CALIFORNIA | LOCAL
March 27, 2007 | Valerie J. Nelson, Times Staff Writer
Within the Disney empire, Tim Onosko was known as the go-to guy for the future. By often accurately forecasting how technology would alter the entertainment landscape, he developed a reputation as a high-tech soothsayer. At Disney, he helped refine the newly opened Epcot in Florida in the 1980s by steering the theme park's designers toward cutting-edge gadgets.
NATIONAL
April 14, 2006 | Alet Laubscher, Scott Powers and Beth Kassab, Orlando Sentinel
Walt Disney World reopened its "Mission: Space" attraction Thursday, a day after a woman died following a ride on the space-flight simulator. It was the second death in less than a year related to the Epcot Center ride, which spins riders in a centrifuge that subjects them to twice the normal force of gravity. Hiltrud Bleumel, 49, of Schmitten, Germany, died at a hospital on Wednesday. A 4-year-old boy, Daudi Bamuwamye, died in June after taking the ride.
CALIFORNIA | LOCAL
December 1, 2005 | Valerie J. Nelson, Times Staff Writer
Card Walker, a mailroom employee who rose to become the first chief executive at the Walt Disney Co. who wasn't a member of the Disney family, leading the company from 1971 to 1983, has died. He was 89. Walker, who oversaw the development of Walt Disney World, died of congestive heart failure Monday at his home in La Canada Flintridge, the company announced. During his tenure, Walker brokered the deal for the company's first international theme park: Tokyo Disneyland, which opened in 1983.
TRAVEL
August 3, 2003 | Jane Engle, Times Staff Writer
The first big new ride at Walt Disney World's Epcot theme park in five years will lift off the launchpad on Aug. 15 in Florida, aiming to simulate a trip to Mars. The ride, called Mission: Space, took five years and a reported $100 million or more to develop with the help of former NASA advisors and scientists. (Disney spokesman Rick Sylvain declined to confirm the cost.) Disney has made the ride available to guests several hours a day for several weeks of tests.
NATIONAL
July 18, 2002 | From Associated Press
A smoky electrical fire early Wednesday kept Epcot at Walt Disney World closed for the day. The theme park was expected to reopen today. There were no injuries in the 3 a.m. EDT fire in an electrical generation building at the popular theme park. The park wasn't open at the time. The fire, which took 10 minutes to extinguish, caused little damage but caused power outages at Epcot, the Caribbean Beach Club and Disney Vacation Club.
NEWS
October 2, 1999 | From Associated Press
Walt Disney World opened its Israel exhibit at Epcot Center on Friday with both Jews and Muslims unhappy over its depiction of Jerusalem. The Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith complained that the exhibit doesn't celebrate Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Muslim groups said it wrongly depicts Jerusalem as a unified city. Dozens of Muslims protested outside the park, carrying banners reading "Israeli Exhibit of Falsehood" and "Disney and Israel--Partnership for Propaganda."