Wednesday, July 27, 2016

1984 Epcot Center Spaceship Earth VIP Lounge Base 21 With Fountain of Nations

Here is a picture of the back side of Spaceship Earth from 1984.  The Fountain of Nations can be seen in the foreground.  The bank of windows seen on the back side of Spaceship Earth is where the sponsor VIP Lounge is located.  In 1984, AT&T would have been the pavilion sponsor. The VIP Lounge is often referred to as Base 21.



Here is some more information on Base 21 from a few years back:

So … what is Base21? Well, Base21 is a VIP lounge located at Epcot, presently under the control and operation of the Siemens Corporation. As many of us known, when Epcot was built, Disney worked in partnership with certain corporations to fund the costs of building the pavilions (along with providing the maintenance and upkeep). The Spaceship Earth pavilion has been sponsored by three different entities; Bell System (1982-1984), AT&T (1984-2004), and Siemens (2005-Present). During the 2007-2008 Spaceship Earth renovations, Siemens provided the funding to create the new ending of Spaceship Earth, and they also decided to completely transform the old VIP lounge into its current incarnation. The lounge’s main purpose is to play host to employees of the Siemens Corporation; however, the lounge also works in conjunction with certain charities. It is by far the most elaborate and probably the most expensive of the VIP lounges currently at Epcot. The technology is extremely interactive (and - pure speculation - perhaps a precursor to the interactive queues that Disney is developing for some of its attractions).

The Siemens’s website states: “Base21, is the Siemens VIP Center at Epcot for the exclusive use of Siemens employees, partners and customers. The state-of-the-art facility serves as a hospitality and executive briefing center showcasing the company’s story of innovation and technology.”

The name Base21 is derived from its location and theme. The VIP lounge is located at the base of Spaceship Earth and Spaceship Earth is themed upon man‘s voyage into the 21st century. It is possible to see Base21 from the exterior of Spaceship Earth since its windows look out toward World Showcase. Simply walk to the main electronic times guide (by the pin trading kiosk) and turn around. The panel of windows one’s sees on the Spaceship Earth building is Base21.

1984 Epcot Center Italy Pavilion Teatro di Bologna

In the 1980s World Showcase provided a lot of great entertainment for guests.  This image is from 1984 and shows a member of the group Teatro di Bologna which was an interactive entertainment offering found in the Italy Pavilion.  During the ruffly 15 minute show entitled "The Great Impasta," guests would be selected to play various parts in this improvised comedy show.