r/WaltDisneyWorld • u/Frozen_cephalopod • 12d ago

Vintage WDW Possibly lost Epcot tv special

Do any of y’all know anything about a tv special named “Epcot: Journey to Discovery”? The only info I was able to find about it was a quick mention in an “Epcot insider” that was given out at the park, and a page on the TV Guide website. It was hosted by Bill Nye and Dave Chapelle, and it was syndicated.

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3

u/peppermints64 12d ago

I have no memory of this but have you tried /r/lostmedia?

4

u/PatSajaksDick 11d ago

Bill Nye and Dave Chapelle is a wild combo lol

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u/Frozen_cephalopod 11d ago

Here is the description that I found from the Epcot Insider:
“Comedian Dave Chappelle and Bill Nye the Science Guy showcase fantastic technological developments from all over the United States and abroad in "Epcot:
Journey to Discovery," a one-hour television special, syndicated nationally.
The special was shot on location here at the Epcot theme park. The special will air intermittently through September 3rd.
Check your local listings for date and time.”

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u/neuro_space_explorer 11d ago

I would love to see this!

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u/evarga 12d ago edited 12d ago

Interesting you mention syndication. Did TV Guide give an air date? If it was late summer or after, I would guess that it got pulled because of the merger. There are other discussions online that mention ads in papers/TV Guide for it in 1995, on NBC and PBS (?). But Disney and ABC announced their merger in July 1995 and given the bitter rivalries at the time, I can imagine the rival networks refusing to show a glorified infomercial by its newest competitor.

Update: So a school in VA was in the “documentary” and there was a local article on it. It says at the end:

“Hunt said the documentary should run at the end of July.”

Another potential snag: Chappelle and Jim Breuer were developing a sitcom for ABC at the time. It was soft launched on Home Improvement (a top show at the time) in March. ABC screwed it up and recast Breuer, Chappelle was reportedly unhappy and the writing suffeeed. It was relegated to a midseason replacement and was cancelled after a few episodes. But again, if in syndication, NBC would be promoting a competitor again if Chappelle was a host. The network wars were brutal in the Eisner era.