History & Heritage:

A primeval journey from New York World's Fair to Disneyland Park.

After its display at the 1964-65 New York World's Fair, The Primeval World Diorama opened in 1966 at Disneyland park. At the time of its debut, it was heralded as the world's longest diorama, and it was the only portion of the Ford Magic Skyway attraction from the fair to survive. Walt Disney had plans to transfer the entire attraction, but Ford didn't want to sponsor it beyond the fair. Walt thought the dinosaurs had too much potential to simply get rid of the attraction and decided to transfer them to Disneyland. The question was: where to put them?

Meanwhile, the growth of Disneyland staff necessitated the building of a new administration building. Walt was initially hesitant as he was focused on enhancing his park for the guests. Walt saw the opportunity to accomplish two goals at once. The dinosaurs would have a home, and the new administration building would benefit guests by doubling as the show building for the Primeval World.

as a child, I remember this attraction...DR LEE