Earthling helps MCA get Universal Studios' new 'E.T. Adventure' ride off the ground.

Earthling helps MCA get Universal Studios' new |E.T. Adventure' ride off the ground

Show-biz conglomerate MCA Inc. opened its $50 million "E.T.'s Adventure" amusement park ride at Universal Studios Hollywood June 22 - right on schedule, within budget and without major mishap.

That successful opening most likely drew a collective sigh of relief from MCA execs, who suffered major embarrassments a few months ago when a number of such rides malfunctioned at Universal Studios Florida.

MCA owes much of its latest E.T. ride success to the efforts of Steve Rosenfield, a 42-year-old construction manager for Bernards Bros. Construction in San Fernando.

Rosenfield had the responsibility of coordinating a work crew of as many as 120 people during the 10 months it took to build "E.T.'s Adventure."

First, Rosenfield's crew erected a 60,000-square-foot, steel-framed structure to house the ride. The cavernous building, with 40-foot-high ceilings, was then segmented into several separate compartments, each of which would re-enact a scene from Universal Pictures' blockbuster E.T. movie. The walls separating the rooms are up to nine inches thick to prevent sound from traveling between scenes.

Then came the hard part.

"We had to suspend all the utilities - air conditioning, electrical wiring, plumbing - from steel ceiling trusses," Rosenfield explains, "which meant most of the interior work had to be performed on high lifts, 30 to 35 feet above the concrete-slab floor."

The tracks upon which the ride's "airborne" bicycles are suspended also had to be installed in the ceiling, as was an elaborate system of catwalks.

Timing was also crucial, said Rosenfield, who had never before overseen an amusement park construction project. Construction deadlines had to be met for each compartment, so that MCA's special-effects teams could come in and put on the finishing touches.

MCA honchos are apparently pleased with Rosenfield's work. They're flying him to Universal Studios Florida this week to begin preliminary design development on a new "Back To The Future" ride. MCA's Florida park already has a "Back To The Future" ride, and MCA is negotiating with Bernards Bros. Construction to build another such ride at its Universal City park.

PHOTO : Rosenfield: Construction project manager