10. Custom license plates
Image: Disney
The license plates for the trains on Rock 'n' Roller Coaster are all unique, and read "1QKLIMO", "UGOGIRL", "BUHBYE", "2FAST4U" and "H8TRFFC".
9. Broken glasses
Image: CBS
As you walk through the lobby of the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, look out for a pair of glasses with the lenses broken. This is a reference to Time Enough at Last, an episode of The Twilight Zone. The glasses belong to Henry Bemis, played by Burgess Meredith, who loves books, yet is surrounded by those who would prevent him from reading them. When a nuclear war devastates the earth, he suddenly has all the time in the world to read them...but his glasses fall off and shatter, leaving him virtually blind.
8. Travelling light
Image: Disney
Elsewhere in the lobby, notice the luggage (made from genuine alligator skin) and the sofas (replicas of 1930s furniture, created by the original manufacturers).
7. A treasured possession
Look closely at the little girl who appears in several scenes on the Tower of Terror. She's holding a Mickey Mouse doll.
6. Repurposed footage
The footage in the pre-show video for the Tower of Terror, featuring Twilight Zone host Rod Serling, was taken from the episode It's a Good Life. In the episode, Serling says: "This, as you may recognize, is a map of the United States." He also says "Tonight's episode on the Twilight Zone is somewhat unique, and calls for a different kind of introduction."
5. A tribute to Mickey
Image: Disney
In the Echo Library (one of the pre-show areas for the Tower of Terror), sheet music can be seen that is a copy of an actual 1930s tune dubbed "No Mickey Mouse? What kind of party is this?".
4. The devil incarnate
As you board the elevator, look to the left hand-side. There's an inspection certificate, dated October 31, 1939 and signed by "Cadwallader". This was a character in another Twilight Zone episode, Escape Clause, who was eventually revealed to be the devil. The inspection certificate's number is 10259, celebrating the date that the first Twilight Zone episode aired.
3. One small difference
Crossroads of the World is an almost exact replica of the original Crossroads of the World in Los Angeles - known as America's first outdoor shopping mall. The central building is designed to resemble an ocean liner surrounded by a small village of cottage-style bungalows.
Disney's version, of course, adds Mickey Mouse on top...and he doubles as a lightning rod.
2. Just like home
Image: Jennifer Lynn, Flickr (license)
The large gateway that you pass through as you enter Pixar Place is a replica of the gateway at company's studios in Emeryville, California. The bricks used in the area also match the original.
1. A chameleon
Note: The Sorcerer's Hat has now been removed from Disney's Hollywood Studios, but we've left this secret in the list for now for those of you who have visited in the past and seen it. The enormous Sorcerer's Hat is painted using "chameleon paint", a custom technique that causes it to shift in color as guests move closer and around it.
Comments
When I visited Disney's Hollywood Studios (MGM Studios) in May of 1993, I was able to ride the original backlot tour. During the tour we came to a yard full of items from various movies, including the tail section of the plane from the Casablanca scene in the Great Movie Ride. The CM announced that after Disney secured the purchase of the plane, they discovered the serial number matched the very plane used in the Casblanca movie. It's hard to believe that the backlot ride would be responsible for starting a rumor?!?
Looks like #30 needs to rewritten in the past tense. :(