One
day Walt Disney had a vision. It was a vision of a place where children and
parents could have fun together. The more Walt dreamed of a “magical park,” the
more imaginative and elaborate it became.
The
original plans for the park were on 8 acres next to the Burbank studios where
his employees and families could go to relax. Although, World War II put those
plans on hold. During the war, Walt had time to come up with new ideas, and
creations for his magical park. It was soon clear that 8 acres wouldn’t be
enough.
Finally
in 1953, he had the Stanford Research Institute conduct a survey for a 100-acre
site, outside of Los Angeles. He needed space to build rivers, waterfalls, and
mountains; he would have flying elephants and giant teacups;a fairy-tale
castle, moon rockets, and a scenic railway; all inside a magic kingdom he
called “Disneyland.”
Location
was a top priority. The property would have to be within the Los Angeles
metropolitan area, and accessible by freeway. It would also have to be
affordable: Walt’s pockets were only so deep.
The
search for the best spot finally ended in the rural Anaheim, California with a
purchase of a 160-acre orange grove near the junction of the Santa Ana Freeway
(I-5) and Harbor Boulevard.
Although,
Disneyland was expensive. Walt once said “I could never convince the financiers
that Disneyland was feasible, because dreams offer too little collateral.” So
Walt turned to Television for his financial support. “Walt Disney’s Disneyland”
television series offered a glimpse of the future project. This brought the
idea of Disneyland into reality for Walt and the American people.
The site were Disneyland was to be built
Construction
for Disneyland began on July 21, 1954, a meager 12 months before the park was
scheduled to open. From that day forward Walt Disney’s life would never be the
same.
Some 160-acres of citrus trees had been cleared and 15 houses moved to
make room for the park. The area was in semi-rural Orange County, near a
freeway that would eventually stretch from San Diego to Vancouver.
Walt discussing the plans of all the different lands
When
the real designing came around, Walt was met with inevitable questions. How do
you make believable wild animals, that aren’t real? How do you make a
Mississippi paddle ship? How do you go about building a huge castle in the
middle of Anaheim, California? So, Walt Disney looked to his movie studio staff
for the answers. The design of Disneyland was something never done before.
There would be five uniquely different lands.
Walt
had planed out all the lands, to every detail. Main Street, U.S.A., the
very front of the park, was where Walt wanted to relive the typical turn of the
century city Main Street. He said:
“For
those of us who remember the carefree time it recreates, Main Street will bring
back happy memories. For younger visitors, it is an adventure in turning back
the calendar to the days of grandfather’s youth.”
Walt
made Main Street U.S.A the entrance to a “weenie,” as he called it. He said:
“What
you need is a weenie, which says to people ‘come this way.’ People won’t go
down a long corridor unless there’s something promising at the end. You have to
have something the beckons them to ‘walk this way.'”
Walt
also had planed for an “exotic tropical place” in a “far-off region of the
world.” Called Adventureland. Walt said, “To create a land that would make
this dream reality, we pictured ourselves far from civilization, in the remote
jungles of Asia and Africa.”
Frontierland was made to relive the pioneer days of the American frontier. Walt said:
“All
of us have a cause to be proud of our country’s history, shaped by the
pioneering spirit of our forefathers. . .Our adventures are designed to give
you the feeling of having lived, even for a short while, during our country’s
pioneer days.”
Fantasyland was
created with the goal to “make dreams come true” from the lyrics of “When You
Wish Upon a Star.” Walt said:
“What
youngster. . .has not dreamed of flying with Peter Pan over moonlit London, or
tumbling into Alice’s nonsensical Wonderland? In Fantasyland, these classic
stories of everyone’s youth have become realities for youngsters-of all ages-to
participate in.”
Fantasyland
would feature a large Sleeping Beauty Castle, and a Fantasy Village.
Tomorrowland was created as a look at the “marvels of the future.” Walt said:
“Tomorrow
can be a wonderful age. Our scientists today are opening the doors of the Space
Age to achievements that will benefit our children and generations to come. .
.The Tomorrowland attractions have been designed to give you an opportunity to
participate in adventures that are a living blueprint of our future.”
Although,
Walt had trouble working on Tommorrowland. He said that “right when we do
Tommorrowland, it will be out dated.”
Walt
Stayed close to every detail of the Park’s Construction, and he visited the
site in Anaheim several times a week. Progress went sporadically despite
exasperating obstacles.
The
Rivers of America, carved out of sandy citrus grove soil, refused to hold
water. The answer was finally found in a bed of native clay: an inch layer on
the river bottom formed a pad as hard as cement. Although, minor set backs did
follow, progress did continue.
Disneyland underconstruction in 1955
Plants
were planted throughout the park, emptying nurseries from Santa Barbara to San
Diego. Detail was made; if Walt Disney didn’t like what his studio designers
came up with, he’d do it himself. An example of this is Tom Sawyers Island. He
thought his designers had “misunderstood the idea” so Walt took home the plans
and the next day had it designed the way it appears today.
Bit
by bit, Disneyland got ready for Opening Day. The staff worked around the clock
to get ready. The Mark Twain was being moved, deck by deck, down the Santa Ana
freeway to get to Disneyland on time. Finally, everything seemed to come
together. The “magical little park” was really a $17,000,000 “Magic Kingdom.”
Walt’s dream had come true and Disneyland was ready to open.”
Opening
day, was a day to remember. Six thousand invitations to the Grand Opening had
been mailed. By mid-afternoon over 28,000 ticket holders were storming the
Magic Kingdom. Most of the tickets were counterfeit.
Walt
Disney was 53 when he dedicated Disneyland Park. It was a memorable ceremony.
There in Town Square, Walt could look around and see the fulfillment of his
hopes, dreams, and ambitions in the form of a spectacular entertainment kingdom.
Although,
Opening Day was a terrible disaster. A 15 day heat wave raised temperatures up
to 110 degrees Fahrenheit. Also, due to a plumbers strike, few water fountains
were operating in the hot weather. Asphalt still steaming, because it had been
laid the night before, literality “trapping” high heeled shoes. After opening
day, the heat wave continued, and almost wiped out the park.
Beside
the terrible opening day conditions, the park did eventually pick up. By 1965,
ten years after opening day, 50 Million visitors had come through the gates.
Even
though Walt Disney wasn’t able to see how his park and his company prospered
and grew into the 21st Century, his legacy still lives on with us. Throughout
Disneyland and throughout the entire world, he will always be there.
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