Universal Closing Back to the Future in September : Theme Park News & Construction!

Universal Orlando will be closing the historic attraction in September peminently to open a new attraction in summer 2007. if you would like to help save this ride, please read the article below and it will give you all the information you need:

" Orlando ????????? The rumors are seemingly true: Universal Orlando will
apparently close Back to the Future?????????...The Ride permanently in
September 2006 after 15+ years of continuous service successfully
taking time travel volunteers across the space-time continuum.

Back to the Future?????????...The Ride has been a staple at Universal
Studios Florida since it first opened to the public on May 2, 1991.
Following on the heels of two extremely popular sequels in 1989 and
1990 respectively, the attraction finally gave fans a physical
location where they could literally ride the movie and visit Doc
Brown's lab anytime they wanted.

On a reported budget of $40 million, the state-of-the-art simulator
ride was light-years ahead of its time ????????? blowing away Disney's Star
Tours & Body Wars attractions and paving the way for other popular
simulator attractions to land in Orlando such as Islands of
Adventure's highly popular Spiderman ride. It spawned two sequels
of sorts of its own, with the same attraction popping up in similar
layouts at Universal Studios Hollywood in Universal City, California
(1993) and Universal Studios Japan in Osaka (2001).

Back to the Future?????????...The Ride was one of the very first attractions
to successfully bridge the gap between films & theme park
attractions by employing many of the cast & crew who worked on the
highly successful trilogy. BTTF veteran actors Christopher Lloyd
and Tom Wilson returned to their famous roles as `Doc Brown'
and `Biff Tannen' respectively, and BTTF composer Alan Silvestri
composed the ride's score. Appearing in smaller roles, Darlene
Vogel who appeared as one of Griff's gang members `Spike' in Back to
the Future????????? Part II appeared as `Heather', the spokesperson at the
Institute of Future Technology, and BTTF Unit Publicist Michael
Klastorin appeared as one of the security checkpoint guards Biff
ultimately foils to gain access to Doc Brown's office during the
attraction's highly entertaining pre-show.

For years though, rumors have circulated the internet that Universal
would soon close the attraction and replace it with something else.
UO President & CEO Bob Gault told the Orlando Sentinel on more than
one occasion that he'd like to replace BTTF with another story &
vehicles which guests could, in his words, "relate to better." As
far back as 2002, Universal's semi-popular The Fast & The Furious
film series has topped those rumors as the choice to replace the
attraction, but now various unconfirmed online sources point to a
non-Universal property set to take its place ????????? The Simpsons.

The attraction has been visibly showing its age for quite a while
now, and the park has done little to maintain the luster it once
held. Lack of faith and interest in the attraction by Universal has
been noticably apparent for approximately five years now as none of
the park's promotional literature, commercials, or Orlando
billboards even make mention of the attraction's existence. Having
visited the park frequently over the past decade and a half ????????? most
recently this past February ????????? I was agast to witness what had become
of the once beloved attraction since my last visit just a few years
earlier. None of the 8-passenger DeLorean vehicles appeared to have
working time circuits anymore nor had dry-ice blowing into the faces
of riders while the cars ascend into and descend from the Omnimax
dome. Visible tears littered the massive screen, and several
vehicles had garbled or missing audio. The BTTF Gift Shop contained
perhaps a half dozen BTTF related items for sale among other film
properties. Alas, he illusion of time travel was now gone and the
writing was on the wall. I quietly knew I would never have the
opportunity to ride this once vibrant attraction ever again in
Orlando.

When reports of a closure once again surfaced this week, my knee-
jerk reaction was to quickly write them off as rumors as usual.
Even after emailing a few contacts inside the park for verification,
everything seemed safe at least for a little while longer. However,
by the end of the week, my sources one by one began to do a 180????????? on
me ????????? stating that apparently it was true after all. Based upon what
I've been told from a top management source inside Universal's lot,
they are indeed going to phase out the attraction beginning next
month ????????? one theater at a time. One of the two theaters will be
taken down in August, and then the other one will close in
September.

Writer/Producer Bob Gale tells BTTF.com that while he has no current
knowledge of Universal's plans for the attraction, he wasn't too
surprised to learn that it may be closing after knowing "what awful
shape the DeLorean they'd had on display at the tour out here was in
before they refurbished it for the premiere of the DVDs." While
there has been no formal announcement made by Universal, fans may
not wish to sit back and allow the decision to be made quietly. "If
the fans want to complain, I suggest they address their complaints
not only to the tour but to Steven Spielberg" states Gale, reminding
me that Spielberg remains a paid Creative Consultant to the park and
specifically on Back to the Future?????????...The Ride since it is an Amblin
property. "If he wanted to save it and improve it, I believe he
could have a lot of influence."

So, just how do you do that? Here's where you can send your letters
to Save Back to the Future...The Ride!!!:

"Save Back to the Future...The Ride!!!"

Attention: Bob Gault, President & CEO

Universal Studios Florida

1000 Universal City Plaza

Orlando, FL 32819

"Save Back to the Future...The Ride!!!"

Attention: Steven Spielberg

Amblin Entertainment, Inc.

100 Universal City Plaza, Building 477

Universal City, CA 91608

A nice touch may be to send copies of photographs from your family
trips to Universal showing you and your family outside the Institute
of Future Technology, shopping in the BTTF Gift Shop, or chatting it
up with `Doc Brown'. Let them know that Future fans won't just sit
back quietly and let our attraction go the same way as Ghostbusters
and Kongfrontation! As Doc Brown would say, "the future hasn't been
written yet." "

I'm one of many trying to spread the word to help save the ride.