Carousel of Progress- Now is the Time version 1 of 2

[D15N3Yproductions]

Too bad this song isnt in the current version.. ):

[TANKLIKESBEANS]

Now is the time. Now is the best time. Now is the best time of your life. Life is a prize, live every minute. Open your eyes and watch how you win it. Yesterday's memories may sparkle and gleam, tomorrow is still but a dream. Right here and now, you've got it made. The world's forward marching and you're in the parade! Now is the time. Now is the best time. Be it a time of joy or strife. There's so much to cheer for, be glad you're here. For it's the best time of your life.

[supersuperwendydvc]

I remember this version soooo well. I think we have it on video somewhere too.

[audtom52]

The Father and narrator in this, the best version of Carousel is Andrew Duggan who played the original John Walton in the tv movie that led to the long running Waltons series

[gerryu21220]

It was changed to this version when GE dropped sponsorship of the show in 1985. This one is much closer to the original version then the current show, installed in 1994. Much of the original script remains in this one.

[tamisweetie]

Great Video!! When did they add " Now is the tim" and when did they take it out? I went on vacation a week ago and it was " Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow". And, his voice sounds so different. Why?

[magicalthemeparks]

@tamisweetie When the attraction moved from Disneyland to Disneyworld, I understand they redid the attraction and its theme song. Back in the early 90's (guess) they redid the attraction using the orginal song by the Sherman Bros created for the Worlds Fair.

[laura897001]

Thank you for posting this!

[ApplePBJ]

I LOVED THAT RIDE... MY FAVORITE RIDE THERE IN ORLANDO!!!!!!  KEEP IT UP DISNEY

[shulman2]

The original version of the Carousel had the singing cowboy as narrator, the late Rex Allen. I have no idea who replaced him as narrator. I visited the original Carousel over 50 times at the NY Worlds Fair. I bought the soundtrack record for $1 by mail from General Electric. I still saved it somewhere. Be aware that the original version revolved from right to left. While "Best Times of Your Life" was nice, "great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" was the best. Sadly, WDW wants to demolish this classic an

[magicalthemeparks]

@shulman2 There is a CD box set based on Walt Disney's attractions at the 64 NY Worlds Fair. It has the original soundtrack for this ride, which is a different version of Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow. While there are rumors about the rides demise, its still just rumor.

[CapeMike]

@magicalthemeparks This CD Box set is WELL worth the price if you can get it, if only for the bonus disc, which has a grand total of -one- track...but it's the only track it needs...; a complete rendition of the Carousel of Progress had been recorded and scored in it's early stages, but for whatever reason, was never actually used, and it's existence was basically unknown...until it's inclusion in this set! :D

[practicalmagic9]

@shulman2 thank you!I knew that it was sponsored by someone!and yes!rex allen...his narration was always great!

[HWISE05]

I grew up on 'Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow' and it's my favorite.

[disneyworldsecrets1]

DisneyWorld is fantastic. Just wanted to say hello and post a comment. Thanks.

[guylikesclassics]

My first exposure to Carousel Of Progress including "Now is the best Time" and as others have indicated, it is a song that has been kept in memory. I must say I prefer it to "Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" although a wonderful song "Now is the Time" sparks more optimism with me. I am sure Walt would have liked it as so many others have.

[punkgirlphoto]

Dang this is old! There are some things in the old one that I don't see in the new version of The Carousel of Progress. And I wish that they will show the old one now or at least try to make a different one in an other Disney Park.

[Benstudio13]

I like both versions. They are very catchy.

[TheCaroleeShow]

....why does this song still run thru my head!!! GREAT MEMORIES!

[epaddon]

The people who keep praising the current version of Carousel Of Progress over this one, simply because it's the "original song" are not aware that while the song in the current version may be the original one, this version is closer to the SPIRIT of the original program.  The current one, instead of being a celebration of progress is just a self-indulgent exercise in nostalgia in which the only thing it has in common with Walt's version from the 60s is the song and nothing else.

[auntiedena72]

I like this version the best. I knew the entire theme song 'Now is the Time' by heart and used to sing it all the time.

[MissGoldenDreams13]

When I watched this video, mainly out of curiosity to see what the second version of Carousel of Progress was like (as opposed to the one at the 1964-1965 World's Fair), something totally surprised me. The song in this version was "Now is the Time"! Ever since I was a kid, my mom, one of the original "Disney Babies", would sing this to my brother and I. Because of that, I always wondered where this song came from. Now I know!

[agltbialik]

Personally, I'm so glad they went back to Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow; it's a much better song in my opinion. And nothing beats the original to anything!

[Setka1982]

So right.. The original song is the best

[KikiKalena]

I saw the original version at Disneyland in the sixties with the Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow song and the last scene of a home in the sixties. As a kid it was so fascinating to see the singing robots and the seats moving and the progress... I sure wish someone had a video of that version..a modern 60's house. Also the model of Progress City upstairs after the show was fascinating...A glimpse of the future. No one at Disneyworld got that experience. Too bad Walt died before it could happen.

[vidman1976]

I remember when I saw this a long "time" ago in 1985 when I was 9 years old. It was interesting & I liked the audio animatronics characters. :)

[lenoralovin]

Saying the new one is heartless is a little dramatic, don't you think?

Provided, I never saw the old one in person, but the new one is still my favorite ride.

It's not so much about the voice or the song. It's about the theme: Progress with the American family. I feel the new one does this theme just as much justice.

[magicalthemeparks]

again, it is worth repeating, the original theme song for the attraction was Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow when the Sherman Brothers wrote the music for the attraction for the 64 NY worlds Fair. The soundtrack was more like a commercial for GE. After the fair closed, they moved the attraction to Disneyland, then Disneyworld. While at Disneyworld, they rehabbed the attraction and changed the theme music to Now is the Time. They updated and rehabbed the attraction again.......

[magicalthemeparks]

and reused the original Sherman Brothers theme song from the fair, Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow. They did update the script too. Its different from the one used in the fair. To hate GBBT is to hate the one Walt Disney himself enjoyed, as seen on a video display outside the attraction of him singing along with the Sherman Brothers for a film promo presented to GE before the fair opened.

[magicalthemeparks]

Both themes are good, and both should be appreciated, its just too bad you cant choose which version you can see.

[CoolioRockstar]

@magicalthemeparks But the Music from this Changed back to the original with the Soundtrack!

[walrusjax]

We used to go in the Carousel of Progress once or twice a day when we went to the Magic Kingdom, because it was air conditioned and you could sit down (never a wait either). We went on it so often that my father used to say that the guy would say "Hi Tom" when we got on. I took my family to it this year and when I heard the song, I was heartbroken. Never again, I'd rather stay outside in the heat.

[subby631]

I still laugh when I see Rover wag his tail.

[jordinyc]

Aw! This is the version I grew up with. The music, the actors, the dialog was awesome, it had real heart, even if it was just a GE commercial. Who cares! it's robots. SINGING ROBOTS! When you're a kid, you can't top that! But it was singing robots in an awesome show. This crowd might be dead, but usually there was LOTS of laughter after the jokes.

I saw the new version for the first time today and it's dry and heartless compared to this. That's not progress, that's just apathy.

[volunteer9999]

In 1989 I lugged a very heavy VCR camera all day long in the Magic Kingdom to record this and other attractions.  Nobody can predict the future lol.

[saxophoney]

that's the late Andrew Duggan.

[ramkidd123]

actually there is a soundtrack from this ride that disney used to sell to their enployees. now and then you can find a record soundtrack or really rare are cds on ebay. my freind works on the haunted mansion ride and has that whole rides soundtrack. ive also been "underground" where the computers are. they dont do that anymore. they wouldnt hire me cause of my tatoos. :>(. they only hire clean cut people. no tattoos or long hair men or beards.

[ramkidd123]

this is one of 3 of my fav rides at disney, yes this was it back in the days. "now is the time" was actually the song g.e. was using back in the 80s untill they stopped sponsorship i think in 88 or so. actually the newer song was the orignial theme back from walt disney himself. and changed when ge sponsered it. and when g.e. quit it went back to walts theme that he apporved of right before he died in 1970. "now is the time"

[leedavidt]

p.s. the narrator was excellent in this version too ! he has the better voice in my opinion !

[tly5352]

This version was a great narrator, but just for Trivia's sake - the current narrator is actually Jean Shepherd - author of that famous "A Christmas Story" movie they show for 24 hrs straight every Christmas. He died in '99 so if they update, it will be a new narrator once again.

[leedavidt]

this is the best version! now is the time ! not....its a great big beautiful tomorrow...

[thewackingtons]

Did you hear the GREAT and various renditions of "Now is the Best Time"?

In the first quadrant the gramophone had a turn-of-the-century version. In the 20's section there was a Jazz instrumental of the fantastic song. Within the 40's, part a Big Band/Swing interpretation was a keypoint.

The heads of Disney are a pile of uber-dorks for ever removing this song.

HEY DISNEY!!

I'LL PAY YOU FOR A CD CONTAINING ALL THE VERSIONS OF "NOW," AND I'M NOT ALONE!

RIGHT PEOPLE!!!

[Depplvr1]

i actually like this one a little better than the one now

[kfur269]

thank you for settling a 5 year argument about what song was first in the carousel

[jster298]

actually its a great big buetiful tomorrow was first in the carousel but when they moved it to wdw from dl they changed it to noww is the time

[pmcolorguard]

i hope they never get rid of this!!

[graceymanor]

btw ...didanyone notice that the Grandmother from the trun of the centruy is in the Haunted Mansion Ballroom ( sorry if someoen already mentioned it ))

[JadeGryphon]

Eh. No offense to anyone, or to the Sherman Brothers (though I'm sure they probably weren't happy with changing something that was fine), but I think "Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" is more catchy than "Now Is The Time".

[graceymanor]

I disagree but I grew up on Now is the time so that may expain my htinking

[jster298]

i agree why would people thumbs down you

[psychicbooty]

According to everything I've read, "Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" was the original, but they changed it to "Now is the Time" when they got GE sponsorship (they wanted the "NOW" as part of the sales pitch). It was so early on, that when they changed back to the original idea, people felt it was a bad re-write, even though it wasn't.

[jster298]

actually they changed it when ge dropped their sponsorship not when they started sponsoring it

[jster298]

actually thats a compliment to the sherman brothers because they wrote its a great big buetiful tommorow not now is the time

[tly5352]

The Sherman brothers actually wrote both songs. When GE asked that the Carousel be moved to FL WDW, GE wanted a song that sowed the seed in peoples' heads that "now is the time" for great GE products. WDW changed it back in '94 in homage to Walt himself as "Big Beautiful Tomorrow" was his fave song.

[marcviv]

"ok mother...you just iron the wrinkles out of my shirts" -- classic

[lovebaja]

I would be curious to know when this attraction changed to the new format?

[jster298]

it changed to the new format in 1995

[juggaloteardrop]

i was born 1995

[sickkat44]

the audience is so far removed from the action of this ride. in the 70's, the parents and grandparents and many of us kids remember the later styles and the earlier stories from our families. it was nostalgic and funny to watch and the audience actually laughed out loud at so much of the show. its bittersweet watching it now and remembering how "connected" we all were then. "now is the time" is fitting because the past is fleeting and tomorrow is still but a dream. how ironic it was changed. sad

[tbbucsfanutube]

This song is sooo much better than the one that is used at the Magic Kingdom now. It is catchy and memorable. The one used now doesn't have any of this song's charm. Please bring back the old song.

[tgustafson85]

Walt Disney comissioned the current song "Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" and Walt Disney was more of a futurist than "here-in-the-now" person. The original song was restored.

[headmouse]

Yes GBBT is the ORIGINAL song. it was replaced with Now is the Time when moved to WDW and GE sponsored it.

[headmouse]

Because of the changing times, a new theme song, written by the Sherman Brothers, was created for the Florida show. GE asked the Shermans to write a new song because they did not want their customers to wait for a "great big beautiful tomorrow;" GE wanted them to buy appliances today, so a song titled "Now is the Time," was created. Although the song was still very peppy and positive, the Shermans still felt that "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" was a better fit.

[mktmajor2003]

The only thing I like about this one is that it reminds me of a time when political correctness was not an issue

You notice the refences to Women's rights and how that progresses in the old version...however it is left out all together in the new one. The "hootchiecootchie show" reference changed a bit. It seems like anything the imagineers touch now has to have a dose of political correctness now

[OceanKingNY]

This is the song that I remember from WDW in the 70s and 80s. It's much catchier and memorable than the original song.  For years after my visits, I could sing it from memory, LOL.

[mwitkes]

To thewackingtons- "Beautiful Tomorow" was the original song then CoP was at the World's Fair. When CoP had a corportae sponsor (GE) the song was changed to "Now is the Time" since it worked with their marketing campaign, when the sponsorship ended they got rid of the song and went to the original. I guess you should book your trip now since they are using the original song!

[althegamefreak]

i love the great big beutiful tommorow song better than this song!

[thewackingtons]

We're all aware why those mouse-lovers changed the song, from "Now is the Best Time" to "Beautiful Tomorrow," right?

The carousel of Progress is in the section of D.World badged: "Tomorrow Land." Yet, the animations were singing, "NOW is the best time." That being the case, the dizzies at Disney World swapped the song -- that Walt himself had no problem with -- for the unacceptable discord they now push.

I will not return to Disney World until the original song is employed.

[dcsmooth]

I went to see this in 1990 and that song is STILL in my head! I heard Walt Disney himself did the motions for the original prototype.

[kqprof]

@dcsmooth I completely agree! The last time I was on this ride was in the 1980s -- and 20 years later sang this song to my kids when they were babies. My theme song!!

[aednyc]

great. I was an operator and lead on GE/Eastern during the late 70's...spent many hours rotating around and listening to this song.

[magicalthemeparks]

which version did you like the best?

[aednyc]

I guess I like the 70's version with Now is The Time..but probably only because it is the one that was installed when I worked on the attraction... It was still sponsored by GE back then, and I kind of miss the "not so subtle" GE plugs in Act 1, Act 2 and Act 4.

I always thought the Carousel Theater was an innovative concept.

[russ707]

I agree. It was my favorite as was the original Hall of Presidents.

[blumonkeyboy]

LOL that version of Jim sounds so bored

[airline10]

im a little confused...i went on this in may and the theme was still GBBT, so whats the deal with this change, or is this disneyland?

[magicalthemeparks]

the history of cop is when built for the 63 worlds fair in ny, the theme was gbbt. After the fair it was moved to disneyland. When disneyworld was opened, it was moved there too. Somewhere pre 96 and after it was moved to wdw, they rethemed it to now is the time version. Back in 95 or 96, the put the orginal fair park theme song back

[echoscot]

FYI when COP opened at Walt Disney World it opened with Now Is The Time. I know, cause I moved to Orlando in 1970 and grew up with WDW and worked there for about 25 years. You are correct that in 1996 they changed it back to the original theme.

[puppyluvx3]

Thanks...will do!

[puppyluvx3]

Love, love, love this song!!! Where can I find it - any ideas?? This is the way I remember this ride - thanks for sharing!!

[jasper153]

You can purchase The Happiest Celebration On Earth CD.

If you go to Downtown Disney in Orlando.

Or try finding the cd on ebay.

[jasper153]

GBBT was also the song used in DisneyLand befor the move to DisneyWorld.

I think the Now Is The Time Version Had Better a better show all the war around.

Even no i like the GBBT version.

[jasper153]

At Every Turn Will Be Making Progress!

Now is the time to bring back this version of the COP?

[magicalthemeparks]

the history of carosel of progress is this. Great big beautful tomorrow is the version that they had at the 63-64 worlds fair in ny. GBBT is the version that Walt Disney worked on. Now is the Time is a version that they used after a rehab when they moved it to Disneyworld