Why I Will Miss Tomorrowland’s Cool Ship
Earlier this week, we reported that the Cool Ship and the adjacent Cool Scanner had been demolished in Tomorrowland. This news did not rock the Disney community, inspire think pieces, or trend on social media. Instead, it passed largely unnoticed by Disney World fans.
I, however, was unexpectedly affected by the news. As it turns out, the Cool Ship was more important to me than I ever realized.
To understand why, however, we have to go back in time.
The Promise of Tomorrowland 94
If you grew up visiting the Magic Kingdom in the 1990s, you know that two lands stood above the rest. The first was Frontierland, home of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and the then-new Splash Mountain.
The second must-visit land, however, was Tomorrowland.
Photo: Disney
After years of struggling to keep Tomorrowland up to date, Disney decided to do something radical. In 1994, they introduced fans to New Tomorrowland, home of “the future that never was.”
Instead of trying to keep pace with the ever-changing ideas of the future, New Tomorrowland immersed guests in an intergalactic community that was equally inspired by Buck Rogers’s pulp fiction as it was by H.G. Wells’s futurism.
For those who never visited Tomorrowland in the 1990s, it can be hard to describe. The land’s storytelling was primarily driven by the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover narration and numerous kitschy sci-fi props installed throughout the land.
Perhaps the most famous example of the land’s new character was Sonny Eclipse, who has continued to perform in Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe. In addition to the lounge-singing alien, however, there was the Metrophone, the Tomorrowland Robo-Newz, and the hair salon vignette on the TTA.
Sonny Eclipse
Tomorrowland ’94’s Backstory
When Tomorrowland ’94 opened, Imagineers explained the vision behind the land in an elaborate backstory. It read:
“Tomorrowland is a community where everyday living is made better through science, invention and intergalactic influence. Inhabited by robots, space aliens and a few humans, this amazing Earth community is so world-renowned, it was selected as the universal headquarters for League of Planets.”
Photo: Disney
In Tomorrowland, robots perform household chores, ice cream comes from the Milky Way, and a trip through time is as common as a spin around the solar system. Tomorrowlanders keep up with the latest on and off-world wonders and technologies by visiting exhibits presented at their neighborhood Interplanetary Convention and Science Centers.
Photo: Also Disney
Those who work and play in and around Rockettower Plaza, the bustling heart of the community, live outside of town in the Hover Burbs. They commute via the Tomorrowland Transit Authority’s Superskyway Blueline Express. Locals get all the news before it even happens by subscribing to the Tomorrowland Times.
Enter the Cool Ship and Cool Scanner
It was against this backdrop of the future that never was that the Cool Ship opened in Tomorrowland in 1994.
Unlike the sterile white buildings that had dominated Tomorrowland for decades, the Cool Ship was designed to look like a pulp-fiction spaceship that had landed in Tomorrowland.
The new quick-service location was divided into two parts. At the Cool Ship, guests could buy a refreshing Coca-Cola beverage.
At the connected (and more widely recognizable) Cool Scanner, visitors could cool down under a refreshing mist.
While the Cool Ship was, by and large, simply an aesthetically pleasing place to grab a beverage, there was a fair amount of lore behind the location.
Intricate Theming and a Fun Piece of Disney History
For starters, the Thirst Rangers hip that adorned the stand was actually used in Flight of the Navigator. For a time, guests could find the ship’s sister craft on the Backlot Tour at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Photo: Reddit
In addition to this fun Disney connection, the Cool Ship was themed to fit in with the rest of Tomorrowland 1994. When arriving at the stand, guests could read that the locale’s motto was “delivering refreshment to a thirsty galaxy.”
To emphasize the intergalactic nature of the Cool Ship’s operation, nearby crates were labeled with an alien version of the Coca-Cola logo.
Photo: The Mickey Wiki
A closer look at the crates revealed that they arrived via standard transgalactic delivery!
As you can see, the label was written in both English and an alien script. Obviously, delivery drivers were also not supposed to use space hooks.
A Remnant of a Bygone Era
While the Cool Ship was never the most popular locale in Tomorrowland, nor was it particularly important, its futuristic theming and tie-in to the old Tomorrowland ’94 story made it one of my favorite places to visit in Magic Kingdom.
The Cool Ship and Cool Scanner have become more noticeable as Tomorrowland has reverted to a sterile Space Age environment.
From a thematic perspective, I understand the change. Nevertheless, I will miss stopping by the Cool Ship, getting a Coke, and reminiscing about a time when Tomorrowland still had character.
Photo: Reddit
