Although I am not an expert of Disneyland, I did find some interesting facts/secrets. ; Do you know any? Disneyland’s original Tinkerbell was a 71-year-old Hungarian circus performer named Tiny Kline. She was the first to fly off the top of the Matterhorn on a zip line, and had previously worked as a stunt aerialist, hanging from a flying airplane by her teeth! Opening day—July 17, 1955—was a disaster. Asphalt poured just hours before guests had arrived hadn’t fully dried, and women’s spiked heels sunk into Main Street. VIP passes were widely counterfeited, and double the number of people expected showed up. Rides broke down. Because of a plumber’s strike, Walt had to choose between drinking fountains and bathrooms. But despite all the opening day issues, the magic Walt had created drew the people back! At least 3 babies have been born at Disneyland. The drawbridge of the castle has only been raised and lowered twice. On opening day in 1955, and in 1983 when the "New" Fantasyland was re-opened.
From groundbreaking to opening, Disneyland was built in 365 days! Sleeping Beauty’s castle is based largely on “Mad King” Ludwig’s Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, but with one big difference: the top is on backwards.
Outside the Snow White ride there is a 'golden' book and apple - try to take the apple and see what happens!
Disneyland cost $17 million to build in 1955, which equates to $116 million on today’s dollars. Space Mountain, which opened in 1977, cost more than half that amount (in constant dollars)!
High up inside the hollow Matterhorn, there is a basketball court. It’s part of an employee break room. Los Angeles Lakers center Vlade Divac has been up there to shoot hoops (there is no word as to whether or not this is still there since it’s recent renovation). Untold thousands of the old A, B, C, D and E ride tickets are still in circulation, and occasionally, are turned into the ticket office for redemption—at face value (of all the tickets, the E ticket was most expensive at 95 cents)! Of course they fetch a much better price from collectors when sold on Ebay!
On the ride Soarin' Over CA - the person that hits the golf ball is Michael Eisner, and the ball has a tiny hidden mickey on it. You can 'pilot' the Mark Twain! Be the first on up to the captains door and knock politely - or ask the cast members that are on duty there to let you pilot the boat. You'll ge to pull the whistles and horns, use the huge wheel, and take the whole trip around the river up there! There is even a guest log book to sign in on.
Disneyland is pretty small compared to Walt Disney World - when Walt couldn't expand in California the way he wanted, he took to buying huge parcels of swamp land in Florida under aliases. ; No one knew it was him until all deals were done. The castle at DL is much smaller than WDW, and there are only 2 parks instead of 4. ; Still a great spot to visit.
There was a television special broadcast the day Disneyland opened. One of the special guests was a future US president. Opening day line up at Disneyland Guess Who? Ronald Regan.
Disneyland is the beginning place. ; I find that as much as a love going to WDW - the magic of Walt is in DLR. ; Yes it's smaller but the heart of disneyland is bigger.
