On May 5, Disneyland began an 18-month-long 50th anniversary
celebration that will include special events, programs and
attractions at Disney’s themeparks all over the world and even at
sea. Disney Cruise Line is repositioning one of its ships on the
West Coast for the first time ever.
On May 4, however, many people in the media and a few thousand
of Disney’s closest friends were invited to preview the festivities
firsthand and to witness the launch of some of the new attractions.
One thing is undeniable, when Disney throws a party, people go.
From the moment the ticket taker said, “Welcome home,” (a phrase
visitors will hear often in the next year and a half), the
“Happiest Homecoming on Earth,” as it is being called, reminded
guests that this will be a grand celebration of an American
icon.
The preview day started on Main Street with the new Parade of
Dreams. It includes elaborate floats featuring characters from
Disney hits such as “Beauty and the Beast,” “The Little Mermaid,”
“Pinocchio” and others, including a float based on “The Lion King,”
complete with lions Simba and Nala, and an assortment of other
jungle animals.
After the parade, there was time for the media to sample other
developments at the park, including a project Disney is calling The
Happiest Faces on Earth project, which includes 34 photo collages
made up of thousands of family vacation photos sent in by guests.
Each collage is themed to match a “land” in the park. (For
instance, in Fantasyland there’s a collage made to resemble Alice
in Wonderland, and near the Haunted Mansion is one that shows that
ride’s famous Hitchhiking Ghosts.)
Be sure to tell clients visiting the park to check out the
largest collage Mickey Mouse on Main Street. That one represents “a
collage within a collage” that needs to be seen to be truly
appreciated.
Next, we had lunch at the Napa Rose restaurant in Disney’s Grand
Californian Hotel. The food was great as usual, but on this day it
was the company that really stood out: Disney CEO Michael Eisner
dropped by to greet the journalists.
Not surprisingly, Eisner was peppered with questions, mostly
about the progress of Disney’s latest venture, Hong Kong
Disneyland, scheduled to open in September. Eisner also talked
about Disney’s future plans including the possibility of Disneyland
India, at least 10 years away, and the creation of a “Finding Nemo”
ride in the former submarine lagoon in Disneyland. (“Just a rumor,”
he added, with a smile.)
Matt Ouimet, Disneyland Resorts president, also stopped by to
say hello.
After lunch, it was back to the park for the premiere of the
film “Disneyland: The First 50 Magical Years,” a retrospective
looking back on the creation and evolution of the park. The film is
narrated by Donald Duck and actor Steve Martin, and both were on
hand for the first screening. Martin, a native of Garden Grove,
Calif., is a former Disneyland employee, having worked in the
former magic shop on Main Street.
For the most part, the film is entertaining, especially because
of the always likable Martin and visitors will love those early
shots of Martin as a young man working his magic, literally, on
Main Street.
The next premiere was for the new Tomorrowland ride, Buzz
Lightyear Astro Blasters. Actor Tim Allen, the voice of animated
space ranger Buzz Lightyear of the hugely popular “Toy Story”
films, hosted the ceremony. Also in attendance were Eisner and John
Lasseter, executive vice president of Pixar, and a major figure
behind that company’s “Toy Story” and other films.
The ride is described in Disney press materials as “an
interactive experience in which guests pilot their own Space
Cruisers and twist, turn and fire personal laser cannons in order
to hit targets and gain points.” It is further being billed as
Disney’s most “interactive” ride, as guests on the ride can be
randomly paired with online players via Web-cam. The online players
can help increase the scores of riders on the attraction by raising
the value of targets along the way.
Unfortunately, the main attraction in Tomorrowland, Space
Mountain, is still closed. Disney officials say the
“re-Imagineered” ride should be open in mid-July, with a new Space
Port, redesigned rockets and other new effects
When evening fell, we left the park as construction workers and
party planners came out to set up for an exclusive, invitation-only
party in the park. As guests re-entered the park, they were lead
down a gold carpet that ran the entire length of Main Street while
Disney “cast members” (employees) flanked the carpet and welcomed
everyone home.
Real celebs such as Kelsey Grammer and Jim Belushi were
interviewed for TV, while other guests were guided into New Orleans
Square for a night of dinner, martinis and a concert by the rock
band The Goo Goo Dolls. This certainly was the not-to-be-missed
party for Disney fans.
Finally, it was back to Main Street one last time as the lights
dimmed for Disney’s new fireworks spectacular, “Remember &
Dreams Come True.” These fireworks were worth staying up for as it
truly was an elaborate and surprising production complete with a
new musical score, an appearance by a high-flying Tinker Bell and
something the press materials are calling “close-proximity
pyrotechnics.”
Overall, the day was an educational preview of what is to come
at Disneyland over the next 18 months. And there seems to be enough
new attractions as well as enough Disney-generated buzz that those
clients interested in “coming home” to be a part of the
celebration, will not be disappointed.
