Murder, She Wrote Mystery Theatre

infobox Universal ride
name=Murder, She Wrote Mystery Theatre
park=Universal Studios Florida
logo=Murder she wrote 1996.jpg
land=Production Central
theme=Murder, She Wrote
opened=June 7, 1990
closed=1996
type=Interactive Live Show
duration=25
custom_label_2=Replaced by
custom_value_2=Hercules and Xena: Wizards of the Screen

Murder, She Wrote Mystery Theatre was an Interactive Show formerly located at Universal Studios Florida and one of the parks original attractions. In the show, guests were selected to be executive producers on a new episode of the Murder, She Wrote television show. The attraction itself closed in 1996, and "Hercules and Xena: Wizards of the Screen" opened in its place in 1997.

Attraction Summary

Queue

The outside of the attraction was themed to a sound stage where it was presumed that a new episode of Murder, She Wrote was being filmed. Television monitors in the exterior queue area displayed various scenes from the tv show running on a loop. Guests were then taken into the building were the storyline for the attraction would be revealed.

Pre-Show

Guests would line up into rows in a dark room with various tv monitors above them. Angela Lansbury, the star of the tv show, appeared on the screens and congratulated guests for being the new executive produers on the tv show, and explained to them what their jobs would be. The doors in front of guests then opened, and they would enter the main show experience.

Main Show

In the first room guests would enter, a lady would appear and begin to talk to them about the makeup effects used for the show. Following this, guests would enter another room where a child volunteer was picked to be the example of the visual effects in the show. After this, guests entered another room where an adult volunteer was picked to use sound effects for the show (this scene included a King Kong sound effect, a reference to the park's also former Kongfrontation attraction). Following this, guests entered a final room where they would experience the final editing process. tv monitors above their heads then displayed the final version of the episode, including effects recorded by guests in all the rooms. Angela Lansbury then appeared and asked them if they would serve as producers once again. Guests would respond "no" and the show would end.

History

The attraction opened with the park on June 7, 1990, and was closed in 1996 and replaced by "Hercules and Xena: Wizards of the Screen". After the closing of the Hercules and Xena attraction in 2000, the sound stage was left abandoned until it was used as a haunted house during Halloween Horror Nights 2004. After this, the building was condemned by Orange Conty Health, and has yet to be reopened. In 2008, the train and delorean time machines formerly located outside the now closed , were moved outside the former extended exterior queue, and were set up as a meet and greet display featuring Doc Brown.

Trivia

*The sound effects room from the main show featured a King Kong sound effect, a reference to the park's former Kongfrontation attraction.
*In an homage to the attraction, a Murder, She Wrote poster was placed inside the first room of the "Hercules and Xena: Wizards of the Screen" attraction.
*A display stand outside the attraction sold various Murder, She Wrote merchandise.