This week marks the 15th anniversary of Disney Hollywood Studios Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror thrill ride. This ride, popular with the thrill seeking crowd, was inspired by the renowned 1960’s sci-fi/horror series of the same name. Sci-fi genius Rod Serling created the show which featured weekly episodes covering a variety of topics. His writing was considered ahead of his time, as he touched on many political and social issues that many in the conservative era didn’t want to cover on American television.

The series earned Serling his legendary status and launched Twilight Zone spinoffs and movies, none that were ever as popular as the original series. You can still catch the show on reruns and holiday television marathons. There is certainly no lack of Twilight Zone fans—even within the Disney Imagineers themselves. When Disney Hollywood Studios (then called MGM Studios) was opened, it was done primarily to compete with Universal Studios and to alleviate some of the budget costs EPCOT was experiencing. Disney wanted to bring the Hollywood experience to its guests, and the park evolved into what it is today.

Originally, there were plans for a Mel Brooks’ “Young Frankenstein” hotel that would include the haunted factor mixed in with Mel Brooks’ comedy influence. But after Brooks left Disney, Imagineers were left with the desire to build some sort of hotel-themed attraction. This is where The Twilight Zone came in. They decided to incorporate elements from the sci-fi television classic into the attraction’s design. Imagineers decided the ride would focus on five travelers who disappeared when their elevator was struck by lightning on Halloween Night. Some of the television show’s memorabilia was brought into the waiting area of the Tower of Terror, including Meredith Burgess’ broken glasses from the classic episode “Time Enough At Last.”

While on the ride, you travel through the hallways of the Hollywood Tower Hotel as the impersonated voice of Rod Serling (done by Mark Silverman) narrates what happened to those five guests. Once you reach the end of this hallway, two doors open to reveal the Disney Hollywood Studios park below before you plummet at speeds of 39 mph. When the attraction opened, riders only had to experience the 13 story drop once. This has since changed, as with each anniversary or special promotion, Disney changes the drop pattern.

Now when you visit Disney Hollywood Studios to ride the Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror, you’ll have no idea what to expect. You might drop one time or you might drop three times; the only way to find out is to ride it yourself—so hold on tight!