If you listen to Generation Mouse, you’ve probably heard me say a bunch of times that Journey into Imagination is my favorite attraction of all time! While the attraction we have today is better than the Figment-less version two, it is not the same without The Dreamfinder!

In the early days of Epcot, The Dreamfinder and Figment could have been seen as walk around characters in the park. You could actually meet them Epcot’s opening day, before the ride opened in March of ’83! You might even say that these two are the original Duffy, characters made just for the parks. There was no movie or television show for the Dreamfinder and Figment (although I would’ve bought tickets to that movie)!

For those of you who don’t remember the attraction, or who never had the joy of riding it, let me give you a recap (also, go watch this video on YouTube). The attraction began with your vehicle in the clouds when a strange blimp-like vehicle appears carrying The Dreamfinder (voiced by Chuck McCann) appeared. He began singing “One Little Spark” describing a Figment: ”Two tiny wings, eyes big and yellow, horns of a steer, but a loveable fellow! From head to tail, he’s royal purple pigment, and there, Voila! You’ve got a Figment, a Figment of Imagination!”

Figment and the Dreamfinder then use their imaginations to fill the idea bag and once its full they go on a journey to the Dreamport. The rest of the attraction went through whimsical scenes representing  art, literature, the performing arts and science while they continue to sing “One Little Spark”. Then,  The Dreamfinder explained to Figment that imagination is the key to unlocking the hidden wonders of the world. Finally, riders photos were taken and images were shown of Figment demonstrating for riders that with imagination, you can do anything.

I didn’t want to make this post one focusing on Figment or the attraction as a whole, but the original attraction really had more heart. Figment was much more naive and less, well, obnoxious. This was all because of The Dreamfinder. When he was creating Figment, he added a “dash of childish delight”, not childish annoyance. And on top of all of it, this attraction had no skunk smell!

I would love to see The Dreamfinder and Figment walking around the park again! And of course, I would love to see a refurb and the return of The Dreamfinder! What are your memories of the original Journey into Imagination? Do you want to see The Dreamfinder back? 

Tags: Dreamfinder, Future World, Generation Mouse, Imagination, Journey into Imagination

This entry was posted on August 23, 2012 at 5:10 pm. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Posted in Throwback Thursday by Ashleigh No Comments Yet