Disneyland Opened facts
While investigating facts about Disneyland Opened, I found out little known, but curios details like:
When Disneyland opened, visitors had the option of arriving by highway or skyway (helicopter). However in 1968, 12 years after Disneyland opened,the skyway ended after a crash took the lives of 23 people (20 passengers and 3 crew members), the worst civilian helicopter crash in U.S. history
Russia is opening a "Military Disneyland" that will allow guests to shoot military grade weapons and try out various military simulators.
In my opinion, it is useful to put together a list of the most interesting details from trusted sources that I've come across. Here are 46 of the best facts about Disneyland Opened I managed to collect.
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On July 17, 1955, within a week of Disneyland opening, operator error resulted in the caboose of the Disneyland Railroad crashing and derailing. During the ensuing commotion, the brakeman at fault "quietly left the scene of the accident, exited the park, and was not seen again".
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The opening day of Disneyland was referred to by Walt as "Black Sunday" as rides broke down, the freshly paved asphalt had women's shoes sticking to it,, a plumber's strike made Walt chose between bathrooms and drinking water, restaurants ran out of food, among many other problems
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Disneyland's opening day was considered a disaster, with roughly half of the 28,000 attendees having counterfeit tickets and many people simply jumping the fence.
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For around 6 months following its opening, Disneyland had a lingerie store on Main Street USA. Guests could buy intimate apparel and watch a presentation on the history of women’s underwear, hosted by an animatronic known as the “Wizard of Bras”.
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Part of the reasons for Disneyland's grand opening disaster was the counterfeit tickets, as 28,154 guests passed through the park's gates with such tickets. It was supposed to be 15,000 on invitation-only.
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When Disneyland first opened, so many weeds sprouted along the banks of the Canal Boats of the World ride that Disney ordered workers to place signs with exotic species names in Latin next to them to resemble an arboretum.
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When Disneyland Anaheim opened, the pavement was so fresh that high heels sunk into it and got stuck
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In 1974, Deborah Stone, an 18 year old Disneyland ride operator was crushed to death between a stationary wall and rotating wall on the newly opened America Sings ride. Her screams were thought to be part of the ride, and before anyone discovered her, she was already dead.
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The Boeing aircraft factory in Washington is the world's largest building (in terms of usable space), able to fit the entirety of disneyland inside it's walls with room to spare, and that clouds will sometimes form inside the building because of it's massive open space.
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Disneyland is open year round, and in 2013 alone it welcomed more than 16 million guests.
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Universal Studios Florida's grand opening in 1990 suffered the same disaster as Disneyland's in 1955, with rides such as Kongfrontation and Jaws broke down constantly for weeks or months
Ronald Reagan was one of the 3 ABC announcers that broadcast the opening of Disneyland. - source
Construction began on Disneyland only one year before it opened.
The opening event was covered and televised nationwide by three of Walt Disney's friends, including Ronald Reagan, an actor and future United States President.
On opening day, with more than 20,000 uninvited guests in attendance on top of the 6,000 invited guests, and temperatures as high as 110 degrees Fahrenheit, food and drink ran out, wet asphalt trapped high heels and the Mark Twain Steamboat nearly toppled from the large number of passengers.
King Ludwig II of Bavaria commissioned the Neuschwanstein Castle and paid for it with his own means. Built as an homage to Richard Wagner, the king only spent 172 days in it before his death, after which it was open to public. It was the inspiration for Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle.
Disneyland recovered quickly from its opening day disasters, and went on to become a popular park for adults and children alike.
In 1970 Disneyland was invaded by 200-300 'Yippies' (members of the Youth International Party). They commandeered Capt. Hook's Pirate Ship, invaded Fort Wilderness, openly smoked pot, and attempted to raise their flag (a pot leaf) over the Town Square before being outed by the riot polics.
Early rides at Disneyland included Snow White's Adventures, Jungle Cruise, Stage Coach, and Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. On opening day there were already 20 rides to enjoy.
One land called Holidayland opened in 1957 but it closed in 1961.
Traffic was so immense on the grand opening of Disneyland, it was reported that children would immediately urinate in the parking lot upon arriving.
