Guests could also wish for their own Prince Charming at a quaint wishing well alongside marble statuettes of the seven dwarfs at Snow White’s Grotto. 1961 was the first year a Grad Night was hosted in Disneyland Park and 8,500 graduating seniors came to celebrate their accomplishments at the Happiest Place on Earth. This is also the first year that Camille, Roy & Ricky experienced DisneyLand (ricky was scared $#|+less)...
1962 – Guests were invited to live the life of adventure by climbing and exploring the new Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse, towering 70 feet over Adventureland.The year 1962 also saw the debut of the Safari Shooting Gallery – where the guns actually used real pellets! Also added in 1962: the picturesque elephant bathing pool within the world famous Jungle Cruise. Walt Disney also celebrated the 10,000th performance of the Golden Horseshoe Revue by airing it on television with its stars, including Betty Taylor, Wally Boag, Gene Sheldon and Ed Wynn.
1963– In 1963, the then-groundbreaking technology of sophisticated Audio Animatronics debuted to Disneyland park guests in an attraction that was touched by Walt Disney in every aspect of its planning. The Enchanted Tiki Room opened in Adventureland, featuring colorful singing birds, delicate singing flowers and powerful tiki gods. With its infectious songs and lovable hosts — Fritz, Michael, Pierre and Jose — the Enchanted Tiki Room is still a favorite with park guests of all ages. Walt also hosted a press conference to explain his upcoming Audio Animatronics exhibits for the New York World’s Fair the following year.
1964 – Although the 1964 New York World’s Fair didn’t actually occur at the Disneyland Resort, many of Walt Disney’s exhibits for the fair found their permanent homes in Disneyland park after debuting for enthusiastic Fair audiences. Walt used the opportunity of presenting at the Fair to fine-tune and perfect his technologically advanced Audio Animatronic figures through four exhibits: “it’s a small world,” “Progressland,” The Magic Skyway and “Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln.” Of course we all know that Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln and “it’s a small world” are now classic Disneyland attractions, but “Progressland” also came to the park as The Carousel of Progress, and The Magic Skyway utilized omnimover technology, which was used in many Disneyland classics including The Haunted Mansion. Disneyland also hosted more than 400 American athletes heading to Japan for the 1964 Summer Olympics. Events included a tribute show on the shores of the Rivers of America, featuring Bob Hope and a cast of Hollywood stars.
1965 – Disneyland park marked its first decade with a yearlong “Tencennial.” Celebration elements included parkwide decorations, a grand parade and numerous special events throughout the year. To help represent the park during the busy year, the role of Disneyland Ambassador to the World was created. Tour guide Julie Reihm was selected as the first “Miss Disneyland” — as the position was originally called — and she spent the year traveling throughout the United States and the world as the official emissary of Disneyland park. 3D Jamboree debuted at the Fantasyland Theater starring Mouseketeers. The film was presented in 3D, a technology that wouldn’t be used again at Disney Parks until Magic Journeys was produced for Epcot 25 years later. Also in 1965, Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln found its permanent home in the Opera House on Main Street, U.S.A.
1966 – Walt Disney brings an attraction first developed for the 1964-65 World’s Fair to Disneyland park and presides at the opening of “it’s a small world.” A spectacular new geometric facade and giant animated clock with figures representing the children of the world parading each hour are designed for the attraction’s new home.
In June, the Disneyland Hotel adds the Sierra Tower annex with 150 rooms and The Plaza Building shopping complex opens a few months later. In July, Primeval World Diorama, a world of gigantic dinosaurs, is unveiled as a major addition to the diorama along the Santa Fe and Disneyland Railroad. Also in July, the first new land in Disneyland park – New Orleans Square – opens its initial phase with a re-creation of New Orleans’ French Quarter, featuring typical belle-epoch architecture for shops, restaurants and musical stages, in addition to a new waterfront area along the Rivers of America. The colorful dedication is one of Walt Disney’s last official ceremonies before his untimely passing in December.
1967 – On March 18, Pirates of the Caribbean opens in New Orleans Square as the first mega-scale, indoor ride-through adventure and it gets rave reviews. The Blue Bayou Restaurant featuring Cajun-inspired cuisine also opens inside the attraction.
Later in the year, Club 33, Walt Disney’s private dining establishment, opens to members for the first time, and that’s not all! Tomorrowland adds SIX new attractions to the park: Rocket Jets, the centerpiece of the new Tomorrowland; Carrousel of Progress, a show featuring the memorable theme song, “There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow;” America the Beautiful, an all-new film journey across the United States; People Mover, a perpetual-motion transportation system of the future; Flight to the Moon, a reality-based simulation of flight into space...
and... Adventure Through Inner Space, an omni-mover trip exploring the inside of molecules and atoms.
1968 – Following a massive year of new projects in Tomorrowland and New Orleans Square in 1967, construction in this year concentrates on the Main Entrance complex for improved guest ticketing and major changes in the guest parking lot. Special events include a record-breaking New Year’s Eve Party, Spring Fling, Old Fashioned Easter Parade, Angels-Disneyland Funday Doubleheader, the first Cinco de Mayo Fiesta and first St. Patrick’s Day Parade at the Park.
1969 – Haunted Mansion opens after 15 years of planning and features a doom buggy tour through a mysterious ante-bellum home complete with 999 ghosts. Also in 1969, a new Disneyland Monorail station is completed to accommodate a larger, new generation of Monorail trains, the Mark IV.
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