"Orlando, Fla.--Will It Become Hollywood East? : Universal and Disney have committed a combined $1 billion for production facilities and studio tours"
" ORLANDO,
Fla. — Rock 'n' roll blares and nearly a dozen Mouseketeers skip onto a
Disney sound stage, past the neon diner counter, past a pink
refrigerator labeled "Eisner." Twenty years ago, this would have been
Circus Day at the Mickey Mouse Club. But times have changed, so: "It's
Thursday, Party Day," exclaims 13-year-old Damon Pampolina, "and it's
going to be a hot, hot, hot party!" No somber uniforms and Mickey Mouse
ears for these hot partygoers; they're decked out in jeans and high-tops
and colorful barrettes.
Ten miles up the highway, at Universal Studios, times also have changed at June Cleaver's household. The Beaver is divorced, with two children, and lives at home with his widowed mom. On "The New Leave It to Beaver" June still wears pearls, but she uses a Cuisinart, dates men and attends classes at the local college.
More than style and story line separate these two TV series from the classic originals they imitate: Both shows are in production a continent away from their Hollywood roots--in a town known more for souvenir shops than sound stages.
Orlando Mayor Bill Frederick predicts that will change. He has told his constituents that someday their city will become the Hollywood of the East. (In one speech, he even joked--or was it a joke?--that in 50 years, people will be referring to Hollywood as Orlando West.)
Ten miles up the highway, at Universal Studios, times also have changed at June Cleaver's household. The Beaver is divorced, with two children, and lives at home with his widowed mom. On "The New Leave It to Beaver" June still wears pearls, but she uses a Cuisinart, dates men and attends classes at the local college.
More than style and story line separate these two TV series from the classic originals they imitate: Both shows are in production a continent away from their Hollywood roots--in a town known more for souvenir shops than sound stages.
Orlando Mayor Bill Frederick predicts that will change. He has told his constituents that someday their city will become the Hollywood of the East. (In one speech, he even joked--or was it a joke?--that in 50 years, people will be referring to Hollywood as Orlando West.)
