay tuned for Kong coverage next week!


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P1050042It's been a few weeks since my last visit to Islands of Adventure and a lot has changed over at the Skull Island construction area. The first thing that caught my eye was a beautifully painted mural on the mountain range backdrop behind the facade. They've already finished the left-side and are continuing on the right, but it is looking incredible. It really sells the perspective, and even features some 2-dimensional brickwork extending the building upwards. Also new, are the two posts above the giant temple gate. These look like the posts used in the earlier King Kong films to tie down the sacrificial human when offering them up to the mighty Kong. The queue building on the right side of the construction zone is coming along nicely, with a rough fort-like roof style and some new covered walkways extending out from the Kong face arch. Check out all the images below for details in this Kong-sized photo update!

Skull Island signs added to the construction walls along with the words, Summer 2016
Skull Island signs added to the construction walls, displaying proudly that it's opening Summer 2016

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P1040991_smallSince my last update the scaffolding has come down around the entry arch showing off a beautifully sculpted Kong face. It hasn't been painted yet, but definitely bares a striking resemblance to the big guy as seen in the concept art. In front of the giant temple gate we're getting our first glimpses of the shape of the outdoor portion of the ride path. A short rock wall wrapping around the path has sprung up, as well as structural I beams being placed below the track path in preparation for concrete being poured. The ride is being rumored as being "trackless," so what we're seeing now is the pathway being constructed where the vehicle will travel outside before entering the show building. See the new video as well as some images below and stay tuned for more updates!


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P1040933The NBC Sports Grill & Brew was first announced back in the beginning of June, seven months after the former NASCAR Cafe closed its doors for good. We're now finally seeing some big action on the site as the structure is starting to really resemble the concept art that's been released. They had hoped to have the new sports themed restaurant and bar open in time for Halloween Horror Nights, as drinking has become a big part of that event and the new venue could be a great gathering place before and after guests enter the park, but it looks like they may just miss it unless they push it into high gear. (The Halloween themed event begins in just a few short weeks.) The NBC Sports Grill & Brew is officially scheduled to open sometime in the Fall of this year.

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Comparison of the current state of construction (left) and concept art of the completed building (right)

The new venue will host 100 HD TV screens throughout the restaurant showing NBC sports programming of all types. There will be several extremely large screens outside of the building, which will be visible from many parts of CityWalk, beckoning customers in with their warm glow. The establishment will offer an extensive menu of more than 75 different items, with favorites like burgers and steaks to custom creations like crab scotch eggs. And, of course, no sports bar is complete without the perfect beer. You’ll be able to select from over 100 different beer varieties, including an exclusive draft you’ll only find there. Check out the construction progress pictures below and stay tuned for more updates! ...continue reading →

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P1040978NBA City at Universal Orlando CityWalk has officially closed and as of this week crew was on site removing items from the interior. Plus, I saw someone from Universal Creative's wrecking crew checking out the site. While NBA may have left Universal, they are opening a brand new "experience" at Disney Springs (formally known as Downtown Disney) at Walt Disney World Resort. The new facility will be several times the size of their CityWalk location and will take over the building currently occupied by DisneyQuest. The indoor video game "theme park" will be closing next year to make way for The NBA Experience.

No word yet on what will be replacing their former CityWalk location. Rumors of its replacement have ranged everywhere from The Cheesecake Factory to Willy Wonka's Candy Factory. Stay tuned for news as it happens. See photos of the closed venue below as well as an official statement from NBA City.

NBA City's doors adorned with a plain piece of paper simply stating "Closed" and another paper with a sad face
NBA City's doors adorned with a piece of paper simply stating "Closed" and another paper with a sad face

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Fast-and-Furious-featured-900x563The rumors can finally be put to rest, Fast & Furious: Supercharged has been officially announced for Universal Studios Florida. To make way for the new thrilling ride, Disaster: A Major Motion Picture Starring You! will close permanently on September 8, 2015, with Beetlejuice Graveyard Revue closing later this year. All indications are that the area will remain themed as San Francisco, which not only will save Universal a lot of money, but will retain the area's existing restaurants and sights, (which is good, considering this is where they chose to move the picture spot of Bruce the shark from Jaws.) This new attraction is slated to open sometime in 2017, the same year Universal's new water park Volcano Bay is scheduled to open.

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The announcement comes just a few months after Fast & Furious: Supercharged opened as part of the tram tour at Universal Studios Hollywood (watch a ride video here). It uses a similar style of technology as Kong 360 where the tram travels through a large corridor of 3D screens while wind and motion base effects help create the illusion of high speed. Currently it is not known how the Florida version will differ, but considering the attraction's name has not changed, and the fact that they're building it on the site of the Disaster ride, it's quite possible that the ride video will remain relatively, (if not entirely) the same. The biggest difference will be the ride vehicle. Perhaps, to save time and money, a modified version of the Disaster (formerly Earthquake) subway tram will be used, as it is a similar shape as the Hollywood tram tour vehicles. Personally I'd like to see something new for the Orlando park, but it's definitely time for Disaster to go away, although I will miss Christopher Walken as Frank Kincaid, you're welcome. Read below for full details about the new attraction and stay tuned for more Universal news! ...continue reading →

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Hulk-blog-900x563Universal Orlando's official blog has just announced that The Incredible Hulk Coaster at Islands of Adventure will undergo major enhancement and refurbishment work beginning September 8th. And it will not re-open until NEXT SUMMER! There had been rumors that the refurb would happen in stages, reopening the ride during peak times of year, such as Christmas and Spring Break, but now it looks like the entire ride will remain closed for the better part of a year.

Universal says the beloved coaster will be getting some TLC in the form of some great, new enhancements to its storyline, ride vehicles and overall experience. Rumors have the entire queue building being completely rebuilt from the ground up, entire sections of track being replaced, and most importantly, hulklaunchthe launch system being upgraded from tires to an electromagnetic (LIM) launch system. This will not only offer a smoother launch, but cost less in maintenance for park operations, without having to replace tires every few weeks. When the Hulk first opened electromagnetic launch systems were not yet up to the task for such a big endeavor, but as time went on the technology has improved, and the time has finally come. I for one am excited to see an updated queue building and improved storyline... Although I may miss the techno-rave party feel in the queue.

See the entire blog release below and stay tuned for more theme park news. ...continue reading →