Pop Century

[JeffJewell]

Yes, otherwise known as the Society of Tasteless Misers Who Don't Know the Difference Between Theming and Decorating - of which I appear to be the President

...I definitely wrote you in on _my_ ballot...

Jeff

 

[Another Voice]

It’s “rumored” that the whole concept for the Value resorts grew out of the movie-themed resorts that had been planned to be built near the Disney/MGM Studios way back when. At various times the themes would have been specific movies (‘The Wizard of Oz’, ‘Gone With the Wind’, ‘Dick Tracy’) or they would have been genres: (Musicals, Horror, Sci-Fi, Westerns). You can see where some of the creative lines lead.

I haven’t heard who came up with the Pop Century theme. It sounds like one of those ideas designers get at three in the morning when “it’s good enough” is all they’re after. No one knows about the future of the theme. My guess is that the current management won’t spend the money to change anything. We can only hope the icons rot as fast as the exterior wood paneling at the Grand Floridian and Disney is forced to replace them every two years.

We in Los Angeles have found a solution to our lack of an NFL team. We dislike them all. That way we’re never disappointed by the outcome of a game because a team we hate is bound to lose.

Real palm trees and frozen water do not mix. Obviously, whatever is outside of YoHo’s apartment is a genetic freak, mutated by all that unwholesome rain, ice and snow. Please contact the authorities before it eats any more small pets.

 

[YoHo]

Its convient then that it rarely if ever snows up here.
(I'm not exactly up on a mountain here.) Heck they have a pretty big wine country about 20 minutes from my Apt.

Back on topic.

Another Voice's List of the original Hotel concepts (especially the Genre idea) really intrigued me. I would stay in a resort with those themes.

 

[daannzzz]

I wanted them to do a fifties sci-fi themed All Stars with a "Kronos" building and a "Them " building and a "Tobonga" (From Hell it Came) building and a "Forbidden Planet" building and....

 

[Another Voice]

As I remember, the hotels based on specific movies were to be designed as “sets” from the film. You could have stayed at Tara from ‘Gone With the Wind’ (guess where this concept art was used later…), in the Emerald City from ‘Oz’, etc. The genre hotels would have been done up like a hotel found in one of those kind of movies – the Musical Hotel would have been a posh 5th Avenue classy hotel (think Fred and Ginger dancing down a sweeping staircase into the lobby), the Western would have been a Denver gold-strike hotel (think Titanic with cowboy boots), Sci-Fi would have been a retro-50’s “spaceport” hotel (find pictures of the Theme Building Restaurant at Los Angeles International Airport, designed by WDI). The resorts would have been what’s now called Moderate and each would have had the same level of themeing as the Resort Formally Known as Dixie Landings.

Yea, WDI came up with some really clever concepts to take advantage of the license from MGM. These all were rejected as too expensive and the projects were killed.

 

[d-r]

Today I had a thought along the lines of "If they keep postponing building the pop century, the 20th century will be so long ago that nobody will care." It would be like making an 19th century hotel with giant steam engines and cotton gins (wait, maybe that was dixie landings).

I think that the idea of the pop century was an excuse to sneak in more giant movie-related icons, because people loved all star movies the most of the all stars. Originally, the idea I heard was for giant icons of fads and slogans and MOVIES from each decade (e.g., the sixties would have the jungle book). So I thought that they were using the hoopla of the millinium to sneak in another all stars movies. But then from I saw of it driving past a few weeks ago didn't really deliver there.
<h1>Platform Shoes!</h1>
<italic><h1>Groovy!</h1></italic>

Anyway, we are enough past all the millinium stuff that it doesn't really make much sense any more, and it seems to me like this is a theme that won't hold up to time ("oh, man, I've got to stay in the 1940's. I wish I could have at least gotten the 1950's, but it is better than the 1930's").

My wife just said "as ugly as that was from the outside, I can't imagine how bad it would be on the inside."

DR

 

[airlarry!]

I nominate the LAX bar designer...Eddie Soto...as the guy who could pull off The Great Drain Robbery. First, to raise the money in this Disney-is-strapped-for-cash era, auction off spots in the wrecking ball crew. Heck, there are some on this board that would strap themselves to a D-9 as it rumbles across the wooden frames.

Then, let Eddie & his crew design the 'new' value hotels. I *love* the movie set theme!

 

[vickyBaby]

There is no right or wrong answer here. If you are used to staying in the Ritz Carlton or a Marriott -- you might find the All Stars lacking. If you are comfortable in a Red Roof Inn or Super 8 - you will be more than satisfied here.

I have no problem with the rooms at All Stars. My husband hates the place. He travels for business and is accustomed to certain items in a hotel (room service, valet parking). I don't like the food options. After two days of theme park and the all star food court food, I'm ready to go nuts! Yes, I can take a bus to somewhere else, but why should I have to? I want "non fast food" choices readily available.