by Regina Hinrichs
The Magic Kingdom’s Timekeeper attraction in Tomorrowland closed permanently on February 26, 2006. For the past five years, this attraction was open “seasonally” which was a polite way of saying “forget about it.”
For Disney Trivia buffs, the Circle-Vision 360 Theater where this attraction was located first hosted “America the Beautiful” from November ‘71 thru March ‘74 and from March ’75 thru September ‘84. In between was “Magic Carpet Round the World” from March ‘74 thru March ‘85. Next came “American Journeys” from September ‘84 thru January ‘94 and finally Timekeeper opened in ‘94, going seasonal from 4/01 on.
When it first opened in November of ’94, it was a novelty. The Timekeeper robot was voiced by Robin Williams, which made it fun. The other character, “9-Eye” was voiced by Rhea Perlman, which made it annoying.
Presented on nine CircleVision screens, you leaned against railings for 20 minutes while listening to most of the kids in the theater whining “I can’t see.” Still, if the park was crowded, or if it was raining, hot, or cold, it was an okay place to duck into and be entertained for awhile.
The Timekeeper was a robot who sent his assistant “9-Eye” on a journey through time. When 9-Eye encounters Jules Verne, the two join up and go on their adventure. At one point, they meet up with H.G. Wells portrayed by Jeremy Irons aka Scar from the Lion King also released in ’94. Coincidence? I think not.
If you’re not convulsed with laughter just thinking about the wacky, madcap premise for this ride, you’re not alone. While the Robin Williams character did his best to make it funny, you were stuck listening to Rhea Perlman using the worst NY accent imaginable. (I’m a NYC native, and the only time I hear anyone “tawk” like that is when I watch the Sopranos.)
Timekeeper never seemed to have a clear cut identity or purpose. It wasn’t as funny as it could have been, and it wasn’t as educational as it tried to be.
Still, there’s a certain sense of sadness whenever any of the attractions close. It’s because of the memories, like watching the kid’s roll their eyes when Dad says “Hey, let’s do Timekeeper.” So we trudge along, thinking “not again” and leave thinking “that wasn’t as bad as I remembered.”
Timekeeper has officially joined the ranks of “Mission to Mars” aka “Alien Encounter” and “If you had Wings” aka “If You Could Fly” aka “Delta Dream Flight” aka “Take Flight.”
The
Timekeeper
Timekeeper officially closes on 2/26/06
Fun Facts: This attraction originally debuted at
Disneyland Paris before being brought to Walt Disney World
in 1994 as part of the "update" of Tomorrowland.
The Timekeeper The Circle-Vision 360 theatre is home to
the popular 20 minute time travel journey with the Timekeeper.
The voice of the Audio-animatronic host Timekeeper is supplied
by Robin Williams, and fans of the hit TV series Cheers,
may recognize Rhea Perlman as his camera-droid sidekick,
9-Eyes. 9-Eyes is aptly named because of the nine cameras
that provide guests with the sights on the nine screens
that surround them in the circular theatre.
The premise here is that 9_Eye is the time machine test
pilot and we accompany her on her journey that begins in
pre-historic Europe, and continues on into the future. There
is an encounter with Jules Verne and H. G. Wells. You get
to observe geniuses like Mozart and da Vinci at work, as
well as see incredible views such as that from a hot air
balloon over Red Square and fly down 1200 meter bobsled
run at 60 miles per hour.
The ride is most popular with adults as children may not
appreciate the history and camera work involved. This attraction
is wheelchair accessible. For hearing impaired guests, assistive
listening devices are available at Guest Services. For guests
who are deaf, Reflective Captioning is available, ask the
Cast Member at the outside entrance for assistance.
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