42 - Communicore West

42 - Communicore West

Author: Lake Buena Vista Historical Society August 17, 2018 Duration: 1:52:47
Corrections & Listener Mail Corrections
  1. The Chapeau Shop on Main Street has come up on the show multiple times, regarding the old time phone. We recently received word that the phone was broken...So sad. Hopefully it will be back up and working soon. BREAKING: As of 8/15/2018, we have received pictures and tweets of the phone back in working order. Check it out now!
  2. The Contemporary Resort 3rd floor has been investigated! How visited a few weeks ago and gives his take on what is going on with this floor. The catering offices, fitness center and a few other things are discussed.
  3. Another 3rd floor comes up, this time from the Canada Pavilion in Epcot. How gives us some information on what is going on here and where to locate this area.
Listener Mail
  1. Kylee writes in about the various products we have promoted. She has purchased so many of them and we thank you for your support!
  2. Diane wrote us about how she listens, keeps a running list and then refers to it during each trip. Such a neat idea to keep track of the things you want to see.
  3. Eric Jacobson brought up his neighbor restoring a small scale, sugar plantation railroad in his yard. This led to some discussion regarding regional railroads, terminology and other train facts. Very cool!
  4. Mike was our next email, discussing a WDW model in the post-show room of the Walt Disney story at the Magic Kingdom. How gets into this one, as he knows the model. This was for Disneyland and we get into what was included on this particular model.

Thank you for all the emails, tweets and comments you have sent our way. We try to respond to almost everything and do our best to pick unique questions for the show. 

Audio Rewind

Our audio rewind this month turned out to be The Adventureland Background Music! The winner is Rachel Dunlop, winning a copy of The EPCOT Explorers Encyclopedia. Great job and thanks for playing along to everybody!

If you think you know the answer to this month's audio rewind, email us! podcast@retrowdw.com - This month the winner will receive a 1993 souvenir brochure from The World of Motion.

All entries due 9/17/2018 and a random winner will be selected. Even if you don't win, you will gain an entry into the Second 2018 Prize Pot!

Prize Pot

Prize Pot #2 has begun! Each month, we add a vintage or classic item to the pot. The winner will be announced in December and they get it all. Follow along as we add items and remember, each entry/guess of the audio rewind gets you an entry for the prize pot. Thanks for playing along!

2018 Prize Pot #2 Contents

  • WDW Resort Pocket Sewing Kit (See It)
  • The Official Album of WDW/Disneyland on vinyl, sealed! 

Christopher Smith Contest The winner of the Christoper Smith book is John Tierney! John guessed The Asian Resort, which was the correct answer. Let us know which book you would like to be sent.  Huge thanks to Chris for joining us and thank you for all the trivia guesses.

Main Topic Communicore West

We are finally back with a full episode! After some interviews, mini-episodes and an event announcement, we felt we owed you a solid EPCOT Center attraction. A little while back, we dedicated some time to Communicore East on Episode 38. This month, we veer right (If you are going through the main entrance) and take you to Communicore West. Todd gets us started with some information on Earth Station and where it was originally planned for. The Fountain of Information is discussed, which included road signs, neon, and anything connected to communication in a fountain type of sculpture. Touchscreens are brought up frequently, including the super advanced teleconferencing system, Face to Face. This setup allowed guests to look at a cast member who was standing in front of a green-screen; How & Todd lead us in some role playing to see how this all worked. A special guest joins us, Lisa Bastoni, who is the granddaughter of Walter Einsel. We invited Lisa on because her grandfather worked on something very neat: The Age of Information. Lisa was there during the design phase and we get some major insight into how her grandfather was hired and lots of other great stuff. This was an often overlooked exhibit of Communicore, but when you look back at it now the detail and predictions are amazing. Check out Lisa and her music, at www.lisabastoni.com - We have lots more to scan and share from her, so a huge thank you goes to Lisa!

>> See Lisa's "Einsel Theater" video restored here


The Retro Disney World Podcast from the Lake Buena Vista Historical Society is a deep, conversational dive into the layers of history embedded in the Vacation Kingdom. Each monthly episode gathers four hosts with a shared passion for peeling back the contemporary veneer to examine what came before. Their discussions are less about listing facts and more about reconstructing the experience of a place in time, focusing on the architectural choices, attraction designs, and overall atmosphere that defined eras from the ambitious pre-opening plans up through the resort's evolution roughly twenty-five years ago. This isn't just a nostalgia trip; it's a thoughtful look at how the park's physical and imaginative landscapes were built, changed, and live on in collective memory. You'll hear detailed recollections and analysis of spaces that are now closed but whose influence persists, understanding why certain elements resonate so powerfully. The podcast operates at the intersection of cultural study, travel memory, and societal observation, making it a unique resource for anyone who believes the story of a place is found in its details, transitions, and vanished corners. Tune in for a consistently engaging and richly specific exploration of Walt Disney World's past, thoughtfully preserved in audio form.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 138

Retro Disney World Podcast
Podcast Episodes
87 - Hungry for Hollywood [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:16:43
Welcome to Episode 87 of the RetroWDW Podcast: Hungry For Hollywood - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows from over the years…
85 - Mickey Mouse Revue [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:47:07
We take you back to an attraction and for our fans that wanted us to go way back, we are going way back. The Mickey Mouse Revue which opened October 1, 1971 last about nine years closing in the fall of 1980. How is leadi…
84.5 - DVC Feedback [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:03:01
So our last episode, Episode 84: Disney Vacation Club, we dug into the history of the vacation club and the original resort. Throughout this episode, we were able to discuss our personal experiences with DVC and also our…
83.5 - Glowing in Timeless Places [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:39:59
Welcome to Episode 84 of the RetroWDW Podcast Episode 83.5 - Tammy Tuckey - We appreciate your support and hope you have been enjoying each and every episode. Be sure to check out some of our previous shows from over the…
84 - The Disney Vacation Club [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:14:09
For our main topic, we take you back to the late 80s and early 90s and get into the history of the Disney Vacation Club. We all know what the vacation club is nowadays, but how did it start, and why? In this era of Walt…
83 - The Disney Institute [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:06:20
In this episode, we go back to the mid-1980s when Michael Eisner decided to bring The Chautauqua Institution’s blend of enrichment, entertainment, and fun back to Florida with a “uniquely Disney” touch. Originally concei…
82 - Remembering Rolly [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:33:34
Welcome to another episode of the RetroWDW Podcast. We have quite a few things in the works, but we felt it was best to put those aside and focus on a Disney Legend who recently passed, Rolly Crump. If you remember back…
81 - Wonders of Life Part IV - Cranium Command [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:36:27
We are heading back into the golden dome which is known as Wonders of Life. Over the months, we have taken you through many different episodes all about Wonders of Life including: Body Wars/Making of Me, the pavilion and…
80 - Holiday Time at WDW [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:01:12
It’s the most wonderful time of the year again, and the RetroWDW crew is here with another festive holiday episode. Brian takes up back to the Walt Disney World in the early 1990s when the seasonal festivities shifted th…