45 - Holiday Potluck

Welcome to Episode 45 of the RetroWDW Podcast: "Holiday Potluck" - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows.

Corrections

1. Todd gets everybody up to speed regarding the Tailor / Taylor Ham discussions and research. If you have listened to our previous episodes, this shouldn't be totally random for you.
2. We had a listener write in, regarding a live band for Mickey's Birthdayland. How recalls this and also potentially knew somebody who was involved in the show.
3. Another listener wrote in, regarding an SNL skit where 20,000 leagues kept popping up, throughout the sketch. Sounds pretty funny -if you have a link, please share it with us. 

Listener Mail

1. Our first message is from one of our newest binge listeners. Jacob's first visit was earlier than our era, but he has really enjoyed catching up with all the history shared. 
2. This next message is from a fan and also a Lake & Lagoon Tour participant. Dan wants to know all about the Fort Wilderness Arcade, which is back behind Crockett's Tavern & Trails End Buffet. He is curious about the two levels, if it has always been for an arcade and even why... We weren't totally sure, but maybe a listener or former cast member can chime in. 
3. Our friend Reese wrote in regarding a sentence or wording on the Progress City display, while riding the Peoplemover. Todd did some investigating and so did a few others, so we are going to dig into this a bit more, but we have some information for you right now.
4. Keith Beaulie has been doing an amazing job, transcribing our episodes into a legible and functional set of documents. We wanted to give him a shout out and also tell him thank you for taking the time to get this going. The automatic systems just weren't cutting it, but Keith has really done an amazing job.
5. Finally, Alan Bowers wrote in to ask why Florida was actually chosen for Walt Disney World. Brian & How go through some of the major reasons and also break down why other locations were not utilized. 

Thank you for all the emails, tweets and comments you have sent our way. We try to respond to almost everything and do our best to pick unique questions for the show. 

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Map News

For our latest event, we put together a really special giveaway. This one-of-a-kind collectors map is truly amazing and you really need to get one for your home or office. The details Jason drew, the small Easter eggs - it is just insane. If you would like your own, please visit our 'Donate' page - the entire donation is tax deductible and you will get this amazing work of art. Be sure to share where you end up hanging your posters and show us those custom frame jobs!

Audio Rewind

Our audio rewind this month turned out to be background music from The Germany Pavilion in EPCOT Center!  The winner is Ryan/Katie Welsh, winning the 1992 Burger King Calendar. Great job and thanks for playing along to everybody!

If you think you know the answer to this month's audio rewind, email us! contest@retrowdw.com - This month the winner will receive one of the Lake & Lagoon Vacation Kingdom
All entries due 1/10/2019 and a random winner will be selected.

Prize Pot

Prize Pot #2 has begun! Each month, we add a vintage or classic item to the pot. The winner will be announced in December and they get it all. Follow along as we add items and remember, each entry/guess of the audio rewind gets you an entry for the prize pot. Thanks for playing along!

2018 Prize Pot #2 Contents

• WDW Resort Pocket Sewing Kit (See It)
• The Official Album of WDW/Disneyland on vinyl, sealed! 
• 2018 D23 Gold Member Kit - Featuring Mickey's 90th Birthday (see it & its contents)
• Disney News collection from the 1990s
• Numbered & Signed Vacation Kingdom Lake/Lagoon Poster

We used the "Phone-A-Friend" from Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, to call JT's sister. She is stationed live, inside The Land Pavilion, to have a random person pick a number. This number correlates with over 500 guesses and emails for the second half of 2018. The winner of the 2018 Prize Pot Par #2 is...... Paul Zimmerman! 

Main Topic

Magic of Christmas at Walt Disney World - 1991

Starting us off, Brian takes us through this vintage VHS. This was sold alongside the other VHS tapes - A Day at The Magic Kingdom, A Day at EPCOT Center, and A Day at Disney MGM Studios. We discuss how Santa takes us on a journey, throughout the resort, about what is done for Christmas at WDW. There are some hidden gems in this video that have not really been seen too often. This will be a fun watch around the holidays, so be sure to check it out. 

1994 Holiday Trip

Next up, Todd shares a very unique gallery from his grandparents, when they visited in November of 1994. We see lots of great holiday photos, new Tomorrowland under construction, the amazingly classic 90s Grand Floridian rooms and so much more. Be sure to take note of the sleigh photo-op on Center Street! These have that great 90s look, color and focus, which we discuss why... Hope you enjoy these!

New Year's Eve Every Night!

Finally, How takes us to our favorite night out at Pleasure Island! We go through a small history of the park and then into how the original idea was scrapped. New Year's Eve, every single night became a huge deal and also had a nightly countdown. The entire park had many changes throughout the years, which we discuss and also look into some of the clubs. Don't forget - time this section up right to do a vintage/retro countdown on New Year's! Hope you enjoy this look at Pleasure Island! 

Episode Gallery

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Be sure to check out our previous Christmas podcast episodes too:

• Episode 14 - Christmas Around The World
• Episode 35 - Christmas Around The World - Part II

RetroWDW Merchandise

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Next Month

• Join us next year, for our first episode of 2019! We want to thank you for listening all year, joining us on our tours and also thank you for any merchandise you purchased or donations you made. Have a wonderful Christmas and New Year's!