‘Bill and Ted’ leave Horror Nights
Universal Orlando is pulling the plug on “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Halloween Adventure,” a long-running show that’s part of Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios theme park. The 2017 edition is being referred to as “The Farewell Tour.”
The production, which skewers pop culture and politicians alike, centers around the title characters from the 1989 film “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure,” which starred Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter. It debuted at HHN in 1992, and it earned a reputation for irreverence, mockery, sexy costuming, blaring music and group dance numbers.
“The ‘Farewell Tour’ gives us the perfect opportunity to give Bill S. Preston, Esq., and Ted ‘Theodore’ Logan a proper sendoff,” Jason Horne told the official Universal blog. Horne has written for and directed the show for seven years.
“This year’s show is everything you’d expect from Bill and Ted’s Excellent Halloween Adventure,” he wrote. “It’s relevant. It’s ridiculous. It’s irreverent. It’s edgy. And at the end of the day … it’s just a good time.”
Universal’s “Bill and Ted” shows have featured hundreds of performers imitating national figures ranging from Britney Spears to President Barack Obama. In recent years, Kim Kardashian has been a repeat target, and the show has frequently made fun of the long-under-construction “Avatar” land that opened this year at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. One constant has been the centerpiece tandem of the Bill and Ted characters, who partied on through the years via traveling phone booth.
“Honestly, there may never be anything quite like it again,” Horne said.
Halloween Horror Nights returns to Universal Studios on Sept. 15.
The baby walrus born at SeaWorld Orlando this summer now has an official name. She will be called Ginger, which was determined by an online survey.
That beat out two other options, Gabi and Umma.
When Ginger was born back in early June, she raised the walrus population at the Orlando theme park to five. Her parents – mother Kaboodle, father Garfield – are there. Ginger is their first calf. The other adult walruses living at SeaWorld are Bruiser and Slowpoke, who appear in the theme park’s sea lion show.
Baby walruses are born without their trademark whiskers, but Ginger’s are growing in.
Right now, Ginger weighs in at 180 pounds. The goal is for her to be visible for all SeaWorld Orlando visitors once she matures. In a backstage nursery for now, she receives “around the clock bottles,” a SeaWorld spokeswoman says.
For now, there are two other ways at the park to spot Ginger.
Visitors can go to the Wild Arctic attraction, where a monitor carries a live feed of Ginger in the nursery. She can also be seen – through a doublepaned window – during Beluga and Walrus Up-Close Tour & Experience. (The 60-minute tour costs $59 and also requires park admission.)
JetBlue will operate a new flight from Orlando International Airport to Atlanta starting in March, the airline said Thursday.
It will be JetBlue’s first nonstop daily route between the two cities.
Besides Orlando, the discount airline also said it was expanding service to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport from New York City and Fort Lauderdale.
Introductory fares on the JetBlue’s Airbus A320 planes start at $64 one-way, the company said.
“Customers flying between Boston and Atlanta have shown a strong appetite for a competitive option like JetBlue, and we anticipate we’ll see the same for the New York, Fort Lauderdale and Orlando routes,” JetBlue executive vice president Marty St. George said in a statement.
JetBlue flies about 470 times weekly from Orlando International to more than two dozen destinations, domestic and international.
In recent months, several airlines have announced expanded service to the Orlando airport, which topped 43 million passengers for the first time in the one-year period ending in June.
Among the new flights include nonstop service to Paris and Brazil.
However, experts who study the airline industry have warned all new flights might not be sustainable if there are too many seats to fill and the airlines drop their prices to compete with each other.
“We will see airlines pulling back,” said George Hobica, founder of airfarewatchdog.com.predicted, in July. “Whoever wins the market share battle, they’ll survive.”