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Nigel2
09-03-2001, 02:08 PM
I apologize in advance if this topic has been done.
Is it just me or have a bunch of attractions cut down on their effects? Could some have been from the power crisis, like the lights being out behing the casket in HM, and the crowd at the auction being quieter in PoTC? But one thing I have also noticed is that on Jungle Cruise they no longer fire guns, I keep forgeting to pay attention to see if they even still have guns but thats besides the point. But it is still funny to listen to their hippo spiels instead of the guns. Any other attractions that seem a little differenet?

JRob2k1
09-03-2001, 02:19 PM
The hippos were a case of Political-correctness or whatever you want to call it.

It's un-ethical to shoot at robotic hippos...I don't know how many times my mom told me this when I was younger!!

The hippo/gun situation is just ridiculous and absurd! If I was on a real "jungle cruise" i would want a gun to shoot animals that were attacking me, (Remember, the whole point of the guns was because the hippos were attacking) no matter how funny my guide was...

*sigh*

As for those other effects, probably just went out and cant be replaced until the next major re-hab. If it isn't important to the attractions daily operation, then the effect will just sit there until the next rehab.

*sigh*

-JRob

rexfarms
09-03-2001, 04:17 PM
*sigh*. . . . . . . . . .

Mr D
09-03-2001, 04:26 PM
Thats correct about JC removing the part of the CM's shooting blanks, Disney was concerned about the problems of guns in the media, as for the rifles in the fort on Tom Sawyer Island it was shortly after a child lost part of (her?) finger in the triggerguard that they were removed. I also believe that no more guns of any type are sold in Frontierland but that some plastic rayguns are still available in TL. I wonder if this is only in the US Disney parks.

Lost Boy
09-03-2001, 05:42 PM
I was at the Park yesterday with a whole group of people to say goodbye to the Country Bears. I rode the Haunted Mansion in the morning and the Mansion looks and sounds great. They are already fixing up the inside for the Nightmare Before Christmas Makeover. At this point there are many candles added to the load area hallway, the glass in the ballroom has been cleaned, the scrims in the graveyard have been cleaned, extra lighting effects for fog effects are on and look great in the graveyard (The light is on in the casket that the guy is trying to get out of) and the overall light level was down so low it was just perfect. I can hardly wait for the new show to go in for the Chrismas Season. And for those of you who haven't been following the Nightmare makeover, it is at Disneyland only. The Mansion will close for the makeover on Sept 7th and reopen Octover 5th. The show will run from Oct 5th thru End of year, then the original Mansion attraction will return.

Bill Catherall
09-03-2001, 06:57 PM
Last time I was on Jungle Cruise (just over a year ago) they used the guns, but they didn't shoot at the hippos. They shot up in the air to "scare" the hippos away. Why did they have to stop using the guns all together?

"No robot hippos were injured in the making of this attraction."

Cadaverous Pallor
09-03-2001, 07:35 PM
I asked our Jungle Cruise captain about the guns a couple months ago when we noticed they were gone. He said that the old guns were REAL guns with blanks put in them. If any one had put a real bullet in them they would be just as dangerous as any gun. Disney decided to take the guns out completely, rather than replace them with fake cap guns. Another cheap solution.

It's too bad. A couple of kids sat next to us on that cruise. As soon as the older kid saw the hippo pool coming up, he told the other one to cover their ears....they both sat there anticipating a gunshot that would never come. The older kid seemed puzzled, saying to himself "I remember there being a gun before..." Looks like this will turn into one of those things in the back of people's minds 20 years from now, where they could've SWORN there was a gunshot in the spiel.....

Mr D
09-03-2001, 08:11 PM
There is an article in the sept. 3rd edition about the hippos being safe now at DL at the LA Times newspaper.

Nigel2
09-03-2001, 09:23 PM
No not in the coffin, behind the coffin. Or am I crazy again and there were never any lights on behind him, yet that is supposed to be facing "outside" but the glass is frosted or something like that. Also I saw on tv a newstory on the guns being gone for good, along with guns forsale in Frontierland. But irronically they are still keeping the shooting gallery. We should go there and when we get to the hippo pool yell bang really really loud. If I rember correctly (in Mouse Tails) werent the guns also a crude emergency signal?

Disney Princess
09-04-2001, 10:50 AM
About the Jungle guns--

While they WERE real Smith and Wesson guns, they were modified to prevent real bullets from possibly being discharged. As a result, they were only able to discharge blanks. Also, security on these guns was very high, since apparently if one knew guns well, one could disable the modification.

So the real reason they were taken away WAS the political correctness/endangered species argument, with the side that parents tended to complain of the loud noise scaring their children, or the idea of the guns in general being offensive.

I have noticed many people talking to the skippers as they leave asking what happened to the guns. If you want to see the guns come back, COMPLAIN TO CITY HALL. The guns were taken away earlier in the ride's history, but were brought back by popular demand.

Just thought I'd set the record straight.... ;)


Disney Princess


A Skipper entering the Hippo Pool: I'd like to take a moment of silence now for our dear departed friends, Mr. Smith and Mr. Wesson. They were high-caliber individuals, barrels full of laughs, but sadly they were fired (automatically) for coming to work fully loaded. We will not see through the scope of their discharge for years to come.

Disney Princess
09-04-2001, 10:54 AM
Oh, and yes, the guns were used as signals in emergencies. That's why if you're ever around the Jungle Cruise when it goes down, listen to the announcements they make in the Jungle. You'll hear terms like 3-shot or 6-shot, refering to the amount of shots they used to fire in each type of emergency (like a stalled engine).

Disney Princess

Nigel2
09-04-2001, 11:32 AM
Yeah, hmmm mabey "we" (whoever is in the group meetings should go there every sunday as a whole to complain/coment to city hall about the guns, they might be brought back since it worked in the past. Or just bring guns, im sure they wont mind.:D

Nigel2
09-04-2001, 12:12 PM
I just thought of another effect that went AWOL. The Burning House on the RoA, it has been out for proably a year (watch its been relit while I type this).

HBTiggerFan
09-04-2001, 07:02 PM
The report on the news (NBC4, Los Angeles) was the guns were taken out cause Animal Rights Activists were pitching a fit about the guns shooting the hippos. I could have sworn they were taken out because of the accident in Fronteirland on the fort a few months back.

rexfarms
09-04-2001, 07:11 PM
Originally posted by HB Tigger Fan
The report on the news (NBC4, Los Angeles) was the guns were taken out cause Animal Rights Activists were pitching a fit about the guns shooting the hippos. I could have sworn they were taken out because of the accident in Fronteirland on the fort a few months back.

I am an Animal Rights Activist and a veggie, and I dont care I liked it. Its a freakin' robot hippo. And if a hippo that size was chargin' me and I had a gun, I wouldnt question using it! I dont see what the big deal is.....:mad: well I'll get off my soap box now! Sorry I had to vent! lol

thamnarestan
09-04-2001, 07:39 PM
I'm sure that political correctness had something to do with it, but the real reason they are no longer a part of the Jungle Cruise attraction is that they were dangerous, despite their modifications.

They were real guns, and if one were fired at close range it really could have hurt someone. There was always a worry that a child would pick up the gun and misuse it. Blanks can really hurt someone.

It's sad, though, that they had to go. I don't think the risk of misuse was really that high, at least not high enough to justify removing them from the attraction. Management disagrees.

mrfantasmic
09-04-2001, 07:59 PM
Rats! That was one of the things you could hear outside the park!

marron-cream
09-04-2001, 11:25 PM
Originally posted by Mr D
I also believe that no more guns of any type are sold in Frontierland but that some plastic rayguns are still available in TL. I wonder if this is only in the US Disney parks.

That's mainly due to the new CA law that says all toy guns have to be either bright green or bright orange. That way it's completely idiot proof.

Out of state guests who come into Pieces of Eight for the pirate guns end up crying from laughter. Californians are so wacky!

thamnarestan
09-04-2001, 11:31 PM
Gosh, that CA law about toy guns is so ridiculous!

As far as the PC issue goes, I don't think it's the shooting at hippos that's PI, it's the guns themselves. Nobody really listens to the eco-freaks seriously enough to make their beliefs political correctness standards.