November 30, 2014 – Last Monday, Citywalk Hollywood held their annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony with contestants from The Voice. On hand this year was Carson Daly and the top ten finalists from The Voice which films daily on the Universal front lot in Soundstage 12. Also featured at the event was a humongous 40-foot Christmas tree featuring more than 200,000 LED lights that sync in unison with the Five Towers stage. With a free concert by the finalist on the 5 Towers stage, guests were treated to the appearance of Santa Claus to help countdown the lighting spectacle. Steamers…
Author: Chris Lord
November 13, 2014 – While Universal Studios Hollywood is known primarily for its blockbuster thrills and entertainment, the movie studio and theme park is also known among smaller circles for its far-reaching philanthropic efforts throughout the greater Los Angeles community. Since becoming President and Chief Operating Officer of Universal Studios Hollywood in 1999, Larry Kurzweil has dramatically increased Universal’s philanthropic efforts, bolstering Universal’s in-house Discover A Star Foundation to provide assistance to underserved communities throughout Los Angeles County. Founded in 1993, the Discover A Star Foundation has served the community with grants, volunteer work and donations to support education, homelessness…
November 2, 2014 – Yesterday, E! Entertainment and Universal Studios (both under the NBCUniversal umbrella) hosted a public event on Universal’s front Lot to kick off the advertising campaign for one of studio’s largest monetary franchises to date. Fans and guests were able to meet their favorite cast members from Fast and Furious 7 and be on hand for the debut of the first theatrical trailer for the film. Ludacris, Jason Statham, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Jordana Brewster, and Vin Diesel were all on hand for this exciting public reunion for the famed cast which included three pictures cars on…
Terminator 2:3D – Battle Across Time originally opened at Universal Studios Florida in 1996 as a major sequel to James Cameron’s hit motion-picture Terminator 2: Judgement Day. Using an innovative combination of 3D film alongside live actors and large-scale theater effects, Terminator 2:3D clearly pushed the boundaries of traditional theme park special effects, spawning copies at Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Studios Japan to universal acclaim. However, after years of entertaining theme park guests, Universal Studios has announced the first closure of Terminator 2:3D at Universal Studios Hollywood after a 13-year run to make way for a new, 3D attraction.…
Grinchmas Returns! That time of year has returned and now is a great time to visit Universal Studios Hollywood for the holidays! While the park will be filled with Christmas joy, make sure to enjoy all the world famous rides and attractions that Universal has to offer. Don’t forget to make your way over to Cyberdyne Systems and see Terminator 2:3D before it closes forever on December 31, 2012. » Grinchmas Dates December 8: Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) December 9: Jillian Michaels (NBC’s The Biggest Loser), Daniella Monet (Victorious) December 15: Blair Underwood, Yvette Nicole Brown (NBC’s…
October 13, 2012 – May 6, 1999 – December 31, 2012 – You have heard it here first. Inside Universal has learned that the final date for Termiantor 2:3D Battle Across Time will be at the end of the calendar year of 2012. Now is the time to get your final performances in before this classic Universal attraction goes into the Studio Vaults. No word yet if Universal Studios Florida will be closing the original version of the attraction or not. With many rumors that Terminator will be replaced with a current Orlando attraction named Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem, there…
Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem has been confirmed and will be coming to Universal Studios Hollywood in 2013! Wow, that is very soon! There is still much speculation about where this attraction will be located. Many avenues point to the removal of Terminator 2:3D Battle Across Time. Terminator opened at USH in 1999 and we should hear soon about when the final performance may be. It will be nice to have more family friendly attractions at USH, especially a ride geared toward children. Could Despicable Me take over the Panasonic Theater where Shrek 4D currently is located? There has also been…
The year is 1994. Universal Studios Hollywood is celebrating its 35th anniversary of the theme park. The hot new game with kids: POG Universal teams up with McDonalds and creates an official POG licensed product to sell with a children’s Happy Meal. POG is a game which you have a heavy metal “Slammer” which you throw at the thin papered “Pog” and whichever are flipped over in the process of hitting them, you get to keep. Very much like a trading card game for kids before there was Pokemon! In the following photographs you will noticed many of the (then)…
Ladies and Gentleman, here it is… if you can stomach it. The shortest lasting, most expensive, and most rediculous show ever conceived by the minds of Universal. Not to say that the actors weren’t trying (I give them some credit for stepping onto the stage with this material). It was nice to see that the show did not take itself seriously (“Dios mio, this is like some horrible monster movie” “Or a horrible monster musical!”). However, I don’t think a theme park crowd understood the message which the show was attempting to portray. They first attempted to pitch this to a…
Memorial Day weekend is right around the corner, and whether you are in LA or traveling to the area for the holiday, what better way to celebrate than checking out the attraction of the summer, Universal Studios Hollywood’s “Transformers: The Ride – 3D”? Based on the electrifying TRANSFORMERS blockbuster movie franchise, this exciting ride will break new ground in the world of theme park attractions, stretching the medium’s potential as a powerfully engaging storytelling vehicle. Infused with an adrenalized multi-level ride-track, visceral special effects, one of the most elaborate flight simulation ride systems ever created and the highest, most sophisticated…