Was the Country Bear Jamboree ever planned for Disneyland Paris?

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

Question- were the Country Bears ever considered for Disneyland Paris?

Recently, during a livestream on YouTube (Piano Rob's Tune Town Lounge), I saw a "Behind the Music" parody skit about the Country Bears, and there's a line where they mention they played in "Orlando, Anaheim, and Tokyo; but not Paris- they wanted people to walk through our show." I'd think the line was just a joke about them not being in Paris, but the specificity of "they wanted people to walk through our show" sounds like they're referring to an idea for making the show a walk-through? I can't find any evidence of this online, but the people who made the parody short have connections with Imagineers who worked on DLP and generally know their stuff, especially when it comes to the Country Bears, so that's why I feel like this tidbit is coming from somewhere. Can anyone verify?

(Given how much Paris loves westerns and country music, even today, I'm surprised they never tried bringing the show over to Paris. The park has zero animatronic shows and frankly could use something like that)

 

[lazyboy97o]

At least in terms of initial planning, if it is was then it was only very briefly.

Last May, Eddie Sotto posted a master plan proposal dated “4-8-86.” Since Walt Disney Imagineering is US based I’m guessing this is April 8 and not August 4. For reference, the first agreement with France was signed in December 1985 and Eddie joined the company in March 1986 to work on the project.

https://xcancel.com/boss_angeles/status/1927061335604449379?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1927061335604449379%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=

 

[marni1971]

At least in terms of initial planning, if it is was then it was only very briefly.

Last May, Eddie Sotto posted a master plan proposal dated “4-8-86.” Since Walt Disney Imagineering is US based I’m guessing this is April 8 and not August 4. For reference, the first agreement with France was signed in December 1985 and Eddie joined the company in March 1986 to work on the project.

https://xcancel.com/boss_angeles/status/1927061335604449379?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1927061335604449379%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=

It’s worth noting this was less a master plan and more of a wish list to see what would stick. Fascinating non the less.

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

Very interesting to see how much stayed the same through all that, but also how much had changed! Looks like no Bears, though. I guess I’ll have to keep searching!

 

[FerretAfros]

There is little evidence to suggest they ever seriously considered the Country Bears for Paris.

The park's early press focused on how the designers viewed the European audience: sophisticated urban dwellers with backyard familiarity to world-class historic sites (contrast this with Shanghai's focus on guests who prefer serene gardens and multigenerational activities). While the castle parks have always had a distinctly American flavor, much of that was toned down and fantisized for DLP. This is most notable with Discoveryland's influence from European minds (and George Lucas) instead of Cold War-era patriotism, but can also be felt in the tonal changes of Main Street and Frontierland, and in more subtle ways throughout the resort. Even the all-American-themed hotels took a more idealized and stylized approach than their equivalent WDW counterparts.

The park's designers were also very aware of the challenges of building their first multi-lingual park. They intentionally avoided dialogue- and backstory-heavy attractions and shows that couldn't easily be translated to 6+ languages, especially in the resort's early years. Attraction and show dialogue was simplified to have multiple voices expressing the same concept in different languages; the Jungle Cruise was famously scrapped over language concerns (an issue that was later tackled with pre-recorded videos and multiple queues for the Studio Tram Tour). For attraction and restaurant names, they intentionally chose words that were easily understood in multiple languages: Phantom Manor, Le Labyrinthe d'Alice, Au Chalet de la Marionnette, Adventure Isle.

With all that in mind, it's difficult to imagine the designers ever really contemplated the homespun humor of "Mamma Don't Whoop Little Buford" for their (real or imagined) audience. In a way, Buffalo Bill's Wild West show (which Eddie Sotto's concept shows inside the park) was likely the resort's spiritual successor to the Country Bears, keeping the Americana but swapping out the regional dialects and vernacular for visual storytelling and spectacle.

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

There is little evidence to suggest they ever seriously considered the Country Bears for Paris.

The park's early press focused on how the designers viewed the European audience: sophisticated urban dwellers with backyard familiarity to world-class historic sites (contrast this with Shanghai's focus on guests who prefer serene gardens and multigenerational activities). While the castle parks have always had a distinctly American flavor, much of that was toned down and fantisized for DLP. This is most notable with Discoveryland's influence from European minds (and George Lucas) instead of Cold War-era patriotism, but can also be felt in the tonal changes of Main Street and Frontierland, and in more subtle ways throughout the resort. Even the all-American-themed hotels took a more idealized and stylized approach than their equivalent WDW counterparts.

The park's designers were also very aware of the challenges of building their first multi-lingual park. They intentionally avoided dialogue- and backstory-heavy attractions and shows that couldn't easily be translated to 6+ languages, especially in the resort's early years. Attraction and show dialogue was simplified to have multiple voices expressing the same concept in different languages; the Jungle Cruise was famously scrapped over language concerns (an issue that was later tackled with pre-recorded videos and multiple queues for the Studio Tram Tour). For attraction and restaurant names, they intentionally chose words that were easily understood in multiple languages: Phantom Manor, Le Labyrinthe d'Alice, Au Chalet de la Marionnette, Adventure Isle.

With all that in mind, it's difficult to imagine the designers ever really contemplated the homespun humor of "Mamma Don't Whoop Little Buford" for their (real or imagined) audience. In a way, Buffalo Bill's Wild West show (which Eddie Sotto's concept shows inside the park) was likely the resort's spiritual successor to the Country Bears, keeping the Americana but swapping out the regional dialects and vernacular for visual storytelling and spectacle.

The language comment in particular makes a lot of sense- while they could’ve gone the Tokyo route with a mix of English and the local language, I imagine that would be hard for a story based show. Phantom Manor switches between the two but in a way that if you only get 50% of it, you still understand. I don’t think you could do the Country Bears that way. Maybe two theaters, once French and one English, but we know how well two theaters worked for Anaheim…

I just want to know where the “walk through our show” line came from! Was there a general idea to make animatronic shows walk through and they lumped the bears in there? I guess I could just reach out and ask them since they’re coworkers, but I figured I’d ask theme park history experts first haha.

 

[marni1971]

Language wasn’t as big a concern than that - when it could be overcome it wasn’t a show stopper. JC was pulled mainly due to climate worries and that an existing European park had already copied it.

Le Visionarium (Timekeeper) had headphones for everyone with a twist dial to select different languages.

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

Language wasn’t as big a concern than that - when it could be overcome it wasn’t a show stopper. JC was pulled mainly due to climate worries and that an existing European park had already copied it.

Le Visionarium (Timekeeper) had headphones for everyone with a twist dial to select different languages.

Interesting. If the CBJ was considered then, and language wasn’t a concern, I would what the reason for its scrapping was. Popularity? Antiquated-ness? The park only had Timekeeper in terms of AA shows and even then it had screens for most of it.

 

[marni1971]

Interesting. If the CBJ was considered then, and language wasn’t a concern, I would what the reason for its scrapping was. Popularity? Antiquated-ness? The park only had Timekeeper in terms of AA shows and even then it had screens for most of it.

To be honest as much as Disney knew Europeans liked the wild / far west I’ve never heard of the CBJ ever being planned for DLP.

 

[PiratesMansion]

I wonder if a part of it was the general move away from AA-based attractions.

Language concerns are a completely valid reason, but it's worth noting that Tokyo Disneyland was really the last park to get any of the AA show attractions and that Disneyland Paris was the first castle park to open with POP admission rather than the ticket books, which Tokyo retained into the nineties.

Or perhaps it was just an intentional design decision to move away from such attractions that may or may not have been related to Disneyland Paris at all. I can't think of a single sit-and-watch-a-static-AA-show attraction that opened after TDL.

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

I wonder if a part of it was the general move away from AA-based attractions.

Language concerns are a completely valid reason, but it's worth noting that Tokyo Disneyland was really the last park to get any of the AA show attractions and that Disneyland Paris was the first castle park to open with POP admission rather than the ticket books, which Tokyo retained into the nineties.

Or perhaps it was just an intentional design decision to move away from such attractions that may or may not have been related to Disneyland Paris at all. I can't think of a single sit-and-watch-a-static-AA-show attraction that opened after TDL.

The only one that comes to mind is Timekeeper and even then that's one AA supplemented by video screens. I guess Lightning McQueen's Racing Academy is the same as Timekeeper?

 

[FigmentsBrightIdeas]

Interesting. If the CBJ was considered then, and language wasn’t a concern, I would what the reason for its scrapping was. Popularity? Antiquated-ness? The park only had Timekeeper in terms of AA shows and even then it had screens for most of it.

My theory as to why? Pretending the Country Bear Jamboree never changed at Disneyland in Anaheim when it was renamed to the “Country Bear Playhouse” (too similar of a name to Knott’s Bear•y Tales Playhouse which was a walkthrough attraction) and only showed Country Bear Vacation Hoedown, despite clearly not being as popular as the original show that WDW brought back in ‘92 as a result of that.
Leading DL’s attendance to continue to dwindle til it’s closing. Add the lack of proper merchandising/marketing at the time, opting instead for retheming the Crocodile Mercantile to a Pooh Corner store around that time which made no thematic sense for where it was placed.. and well, because Disneyland is the “home park”, closest to The Walt Disney Company & WDI, they decided to base their data mostly from there rather than Florida’s for some strange reason… add the 02 release of a mixed up Country Bears movie (featuring characters with the wrong names and looks and a story that made no sense) after the show closed at DL in ‘01) that had a director behind it that ‘didn’t’ love or was passionate about the show (honestly, he’s said so himself) and you know where that was heading.. (the mixed up Pooh ride with cohesive scenic elements missing & scenes placed out of order for whatever reason replacing it.. ). But yeah, Just a hunch of mine..

How nobody really gets into and talks more about what happened to Disneyland’s Country Bear Jamboree, it’s mixed up attraction renaming & signage once the show changed to a “Playhouse” and played Vacation Hoedown (permanently, unlike Tokyo’s which has handled their original show & holiday overlays correctly for all these years, not to mention clearly named it Country Bear ‘Theater’), and the events surrounding the characters surrounding that more specifically and how nonsensical it was (including having a special ‘classic/original show style’ Teddi Barra plush, sold specifically at the ‘Anaheim’ Disneyana Convention the same year (92) when WDW brought their original show back, but not DL) , I’m not sure. But it really should be covered in more detail and exposed for what it was. A blatant, shady, and sneaky sham ordeal. Lots more details posted in the other Country Bear Jamboree related threads, the Muppets Mayhem replacing Aerosmith at Rock N Roller Coaster (in response to wanting proof of Disney sabotaging some of their attractions & IPs through the years), and my own thread I made regarding this topic. (If you check my profile also, you can see my recent activity and see where I’ve posted more about this)

 

[FigmentsBrightIdeas]

My theory as to why? Pretending the Country Bear Jamboree never changed at Disneyland when it was called “Country Bear Playhouse” and only showed Country Bear Vacation Hoedown, despite clearly not being as popular as the original show that WDW brought back in ‘92 as a result of that.
Leading DL’s attendance to continue to dwindle. Add the lack of proper merchandising/marketing, opting instead for retheming the Crocodile Mercantile to a Pooh Corner store which made no thematic sense for where it was placed.. and well, because Disneyland is the “home park”, closest to The Walt Disney Company & located near WDI, they decided to base their data mostly from there rather than Florida’s for some strange reason… and you know where that was heading.. (the mixed up Pooh ride with cohesive scenic elements missing & scenes placed out of order for whatever reason replacing it.. ). But yeah, Just a hunch of mine..

How nobody really gets into and talks more about what happened to Disneyland’s Country Bear Jamboree, it’s mixed up attraction renaming & signage once the show changed (permanently, unlike Tokyo’s which has handled their original show & holiday overlays correctly for all these years), and the events surrounding the characters surrounding that more specifically and how nonsensical it was (including having a special ‘classic/original show style’ Teddi Barra plush, sold specifically at the ‘Anaheim’ Disneyana Convention the same year WDW brought their original show back, but not DL) , I’m not sure. But it really should be covered in more detail and exposed for what it was. A blatant, shady, and sneaky sham ordeal. Lots more details posted in the other Country Bear Jamboree related threads, the Muppets Mayhem replacing Aerosmith at Rock N Roller Coaster (in response to wanting proof of Disney sabotaging some of their attractions & IPs through the years), and my own thread I made regarding this topic. (If you check my profile also, you can see my recent activity and see where I’ve posted more about this)

btw, I always found it funny how Paris could have a Pooh stage show at their park, but yet somehow they couldn’t have just done that at the Fantasyland theater around the same time in Anaheim where it would’ve fit, gotten much better reception overall, and could’ve sold merch near ‘there’ as opposed to where they did.

Oh yeah, and funny how Pooh could have traditionally animated movies released in theaters at the time that stayed true to those characters & stories’ integrity, but not the Country Bears. You had perfect, memorable Marc Davis designed characters and humor to use for a movie (whether animated or live action. Like, they literally had tons of concept art, animatronics & costumed characters to reference/follow if they insisted on live action) (including elaborate backstory material in the record album & the Big Al Moves In book) .. but nope, they just scrapped all that for total nonsense that retains nothing we love from the popular original show in comparison..and as a result of that, it failed. ridiculous if you ask me: