Earthling helps MCA get Universal Studios' new 'E.T. Adventure' ride off the ground.Earthling helps MCA MCA in full Music Corporation of America Entertainment conglomerate. It was founded in Chicago in 1924 by Jules Stein as a talent agency. In the 1960s it bought Decca Records and Universal Pictures, and today it produces films, music, and television shows. get Universal Studios' new |E.T. Adventure' ride off the ground Show-biz conglomerate MCA Inc. opened its $50 million "E.T.'s Adventure" amusement park amusement park, a commercially operated park offering various forms of entertainment, such as arcade games, carousels, roller coasters, and performers, as well as food, drink, and souvenirs. ride at Universal Studios Hollywood June 22 - right on schedule, within budget and without major mishap. That successful opening most likely drew a collective sigh of relief from MCA execs, who suffered major embarrassments a few months ago when a number of such rides malfunctioned at Universal Studios Florida Universal Studios Florida is a theme park in Orlando, Florida, part of the Universal Orlando Resort. The park, which opened on June 7 1990, lets visitors "Ride the Movies." It offers many shows and rides, along with countless other things for guests to see and do. . MCA owes much of its latest E.T. ride success to the efforts of Steve Rosenfield, a 42-year-old construction manager for Bernards Bros BROS Brothers BROS Benefits and Retirement Operations Section (King County, Washington) BROS Barnes and Richmond Operatic Society (London, UK) . Construction in San Fernando San Fernando, city, Argentina San Fernando (săn fərnăn`dō), city (1991 pop. 144,761), Buenos Aires prov., E Argentina. It is a district administrative center in the Greater Buenos Aires area. . Rosenfield had the responsibility of coordinating a work crew of as many as 120 people during the 10 months it took to build "E.T.'s Adventure." First, Rosenfield's crew erected a 60,000-square-foot, steel-framed structure to house the ride. The cavernous building, with 40-foot-high ceilings, was then segmented into several separate compartments, each of which would re-enact re·en·act also re-en·act tr.v. re·en·act·ed, re·en·act·ing, re·en·acts 1. To enact again: reenact a law. 2. a scene from Universal Pictures' blockbuster E.T. movie. The walls separating the rooms are up to nine inches thick to prevent sound from traveling between scenes. Then came the hard part. "We had to suspend all the utilities - air conditioning air conditioning, mechanical process for controlling the humidity, temperature, cleanliness, and circulation of air in buildings and rooms. Indoor air is conditioned and regulated to maintain the temperature-humidity ratio that is most comfortable and healthful. , electrical wiring, plumbing - from steel ceiling trusses," Rosenfield explains, "which meant most of the interior work had to be performed on high lifts, 30 to 35 feet above the concrete-slab floor." The tracks upon which the ride's "airborne" bicycles are suspended also had to be installed in the ceiling, as was an elaborate system of catwalks. Timing was also crucial, said Rosenfield, who had never before overseen an amusement park construction project. Construction deadlines had to be met for each compartment, so that MCA's special-effects teams could come in and put on the finishing touches. MCA honchos are apparently pleased with Rosenfield's work. They're flying him to Universal Studios Florida this week to begin preliminary design development on a new "Back To The Future" ride. MCA's Florida park already has a "Back To The Future" ride, and MCA is negotiating with Bernards Bros. Construction to build another such ride at its Universal City park. PHOTO : Rosenfield: Construction project manager |
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