![]() Some of the story of the Swan and Dolphin can be confirmed in the book, Everything By Design, by Alan Lapidus. I want to write an article refuting the urban legend that the giant Swan and Dolphin sculptures were erroneously switched during construction, so the names were switched.ĭo you have any documentation that I can cite? Two huge swan sculptures adorn the hotel with the ocean wave mural. Jim has been called “The Smartest Man in the World” when it comes to Disney history.Īfter you read the following conversation with Jim, you’ll see why. He has written extensively about Disney history for decades in books, magazines and on websites and is well-known and respected in the Disney historical community. ![]() Sure, a construction mistake of the magnitude of switching the iconic sculptures would be unlikely, and it would be even more unlikely that it would not be corrected.īut that still doesn’t explain the waves and leaves.ĭisney historian Jim Korkis knows the real story. In her 1996 book, Building a Dream: The Art of Disney Architecture, author Beth Dunlop devotes 11 pages to the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin, without explaining why the Swan has ocean waves and the Dolphin has leaves. With the lack of published documentation, it’s challenging to make an irrefutable case that the legend about the switched sculptures is wrong. Graves based his design on an elaborate storyline, but the story never made it into books or promotional materials. Two huge dolphin sculptures adorn the hotel with the banana leaf mural. ![]() The truth is that the sculptures are exactly as postmodern architect Michael Graves intended.Īlthough this huge convention hotel complex was never owned or operated by The Walt Disney Company, former Disney CEO Michael Eisner selected Graves to design the unusual hotels on Crescent Lake near Epcot. According to legend, the 47-foot-tall swan sculptures and 55-foot-tall dolphin sculptures were installed on the wrong hotel buildings-and the paint schemes provide the proof. The Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin hotels are known for their iconic sculptures. “Photoshopped” image based on three photographs by Werner Weiss The Swan became the Dolphin and the Dolphin became the Swan. Instead, the hotel company swapped the names. It would have been very costly to correct the mistake. That’s because a helicopter crew installed the sculptures on the wrong buildings. The dolphins are on the building with the leaves and park-like fountains. The swans are on the building with the ocean waves and seashells. The giant rooftop sculptures don’t match the paint schemes and ornaments. Take a careful look at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin. (updated from a Yesterland article originally published March 26, 2010) One of my favorite stories is about how a careless helicopter crew supposedly changed the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin forever. Under the “Myths & Legends about Disney” heading on the Yesterland home page, there are now 18 articles.
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