A 1958 Disney Song Finds New Life in "The Fantastic Four: First Steps"

Marvel Studios’ The Fantastic Four: First Steps features an original score by Michael Giacchino, as well as a few mid-century radio hits on the soundtrack. However, there is a moment in the first act that audiences may presume is an original composition, but is actually a deep cut from the Disney vault. During a montage of the Fantastic Four’s achievements, the memorable ditty playing is George Bruns’ “Nation on Wheels."

“Nation on Wheels" was initially written for a 1958 episode of the Disneyland serial titled “Magic Highway, U.S.A." The special episode examined the history of the automobile, the development of highways, and the “new" challenges of traffic congestion. Through whimsical animated moments, it also looked to the future at some far-fetched ways to solve these problems. Like Fantastic Four: First Steps, it featured a midcentury view of the future with sleek designs and gravity-defying machinery.

In 1964, Walt Disney was tasked with creating four experiences for sponsors at the New York World’s Fair. Among them was the Ford Pavilion. The marquee attraction here was called the Magic Skyway, an experience that introduced the Ford Mustang as a ride vehicle on an omnimover track. Like “Magic Highway, U.S.A.," Magic Skyway told the history of the automobile, from prehistoric gasoline (aka animated dinosaurs) to cavemen’s invention of the wheel, and ending with a look ahead at a city of the future.

George Bruns was in charge of music for Disney’s contributions to the Ford Pavilion. This not only included the attraction itself, but also one of its preshow elements, the International Gardens. As attendees marveled at 11 miniature villages that demonstrated Ford’s global market penetration, each section was accompanied by music. Juggling multiple projects and with a tight deadline, Bruns solved the problem by reusing some of his previously recorded compositions. This included music from The Absent-Minded Professor, which featured a flying Model-T Ford, as well as “Nation on Wheels." This catchy ditty was in constant rotation during the fair’s operating seasons through its closing date, October 17th, 1965.

Three of Disney’s four World’s Fair attractions later found a home at Disneyland. The one exception to the rule was Magic Skyway, although some of its elements survived. Most notably, the dinosaur section evolved into the Primeval World Diorama, seen from aboard the Disneyland Railroad. Less obvious was the attraction’s ride system itself, which was reused in Tomorrowland on an elevated track known as the PeopleMover. Opening on July 2nd, 1967, the experience was first sponsored by Goodyear, whose tires propelled the vehicles forward. On board, guests heard the Goodyear theme song ("Go, Go, Goodyear") and two Disney compositions - Buddy Baker’s "The Monorail Song" and George Bruns’ “Nation on Wheels." In 1976, the attraction’s music changed, and both songs were omitted.

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Walt Disney World received its own version of the PeopleMover at Magic Kingdom Park on July 1st, 1975. Just as “Nation on Wheels" was about to disappear at Disneyland, it enjoyed a ten-year run on the East Coast aboard the WedWay PeopleMover in Tomorrowland. However, that wasn’t the end of the “Nation on Wheels" story.

In 1998, Disneyland’s Tomorrowland was refreshed. The biggest controversy of the updated land was the replacement of the PeopleMover with Rocket Rods. But for Disney music fans, it also heralded the return of “Nation on Wheels" with a newly recorded version featured in a music loop played in the Space Mountain Concourse.

And in 2003, when Disney Parks updated the Tomorrowland area music loops at both Disneyland and Magic Kingdom, “Nation on Wheels" officially returned to heavy rotation. This digitized adaptation is the one modern audiences likely know best, and if you had a moment of recognition while seeing Fantastic Four: First Steps, odds are you’ve spent a decent amount of time in Tomorrowland since 2003.

George Bruns’ original composition of “Nation on Wheels," as heard in Fantastic Four: First Steps, has been released on the 2005 6-disc set A Musical History of Disneyland (where it was mislabeled as “The Monorail Song"), the 2009 5-disc set Walt Disney And The 1964 World's Fair, and the 2015 3-disc set The Legacy Collection: Disneyland (available on streaming platforms).

The Fantastic Four: First Steps is now playing in theaters.