It's a Small World Holiday Sign	The Exterior Lit Up for Christmas	Attraction Poster

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stars: 3 (out of 5)
Perhaps a bit dated, but a unique, classic Disney ride.

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. . . Most people either hate or love It's a Small World. Those that hate it often cite its repetitive theme song or saccharin subject matter. Personally, I appreciate the idealism of It's a Small World with its themes of international unity and brotherhood. The fact that it's just alot of dolls dancing around is nothing special but they are well-done. And I actually like the theme song, I just hate when it gets stuck in my head. . .

. . . I don't ride it every time I visit Disneyland, but it's definitely a nice trip: a cool, air-conditioned and relaxing cruise (and the crowds are rarely thick). . .

. . . The holiday-theming of the ride is really nice, especially the exterior. When it's all lit-up and glowing, Small World looks really spectacular. . .

It's A Small World

It's a world of laughter, a world of tears
It's a world of hopes and a world of fears
There's so much that we share
That it's time we're aware
It's a Small World after all.

There is just one moon and one golden sun
And a smile means friendship to ev'ryone
Though the mountains divide
And the oceans are wide
It's a Small World after all.

pointless trivia

• The designer of It's a Small World's exterior, Mary Blair, is the same woman who designed the large 1967 murals in Tomorrowland. Both murals are gone now. The one on the east side of the main thoroughfare was taken out for Star Tours and now has a Star Wars theme. The other mural, which sat above the old "Premiere Shop" was removed for the renovation of Tomorrowland in 1998.
• There are 297 animated children and 256 other toys in the ride. (Disney A to Z)
• The colorful facade of the current It's a Small World was added in 1992. This color scheme was first introduced at Disneyland Paris because the white facade of the Disneyland version would not have held up well with the perpetually overcast skies of France. It was so well received that Imagineers decided to give the Anaheim Small World the same treatment. (Ibid)
• Bank of America, which also ran an actual bank on Main St. for many years, was the original sponsor of the ride in 1966 and continued its sponsorship until 1992. The current corporation that puts its name on the ride is Mattel, for which the Small World Toy Shoppe was built in December 1992 at the exit to the ride. Not surprisingly, the shop sells only Mattel merchandise. (Ibid)
• A church choir from London, a school chorus in Rome, TV actors in Mexico City and regular kids from Tokyo and Burbank were among the groups of children that peformed for the recording of the attraction's title song. (It's A Small World, A Disneyland Pictorial Souvenir, 1978)
• The nickname for It's a Small World is the "Happiest Cruise That Ever Sailed." (Ibid)
• 22 karat gold leaf was applied as trim to the attraction's facade. (Ibid)
• Among the landmarks represented in the exterior are: The Eiffel Tower, Greek Columns, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, a Russian Mosque, and a windmill from the Netherlands. (Ibid)
• It's a Small World was really close to never being made at all. Joe Fowler, Walt Disney's trusted director of operations at Disneyland, told Pepsi (who sponsored the ride at the 1964 World's Fair) that there was no way the Disney Imagineers could do their attraction along with the three others they were working on for the fair. When he found out, Walt Disney angrily told Joe that they would find a way to do it.... and they did. (Disneyland: Inside Story)
• Because of Small World's reliabe, efficent flat-bottomed boats that could each carry two dozen people at a time, the Imagineers unofficially called the ride a real "people-eater." (Ibid)
• The original concept for the attraction, which was predictably discarded, had each doll singing its own national anthem. (Ibid)
• TEST: Like a gigantic cuckoo clock, when the bell tolls at It's a Small World, a variety of dolls emerge from the tower and circle back inside. How often does this occur? Answer Below

Answer: Every 15 minutes

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