Long before Star Tours made its debut at Disneyland, the deepest, darkest, most mysterious attraction to be found at the brand new Tomorrowland 1967 was a corporate sponsored presentation, Adventure Thru Inner Space. The Monsanto company was on the leading edge of bringing science into everyday life making them a great choice for sponsorship.
Notice the Peoplemover overhead
and the same general building shape as the current Star Tours.
Due to the fact it was at the entrance to Tomorrowland, crowds were instantly drawn to it. Peeking inside the building, the display of a larger than life snowflake made for a compelling piece of eye candy, while the giant microscope at the end of the queue seemed to devour guests.
Actually, it really did devour guests! The reason Inner Space had great numbers of riders was due to its innovative, continuously moving vehicles. Guests journeyed into the world of a snowflake in the Atommobile, the first use of the Omnimover, a vehicle designed by Disney Imagineers. It not only kept the crowds moving, it was also used to direct the sightless of visitors as the car itself turned to specific show scenes.
Nice piece of WED concept art.
This thrilling journey into the world of an atom was a fan favorite for a variety of reasons- including the opportunity to travel with the one you loved to a cool, dark, and relatively private place. All under the view of the Mighty Microscope, of course!
The actual ending of the attraction is shown in the top rendering. On the right side, drops of oil flowed down hundreds of strands of Monsanto fibers creating a striking piece of art. Smaller exhibits surrounded guests exiting the attraction in an area much smaller than but similar to EPCOT Center's Communicore / Inventions.
Crowds packed out Inner Space for about 15 years. By then, it seemed to be time for a change. Disney Imagineers and George Lucas joined together to bring the Star Wars universe to Disney. It was the end of the beloved attraction.
(Art copyright The Walt Disney Company.)
