Pleasure Island (Walt Disney World Resort)

Pleasure Island was a section of the Walt Disney World Resort within the Downtown Disney shopping, dining and entertainment district. Stores on Pleasure Island are open from 10:30 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. and restaurants from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. Pleasure Island officially opened May 1, 1989 and closed on Sept 27th, 2008

The site is most often thought to be named for the fictional 'Pleasure Island' in the book Pinocchio, of which the Disney studio made a film adaptation. In the book, children on the island are allowed to play and never work. However, these unsupervised children smoke, drink and generally misbehave (sometimes in adult-like ways), and are eventually punished by being changed into donkeys that have to work in salt mines.

The fictional backstory of the Florida site has nothing to do with the Pinocchio story, however. According to the lore created by Walt Disney Imagineering, the island's nightclubs were once home to a shipping company owned by adventurous businessman Merriweather Pleasure. A great storm destroyed the business and Mr. Pleasure disappeared with the warehouses remaining behind. Years later, these warehouses were refurbished and converted into nightclubs.

From 1990 through New Year's Eve 2005, Pleasure Island celebrated New Year's Eve with a fireworks show every night at midnight.

On June 27, 2008, the Walt Disney World Resort announced that over the next two years, Disney will replace all of Pleasure Island's night clubs with new stores and restaurants. [http://www.wftv.com/news/16733650/detail.html Disney Announces Changes For Pleasure Island - News Story - WFTV Orlando ] ] Disney denied rumors that the changes are due to a drop in attendance at Pleasure Island, stating instead that the company is responding to guest feedback asking for more family friendly experiences. The entertainment venues (night clubs and comedy clubs) ceased operations on September 27, 2008. [http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/tourism/orl-disney2808jun28,0,2367595.story The party's over at Pleasure Island: Disney to shut down 6 nightclubs - OrlandoSentinel.com] ]

Restaurants

The restaurants and shops on Pleasure Island are expected to stay open during the renovations that are required in order to shut down Pleasure Island's entertainment venues.

Raglan Road Irish Pub & Restaurant - operated by Great Irish Pubs Florida. Opened in October 2005 replacing::Merriweather's Market - A food court that operated from 1989-1993.:Pleasure Island Jazz Company - a club featuring live jazz musicians. Opened August 27, 1993. Closed in 2005.

hopping

For many years, a number of small shops and boutiques were located between "Adventurers Club" and (the now-closed) "Rock 'n' Roll Beach Club". Many of these shops closed in March 2006 as part of the renovation of the island.

Disney has begun to reintroduce selected stores on the Island:

Orlando Harley-Davidson - a "gear shop" operated by Orlando's Harley-Davidson franchiser. Located near Raglan Road, it opened in 2005.

Curl by Sammy Duvall - a surf-themed retail establishment operated by Florida-based surfer Sammy Duvall. Curl opened in 2008, replacing::Superstar Studios - a long-time "make-your-own-video" studio.

Fuego by Sosa Cigars - a cigar bar that opened in 2007 near the center of the island.

Disney announced on June 27, 2008 that over the next two years, Disney will replace its clubs with new stores and restaurants. Disney officials stated that the Pleasure Island nightclub closures are in response to customers who desire more broad-based dining and retail opportunities. [http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/tourism/orl-disney2808jun28,0,2367595.story The party's over at Pleasure Island: Disney to shut down 6 nightclubs - OrlandoSentinel.com ] ]

Former attractions

*Rock 'n' Roll Beach Club - a rock-themed dance club that featured live bands (usually local cover bands). The club closed February 2, 2008. Disney has not announced official plans. An "Orlando Sentinel" blog reported in April 2008 that E-Brands, the operator of Epcot's Morocco pavilion, will open a Central/South American-themed restaurant in 2009 [ [http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/features_food_blog/2008/04/e-brands-restau.html E-Brands Restaurants will launch new concept at Walt Disney World in 2009 - Orlando Sentinel blog] ] . The blog's description of the proposed E-Brands site most closely fits the Beach Club building. The club originally opened April 4, 1990 replacing:

:XZFR Rockin' Rollerdrome - a short lived club where guests could strap on skates and dance to rock and roll music.

*Adventurers Club - a 1930s-style British explorers club that featured a staff of flamboyant characters portrayed by improv actors. The club closed September 27, 2008.

*BET Soundstage Club - a hip-hop and R&B dance club. Operated by Black Entertainment Television (formerly BET Holdings Inc). The Club closed September 27, 2008 Club opened in 1998 replacing::Neon Armadillo - a club featuring live Country music bands, operated from 1989-1998.

*Comedy Warehouse - a nightclub that featured an improv comedy troupe. Originally featuring a parody show called "Forbidden Disney," the club soon attracted a large return audience. The move to the improv format after a couple of seasons was made to keep the show always fresh. The club closed September 27, 2008.

*8TRAX - a 1970s and 1980s themed dance club. The club closed September 27, 2008. Opened in 1994 replacing::Videopolis East - opened in 1989 playing new wave music on 170 video screens. In 1990 it was renamed Cage adding more progressive music before closing in 1993.

*Mannequins Dance Palace - a techno-trance dance club that featured a revolving dance floor. The club closed September 27, 2008.

*Motion - a dance club that featured Top 40 music videos. The club closed September 27, 2008. Opened in 2001 replacing:

:Fireworks Factory - pyrotechnics themed restaurant operated by Levy Restaurants. According to the island's fictional backstory, Merriweather Pleasure manufactured fireworks in the building until one of his cigars caused an explosion. The restaurant was decorated with authentic pyrotechnic props from the Grucci family. Open from 1989-1997.

: Wildhorse Saloon - country music dance club and BBQ restaurant opened in 1998 to capitalize on the Country/western dance craze at the time. Operated by Levy Restaurants and Gaylord Entertainment Company, which also operated a Wildhorse in Nashville, Tennessee. They eventually sold their interests in the building back to Disney and the venue closed in 2001.

Adjacent attractions

Fulton's Crab House - a seafood restaurant operated by Levy Restaurants since March 10, 1996. Originally opened on May 1, 1977 as the Empress Lilly (an homage to Walt Disney's wife). Operated by Disney, the restaurant was an authentic re-creation of a 19th century Paddle steamer in Rococo (Louis XIV) style. The boat lost its paddle wheel and smoke stacks upon becoming Fulton's.

Portobello Yacht Club - a restaurant featuring regional Italian cuisine operated by Levy Restaurants. Opened with the clubs in 1989.

Planet Hollywood - a restaurant chain celebrating show business and celebrities. Opened December 17, 1994.

AMC Theatres Pleasure Island 24 - Movie theater megaplex. Expansion of the existing venue opened with Downtown Disney West Side in 1997.

There were plans in 1997 to open a Planet Movies by AMC entertainment complex at the site by combining the Planet Hollywood restaurant with a re-branded AMC megaplex, but these were scrapped with Planet Hollywood's continual financial problems.

2006-2008 Renovations & Closure

Major renovations to Pleasure Island were made in March 2006 with the hope to stop the declining attendance. These changes included the closing and dismantling of the West End Stage and the Hub Stage. Since there was no longer an entry fee to Pleasure Island, the free entertainment provided by these stages was attracting large groups of local teens which was considered undesirable. The area formerly occupied by the West End Stage is the location of the new pedestrian bridge to Downtown Disney West Side and provides visitors a more line-of-sight from Pleasure Island to West Side. The removal of the Hub Stage opened a small area to a view of the lagoon located behind Pleasure Island, including a dock. The building which previously included stores and a fast food restaurant has been completely renovated but as of early 2008 remains vacant. An Orlando Sentinel article reported in April, 2008 that E-Brands, the operator of the Samba Room restaurant in Orlando, plans to open a Central/South American-themed restaurant in 2009 on Disney property. Because the description includes a restaurant/lounge overlooking a lake, speculation is that it might possibly be in this readily available building.

The new docks constructed allow boat transportation links between West Side, Pleasure Island, Marketplace and Disney resorts across the lagoon and up the Sassagoula River. [ [http://wdwhistory.com/FindFile.Ashx?/Downtown_Disney/Pleasure_Island/ Pleasure Island at Walt Disney World - WDWHistory.com ] ] Construction of a T-Rex Restaurant began in October, 2007 near the current location of the pedestrian bridge between Pleasure Island and Downtown Disney Marketplace. Completion is scheduled for late 2008.

In late June 2008, Disney announced that the six remaining nightclubs at Pleasure Island will be closed by September 28, 2008, to make room for additional family-oriented entertainment. [ [http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/common/helpFAQ?id=PleasureIslandFAQPage Pleasure Island to Close September 2008] ] [ [http://www.wesh.com/news/16733693/detail.html Disney To Close 6 Pleasure Island Clubs - Orlando News Story - WESH Orlando ] ]

On Sept 27th 2008 Pleasure Island held it’s last night. Among the capacity crowd were many of the islands past actors and cast members, some of whom started to line up at 9am to ensure entrance to what would be a very emotional and busy night.

Highlights included Frankie and the West End Boys playing on the waterfront stage. The members of the Adventures Club being unable to raise enough money in their nightly RadioThon fundraiser, lost the lease on the club. This caused the club president to remark that they would hold their meetings "somewhere, probably in someone's basement." The club's long lost Ape returned (having made a ton of money in the stock market) to take them away on a 1 year world adventure.

At midnight NYE was celebrated one last time, complete with a fireworks show put to music (using popular songs heard on the Island over the years.) The final song played in Mannequins was "Everybody’s Free, To Feel Good."

With that, PI was officially shut down and by the next day, many of the clubs signs and logo’s were being removed or painted over.

2007 entrance policy

Effective January 1, 2007, the dance clubs reverted to a policy which required guests to be age 21 or older. Minors may still visit the Comedy Warehouse, Adventurers Club as well as visit shops and restaurants.

Effective June 27, 2008, customers who purchased annual passes to Pleasure Island can receive a pro-rated refund for that purchase due to the September 2008 scheduled closure of all of Pleasure Island's nightclubs.

Advocates Unite to Save P.I.

Following Disney's June 27,2008 announcement they would close the Pleasure Island nightclubs, a group of Disney enthusiasts, in addition to current and former Walt Disney World College Program participants, launched a number of Internet-based efforts to save P.I.

On Facebook, the "Stop Disney from Closing Pleasure Island" [ [http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=34957201840&ref=mf Stop Disney from CLOSING PLEASURE ISLAND | Facebook ] ] and "Save the Adventurer's Club" [ [http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=17614776169&ref=share Save The Adventurers Club | Facebook ] ] groups have garnered 10,000 members since launching. One Disney supporter, Roy Hicks agreed to pay for the printing and postage of an online petition, "Save a Part of Walt's Legacy Petition" which asks Disney executives to reconsider the decision to close Pleasure Island, with specific emphasis on The Adventurer's Club.

An Internet radio station, "SAVE P.I.: THE RADIO REVOLUTION" [ [http://blogtalkradio.com/savepi Internet Radio, Citizen Broadcasting, Social Media Podcasts - Blog Talk Radio ] ] was launched by Brandon De Hoyos, writer for the New York Times Company and former Walt Disney World College Program intern. The one-hour program features callers sharing their favorite Pleasure Island memories in addition to direct addresses to Disney CEO Bob Iger, among others.

References in popular culture

*The March 2006 "South Park" episode "The Return of Chef" showed the character of Chef becoming a member of a club called the "Super Adventure Club" (meant as a parody of Scientology). The layout of the headquarters of the Super Adventure Club was patterned after the interior of Pleasure Island's Adventurers Club. It is believed that the research for this episode was done on South Park co-creator Trey Parker's honeymoon.

Trivia

*The licensing agreement with BET Holdings Inc. for the BET Soundstage Club (opened 1998) was created before Black Entertainment Television was purchased by Viacom in 2000.
*The railroad-style ticket booths at the entrance are former coaches from the Fort Wilderness Railroad that operated from 1973-1977 and featured restored steam locomotives and passenger cars.
*Pleasure Island opened emulating what was at the time a highly-successful gated one-price-multiple-club attraction in Downtown Orlando, Florida called Church Street Station.

External links

* [http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/entertainment/entertainmentDetail?id=PleasureIslandEntertainmentPage Official Pleasure Island website]
* [http://blogtalkradio.com/savepiDetail?id=SavePIRadio Save P.I.: The Radio Revolution website]
* [http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=34957201840&ref=mfDetail?id=StopGroup Stop Disney from Closing Pleasure Island Facebook Group]

References