Theme Park Thursdays: The Golden Horseshoe

 

Theme Park Thursdays: The Disney Railroads

The DISNEYLAND Railroad in Anaheim was always near and dear to Walt Disney's heart. It was one of the attractions he personally and fully owned. Some people believe that it was the biggest reason why he built DISNEYLAND in the first place.

 

Unbeknownst to park guests, Mr. Disney would often operate the train himself whenever he needed to leave the stress of running the company behind. Since then, every Disneyland-style theme park except for Shanghai Disneyland has opened with a Railroad of its very own. Here are some interesting Disney Railroad facts:

* The DISNEYLAND Railroad was the first operationing attraction at DISNEYLAND. A child who was dying of cancer had requested a ride on the train, as it was not likely he would live to see the park open. Mr. Disney rushed the construction of the railroad so that he could fulfill the boy's wish. It would be the first of many wishes to come true in DISNEYLAND.

* The Walt Disney World Railroad in Florida is the only Disney Railroad that did not have any new train engines built for it. All of its engines were previously junked and were restored.

* Tokyo Disneyland's Railroad only has one station. The park designed it this way to avoid having to classify it as a transit system under Japanese law.

 

Theme Park Thursdays: Flat Florida

 

Theme Parks Thursdays: Katella Gate

 

Theme Park Thursdays: The EPCOT Conundrum

If you've been reading our site for awhile, you probably already know that the Epcot theme park that was built is not the EPCOT that Walt Disney had originally planned.

 

Walt Disney's real EPCOT

Roy Disney threw out all of Walt Disney's plans for the Florida project, choosing to build his own version of the tourist attraction. When guests complained about the absence of EPCOT, all resort development was stopped until Imagineering could come up with something that could be passed off as Epcot- provided that it was a theme park.

What was built went way over budget and almost brought the company down. Despite the company's desire to make people believe that this 'Epcot Center' was the EPCOT Walt Disney had originally planned, they never really tried to out and out lie about it. The dedication plaque says this park was inspired by Walt Disney's vision.

 

In the aftermath of Epcot's financial failure, the company's new management- led by Michael Eisner- sought to fix the problems found at Epcot. They brought in more Disney characters, made it less educational, etc. Then they began to actively hide the park's real creative development. No longer content with suggesting that this might have been the Epcot that Walt Disney had planned, they began taking snippets of things Walt Disney had said and creatively editing them to describe the Epcot Center that had been built. They even used things Mr. Disney had said about DISNEYLAND and made it appear as though he was talking about the Florida project.

Nowhere was this obfuscation more apparent than in the 1995 made for television film A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes. The film was about the life of original Mouseketeer Annette Funicello and featured Len Cariou as Walt Disney.

 

In one scene, Annette goes into Walt Disney's office to tell him that she didn't plan on renewing her contract with the studio because she planned to make more adult films. The film's producers chose to have a familiar looking model sitting on a table in Mr. Disney's office. It was the Epcot of 1982, subtly and subliminally insinuating that Walt Disney had come up with the design of the theme park, which he had not.

 

In recent years, the company has become more open about the Florida project's lack of resemblance to Mr. Disney's plans. The Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco openly displays Epcot's original plans and explicitly explains that Walt's last dream was never built as he had intended.

Theme Park Thursdays: Jeopardy Week Answer

The original name of Disney Way was Freedman Way, named after the original owner of the Melodyland Theater which was located on the south side of the street. 

 

After Mr. Freedman passed away, the venue was put up for sale, getting sold to a church which operated it until the late 90's. By the time the street was renamed, the facility had already been razed.

Theme Park Thursdays: Jeopardy Week

 

(Come back for the answer at 6PM PDT.)

Theme Park Thursdays: DISNEYLAND Expansion

DISNEYLAND Resort announced its biggest infrastructure expansion since 2001. A new parkade and shuttle transfer area will open on Disney Way, west of the theme parks.

 

Guests approaching the resort from the south will be guided to this parkade. Guests from non-Disney hotels and motels in Anaheim will be dropped off north of this new building and will use a pedestrian bridge to cross Harbor Blvd.

 

The project is slated to be completed in 2018, in time for the grand opening of Star Wars Land.

Theme Park Thursdays: The Happiest Place on Earth Gets Bigger

"Dad's vision called for this, for DISNEYLAND, to be something that could grow more beautiful every year, and it has."

-Diane Disney Miller

The one constant at DISNEYLAND has always been change. Walt Disney knew that if he could get the place open the world would fall in love with it. His guests would allow him to build and grow his Magic Kingdom.

 

The map above depicts DISNEYLAND in 1960. At that point, parts of the vast parking lot were still being used for agriculture. The first big expansion occurred at #1- New Orleans Square. It began as just a section of Frontierland and became a magical place of its own, spawning Bear Country, now called Critter Country.

The second big expansion happened in two phases decades apart. Marked by #2, the first expansion occurred in 1966 when the road that's still visible in the picture was closed and it's a small world opened. The second part of the expansion occurred in 1992 when Mickey's Toontown opened.

In 1981, the non-Disney owned Emerald Hotel opened at spot #3, eventually becoming the DISNEYLAND Pacific Hotel in 1996, then the Paradise Pier Hotel in 2001.

2001 was a huge year of expansion with Disney California Adventure taking over the parking lot (#4). The admission free entertainment district Downtown Disney (#5) also opened, with the five star Disney's Grand Californian Hotel (#6) capping a year of expansion.

So where do the guests park? Most of them park their cars at the Mickey and Friends parkade, shown above at #7.

One of the biggest expansions in DISNEYLAND history is currently taking place at #8- the future Star Wars Land.

"It's something that will never be finished. Something that I can keep developing...and adding to."

-Walt Disney

Theme Park Thursdays: A King Enjoys His Kingdom

In honor of DISNEYLAND's birthday week, we present photos of Walt Disney enjoying his Magic Kingdom.

 

Walt standing underneath the window honoring his father. Elias Disney did not live to see DISNEYLAND's opening.

 

Walt Disney enjoying a dance with a park guest.

 

Grandpa enjoying a day at his Magic Kingdom.

 

A nice cup of coffee at the Plaza Inn, Walt Disney's favorite restaurant in the park.

 

Taking a spin!

 

Greeting some guests.

 

Hanging out, dreaming new dreams.

Theme Park Thursdays: Walt's Master Plan

Guests used to DISNEYLAND's operations are often surprised when they first arrive at Florida's Magic Kingdom Park. For decades, DISNEYLAND guests would park their cars in front of the park, then either take a tram or walk to the easily accessible front gate. In Florida, guests drive down a highway into a confusing auto toll booth, then get guided to a parking space. From here, they board a tram that takes them to- the Transportation and Ticketing Center. From here, they must get on either a boat, a bus or the monorail to finally arrive at Magic Kingdom's front gate. It creates a wonderful illusion that one is entering another world, though waiting for a tram then a boat or monorail is a bit time consuming.

 

The experience would have been much different if Walt Disney's original plans had been realized. The "Seven Seas Lagoon" that stands between the park and the parking lot would not have existed; Walt Disney had originally planned for that to be a green area that could be used for future expansion. (The current lagoon is labeled below with a 4). "Disneyland East" is shown below labeled #1, ringed by its various themed hotels. Guests of the hotels would have been able to walk to the park easily from their hotel rooms in a design similar to the current setup in Anaheim. 

 

If you weren't staying in a Disney hotel, you would have been guided to the main parking lot that was miles away, marked with a 3. Your only mode of transportation from here would have been a monorail which would whisk you north to the park, cutting right through EPCOT, which would have been a real city. The announcer on the monorail would fill you in on this City of the future, inviting you to tour it after your visit to Disneyland East. (EPCOT is shown above as #2.)

Sadly, Walt would pass away before any construction began. His brother canceled all of Walt's plans and substituted his own vision- that of a 'Vacation Kingdom'. It was Roy who approved expanding Bay Lake, creating the "Seven Seas Lagoon" separating the parking lots and hotels from the newly renamed "Magic Kingdom Park". Instead of ringing the park, the hotels would ring the lagoon, creating a need for a monorail and boat system to ferry people to the parks. EPCOT was completely tossed out, only to be resurrected years later to silence guest complaints. (Though it would be 'EPCOT in Name Only'.)

Could Disney World have worked as originally planned by Walt Disney? Possibly, though it is hard to say with any certainty. Roy Disney didn't think so, but then he doubted that Mickey's first cartoon, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, DISNEYLAND or even Matterhorn Mountain would be successful. Though even if he had gone ahead with the original Disney World plans, they might not have succeeded without the visionary man who dreamed them up.

Theme Park Thursdays: America Sings!

 

Theme Park Thursdays: Through the Parks

 

Theme Park Thursdays: Dedicating the Parks

In honor of the opening of the new Shanghai Disneyland, we're taking a look at the various dedication plaques from Disney theme parks round the world.

 

The first dedication plaque is also the best! DISNEYLAND is the ONLY Disney theme park dedicated and planned by Walt Disney.

 

The second plaque is an oddity. The name of the park it was placed in is officially "Magic Kingdom". Walt Disney World is the entire property. Plus, Roy Disney decided to put his name on the plaque, something his brother didn't do at DISNEYLAND. At least the plaque mentions the resort is a "tribute" to Walt Disney and not his final dream come true. (The resort was not built according to Walt Disney's plans.)

 

The Epcot plaque was obviously changed, though most of the wording remained the same. The park's name was changed from EPCOT Center to just Epcot in the mid 1990's. Oddly enough, they left one reference to EPCOT Center on the plaque. This one was signed by Card Walker, who famously decided to put two competing theme park ideas together to create something called "Epcot" to quiet down complaints that there wasn't anything called Epcot in the resort.

 

Card Walker signed Tokyo Disneyland's plaque, the first to feature both English and a foreign language.

 

The next one was for Disney-MGM Studios which is now called Disney's Hollywood Studios. It is rumored that the park's name will change again- to Disney Hollywood Adventure- after its current construction projects are completed.

 

The plaque at Euro Disneyland also features dual languages- English and French. The park's name subsequently changed to Disneyland Paris.

 

In keeping with its natural, conservation theme, Disney's Animal Kingdom features an unassuming plaque seemingly carved into stone.

 

The plaque for Disney California Adventure was changed and moved; from a location where the Carthay Circle Restaurant stands now, to a flagpole at the park entrance.

 

Tokyo DisneySea brought a return to the dual language pattern offering both English and Japanese plaques.

 

Walt Disney Studios Paris put both French and English on the same plaque.

 

And finally, Hong Kong DISNEYAND featured yet another dual language plaque- English and Chinese.

The latest Disney theme park in Shanghai will most likely follow this pattern- offering English and Chinese dedications  on the same plaque. Despite larger or flashier plaques, the greatest one was the first one- dedicated by Walt Disney on July 17, 1955.

Theme Park Thursdays: The DISNEYLAND Railroad

When planning began for DISNEYLAND, Walt Disney was open to most any idea his staff could dream up, but one thing was non-negotiable- it should be surrounded by a train. More precisely, it would be surrounded by two trains. Walt enlisted studio machinist Roger Broggie to fabricate two steam trains from scratch. After signing a sponsorship deal with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad, the engines would be named after two past railroad presidents- the CK Holliday and the EP Ripley. After much expense and time, the engines went into service on July 17, 1955.

 

The attraction was hugely successful. Since Walt's brother Roy had balked at the expense of building the trains, Walt Disney paid for them himself; in fact, his Retlaw Enterprises owned the trains, the Mark Twain, the DISNEYLAND Monorail and the Fire Station until 1982. His two trains could not keep up with the demand, but the cost and effort of building new trains from scratch would be prohibitive. Mr. Broggie and Walt had learned a lot from the initial fabrication and determined that they could cheaply and easily restore retired engines for use on the DISNEYLAND Railroad. Soon two new engines- the Fred Gurley and the Ernest Marsh would join the fleet. The Walt Disney Company would never build trains from scratch again, preferring to simply fix up older trains. The trains at Florida's Magic Kingdom park, for example, are all older trains that were fixed up for use in the park.

 

The latest train to make its way into the DISNEYLAND fleet is the Ward Kimball, the only train at the park not named for an AT&SF executive. Named after the animator who inspired Walt Disney to follow his passion for trains, it features Mr. Kimball's most famous character- Jiminy Cricket- emblazoned on its front light.

Theme Park Thursdays: The Florida Shopping Village

When Walt Disney World was under construction, Roy Disney felt he was in a bind. He needed to promote his "Vacation Kingdom" which would look nothing like what his brother had described without cutting into DISNEYLAND's business. He decided to open a visitor's center near the construction site that could then be repurposed into something else. (Hopefully nobody would notice that the plans did not resemble the project that Walt Disney spoke about on television.)

After the facility had served its purpose and the Magic Kingdom theme park had finally become profitable, the company decided to turn its visitor's center into a "Shopping Village".

 

Originally, the company didn't intend for the entire property to be considered "Walt Disney World". The rest of the property outside the main theme park/hotel area would be referred to as Lake Buena Vista. To bring in needed cash, the company leased land across the street from its shopping village to outside hotel operators. None of the properties would be Disney branded or themed.

 

This area would be like the area across the street from DISNEYLAND in Anaheim, except it would be Disney controlled. Unfortunately, the property was too far from the main action and it wasn't very successful. Disney decided to finally put its name on the modest shopping village.

 

The quiet, outlet mall vibe of the village still didn't attract much attention, even with the Disney name. In the late 1980's, the village got a new name- Disney Marketplace and a new neighbor- Pleasure Island. The property is now part of the Disney Springs complex and is currently getting a facelift.

Theme Park Thursdays: Disneyland and Walt Disney World

I'm frequently asked which Disney resort I prefer- DISNEYLAND or Walt Disney World. For those who know me best, the answer is obvious.

I can still remember my very first visit to DISNEYLAND as a child. I instantly fell in love with the park, despite knowing little about it or the great man who willed it into being. Sleeping Beauty Castle was the most beautiful building I had ever seen. It was almost as if I could sense the love that Walt Disney put into building the place. When I started reading more about Walt Disney, I gained an even bigger love of his park.

DISNEYLAND was Walt Disney's pride and joy. He thought about it constantly, dreaming up new ways to improve things and trying to make things better for his guests. 

He loved showing off his dream come true. DISNEYLAND was truly the result of one man's passion to collect the things he loved in one location so that the world could enjoy them too.

And that's the big difference between DISNEYLAND and Walt Disney World. A common thought within Walt Disney Imagineering was that the charming DISNEYLAND was a magical park built by a father for his daughters while Walt Disney World was built by a committee for the crowds. 

To me, DISNEYLAND feels like it is one man's personal collection of things he loves. He's invited us into his home to show us his magical collection and share with us the wonderful things that he has dreamed up. 

Walt Disney World in Florida feels like it was designed by a group of people who have merely included things they thought people would like. They may not like those things themselves, but they were fairly certain the public would like them.

For those reasons, my heart will always belong to DISNEYLAND. Walt Disney's original Magic Kingdom is full of magic inside and out. While Florida's resort is nice, it is missing that extra something that only a true dreamer can bring to his passion project. That spark is everywhere in DISNEYLAND and nowhere in Florida. 

DISNEYLAND is Magic. DISNEYLAND is a Dream Come True. DISNEYLAND is Walt.

Theme Park Thursdays: Hard Close in Tokyo

Were you to visit Tokyo Disneyland, you would experience the same great service that American guests have come to know. However one tradition from the American parks is not followed in Tokyo.

Ask any Disney theme park fan and they'll tell you that any guest who is standing in a line at park close will still get a chance to ride the attraction. That is not the case in Tokyo.

Japan's strict overtime rules require employers to provide taxi service to employees who work past their scheduled time. As a result, Tokyo Disneyland enforces a hard close each night. Regardless of what time you got in the line, when the park closes, it is closed.