Videos about things I find interesting

Climbing high into the Saudi Arabian skies was a tower like no other. At 1km high and surpassing the world's already tallest tower, the Burj Khalifa, this mega was truly enormous. Originally named the Kingdom Tower and planned to be the centrepiece of the sparkling Jeddah Economic City. However things didn't go to plan and today I'm going to find out why the worlds newest, modern skyscraper never made it past the 50th floor and why it sits abandoned in an empty plot of land, in the desert.

Cruise ships are a massive business worth billions of dollars around the world with multiple companies with massive fleets of ships. Out of all of them however, there is only one cruise ship that is registered to the United States. That being the Pride of America which began life by a completely different company, encouraged by the US Government. Them, along with Norwegian Cruise Line, both tried their hand at building out an all American fleet of cruise ships under a completely American company. Today I'm going to tell that little known story and how both those attempts at something special in the industry, failed spectacularly.

Ever since 1982 when Disney's Epcot Center first opened, a pavilion sponsored by GE had been planned to tie everything in Future World together as it looks far into the future. A year later, that attraction materialized in the form of Horizons, an omnimover ride visiting the lives of family members through their life in the future. It was nothing less than spectacular and very much beloved by many as it was everything Epcot was meant to be and encapsulated the spirt of Walt Disney himself. However just 11 year later it was closed and only operated seasonally. It was abandoned altogether in 1999 and demolished soon after to make way for Mission Space. So join me today as I find out why Disney demolished one of their best attractions ever.

With our modern retail landscape rapidly changing, the malls of our past have been closing down at a shocking rate. Today we're looking inside a mall at a local scale, something that was integral to the community and is now a forgotten and an increasingly distant memory. We'll look inside a recently closed JCPenny, the small stores that populated the concourse and a truly horrific Sears store.

In 1982, The Walt Disney Company opened their ambitious park of the future. A theme park designed to inspire and educate people on the world, culture, history and most importantly, our collective future. In Epcot Centre's Future World section, two buildings stood as the core for the entire park, a showcase of science and technology in a hands on format. Communicore was Epcot's Main Street USA and stood for many years as a showcase of the future. Ultimately with new company leadership, it was changed to Innoventions. The purpose was lost over the years until it fell into a depressing state with large portions abandoned. Now we're looking to the future of what Disney Parks have in store for the buildings. Plans which themselves might even be abandoned...

In the country side of Pennsylvania and off a major highway junction, sits a former Sheraton Motor Inn hotel, now a decaying Days Inn. Opened as a luxury roadside hotel, complete with indoor pool and lots of amenities. It was a product of the time and a wonderful hotel for many decades. However after declining occupancy and raising maintenance costs, the building was shuttered and left to the elements. After scrappers, vandals and nature took hold, this once luxury hotel is now in an unbelievable state. Let's take a look inside and discover it's lodging roots.

Cruise ship disasters are incredibly rare and typically when one does happen, it's known throughout history for the critical series of events that both lead up to the disaster and the incredible struggle of survival that then follows. The story of the MS Sea Diamond follows suit, however unlike other disasters in maritime history, this cruise ship sinking has managed to fly under the radar. Today, along with the help of an actual survivor, we're going to take a look at the real story and the long term effects it has had at the bottom of the ocean.

With over 1,500 stores across the country and over 200,000 employees, the J.C. Penney Company was a mega retailer in the United States. It grew from humble beginnings with its founder James Penney and grew into an iconic retail institution in America. However those golden years only lasted until the early 2000's, when the retailer experienced a violent downturn until its eventual bankruptcy in 2020. Join me as I find out how this company went from billions to nothing.

Not all that long ago, we had a civilian passenger aircraft that was capable of flying from New York to London in just 3 hours. With the advent of supersonic aircraft and in the form of the Concorde, two European nations had created one of the most incredible engineering marvels of the century. But then, it all came to an end in the early 2000's. Today I'm going to find out why and tell the story of the most ambitious civilian aircraft ever put into service.

Perched, 5,000 feet into the sky among to famous Smokey Mountains sits a theme park like no other. Built in the early 1960's, Ghost Town in the Sky became a charming and very popular amusement park, meant to immerse guests in the Old West. After a long run, the park began to slump in tourists and eventually began to struggle. I'm finding out how this all began and how closures and financial issues plagued Ghost Town and what the future may hold for this beloved theme park.

It's well known today that all department store retail in America is pretty bland and uninspired. Walmart, Target and others all look more or less the same. But there was one retailer in the mid to late 20th century that shook things up a bit. That invested into insane and bizarre architecture for their showrooms and was led by charismatic and innovative family. The BEST Products Company ultimately grew into 200 stores across the country and revenue of over $2 billion. But it all came crashing down in the late 90's and now is more or less forgotten about as truly one of the most unique retailers in history. So join me today as I explore the history of this truly incredible company.

Off the dangerous coast of Somalia, the cruise ship Achille Lauro ran into engine trouble and caught fire. After hours of battling it, the situation spiralled out of control and a mad dash to abandon ship was initiated. All but 150 people were trapped aboard the burning and slowly sinking cruise ship with a hastily cobbled together evacuation as their only chance of survival. Today I'm looking into the astonishing story of the 1994 sinking of an infamous cruise ship. One that had made headlines for a hijacking years prior and had been prone to fire for years. Together with the first hand accounts of Moss Hills, the ships onboard entertainer, I'm piecing together never before seen footage and reconstructing the incredible the last moments the ship was afloat. Join me through the unbelievable story of the Achille Lauro!

In a small village just outside Beijing, China sits one of the most infamous abandoned theme parks ever. Often circulated around the internet as a never finished Disney theme park copycat, the amazing story of the never finished and abandoned Wonderland Amusement Park has never really been told properly. It was once a theme park poised to be the largest in Asia and beat Disney themselves to the country. The Magic Kingdom style theme park would have been enormous but after several missteps, the failure became far more known than the promise. Join me as we demystify this incredible park in China!

For over 35 years, Fry's Electronics have been a staple in consumer electronic shopping, especially in California. With a localized, national reach as well, the company slowly grew into a quirky, big box electronic store chain which also sold apparel and food. All contained within their themed, massive stores. But in recent years, customers dwindled and those who did stick around noticed empty shelves. Suspicions of company trouble were proven correct as in 2021, the company announced they would be shutting down, leaving a several stores abandoned in their wake.

Disney Cruise Line has been a very unique cruise line ever since they launched in 1998 and has continued to be my favourite cruise line for years. The Disney Fantasy in particular checks all the boxes for me and when the company announced a new ship, I've been excited to check it out. Today I'm taking a look at the brand new, Disney Wish but approaching it with the context of how much money I've spent for the experience and comparing it to Disney's legacy ships. Join me in this somewhat critical look at Disney's new cruise ship and if it's worth the money.

Down the notorious North end of the Las Vegas Strip, sits a massive resort nearly 3 times as large as its neighbour, the never finished Fontainebleau Las Vegas. Just like that resort, the Echelon Place Casino & Resort Las Vegas was set to be one of the most expensive private resorts in the world. One set to completely transform the north end of Las Vegas Boulevard with its sheer size and luxury, bringing thousands of hotel rooms and new brands like Shangri-La to the city. However after 2008, everything stopped and for years, the unfinished structures sat abandoned and baking in the hot desert sun. Join me today to find out how this happened and how Resorts World Las Vegas now occupies this once incredible project.

Nestled in the iconic hills of the Poconos Mountains in Pennsylvania, sits a resort almost as famous as the location it resides in. Penn Hills Resort began all the way back in the 1940's and grew to be one of the most popular and iconic honeymoon destinations in America. A luxurious symbol for a natures getaway complete with heart shaped hot tubs in their suites. However, as years went on, people stopped coming not just here, but for most of the Poconos resorts. Join me today as I find out what happened to this incredible hotel and more broadly, what happened to the Poconos.

For years, images of ghostly McMansions have been circling around the internet with seemingly no real explanation as to what happened. That's just what were going to figure out today as the real story behind this creepy ghost town is fallout of something that was much, much bigger! Indian Ridge Resort just outside of Branson, Missouri was set to be one of the largest private developments in the area. However after financial disaster and federal investigations leading to 5 people going to prison, the story of the downfall is almost as incredible as the ambition of this enormous development.