Pleasure Island: The History of Disney’s Adults Only Theme Park

1989 saw the birth of Disney's adult playground. >> Pleasure Island. We never heard of it. Then again, that was part of the allure, right? >> Filled with deeply themed restaurants [music] and nightclubs, it offered a unique experience unlike anything else at Disney World. >> When Pleasure Island first opened, that was the place to be because you were

there cuz you wanted to be there, [music] not just cuz you were passing through. >> Crowds flocked to Downtown Disney, some of which caused a bit more trouble than Disney had hoped. We had several people that would come in with fake IDs >> and there was a lot of [music] problems with children getting in trouble and

doing things they probably shouldn't be doing. >> What's worse could happen? As long as nobody dies, [music] you can do all kinds of incredible stuff. This is the history of Disney's Pleasure Island. [cheering]

In May of 1986, Disney announced a surprising new addition to their Florida property, a nightclub complex called Pleasure Island. This would, of course, be the brainchild of newly appointed Disney CEO Michael Eisner. Taking direct inspiration and eventually the business of Downtown Orlando's nightclub complex, Church Street Station. Church Street, which had opened its clubs in the 70s,

had become the place for adult nighttime entertainment in Orlando. Up until that point, Disney World was its theme parks, a safe place for familyfriendly entertainment. Even the idea of Disney selling alcohol was still sort of a foreign concept. >> It it was a shock. I was actually thrilled that they built an adult park,

uh something for the adults to do. >> Yeah, we were a little confused, as you can imagine. And you know, of course, once we got here, our answers were quickly. Um, >> it was needed at that time, there weren't that many places to go. Most everybody would go downtown to Church Street Station. [music]