Opening Ceremonies Set for October
Vol 1. No. 10 Date: 9/10/82
CEREMONIES SET FOR OCTOBER
Special ceremonies and events will be scheduled throughout the October "preview" month to mark the opening of Epcot Center and its major pavilions.
Observances will begin at 9 a.m. on October 1 and. climax with the Grand Opening Weekend October 22-24 when performing groups from 24 nations will take part.
Many of the ceremonies will be included as a part of a television special being produced for Walt Disney Productions by Smith-Hemion. It will be shown on the CBS-TV network (channel 6) Monday, October 25 at 8 p.m.
On opening day, October 1, the first family through the gates at 9 a.m. will be saluted by assembled Epcot Center cast members.
The initial guest family will be led to CommuniCore where Card Walker, Chairman of the Board of Walt Disney Productions, will officiate in brief welcoming ceremonies.
In addition, each individual pavilion will have a grand opening and dedication ceremony, as the following schedule indicates:
| Friday, October 1 | SPACESHIP EARTH |
|---|---|
| (Bell System) | |
| Sunday, October 3 | CHINA |
| Monday, October 4 | UNIVERSE OF ENERGY |
| (Exxon) | |
| Tuesday, October 5 | WORLD OF MOTION |
| (General Motors) | |
| Wednesday, October 6 | THE LAND |
| (Kraft) | |
| Monday, October 11 | THE AMERICAN |
| (Joint Opening) | ADVENTURE |
| American Express | |
| Coca-Cola | |
| Wednesday, October 13 | CANADA |
| Thursday, October 14 | ITALY |
| Friday, October 15 | GERMANY |
| Monday, October 18 | EPCOT |
| COMPUTER CENTRAL | |
| (Sperry Univac) | |
| Tuesday, October 19 | UNITED KINGDOM |
| Wednesday, October 20 | FRANCE |
| JAPAN | |
| Thursday, October 21 | MEXICO |
| Saturday, December 4 | JOURNEY INTO |
| IMAGINATION | |
| (Eastman-Kodak) |
*Official Grand Openings are scheduled in the future.
21 DAYS OUT
© 1982 Walt Disney Productions
COMMENTARY
When observed through the prism of today’s multi-day attraction openings it’s almost inconceivable to imagine a multi-month press event with 14 dedication ceremonies during the first month alone. It’s also a little perplexing that the televised Smith-Hemion “Opening Celebration” did not contain a single frame of any of those openings. I personally would have been happy with sacrificing one or two (or five) of Danny Kaye’s songs for a well-edited montage of the festivities. Nevertheless, while Disney Park’s Blog explodes with several posts chronicling the opening of Disney’s latest coffee vendor, the size and scope of EPCOT Center’s creation continues to impress over 30 years later.
Grand Opening Dedication Ceremony,
12:30pm October 24th, 1982