Winter Terrorland: Tower of Terror Snow!

December 2, 2013 by M. Booley

Sure, the Tower’s been struck by lightning, but has it ever been snowed on?

Yup! While snow is almost unheard of in sunny Florida and California, the Paris and Tokyo parks occasionally offer a wintry version of Disney. The Tower of Terror may be a haunted Hollywood icon, but it isn’t immune to the occasional blizzard.

The Disney And More blog shares a stunning collection of photos from the Paris park after a January snowfall. The Tower of Terror covered in snow is such an unusual sight!

The Paris Tower of Terror seems extra haunting under a layer of snow! Photo credit: Disney And More

Over in Tokyo DisneySea, the old New York style Tower of Terror is stunning with a layer of snow gracing its turn-of-the-century architectural details.

Sarah at A Jubilation! visited Tokyo DisneySea in January – along with 7 centimeters of snow. Read her wonderful recounting of the experience here.

Photo credit: A Jubilation!

It seems that Disney does not automatically shut its parks down on account of snow, although it may close down early.

Filed Under: Trivia Tagged With: architecture, exterior, Paris, photos, snow, Tower of Terror, trivia, winter

Tower of Terror On Ride Photo Souvenir Frames

November 21, 2013 by M. Booley

If you’ve ever bought one of those pricey on-ride photo souvenirs you might recall the paper frame your photo came in. Somewhat clumsy to put together and all too easy to pop the photo out of, these keepsakes often featured some wonderful artwork unique to the frame design. Scans and photos of these souvenir photo frames are rather difficult to come by now that everything’s going digital. This gallery of the Tower of Terror on ride photo souvenir frames seeks to preserve the frames and their artwork.

1990’s

Guests who purchased the on ride photo in the Tower’s early years got this souvenir photo frame. These are wonderfully detailed artworks from before the Photoshop era; they look like they might’ve been painted in soft pastel and maybe some colored pencil. (I wish I knew who the artist was.)

These two 1990s photo frames are from my personal collection, both from the Florida tower.

Tower of Terror On Ride Photo Souvenir Frames 1994 photo frame

I first rode the Tower in 1994 and this is the artwork used on the front of the souvenir photo frame. Click to enlarge.

When I returned to the parks in 1999 the artwork on the cover of the photo frame had shifted hues, perhaps in relation to the addition of ride reprogramming that added a second drop. The photo inside is headlined “Twice the Fright” to accompany the change. It’s the exact same artwork, just palette shifted. The palette shift was probably done digitally.

Tower of Terror on ride photo souvenir frame 1999

Disney gave the frame’s cover art a hue shift for the 1999 version of the on ride photo souvenir frame. This change likely accompanied the addition of a second drop to the ride’s show profile.

Inside the Frame:

My 1994 frame and my 1999 frame are identical except for one peculiar detail: the second frame (from ’99) lacks the phrase “Tower of Terror” in the little yellow box over the photograph. Everything else is the same. I can only guess at why “Tower of Terror” had to be removed – perhaps it’s a colloquial abbreviation that wasn’t actually approved by the legal department, much like the pins that were discontinued because they used “TOT” on the back instead of “HTH”.

Back in the day, the process of purchasing an on-ride photo also netted you one of these “Do Not Disturb” cards with your picture’s number written on the back.

2000’s & 2010’s

I got nuthin’.

This gallery is incomplete! Do you have a Tower of Terror on ride photo frame from yesteryear? If you’d like to share it here, tell me in the comments!

Filed Under: Memorabilia Tagged With: artwork, Hollywood Studios, HS, merchandise, photos, souvenir

The View from the Top of the Tower of Terror Photo Gallery

November 19, 2013 by M. Booley

The doors open and you linger for a few seconds, letting you enjoy the view some 160-some feet above the park before plummeting down the drop shaft. The view from the top of the Tower of Terror is a fleeting moment, but a few talented photographers have captured it beautifully.

Hollywood Studios (Florida)

The view from the top of the Tower of Terror Hollywood Studios drop shafts

Front of the Hollywood Tower Hotel with the “Echo” drop shaft doors open. Photo credit: Donten photography

The view from the top of the Tower of Terror behind HOLLYWOOD sign

The view from the “Echo” (building’s right side) drop shaft, looking out from behind the “HOLLY” letters. Photo credit: groucho.org

The view from the top of the Tower of Terror behind TOWER sign

The view from the “Foxtrot” (building’s left side) drop shaft of the Tower of Terror looking out from behind the “TOWER” letters. Photo credit: expressmonorail

The view from the top of the Tower of Terror

Unobstructed view from the “Echo” drop shaft. Photo credit: mytripsandraces

Not sure which side of the tower this was taken on. Photo credit: Disneyana by Max

Disney California Adventure (California)

tower_of_terror_front_DCA_dropshaft_labels

DCA Tower of Terror with all three drop shafts open. Photo credit: cheets99

The view from the top of the Tower of Terror Disney California Adventure DCA

A nighttime view of Disney California Adventure. Photo credit: thebugger2000

Tokyo DisneySea (Tokyo)

The view from the top of the Tower of Terror Tokyo DisneySea

A view from the top of Tokyo DisneySea’s Tower of Terror. Photo credit: Cory Doctorow

A lower elevation view from the same drop shaft at the Tokyo DisneySea Tower of Terror. Photo credit: Cory Doctorow

Walt Disney Studios (Paris)

The view from the top of the Tower of Terror Paris

A view of the Walt Disney Studios park in Paris, France. Photo credit: neovortex2k at themeparkreview.com

Do you have a great photo from the top of the Tower of Terror that you’d like to share? Tell us about it by leaving a comment!

Filed Under: Photo Gallery Tagged With: architecture, photos

Tower of Terror at Night Photos

October 27, 2013 by M. Booley

The flickering sign letters, the ominous blue glow, and the occasional shrieks… the Tower of Terror at night is extra spooky! One of my favorite park traditions is to watch the Tower during sunset – it’s a beautiful sight and a great way to give my aching feet a little break. 😀

Hollywood Studios, Florida (HS)

I took this photo of the Florida Tower myself on a cloudy day in December. The clouds suit the Tower well!

tower_of_terror_hollywood_studios_orlando_twilight

Photo credit: M. Grant (TowerSecrets)

I love the toasty brown sky in this photo. This photo is from DisneyRunning, and I have to wonder what conditions allowed for the amber sky and the orange lightshow on the front of the Tower! This is a difficult angle to get in the park, so kudos to them for this great photo of the Tower at twilight!

Photo credit: disneyrunning.com

This photo is spectacularly spooky – what a great angle and a great effect with the orange and the grain! If I didn’t know there was a theme park around this structure, I’d be seriously creeped out!

Photo credit: Spectropluto

The Tower of Terror falls asleep! Have you ever seen the Tower with its sign unlit? Credit goes to Jake for capturing this unusual sight of the Tower!

The Tower falls asleep by Jake.

Disney California Adventure, California (DCA)

Tower of Terror in October, 2014. Photo credit: M. Grant (TowerSecrets)

Photo credit: disney.wikia.com

Photo credit: Rae Lane

Tokyo Disneysea, Tokyo (TDS)

The Tokyo DisneySea Tower of Terror doesn’t have a flickering old electric sign; in its place, a mysterious green flare of lightning in the top window. It is, however, still bathed in purple, just like its siblings elsewhere.

Photo credit: The Disney Wiki

For more Tower photos shot by me, visit my Tower of Terror album on Flickr.

→ Return to the Main Photo Gallery.

Filed Under: Photo Gallery Tagged With: architecture, DCA, Disney, HS, MGM, nighttime, photos, Tower of Terror

Tower of Terror Aerial Photos

October 23, 2013 by M. Booley

Aerial photos offer a rare and unusual glimpse of the Disney’s parks and attractions. This is a collection of my favorite Tower of Terror aerial photos. Obviously, these are not my photos. 🙂 If they are yours, please contact me for credit or removal.

Hollywood Studios, Florida

A couple of these aerial photos are quite old, especially the first two in this sequence which appear to predate digital photography. These photos are quite possibly from the attraction’s early years (the Florida Tower of Terror opened in 1994).

I think this shot is great because it shows a rather plain portion of the Tower that wasn’t meant to be seen by guests. Since the addition of Rockin’ Roller Coaster, it’s sometimes possible to see this plain wall part from the line queue to that ride, although the view-blocking trees grow taller every year, it seems. 🙂

Below is a rare left-side view of the tower, showing off all the attention to detail that Disney put into this beautiful structure. Most guests will never see 90% of this – and the details are pretty hard to see and appreciate from within the park, where you can only really stand at the base of the building.

tower of terror aerial photos MGM Hollywood Studios side view

Photo credit: wdwinfo.com

tower of terror aerial photos google maps hollywood studios mgm front side

Photo credit: Google Maps

Disney California Adventure

Google Maps has some great aerial views of the Tower of Terror in Anaheim, showing off the back and the front of the structure. The Tower is all party in the front, business in the back.

I think it’s cool to see all the “normal building” stuff on top of the roof and behind the building. Some people might think this spoils “the magic”, but I’ve always loved peeking behind the curtain. In some of these shots, you can see parades getting ready to go “on stage”, as well as cars, trucks, and utility buildings that no doubt contribute to the smooth operations of the park.

The mysterious conga line of blue boxes in its back lot (which I’ve been told just contain parade costumes).

Photo credit: Google Maps

Rotate the view on Google maps to see the front, along with a clearer view of the roof and backstage area.

Photo credit: Google Maps

Walt Disney Studios Park, Paris

I’ve never been to Paris, but their Tower is a near identical twin to the California Tower of Terror…. except for the roof tops. The roof tops in the Paris version are red. Most park guests will never know this, but now you do!

Photo Credit: disneyandmore.blogspot.com

Tokyo DisneySea, Tokyo

One more set of aerials: this series depicts the Tokyo DisneySea Tower of Terror. Remember, this Tower doesn’t use the Twilight Zone branding, so Disney pursued an entirely different look and feel for it! This Tower is very similar to the DCA and Paris Towers in terms of layout and structure, so you’ll probably notice that this version has basically the same “bones” as the two yellow towers.

Aerial Tower of Terror photo by Google Maps

The brickwork is considerably less elaborate on the back side, and the backstage area is much more compacted than the luxuriously large landscapes that fill in behind the Florida and California towers. 😉

Another Google Maps aerial.

I hope you enjoyed this tour of the Towers from above!

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Filed Under: Photo Gallery Tagged With: aerial, aerial photos, backstage, behind the scenes, hidden areas, photos, Tower of Terror