4. Walt Disney’s passing changed everything

Walt had many aspects of EPCOT prepared before his death. For example, in exchange for putting the Magic Kingdom theme park in Florida, EPCOT would operate almost completely autonomously from the state. But after Walt died, The Walt Disney Company became skittish about running a city without his guidance. They didn’t want to dash the business’ founder’s last dream, though, so they eventually decided to adapt EPCOT to be a theme park.

5. The Imagineers weren’t sure what direction to take EPCOT Center

Image: Disney

There was some conflict among the Imagineers concerning EPCOT Center. Some wanted it to represent the cutting edge of technology; others insisted that it showcase international customs and cultures. Ultimately, it became a little bit of both. It was named EPCOT Center because it was to represent the spirit of the unmade city.

6. EPCOT CENTER was a gigantic project.

It took three years to build EPCOT Center and it cost somewhere between $800 million and $1.4 billion to construct. At that time, it was the single largest construction project in the world.

Before its opening on October 1, 1982, Walt Disney World Ambassador Genie Field introduced E. Cordon Walker. Walker, Disney’s chairman and CEO at the time, gave the dedication for EPCOT. It read:

To all who come to this place of joy, hope of enterprise and concepts of a future that promises new and exciting benefits for all. May EPCOT Center entertain, inform and inspire and above all, may it instill a new sense of belief and pride in man's ability to shape a world that offers hope to people everywhere in the world.

Today's Epcot isn’t and will probably never will be the Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow, but its history is one of the things that make it such an interesting theme park. It should be a constant reminder to us of Walt Disney’s vision that was so ahead of its time that we’ve yet to reach something comparable to EPCOT almost fifty years later.

Do you think the theme park lived up to the dreams of Walt Disney and/or the dedication from E. Cordon Walker? Share your thoughts in the comments below.