A couple of decades before plans for Ariel's Undersea Adventure arose, Tony Baxter and his team were hard at working creating the Fantasyland Walt Disney always envisioned for his original park. These concepts for the Mad Tea Party and a revised Dumbo, the Flying Elephant, were just a small part of how the land would look upon completion.
Money was tight back in 1954 and 1955, and Walt had to sacrifice, with his high flying Tomorrowland and Fantasyland taking the biggest hit. Almost 30 years later, Fantasyland became most like what was first envisioned: a small European flavored village surrounding the castle instead of the tournament tents that were there at opening day.
The revisioned Fantasyland became such a success that Disneyland Paris' version was modeled on this plan, although enlarged and enhanced to near perfection. Should the Magic Kingdom's redo become a smash, it could become the new standard for future Disneyland styled parks. Odds look pretty good- once the thing is truly announced and we can see it for ourselves!
(Art copyright The Walt Disney Company.)
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