By Robert Niles: The Walt Disney Co, confirmed today the rumor that it would start selling a combined "Premier Passport" good for admission to all its' U.S. theme parks, at Walt Disney World in Florida and Disneyland Resort in California.

The Premier Pass will sell for $700, plus tax, and including admission and parking at all six theme parks, two Disney World water parks, and admission to DisneyQuest at WDW, plus subscriptions to annual passholder publications.

The passes go on sale at the parks tomorrow. If you happen to be one of those hard-core Disney fanatics who own premium passes to both parks, you'll be issued a Premier Pass with an expiration date of the last of your two passes to expire. (Someone out there is smiling at their timing on this one, I'm sure.)

The pass also includes food and merchandise discounts, but you can't use a DVC discount to get a lower price. Nor are there child passes at a lower price. Kids pay the same as adults.

As far as I remember, this is the first time that the Disney Co. has issued admission media to the general public that covers parks on both coasts. When I worked at Disney World, each summer and winter, we'd get free one-day, park-hopper tickets that were good at all the Disney World parks and Disneyland. We'd joke that someone with more money that any of us had could use that ticket to spend the morning hitting all the Disney World parks, then hop a flight to the LA area and wrap up the day at Disneyland.

Now... some folks out there finally will have a single ticket that allows them to do that. Airfare not included, of course. :-)

A previous version of this story was submitted by a Theme Park Insider reader, who copied an Orlando Sentinel story in its entirety. This is a violation of Theme Park Insider's Rules for Writers, so that version of the story has been removed and the reader has been banned from the site. Sorry, hate to be a jerk here, but I have to have zero tolerance for that. So, please, please, please, phrase what you write in your own words, and provide links to your sources instead of copying text.

Update: It's been years since I had to enforce the no-plagiarism rule, and, you know, I've decided that banning people (actually, just deleting memberships) for that is stupid. I'll save that for people filing false reports or harassing others. (Which, frankly, rarely happens around here. TPI readers rock.) I still won't allow duped content on to the site, but the right thing to do is delete it, warn the reader and move on. So, my apologies.

By Robert Niles: By far, the most popular roller coaster model among Theme Park Insider readers is the Bolliger & Mabillard Mega Coaster. In fact, the reason why I implemented the rule for this year's Best Theme Park Attraction Tournament that only one installation of any model would be included was because of the B & M Mega. Without that rule, five of the top 10 coasters in the tournament would have been B & M Megas.

While I love the B & M Mega, too, a tournament that reduced to voting on which Mega was the best Mega just didn't seem that exciting to me. So I made the call, and today we reveal which of America's B & M Mega Coasters received the highest average rating from Theme Park Insider readers, and thus, a spot in this year's tournament.

First, though, let me note the irony that even though the B & M Mega is Theme Park Insider readers' favorite coaster model, the B & M Mega is not the top seed in the roller coaster bracket. That honor, obviously, was won by another manufacturer, which I will reveal on Monday Friday. (Though, I suspect it should take you folks about 0.3 seconds to guess what it is.)

So... the second seed in the Best Roller Coaster bracket of the 2010 Best Theme Park Attraction Tournament is...

Apollo's Chariot at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, in Virginia.

Featuring a 210-foot initial drop over a pond, followed by a series of 100-foot-plus drops that yield superb airtime, not to mention excellent views of the James River region, Apollo's Chariot offers a smooth ride, blending high-speed thrills with outstanding visuals. The open car design on the B & M Mega enables those sweet views, and Busch Gardens made full use of that potential with an excellent site placement.

Of course, no discussion of Apollo's Chariot would be complete without its, uh, rather notorious 1999 opening ceremony (there's some good POV of the initial drop here, too):

Okay, maybe Fabio "lashed out" at the park, but by leading to him being whacked in the face, Apollo's Chariot immediately endeared itself to a generation of fans who couldn't stand the male super-model or at least the hype (at that time) surrounding him.

Other B & M Megas include Kings Island's Diamondback, Six Flags Over Georgia's Goliath, Six Flags Great Adventure's Nitro and Six Flags Great America's Raging Bull.

Uodate: Starting tomorrow: The number one seeds!

• Thursday: Best Movie or Animated Show
• Friday: Best Roller Coaster
• Monday: Best Live Show
• Tuesday: Best Themed Ride

And a week from Thursday, first-round voting begins!

By Robert Niles: I wanted to draw your attention to a story yesterday in the Orlando Sentinel about an attempt by SeaWorld and the family of Dawn Brancheau to prevent video of the orca attack which claimed her life last month from being shown to the public.

The Orange County Sheriff's Department has surveillance video of the incident, and might have video from tourists on the scene, too. Normally, under Florida law, material that sheriff's deputies collect in the course of an investigation becomes public record after the investigation is complete. And the sheriff's office already has gotten multiple requests for the video.

But, remember, SeaWorld has a legal ace up its sleeve here. Remember our discussion from earlier this year about the legality of posting theme park photos and videos online? Despite the fact that theme parks technically prohibit publication of images photographed or recorded within their parks, I wrote then that parks "absolutely love viral promotion from their guests." The only time that parks would take legal action to enforce their copyright and prevent an in-park photo or video from being publishing would be if it "portrays the park in a negative light."

You better believe that SeaWorld's going to exercise that here. The sheriff's office might be legally obligated to release the video after it complete its investigation. But SeaWorld's copyright claim on that video should be enough to prevent anyone who obtains that video from republishing it - online or elsewhere.

There is a "fair use" exemption to copyright law that might allow news organizations or even individual bloggers to publish a screen grab, or maybe even a very short excerpt from the video. I wouldn't do that, though, and I hope that no other news organization covering the theme park industry would, either. Let's allow Dawn's memory, family and fellow trainers some dignity.

By Robert Niles: The Give-a-Day, Get-a-Day promotion that Disney was running for its theme parks has ended. Disney announced today that's it has reached its cap of 1 million volunteers getting a free one-day ticket to Walt Disney World or Disneyland theme parks, so there will be no more sign-ups.

The announcement means that you can no longer sign up for a volunteer activity to get a free ticket (though, of course, volunteer agencies are almost always happy to accept your help anyway). If you're already signed up and registered for an event, I'm told that you are good to go and should receive your voucher as scheduled.

By Robert Niles: Here are the top new threads from the past week on the Theme Park Insider Discussion Board:

Sandro Giometti delurks to ask about theme park crowds and trip planning for visiting Orlando in April.

Don Neal crunched the numbers on his family's theme park vacation for this year, then explains How Disney seduced me away from Universal...

Anthony Murphy asks about your favorite Cheap Eats at Disney World.

And if you're looking for an even cheaper alternative for lunch and dinner, we've also got a question about Bringing food into Disney?

Drew Horsefield asks Whats Next? in roller coasters.

Nick Markham takes a look at the Texas Giant rehab and warns that Cedar Fair Better Watch Six Flags Closely.

Sarah Tish asks 4D - is it a must see?

And finally... hey, it's been a while since we had a knock-down, drag-out over Harry Potter World, er, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

By Robert Niles: Just got my first look (via an e-mailed photo) of the GT Racing Coaster at the new Ferrari World theme park that's opening in Abu Dhabi in the back half of 2010.

Here's the background on the coaster, e-mailed by my source:

The GT rollercoaster is a racing coaster, which will send two competing rollercoaster carriages sprinting along twisting parallel tracks on a race to the finish line. Each coaster car is a replica of a Ferrari F430 Spider. This is one of twenty rides and attractions featured at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi.

Okay, if I can go to Singapore, can I get myself invited to a journalism conference in the UAE this year, too? :-)

By Robert Niles: Theme Park Insider readers have voted The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at Disney's Hollywood Studios into the 2010 Best Theme Park Attraction Tournament as the second seed in the Best Themed Ride bracket.

Tower of Terror opened in 1994 and won the inaugural Best Ride in America Tournament in 2008. It continues Disney's tradition of reimagining traditional amusement park ride systems as the basis for an immersive storytelling experience. (Other versions, with a different ride system, stand at Disney's California Adventure, Walt Disney Studios Park in Paris and Tokyo DisneySea. Only the California version includes the Twilight Zone theme, however.The Paris version has a different name and the Tokyo one a different theme, however.)

On Tower of Terror, a simple drop ride becomes the richly detailed Hollywood Tower Hotel, where on October 31, 1939, a bolt of lightning transported a wing of the hotel into The Twilight Zone.

(And by "Twilight Zone," we mean the classic 1960s television series, and not the realm of asexual teenage vampires.)

In a trick of creative video editing, Twilight Zone host Rod Serling sets up the story for us in the hotel's library, before we head into the hotel's boiler room, where we'll board the elevators that will take us to the site of the lightning strike... and perhaps, into The Twilight Zone itself.

The ride features multiple series of drops from the top, rewarding frequent riders with a fresh experience each time. With a variety of theatrical effects, copious visual references to various Twilight Zone episodes, and mix of light and dark drops, The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror elevates (sorry, terrible pun, but I just couldn't resist) the simple amusement park drop ride into a true narrative experience.

That's why Tower of Terror is widely considered one of the best theme park attractions in the country. But is it the best? Tell us your thoughts about Tower of Terror, in the comments.

By Robert Niles: Last night during the Oscars telecast, I saw the first promo commercials for the return of King Kong to the Studio Tour at Universal Studios Hollywood.

Take a look, if you missed it:

The previous Kong attraction was destroyed during the backlot fire at Universal in 2008. Here's what Universal says about the new version, which will open in "late June/early July" according to the latest estimate from the park:

Guests will don special glasses as they enter a darkened soundstage aboard the Studio Tour trams and will be transported - via the magic of Surround Digital 3D projection - deep into the dark heart of the world of Skull Island. They’ll survive a close encounter with a swarm of monstrous bats, only to be confronted by the terrifying presence of Kong himself. Suddenly, an enormous, ravenous 35-foot tall dinosaur will challenge Kong and guests will feel their trams jolt, roll and shudder as they find themselves caught in the middle of a ferocious showdown between the great ape and the giant lizard.

Thoughts?

By Robert Niles: I've been waiting for Impressions de France's spotlight day so that I could start a discussion I've been wanting to get into.

Part of the reason why I love Impressions de France so much is that it contains one of those rare, "perfect moments" for me as a theme park fan: When we see the Eiffel Tower and the theme from Saint-Saens' Organ Concerto begins. That rousing finale, culminating with the timpani blasts as the curtain closes and the host strides toward the Eiffel Tower in middle of the frame... wow, it's just a perfectly composed moment, when perfect visuals and sound come together to force an emotional reaction from its visitors.

So what are your perfect theme park moments? I'm not asking for personal moments (e.g. "the time my kid rode on a roller coaster for the first time without throwing up"), but rather elements from theme park attractions that you find perfect in composition and effect.

Here are three more "perfect moments" for me:

- On the Haunted Mansion: "There's always my way...." And, boom!

- The original IllumiNations: As the first notes of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue sound and the spotlights turn to America. (I so miss this version of the show.)

- On Disneyland's Pirates of the Caribbean: As you float by Old Joe on your way through the Blue Bayou, the restaurant chatter fades into gentle banjo licks, which melt into... silence. A brief, perfect moment of stillness, before the impending storm.

Chills. Every one.

Please tell us about your top theme park attraction moments, in the comments.

By Robert Niles: Voting in the 2010 Best Theme Park Attraction Tournament starts next week. But before then, we have seven more attractions to introduce, and welcome to the tournament field. Today, we honor Epcot's Impressions de France, the second seed in the Best Movie or Animated Show bracket.

Long-time Theme Park Insider readers will remember that I've been championing this film for years, having written in 2008 that 'Impressions de France' is the best movie ever made for a theme park. Here's what I wrote about the film then:

The twenty minutes that most theme park films get simply isn't enough time to tell a nation's story. So you're left with a simplistic, overly earnest work that tries to charm like a puppy in a pet store cage.

Epcot's Impressions de France wins by refusing to play this game. No traveler ever really learns the story of a nation. At best, he or she absorbs a few instructive impressions about the land he or she has visited. And that's what Impressions de France offers -- impressions.

Impressionism, of course, is France's gift to art. By eschewing narrative for impressionism, director Rick Harper played on France's home turf. And he also created a work that would not grow stale after a few viewings. Effective impressionism reflects the viewer as well as the artist, allowing a work to change and develop in a viewer's eyes over the years, as that viewer brings something different to each encounter with the work.

Impressions de France takes us on a visual tour of the nation, set to the music of French classical music composers, including Debussey and Saint-Saens. The film closes with Saint-Saens' Organ Concerto, as we rise up the Eiffel Tower - a moment that remains, for me, one of the most thrilling in any theme park.

Impressions de France is the work of producer Bob Rogers and director Rick Harper, seen here in front of the Impressions de France storyboard, in a photo provided by Disney Legend (that's an actual title) Marty Sklar:

Obviously, I'm thrilled that Theme Park Insider readers have embraced this film, too, and voted it to a number two seed in the tournament. I'll try to keep my campaigning for it to a minimum going forward. :-)

Oh, whom am I kidding? I love this film. Please share your thoughts about Impressions de France, in the comments.