I recently read another article about some confirmed and rumored changes coming to Disney World. It seems that every day you can hear something new about this ever evolving destination. One of the items I have been following closely is the revitalization project of the former Pleasure Island complex.
In its heyday, Pleasure Island was the place to go for night life while visiting the Orlando vacation corridor. Numerous clubs with varying themes offered an array of dancing and entertainment options. Restaurants dotted the area and a smattering of boutique shops made for a great night.
There was a lot of planning that went into the original Pleasure Island. Opening in 1989, as with all Disney undertakings, PI had a back story. Each building was part of the story and throughout the property, there were plaques erected to detail the building’s “history” and how it played into the grander scheme of this over the top adult playground.
Sadly, most or all of the plaques have been lost over the years due to closures, demolition or repurposing of the structures there. I’m not sure what the new “story” is for what is to become the new Disney Springs, but out of respect for my old stomping grounds, I thought I would share the text of the original Pleasure Island Story.
I was lucky to be a part of the opening at Pleasure Island. I celebrated my birthday there each year as well as many other occasions. It was cutting edge, a carnival, a place where you could really let go and meet up with locals and tourists alike, all in the name of pure FUN! My many thanks and appreciation to Joe Rohde and his team of imagineers, artists and fellow revelers for creating this sadly missed place to play.
PLEASURE ISLAND (entrance plaque on the bridge by the ticket booths)
Founded 1911
An unverifiable, anecdotal, purely subjective, theoretical alleged purported history. Also, ersatz. A living monument to “the wise fool, the mad visionary, the scoundrel, the scalawag, and the seeker of enjoyment.” Merriweather Adam Pleasure, who purchased the island in 1911. Pleasure’s profitable canvas manufacturing/sail fabricating empire, founded on this site, provided him with the capital to indulge his lifelong interest in the exotic, the experimental, and the unexplainable. Known as the Grand Funmeister, Pleasure disappeared during his 1941 circumnavigation of the Antarctic. His sons, Henry and Stewart, took over the island and the Pleasure enterprises. Their mismanagement led to bankruptcy in 1955; Hurricane Connie hit that same year, and Pleasure Island was abandoned. In 1987, Archaeologists uncovered the site and its remains, and a large scale reclamation project was begun. In 1989, the new Pleasure Island was re-opened and dedicated to the legacy of Merriweather Adam Pleasure: “Fun for all, and All for fun!”
