Alternate Tower Spotlight: The Paris Tower of Terror, Part 3--Lobby Waiting Areas, Libraries, and Pre-show

Beyond the cast member's podium was the crashed elevators and directory sign.  Unfortunately I don't have a photo of the whole scene from Paris, but I do have this detail of the directory:

April 2017, by Pyrokenesis

Based on this detail photo, it appears that Paris had different light fixtures next to the crashed elevators.  DCA's lights were round, while the lamp visible in the upper left of this photo appeared more cylindrical and had a vine-like detailing along the bottom.  The directory itself, however, appeared to be the same between the two versions of the ride.  The font for the word "directory" was Rubens, which most Disney fans probably know as "the Haunted Mansion font".  The Haunted Mansion and Phantom Manor used slightly elongated versions of Rubens font for their logos.

The cast member directed guests to one of two waiting areas.  For my DCA walkthrough, I referred to these as the "King's side" and the "Queen's side."  However, such labels would be inaccurate for the Paris Tower.  While the left-side waiting area did feature a portrait of a queen (well, actually an empress--more about her in a moment), the right side waiting area had a large emergency exit door!  Apparently French safety codes required that there be another emergency exit, which thus took the place of the King's portrait and display case.

If a group of guests was directed to the left side waiting area, they had to pass through the small hallway formed by the crashed elevators and the back of the check-in desk.  On the left side of the hallway (that is, the wall that formed the back of the desk) was the "22" door and a clock on a desk (set to 8:05, of course).  These referenced the Twilight Zone episode "Twenty-Two", the opening scenes of which seemed to have influenced the ride.

A painting of a stormy coast hung above the clock in the Paris Tower.

April 2017, Pyrokenesis.

In contrast, California Adventure's Tower had a Greek-style relief of children carrying books instead.

In the left-side waiting area, there was a large framed portrait displayed high on the wall, and beneath it was a display case with vases, a telephone, a bronze statue, some glass bottles, hand mirrors, and a variety of other small objects I can't quite identify in this photo.

April 2017, Pyrokenesis

That portrait was "Portrait of Empress Maria Alexandrovna" by Franz Xaver Winterhalter.  Winterhalter was also the artist who painted the portraits of Napoleon III and Eugenie that decorated the DCA lobby.

Here's a clearer photo of the original portrait from wikiart.org

I have no explanation for why this portrait or the others appeared in the Tower of Terror. 19th century European royalty does not seem to fit the Hollywood or Twilight Zone themes of the ride. Was someone at Disney just a big fan of Franz Xaver Winterhalter? Did these people/paintings/artist appear in The Twilight Zone in some capacity? If you have any ideas, let me know!

After waiting in the waiting areas for a bit, guests would hear an announcement about the library doors opening, done in a ghostly voice.  It was in both French and English, and stated:

"Mesdames et Messieurs, bienvenue au Hollywood Tower Hotel. D'ici quelques instants, les portes de la bibliothèque se trouvant devant vous vont s'ouvrir. Veuillez vous tenir à distance de ces portes, car elles s'ouvriront vers vous. Merci.

Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the Hollywood Tower Hotel. In just a few moments, the library doors in front of you will be opening.
Please stand back from the doors as they will be opening toward you. Thank you."

(Transcript from here)

Guests then made their way into the libraries.  Though they followed the same layouts as the DCA libraries, Paris' versions of course had their own unique traits.  One notable difference was that Paris' libraries still had carpet in the center, while California's started with carpet but switched to all wood floors partway through its run.  The cast members instructed guests to stand on the carpet during the pre-show.

Desk in the Queen's side/Left side library.  April 2017, Pyrokenesis

I only have a desk photo from the left/queen's side room, but based on this photo of the desk alone one can spot Paris vs DCA.  While they had the same Egyptian lamp, they had different chairs, and Paris' has a book and a bronze dog statue rather than California's mahjong game.

For the curious, here's California's:

by land-of-manors-and-beans

Unfortunately, photographing the Paris libraries was plagued by the same issues as California's.  The rooms were very dark, you were given very little time to explore them, and the pre-show took up most of your time and attention in the room.  Presumably, the Paris version had the same Twilight Zone Easter Eggs here that I detailed in the DCA version, although likely with slightly different placement.

Pyrokenesis did managed to get these lovely photos of one of the back table lamps, which was a design not found at the ride's American counterpart:

April 2017, Pyrokenesis

That white lamp in the back looks unique to Paris' design too.  April 2017, Pyrokenesis

Regarding the pre-show itself, it had identical visuals to the DCA version.  Notably, the exterior view was actually correct for the Paris one, as in the video the Tower had the round fins on the sides that differentiated the Paris from the California exterior.  Regarding the audio, it was, of course, dubbed in French.  You can listen to the source audio for the French dub in this post by Dlp Sounds:

If for some reason that link doesn't work, here is the transcript:

"Vous ouvrez cette porte avec la clef de l’imagination. Au delà, c’est une autre dimension. Une dimension sonore. Une dimension visuelle. Une dimension de l’esprit. Vous pénétrez dans le domaine de l’ombre et de la matière, des objets et des idées. Vous venez d’entrer dans… La Quatrième Dimension.

Hollywood, 1939. Dans le strass et les paillettes d’un Hollywood à l’apogée de son âge d’or, le Hollywood Tower Hotel était une star à part entière… Le lieu de rencontre de l’élite du show business…

Mais quelque chose allait se produire qui allait changer tout ça…

(Les visiteurs assistent alors à la disparition de l'ascenseur)

Nous voici aujourd’hui par une soirée en tout point semblable à celle dont nous venons d’être témoins.

L’histoire de ce soir dans la Quatrième Dimension est quelque peu unique et réclame une introduction d’un autre ordre. Vous aurez sûrement reconnu ce que l'on appelle un ascenseur de service, il est toujours en état de marche et il vous attend. Nous vous invitons, si vous l’osez, à l’emprunter car dans l’épisode de ce soir, VOUS êtes la vedette, et cet ascenseur conduit directement dans… La Quatrième Dimension !"

(Translation from here)

 I have also seen videos of the pre-show that feature the English dub but with French subtitles.  Here is one such example, posted by Jundy Comer on YouTube:

This may or may not be an alternate presentation actually used at the Paris Tower.  When I rode the Paris version back in 2012 I recall everything being in French, so I do not know if or when the English audio-French subtitles setup was used.  Perhaps someone more familiar with Disneyland Paris can enlighten me?

After viewing the pre-show, the previously-hidden sliding door at the back of the library opened, and guests made their way into the boiler room.