Piloting Submarines in the World of Tomorrow

Last Wednesday my phone rang while I was reading, and I was surprised to see that the call was from Disneyland. Being a seasonal cast member, my last day of work had been on New Year's Day, and I wasn't expecting to work again until starting the Disney College Program at the end of the month. I picked up the phone.

"This is so-and-so from the Disneyland Resort. I'm calling about your training schedule for the college program. You'll be starting on the tenth."

"Excellent," I said. "The tenth of February, I presume."

"No, actually the tenth of January," came the reply. "This Sunday." Unexpected, but not at all unwelcome.

"Sounds good," I said, pulling up my calendar.

"You'll start at 6 a.m. and then you'll working these hours on these days to train for your new attraction."

"Okay, and what attraction is this for?" I asked. I had been gunning for the Haunted Mansion ever since I applied to become a cast member.

"Oh, you'll be working the submarines."

Inside, I broke down a little. Kinda like Space Mountain. I had really hoped to continue working at Splash Mountain throughout my time with the Disney College Program. The New Orleans/Critter Country area had really begun to feel like home, not just because I spent so much time in the area but also because I really liked the atmosphere of the place. And now I was the kid who was told by his parents that the family was moving out of the state. In less than a week. One phone call had suddenly thrust me from home to the other side of Disneyland.

Of course, I didn't go down without a fight and asked if it was possible to stay where I was. Unfortunately, this year happens to be the year that the Rivers of America get drained for routine maintenance and will be down for several months. That means everyone who works a river-based attraction has to find a place at the other New Orleans/Critter Country attractions, and sadly there was no room left for me. So I took the defeat graciously (I'm in reality quite mild-mannered when it comes to fighting) and accepted the loss.

Okay, so I make this sound like it's a tragic ordeal. It's really not. The situation has been bittersweet at worst. Yes, I was disappointed to no longer wear the burgundy suspenders and work at Splash Mountain, but that disappointment was eventually overshadowed by the excitement of piloting the legendary submarines, Walt's original fleet of eight. So far, after one day of training, the work has lived up to my expectations. I think I'm really going to enjoy working the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage in the world of tomorrow.

Here's to the future!
T.H. Excellence

New "Small World" Marquee

According to the OC Register's site arounddisney.com, "it's a small world" will be getting a new marquee along with its new sponsorship from Sylvania early next year. I'm more or less a fan of this. The marquee brings out a fresh styling of the original poster for the attraction, and best of all the freakish Disney characters that have been scattered throughout the ride are not present. However, I feel like whoever did the art made an artistic misstep in that the graphic weight of the entire thing feels off. The "small world" logo seems to overpower the boat of children, and splitting the tagline to either side of the boat strikes me as a major disruption of the flow of the text.

Compare the new marquee to the original poster. The two are similar, but everything about the original poster seems to work a lot better, and if the marquee was retooled it could work better too. I dunno, maybe it's just me, but I felt like griping about it here. If anyone feels differently, speak up now.
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Murphy Appears!

If you've been following recent Disneyland news at all, you've probably heard about 'Murphy', the elusive new dragon for the finale of Fantasmic. Originally scheduled to debut mid-June with the return of Fantasmic, a massive wave of technical problems caught the creature off-guard. Her nickname, in fact, is a reference to Murphy's Law because just about everything that could have gone wrong with her did go wrong. As of now, Murphy has yet to make a grand appearance before audiences of Fantasmic, but Disney has worked out enough kinks to release this press video to the Orange County Register's website. Take a look!



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Forty Years of Happy Haunts

Today, August 9th, marks the 40th anniversary of a truly spirited attraction. On this date in 1969, Disneyland's famous experience known as the Haunted Mansion opened its creaking doors to guests, inviting one and all to visit all nine hundred and ninety-nine of its inhabitants. Today, the Haunted Mansion has become an addition to three other Disney parks throughout the world and is just as popular today as it was when it opened.

The Haunted Mansion just so happens to be one of my favorite attractions in the park thanks to its incredible artistic detail, memorable moments (who could ever forget the hitchhiking ghosts?), as well as wealth of backstory. In fact, I came to appreciate the ride much more after visiting doombuggies.com and becoming familiar with the legends and myths created around everything inside.

Anyway, enough rambling. If you're looking for me tonight, I'll be at the mansion.
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Feed the Birds

One of my favorite positions as a guest control cast member is patrolling the bridge that marks the entrance to Frontierland. Foot traffic is pretty light until the fireworks let out, so I spend most of the evening answering guest questions and enjoying the sights and sounds of the park as the sun sets for the day. The other night, a woman came up to me and asked if it was all right for her young son to feed the ducks. "Perfectly fine," I replied, and the family spent the next five minutes on the bridge as popcorn and pieces of bread were tossed into the water. The ducks swam all around, trying to eat everything before it sank, and soon a small crowd of five or six people had gathered to watch the antics below them.

"It's quite amazing," thought I, "and also quite wonderful that among such world-class amusements such as Space Mountain or Pirates of the Caribbean some people would still take a few minutes to enjoy the simple pleasure of feeding the ducks."

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Three "E" Ticket Rides

In 1958, three years after the grand opening of his renowned Disneyland, Walt made a trip to Europe for work on his new feature Third Man on the Mountain. Over the course of the trip, he became inspired to build three new attractions based on Switzerland's Matterhorn, Alweg's monorail, and Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, which the Disney studios had adapted into a live action film a few years prior. Returning from the trip, Walt excitedly told his brother Roy of these new adventures he wanted to build in Disneyland, but was promptly shut down. As successful as the new park had been, the Disney Co. still had quite a bit of debt to pay off, and Roy refused to consider any new expensive attractions until they were debt free.

However, Walt's tenacity wouldn't let him take "no" for an answer. Some time later, Roy went to Europe for discussions with potential investors and Walt called a meeting together with his Imagineers to make an announcement. "We're going to build the Matterhorn, the Monorail, and the Submarines," he told them enthusiastically. The announcement caught the Imagineers off-guard. They all knew Roy would never agree to finance Walt's ideas as long as the company was still in the red. "What will Roy say?" they asked. "We're just going to build 'em," Walt replied. "Roy can figure out how to pay for 'em when he gets back."

And so per Walt's orders, work began and three new classic Disneyland attractions were born, each one unique in its own right. No one had ever tried to build a roller coaster inside an artificial mountain before, and to top that, Walt's Matterhorn "bobsleds" were the first coaster vehicles to run on tubular steel track, which revolutionized the roller coaster industry. And of course, nothing like the Submarine Voyage had ever been attempted before. For the first time, guests were taken underwater as they sailed pasted coral reefs, sunken ships, and even the lost ruins of Atlantis, all without leaving the borders of Tomorrowland. Finally, the Disneyland Monorail was the first of its kind on the western hemisphere. Walt hoped that the introduction of the monorail to his park would lead to a new widespread method of transportation that would relieve the traffic congestion of metropolitan areas.


On June 14th, 1959, a huge gala celebration was held to commemorate these spectacular new attractions, and Walt considered the event the "second opening of Disneyland". Vice president Richard Nixon and family were on hand for the ribbon cutting of the Disneyland Monorail while Walt's submarines were christened the eighth largest submarine fleet in the world. Across the way, alpine climbers scaled the Matterhorn to its peak while Swiss dancers performed below. The entire celebration was televised by the American Broadcasting Company, allowing viewers from around the country to enjoy the excitement that surrounded the festivities.


In addition to these three new adventures, June 14th also marked the introduction of the E-ticket. When Disneyland first opened, all the attractions required a specific ticket for admission. Smaller rides took an "A" ticket, while bigger adventures such as the Jungle Cruise required a "D" ticket, with "B" and "C" tickets in between. When the Matterhorn, monorail, and submarines debuted, they were deemed worthy of a new ticket, the "E" ticket. The term became renowned both inside and outside of Disneyland and is used to this day to describe the biggest and the best that Disneyland has to offer, even though the admission tickets were discontinued in the 1980's.

The Matterhorn and the Disneyland Monorail have both continued to serve happy guests ever since that exciting summer of 1959. The Submarine Voyage also continuously operated until 1998, at which point the subs "submerged" into Disney history until resurfacing in 2007 as the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. And, as always, Disneyland fans continue to describe Disney's best experiences as classic "E" ticket adventures! There is no doubt about it - June 14th is certainly a day to remember in Disneyland history!

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All photographs copyright the Walt Disney Company.

Reflections of a Cast Member

A few months ago a friend and I were discussing Disneyland and she asked me whether I preferred being in the park as a guest or as a cast member. I hesitated for a moment, considering each one, then replied, "Cast member. You get a really unique perspective of the park that way."

This is something I've felt ever since I started work at the Magic Kingdom. Though I've been familiar with Disneyland ever since I was a very young, something about switching roles and taking on a position I had never experienced before allowed me to see the park differently. Of course, I can't explain this without stepping back to explain a little bit about the Disney magic.

When Walt Disney built Disneyland, he created more than just an amusement park - he successfully crafted the illusion of a world entirely separate from reality. Accordingly, everything in his world was artistically assembled to uphold and maintain that illusion. The giant stone blocks that compose Indy's forbidden temple do more than just support the structure. They are an important storytelling element that informs each guest about the environment in which his next adventure is about to take place.

However, Walt created more than a lost temple in the middle of the jungle. He built Disneyland out of entire communities, such as those found in New Orleans Square or along Main Street U.S.A. Elaborate locations such as these need more than just buildings. Additional elements are in order, such as a laid-back jazz beat heard in the back alleys of New Orleans or a horse-drawn carriage faithfully making trips up and down Main Street. Finally, the illusion is not complete without one last touch: people. These places could not come to life without cast members to fill the roles of those who live, work, and breathe in this magical world.

This is the perspective I've come to understand as a Disneyland cast member. Every day when I go to work, I do much more than operate a theme park ride. I become a part of the magnificent show that Walt created over fifty years ago. The experience, of course, is absolutely fantastic, and as much as I love being a guest, it should be little surprise that I prefer being a cast member. To experience the magic of Disneyland is an incredible experience, but to be part of the magic is something even greater.
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"Disneyland is the star, everything else is in the supporting role."
~Walt Disney

Disneyland PhotoBlog - Featuring the Submarine Voyage

Hi all! Over break I made a day trip to Disneyland and spent part of my afternoon photographing the submarine lagoon in Tomorrowland. Those pics as well as a few others are included below.







That's all for now. Hope you enjoyed them!
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Disneyland Mini-PhotoBlog

I've got a mini photo report to share today. And I do mean mini - three pictures! But I do think these turned out quite well, so I'm posting them here.






Keep your fingers crossed - I might have some new pics up by the end of next week!
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Ever Want to be a Disneyland Cast Member?

Hey kids! Have you ever wanted to be a Disneyland cast member so you could help operate some of the most popular Disney attractions of all time? Well now you can! Themagical.nl hosts a variety of Internet-based simulations that allow you to take complete control of top rides such as Big Thunder Mountain and Tower of Terror! Just follow this link to Themagical.nl and you're on your way to making magic happen for guests around the world!

Enjoy!
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A Tribute to the Magic

Here's a tribute to the magic that cast members make every day. A fellow cast member from Splash Mountain was once doing a little guest interaction while the attraction was experiencing some downtime. A small child ran up to him and asked, "What's wrong with the ride?"

"You know that big snoring bear that you hear when you're up in the mountain?" the cast member started. "Well, he woke up and was very hungry, so he came down to the churro cart here for a churro. Except the cart was all out of churros, so he had to go all the way to Main Street to get one, and we can't start the ride again until he comes back."

The child nodded in understanding and walked away, at which point the father walked up to the cast member and said, "Okay, c'mon now, what really happened?"

"You know that big snoring bear..."

The Return of a Cast Member

About a month ago, I received a letter from Disneyland scheduling asking if I would like to work in the park during the week of Thanksgiving. I replied immediately with a, "YES!" And so Monday night marked my eventful return to the park at last as a cast member instead of as a guest. Though it felt as though I had never left, I did have to get used to being back in the role. Almost immediately after walking onstage, a guest asked me where the nearest restroom was. I was surprised enough that someone had asked me a question out of the blue, despite the fact that I had just realized that as a cast member I would get questions at a regular rate. Fortunately, I was able to maintain composure and point out the nearest restroom without difficulty. The night was fairly simple after that and I fell into pattern with ease. The rest of the night was spent as a valet for stroller parking, which, I might add, is my favorite job out on the Fantasmic front.

The Whole of Disneyland

On a recent trip to Disneyland, I decided to slow down a bit and enjoy a leisurely after-dark ride on the Mark Twain. Standing on the top deck, I was treated to a sight I hadn't seen before. As the old steamboat left the dock and slowly paddled her way around the river, I received a bird's-eye view of New Orleans Square, and consequently was able to see the entire scope of that French Quarter of Disneyland. And it was quite a beautiful sight to see! All the different elements - Pirates of the Caribbean, the restaurants, even the upper levels of Tarzan's Treehouse - came together to form a breathtaking landscape.

This only served to remind of something I've given thought to on several occasions - Disneyland is one of the few, if any, theme parks that succeeds not just in parts, but in whole. Not only does Disneyland have great individual attractions, but these attractions come together in such a way that they fit beautifully into one circle of land. This is something most theme parks don't accomplish. They might succeed in part, but not in whole. Disneyland's next-door neighbor, California Adventure, is an excellent example of this. There are quite a few parts of this park that succeed, from Tower of Terror to Soarin' Over California. There are quite a few attractions in California Adventure that are very well done and draw a lot of people away from Disneyland, at least for a little bit, so they can experience these adventures. But, as a whole, California Adventure is very weak, which is true of many other theme parks. They succeed in their individual parts, sometimes very well, but as a whole, they fail.

Just one more reason to love Disneyland.
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What Will You Celebrate?

Today, the Walt Disney Company released their plans for next year's Disney Parks promotion. Themed around the question "What will you celebrate?", an emphasis is being placed on birthdays, anniversaries, and other milestones. The highlight of this promotion is a free ticket on your birthday. Yes, that's right. Visit Disneyland or Walt Disney World on your birthday and receive complimentary admission.

I never thought I'd say this, but I actually like this promotion. I don't think we need another one, but this one actually makes sense, and is something people will understand. Plus, it could make a nice lead-in to the predicted 55th anniversary celebration of Disneyland. Hopefully it will turn out to be better than Year of a Million Dreams. I just hope a decision is made to do no more promotions for a while.

So, if it's your birthday, don't forget to stop by the park. Be sure to visit disneyland.com to register and get more info.
T.H. Excellence

The Disneyland Railroad - A Most Valuable Asset

When Walt Disney first embarked on the design process of Disneyland, he said, "I just want it to look like nothing else in the world. And it should be surrounded by a train." Walt had a passion for trains, and even had built a miniature model railroad in his backyard. Thus, it should not be surprising that as he laid out a dream park, a railroad ran all the way around it.

Over the years, the Disneyland Railroad has been known as an icon of the park, nearly as well known as Sleeping Beauty Castle herself. Main Street Station is the first thing that guests see as they enter Disneyland, and the last thing they see when they leave. As guests continue to explore the park, the train can be seen and heard in many of the different wonderful realms of Disneyland, making it an unforgettable sight.

What most guests don't realize, however, is that the Disneyland Railroad is one of the most valuable assets the park possesses. "How?" you ask. To explain that, let's step away from the railroad for a moment and focus on Disneyland itself.

One of the greatest things about Disneyland is the surreal escapism of the park. Due to elaborate designs and details, all of which incorporate magnificent theming, Disneyland feels like no other place in the world. While visiting the park, you truly feel as though you're somewhere else entirely. This is achieved through the "suspension of disbelief", which refers to how people perceive aesthetic works. If you find yourself engulfed in the story presented by the book or film you're following, your mind will accept the fact that what you are following is otherwise completely implausible, or even impossible.

Disneyland takes this "suspension" to another level. As stated before, the park contains elaborate designs and details to make for an incredibly immersive experience. You believe you're in another world at Disneyland because it looks and feels and sounds like another world. However, all these designs and details aren't enough to create this suspension of disbelief. In order to properly feel the effect, guests cannot be allowed to see the outside world at all while visiting the park. Doing so breaks the illusion, and all the theming in the world can't cover it up.

Fortunately, shutting out the outside world isn't terribly difficult, and can be achieved by means of a simple barrier. But what barrier would suffice that wouldn't negatively affect the theming of the park? A fence or brick wall would look bland, and might even make guests feel as though they're being imprisoned.

Luckily, instead of a fence or wall, the Disneyland Railroad does the job just fine. With the exception of a few small areas built after Disneyland opened, the railroad surrounds the entire park, and is raised on a natural berm to prevent the outside world from becoming visible. Nearby elements, such as trees or buildings, fill in the remaining gaps. Thus you have a natural barrier that hides reality, yet is not imposing at all, but rather friendly looking.

Now you know one of the most important, as well as the most subtle aspects of the Disneyland Railroad. Granted, there are others, which could even be considered equally important. The railroad reflects Walt's legacy of trains, and serves as a transportation system around the park. Even so, I'm most impressed by the fact that Walt's train that surrounded Disneyland became a most effective element in keeping the world out and keeping the magic in.

That's it for now folks, all aboard!
T.H. Excellence

The Importance of Tunnels

One of the great things about being a Disneyland cast member is slowly understanding the little intricacies and details of Disneyland, in operation, in design, and so on. This was particularly effective on Splash Mountain, since I spent most of my time there, but at the same time I came to know more about Disneyland in general as well. Perhaps one of my greatest discoveries was the importance of tunnels to both the park and individual attractions.

This was something I first discovered on Pirates of the Caribbean actually. For quite some time I had known that the placement of the waterfalls in the attraction was a practical application, as it allowed the Imagineers to take guests below the park's railroad berm and out into a much larger show building. However, it wasn't until this summer that I realized that these drops (particularly the first one) were actually incredibly effective storytelling techniques.

Consider things in this light. Pirates of the Caribbean is located in New Orleans Square. French quarter versus Caribbean town. That's quite the juxtaposition, and in my opinion it doesn't work very well. So how did Walt Disney get away with putting pirates in New Orleans? Simple. Guests enter the attraction and begin the ride in New Orleans. Suddenly, they pass under a bridge where they discover a mysterious skull and crossbones mounted above them. After being warned that "dead men tell no tales", the guests unexpectedly plunge down a waterfall into the darkness, essentially, a sloped tunnel. After emerging, they suddenly find themselves in a dark grotto full of skeletons and treasure.

So why does this tunnel device work so well? If nothing else, tunnels are disorienting. It doesn't matter where you were before you entered the tunnel. After passing through the dark for a few seconds, you have no idea where you are, where you're headed, and where you came from doesn't really matter any more. Combine that slight confusion with the added disorientation of the drop, and, well, you could be anywhere by now. Were you in a Louisiana swamp a moment ago? Who knows? You just plunged down a waterfall in the dark, and now you're somewhere else entirely.

At this point, I realized that this tunnel concept was utilized throughout the park. Many E-ticket attractions have some sort of tunnel, including Indiana Jones Adventure (Chamber of Destiny), Space Mountain (launch tunnel), Splash Mountain (second lift), and even the Submarine Voyage (bubble curtains). Some of these attractions even utilize two "tunnels", placing one in actual attraction as well utilizing a second, minor tunnel for the line. Space Mountain uses a good portion of its line space as a tunnel of sorts, causing guests to wind around inside the mountain and making them feel as though they're descending into a space station. Indiana Jones also uses a tunnel by taking guests deep into the Temple of the Forbidden Eye before they board their transports. These tunnels are incredibly immersive and allow guests to feel more and more like they're actually in a space station or jungle temple, so that by the time they've boarded the attraction, they actually believe that they are where they are.

Finally, two of the most effective as well as the earliest tunnels can be found just beyond the park gates. As guests enter, they see before them Main Street's train station, beyond which lies the Magic Kingdom. In order to truly enter the park, they must pass through one of the two tunnels underneath the train station. These tunnels are not dark or foreboding, but rather serve as portals. A plaque mounted above each tunnel reads "Here you leave today and enter the world of yesterday, tomorrow, and fantasy." As guests pass through, they truly do leave behind the world of today, and quickly find themselves in Main Street U.S.A., the timeless turn-of-the-century town.

Two tunnels, dare I say portals, simple, but effective.

And now you know the importance of tunnels to Disneyland.
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PhotoBlog - Disneyland Edition!

It's been a while since I've done one of these, so I'm providing this nifty update, full of pics from the Disneyland Resort! Since I've been trying to get this up for a while, I'm actually going to delay Film Fest Friday in order to get this up. I apologize for any inconvenience.





I love all the details at Disneyland, including this piece of machinery in the line for Big Thunder Mountain.


The Astro Orbitor allows for a multitude of photographic possibilities!


The composition isn't the best, but I still love the way the colors turned out in this shot.


Every summer, Disneyland features their own All-American College Band. They're really amazing!


New Orleans Square is lovely at night.


Disneyland in general is amazing in the evening, actually.


I'm not entirely satisfied with this picture, but it looks pretty good so I'm posting it anyway.

I love the lights of Paradise Pier.


A nice castle shot.


And finally, the man and the mouse.

Okay, I'm done for now. 'Bye all!
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Happy Birthday to the Happiest Place on Earth

Today, July 17th, marks exactly 53 years of operation for Disneyland Park here in California. It's amazing how that incredible place has been transformed over the years, from adding new rides to updating old facades, and even adding a whole new theme park! Yet behind all the changes is the same park, still holding many of the same attractions that so many individuals have enjoyed and treasured for many, many years. Disneyland certainly has had an impact on our culture, particularly here in Southern California. And I must say it is a definite honor to be a part of it as a cast member.

For those interested, a small article was published today highlighting aerial views of Disneyland from a 1956 promotional film.
Link here.

And finally, keep an eye out for a Disneyland PhotoBlog in the next few days.

Okay, that should do it!
T.H. Excellence

Behind the Scenes of the Disneyland Fireworks

June 30th marked one full month of my employment at the Disneyland Resort, and I must say I've quite enjoyed my time there so far. It's been great spending so much time in the park both in the roles of a cast member and a guest. There are so many things I enjoy about being there, from helping guests have a wonderful day to making sure everything runs smoothly, and even watching fireworks while I work!

Prior to the beginning of my time here at Disneyland, I actually hadn't taken the time to enjoy the park's nightly show "Remember... Dreams Come True". However, I've recently been scheduled for many night shifts and have been able to enjoy the show's lights and music on a regular basis. It was wonderful the first time I saw it, and it only gets better and better with each viewing. Thus, with my interest sparked in Disneyland's pyrotechnic efforts, I was pleased to find this video earlier this morning, highlighting some of the behind-the-scenes processes of Disneyland's nightly show in the sky.



That video was only a small sample of the amazing show that goes on over Disneyland every night. If you haven't seen the show yet, I highly encourage you to do so. And be sure to keep an eye out for me, okay?
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The Life of a Cast Member

Today marks one week since I started my official duties as a post-training cast member, and I must say this has been quite an exciting week! Almost every day I'm in the park, helping Splash Mountain to run smoothly. So far, it's been quite fun! I've really enjoyed interacting with guests and taking on the various roles required to operate the mountain.

Not that work has been all fun and games. The job certainly has its ups and downs, and sometimes it's easy to get really frustrated when confusion erupts or guests get upset over something. But making one guest happy completely compensates for dealing with twenty annoyed guests, and I must say I really take pride in the job. The best part of my day is closing up the attraction at midnight once Disneyland has closed. Afterwards, I walk to my car, enjoying the cool silence and the glowing lights of the empty park.

Okay, I need to go sleep. I've got an eight hour shift tomorrow, and it starts at 10:00 a.m.
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