Wonders of Life & Mission Space Sightings

[HorizonsFan]

I refuse to let the production pay $15,000 for an actor to have his "energy realigned".

I used to work for a crochety old actress/saloon singer/producer who ran a SPT house in North Texas. Someone asked her once, "what do you do to get into character?"
She replied, "Honey, I just put out my cigarette and walk onstage."
Whatever happened to actors like that?

 

[Another Voice]

"Whatever happened to actors like that?"

There's the old story that back when Dustin Hoffman was filming The Marathon Man he stayed up three days in a row and refused to shower or eat so he could "get into" the torture scene he was about to film. The day of the shoot, Lawrence Olivier shows up after a weeklong party about town. Hoffman, trying to impress Olivier, described in brutal detail everything he suffered so he would be "right for the moment". Olivier looked down at Hoffman and said, "My dear boy, why don't you just try acting? It's so much easier."



In much the same way (trying desperately to make a smooth transition) the effort to make the jump from "I saw a guy with blueprints" to "I'm going to buy me a new pair of rose colored glasses" is just plain too hard. There's nothing at all wrong with being optimistic, but it just seems easier to generate that emotion from something substantial.

Disney has been peddling 'Wonders of Life' for several years now. It started right after it became clear MetLife wouldn't renew its sponsorship. 'Life' has a long and sordid history; it's well known that the Big Guy doesn't really like the pavilion's subject matter (apparently all that science stuff is boring). Everyone knows they'd be no problem just gutting the building and starting from scratch, just like they did with the maltreated 'Horizons'. There is nothing that sparks the drive at WDI more than an empty building.

Lot's of really great things can happen, but maybe it's my threshold is higher or I'm just a slimy evil vampire with a heart of black coal, but I can't see people getting worked up because someone walked into a building wearing Khaki Dockers. As for blueprints – I was there when they were actually building the show sets for 'The Incredible Journey Within'. If they can kill a project already under construction, the chances of a sketch making it into the 'Life' pavilion seem somewhat problematic.

 

[Demosthenes]

Originally posted by Another Voice
As for blueprints – I was there when they were actually building the show sets for 'The Incredible Journey Within'. If they can kill a project already under construction, the chances of a sketch making it into the 'Life' pavilion seem somewhat problematic.

Fair enough; but, it doesn't startwith drawings. If people are reviewing prints, there is at least some consideration for change beyond some sort of brainstroming session. Some progress has been made beyond an idea. That does constitute a rumor worth investigating. FWIW, it sounds to me like what is being reviewed is a make-over of a snack stand. That is gardly something worth jumping up and down about in my opinion. But maybe there is something else to this.

 

[raidermatt]

Again, the difference of opinion isn't with the investigation or discussion of the rumor, but with it being used as a genuine reason for optimism.