Hollywood Studios, Walt Disney World

Each park at Walt Disney World has an icon, a symbol that identifies the park. The Magic Kingdom has Cinderella Castle, Epcot has Spaceship Earth, Animal Kingdom has the Tree of Life, but Hollywood Studios has had a tough time identifying itself. It is partially due to the changing nature of this park.

When Hollywood Studios opened back in 1989 it was known as Disney – MGM Studios because of the deal with MGM to utilize film content. The park was not only a them park but an active animation studio. A lot of the early attractions focused on the movie industry. The icon at the time was the Earffel Tower, a water tower on the backlot with Mickey ears.

When the fateful Sorcerer’s Hat was installed in front of the replica of Grauman’s Chinese theater it became the icon for the park. Thankfully the late has since been removed but the current park icon is the Tower of Terror. Personally, I have always been a fan of the Crossroads of the World, which is a replica of the actual structure on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles.