Wow, I've always wanted to know more about the history of the People Mover. I recently found a youtube video taken on the train in 1987, the year it opened.
http://youtu.be/MGv8bTQTnCI
Of course there's a number of differences you can see in the video from what the view looks like today.
-Berms in front of the Ren Cen
-The train goes really close to Hudson's even though it closed 5 years before.
-Cobo expansion is not complete. The track was built first and then enclosed by the new part of Cobo later.
-It looks like the Lodge freeway is also being expanded but it's hard to tell.
-There's a circular ramp to roof parking that no longer exists by the river entrance of Joe Louis Arena.
-550 W Jefferson [[sorta pink with green windows) does not exist which is strange since it is directly connected to the Financial station.

This seems as good of a place as any to mention I was so interested in finding out more about why the metro wide rail system never got built that I decided to focus on mass transit for a documentary in 2007 for one of my film classes at Wayne State.
http://youtu.be/wxuBrDuzowc

I probably should have posted here since it looks like people know a lot of the history.
Does anyone know why the particular route for the people mover was chosen? Were any alternates considered? Was it always supposed to be one way with over 10 stations in a small area? Why not go closer to the district court on Madison [[now across from the Gem) or to the Detroit Edison building [[now by MGM Grand)? Why put the Bricktown stop so close to Greektown and not closer to the Blue Cross building? When it was determined that the rest of the light rail would not be built, was it ever considered to have the train cover a wider area such as the new center or the DIA like M-1 will at last?

hope that wasn't too much to take in or answer.