The Disneyland Book of Secrets 2014: One Local's Unauthorized, Rapturous and Indispensable Guide to the Happiest Places on Earth (196 page)

The
Imagineers
wove a bit of subtle
magic
into the
rustworthy
, only audible in the early morning or late evening hours, when the ship was all but deserted.  Emanating from various corners of the ship was a soundtrack of the faint, ghostly creaks, groans, and gurgles that every ship at sea experiences.  It was a moody little sonic masterpiece.

A word to the wise
if you let your children blow off steam at water attractions like the
S.S. rustworthy
: Bring an extra set of clothes and socks for them!  The fireboat was one of
DCA
’s many water-rich play environments, offering kids a lot of opportunities to get soaked.

During my first-ever visit to the resort, while
most of our party was in line for
Burger Invasion
grub, my niece, who was turning seven, was left in my care.  She asked to be allowed to play on the
S.S. rustworthy
.  I said she could, as long as she promised to only getting slightly splashed, to which she readily and fervently agreed.  I believe she actually had the audacity to
promise
not to play in the water.

L
ive and learn!  Water of any sort is to kids as catnip is to cats.  If kids aren’t spilling, sloshing, splashing, and squirting the water, they’re falling into it.  Right on cue, as the rest of my family arrived at the table with trays of burgers and shakes, my niece raced up, drenched to the bone–hair soaked, clothes soaked, feet squelching–a maniacally happy grin on her little face.

At that point I figured my sister would rescind any and all of my babysitting rights, in perpetuity, but she just sighed and reached into one of her capacious bags; she’d had the foresight to bring changes of clothes and socks for her daughter, and all wise parents visiting the resort, even for a day trip, will do the same.

When McDonald’s left the resort in fall of 2008, the little fireboat was left without a sponsor, and it wasn’t considered special enough to warrant a transformation into part of the new
Paradise Pier
.  The
S.S. rustworthy
was slated for demolition.  First its stern was razed as part of the adjacent
Silly Symphony Swing
build, and its water cannons ran dry.  By winter of 2010 its bow had been dismantled as well.

The ground it
once occupied was wrapped into the
Paradise Bay Gardens
, the complex of eateries and dining tables that replaced
Pizza Oom Mow Mow
and the shuttered
Burger Invasion
. 
Pizza Oom Mow Mow
was re-themed as
Boardwalk Pizza and Pasta
, while
Burger Invasion
became the
Paradise Garden Grill
.  These changes were planned for May 2010, but launching
World of Color
took precedence; the new restaurants and their gracious environs were unveiled in 2011.

Now
the
S.S. rustworthy
isn’t even rust; it is merely a cheerful, water-logged memory in the minds of the parents and kids who visited it during the first decade of the millennium. 
Did You Know?
 
DCA
never had a real fireboat, but in May 2001, just a few months after
DCA
launched, the
Anaheim
Fire Department
opened a special extension station at the
Disneyland Resort
.  Known simply as the
Disney Station
, it’s housed in
Downtown Disney
and staffed by four
Anaheim
Fire Department
paramedics who can respond rapidly to emergencies anywhere in the resort.
McVision:
  Corporate giants
Disney
and McDonald’s have a very old, rather obscure connection.  When
Walt
joined the American Red Cross at the end of WWI, the Midwestern teen was sent to Connecticut for training. 
Walt
wanted to fight, but he was simply too young; the military wouldn’t take him, but his mother
Flora Disney
signed the paper allowing him to join the Red Cross to help the war effort as an ambulance driver.  One of the Red Cross trainees whom
Walt
met in Connecticut was a teenager named Ray Kroc. 
Walt
was born on December 5, 1901; Kroc was almost a year younger than
Walt
, having been born on October 5, 1902.  They were both born in the Midwest,
Walt
in Chicago, Kroc just down the road in Oak Park.  While they were acquainted with each other at the Connecticut training camp, they were not fast friends, and after
Walt
shipped overseas to France, did not keep in contact.  Kroc wrote to
Walt
almost four decades later, in 1954, when
Walt
was building
Disneyland
.  Kroc had just become the franchise agent for a fast food operation based in Southern California.  Would
Walt
be interested in welcoming a McDonald’s franchise to serve burgers, fries, and shakes at
Disneyland
when it opened? 
Walt
remembered Kroc, and sent the proposal to
Disney
’s business unit for analysis.   The business unit’s verdict?  No deal.  At that time, McDonald’s was a sleepy little regional operation. 
Disney
didn’t consider it a big enough player to sling burgers at
Disneyland
.  Kroc knew he was going to galvanize McDonald’s and create a widespread fast-food juggernaut, but not everyone shared his vision.  Kroc would prove to be right.  He wanted to take McDonald’s even further than the McDonald brothers did, and ultimately bought the company from them.  Under Kroc’s leadership, McDonald’s became a global empire.  In 1996, more than 50 years after Kroc wrote to
Walt
asking if McDonald’s could sell burgers at
Disneyland
,
Disney
and McDonald’s finally struck a deal.  It was a ten-year agreement. 
Disney
toys began appearing in Happy Meals.  McDonald’s restaurants began appearing in
Disney
parks.
Night Vision:
  When darkness fell and
DCA
’s closing time approached, the
S.S. rustworthy
was almost deserted, giving the families that dropped by free run of the ship.  They could steer the captain’s wheel and blast the whistle by the faint glow of the ship’s lights–no waiting necessary!  In the quiet and the dim light, enveloped by the distant chug of the engine and the eerie underwater gurgling of the sea, kids could easily imagine that they were on a brave little fireboat en route to countless adventures.
Hidden Mickeys:
  On the bridge of the
rustworthy
Guests found gauges arranged in patterns that distinctly called to mind the head and ears of a certain beloved mouse.
FastPass: 
No.  A self-guided, self-paced play area, the
S.S. rustworthy
never fit the profile of a
FastPass
attraction.  And even on days when the park was crowded, there was always room for little Guests on the decks of the
rustworthy
. 
Kid’s Eye View:
This is fun.  It used to be a McDonald’s playground.  You [could] surf on fake surfboards and squirt water!

Toy Story Midway Mania!

[
FastView:
 
Part video game, part country fair, this Toy Story-themed winner is sure to entertain everyone in your group.  Worth the long lines (but be sure you have plenty of water to sip and are wearing sunscreen while you wait!)
]

Along with
California Screamin’
,
Toy Story Midway Mania!
, which debuted in summer 2008, provides
Paradise Pier
’s
E-ticket
thrills.  Designed specifically to bring more
Disney
-themed family fun to the pier,
Toy Story Midway Mania!
was an instant hit when it opened, and its popularity continues.

On paper,
Toy Story Midway Mania!
sounds like a weird blend of the classic and the cutting-edge, the nostalgic and the high-tech.  You have to see and experience the attraction personally to fully appreciate how adroitly the
Imagineers
merged vintage midway entertainment with
Disney-Pixar
characters and a state-of-the-art computer delivery system.

The
Imagineers
took wholesome midway games–think of pie throws and ring tosses and dart tosses from picturesque county fairs, as opposed to the seedy midway of Coney Island’s twilight–and used them as the basis for larger-than-life video games in which Guests compete by pulling the string on a toy cannon, thereby sending electronic signals toward a massive video screen.  Depending on how accurately Guests aim the toy cannons, they’ll either hit or miss the onscreen targets; an electronic scoreboard in the Guests’ vehicles tracks their scores in real time.

Imagineers
didn’t want the images and targets onscreen to look flat or phony, so they were rendered in 3D.  3D animation, that is, since the targets and everything onscreen
move
.  Guests would be provided with 3D glasses for the duration of their ride.

The plan? 
As Guests’ vehicles pulled up to each videogame station, they’d see 3D animated
Disney-Pixar
characters from the
Toy Story
franchise–
Buzz Lightyear
,
Woody
,
Bo Peep
,
Hamm
, the
Green Army Men
–challenging them to various contests like pie-throwing, ring-tossing, and so forth.  Each station would offer a different challenge.

The
resulting experience is indeed like traveling at high speeds through a videogame, and at the end of the ride Guests consult their real-time scoreboard to see if they’ve beaten their personal best, or at least beaten the score of their traveling companions.  Guests love to ride this attraction over and over again to improve their aim and increase their scores.  You’ll observe a lot of (mostly) friendly sibling, spouse, and intergenerational competition among the riders.

Some might dub this the
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
of
DCA
, because of the videogame element, but
Toy Story Midway Mania!
provides a far more elaborate and immersive environment than the
Astro Blasters
attraction.  It takes
beaucoup de
computer power to run all of
Midway Mania!
’s animated, interactive 3D gaming elements and track all of the scores.  And there are 4D effects like blasts of air, as well as hidden “Easter egg” targets that trigger surprise results.  In terms of setting, theming, kinetics, variety, and technological complexity,
Midway Mania!
is simply on a whole different level than the
Buzz Lightyear
attraction–as well as appealing to a much wider demographic, that is, ages four to four hundred!

When
Toy Story Midway Mania!
opened in summer 2008, it did far more than add another
E-ticket
thrill to the
Boardwalk
.  It also gave Guests a preview of what the entire
Paradise Pier
district would look like by 2011.  The warm creams, the elegant blues, the blushing beiges, the ornate gingerbread trim and handsome rooflines and cupolas–these are all elements of the dreamy Victorian style inspired by turn-of-the-20
th
-century California seaside parks like Venice of America.  The look unifies
Paradise Pier
visually and thematically.

Guests who want to experience
Toy Story Midway Mania!
queue outside the handsome attraction.  Lines tend to be long, except when the park first opens or on off-season weekdays.  Much of the queue is outside, following switch backing chains and metal rails, your only distractions replicas of vintage midway posters bearing the
Toy Story
characters.  The ambient music is cheerful, a delightful adaptation of the
Toy Story
score composed by
Randy Newman
.  As you near the loading zone you enter the building and are sheltered by a covered queue.

There
is
one very large, entertaining distraction at the beginning of the queue, standing just outside the entrance, in the form of a tall,
Audio-Animatronic
Mr. Potato Head
dressed in the red-and-white-striped sleeves and straw hat of a midway barker.

One of the most advanced
AA
figures
Disney
’s ever created,
Mr. Potato Head
makes fluid motions that would make any robot (or potato!) proud.  Sophisticated projection technology provides the illusion that he’s actually looking at the Guests whom he addresses.

“Is that potato talkin’ to me?” you might wonder.  Yes
–yes he
is
talkin’ to you.  He interacts with Guests, even singing and cracking jokes.  After all, he’s a barker and his task is to attract attention and drum up business for
Toy Story Midway Mania!
His voice sounds authentic because he delivers dialogue recorded by the inimitable and incorrigible comic master
Don Rickles
, who voices
Mr. Potato Head
in the
Toy Story
films.

Mr. Potato Head
can discern essential visual elements about passing Guests, whether, for example, they’re wearing light or dark clothing, and the jokes and zingers he delivers are therefore uncannily on target.  Even if you don’t plan to ride
Toy Story Midway Mania!
if you have time to stroll past it during your visit, pause a moment or two to appreciate the technological–and comic–genius of
Mr. Potato Head
.

As Guests near the end of the queue, they’re given special 3D glasses; don’t don them until you’re actually in the attraction
.  The lenses somewhat distort your vision in the real world, and the last thing you and your little ones need is to trip or flip just as you’re about to board the ride vehicle!

As you near the loading zone, a Cast Member will ask how many Guests are in your party and will direct you to specific rows and gates
based on the number of people in your group.  As always, if you don’t hear or understand which rows you’re to line up in, just ask the Cast Member; better to clarify it up front than end up at the wrong gate.

Before you know it, your
Midway Mania
vehicle will pull up and the gate will swing open.  Step quickly but carefully into your car.  The vehicles are rather odd-looking, composed of two linked cars, each of which can hold four people in a configuration of two Guests seated back-to-back.

In front of each
seat is a string-pull cannon; that’s what you’ll use to fire at targets.  Stow your loose valuables; although
Toy Story Midway Mania!
is set on a flat plane there are sudden jerks and swerves during which your loose valuables could fly out of the car, especially since you’ll be concentrating on firing the cannon at targets, not hanging on to your purse or hat.

Once your items are stowed, make sure you and your little ones are safely secured too.  Signal a Cast Member if you have questions or need assistance. 
Put on your 3D glasses.  And then, once everything’s in place,
zoom
!  Your vehicle darts forward at a whiplash pace, pausing just as suddenly, and then it’s off again!

There are a lot of sudden starts and stops as you wend your way
deeper into the attraction, passing charmingly rendered posters, murals, and displays of classic toys from Candyland to Lincoln Logs.  The décor and the architecture are warm and soothing; it’s like being back in the nursery, albeit within a ride vehicle that twists and pounces like a playful kitten.

Finally you reach the first giant videogame screen.  The
3D images and characters are delightfully lively and playful.  This is a videogame that any Guest from a preschooler to a great-grandma will love, and at about five minutes long, it’s a satisfying, immersive adventure.

The first game is a practice round, so you won’t accrue any points.  The characters give you
tips and encouragement.  You pull the string on your toy cannon.  Every time you pull it, you see a pie fly at the screen.  At this booth, the game interprets each of your “shots” as a pie, and based on where you’re aiming it, you’ll see the pie either hit or miss the targets.  You’ll have a moment to practice; make the most of it.

After the pie game, you’ll proceed to five more booths, and at those games, every point will count and will appear in real time on your electronic scoreboard. 
Tip:  Don’t get hypnotized by the scoreboard; ignore it until the end of the ride and concentrate instead on hitting as many targets as you can.  Moving targets are more valuable than stationary targets; distant targets are worth more than close targets, and so forth.  It’s all common sense–and uncommonly fun!

All park attractions are subject to changes and tweaks, but you can expect the games to unfold in this order: 
Hamm
the piggy bank’s
Egg Toss
;
Bo Peep’s Baaloon Pop
;
Green Army Men Shoot Camp
(but there are no guns; you’re throwing baseballs at plates);
Buzz Lightyear’s Flying Tossers
; and
Woody’s Rootin’ Tootin’ Shootin’ Gallery
(again, no bullets; you’re shooting suction-cup darts).

Once you
r toy cannon is shooting bursts of confetti, that’s your signal that the game is over.  Now’s the time to check your score.  How did you do?  Did you beat your brother, your mom, or your BFF–whoever is sitting next to you?  Did you beat your own high score from your last visit?  Keep your eyes open for the high score of the day, which is posted along the route to the unloading zone.  How close are you to the high score?

One thing that never fails to impress me is how happy Guests seem when they exit their vehicles in the unloading zone, how much they’re chatting and laughing and trading compliments or affectionate heckling. 
Toy Story Midway Mania!
is a bonding experience for Guests of all ages.

Once you climb out of your vehicle, be sure you have all the kids and head up the exit staircase.  (If you’re in a wheelchair or ECV, a Cast Member will direct you toward the ground level exit.)  At the top of the stairs you’ll see bins for depositing your 3D glasses; rememb
er, they’re park property (not souvenirs) and will be cleaned for use by future Guests.

You find yourself standing on a mezzanine in a replica of a Victorian
chamber in a warm pastel palette.  Sun falls in idyllic shafts of light from the many skylights in the cupola above.  Parents, take note:  Below are the shelves of the well-stocked
Midway Mercantile
, where you can purchase just about any
Toy Story
-related item that you or your children could want.  But if you’re on a tight budget, you’ll want to descend the stairs and bring your kids outside and back onto the
Boardwalk
as rapidly as possible, before they notice or become attached to one of the
Jesse
hats or
Wheezy
plush dolls!

Many Guests will want to ride
Toy Story Midway Mania!
again, right away, to try to top their score or engage in a rematch with a relative.  This is one reason to visit the attraction off-season or early in the morning; when lines are shorter you can ride multiple times with little waiting. 
Did You Know?
 
DCA
isn’t the only
Disney Theme Park
with a
Toy Story Midway Mania!
attraction.  One opened at
Walt Disney World
’s
Disney’s Hollywood Studios
on May 31, 2008, less than a month
before
the
DCA
version launched. 
Midway Mania!
is so popular that a version opened at
Tokyo DisneySea
in summer 2012. 
Single Riders:
  No.  When this attraction opened it offered a
Singe Rider
queue to help lines flow more efficiently. Solitary Guests were placed in unoccupied seats, so vehicles weren’t dispatched with gaps caused by odd-numbered groups.  However, this attraction is so popular that throngs of
Single Riders
soon overwhelmed the system.  When critical mass was reached, the
Single Rider
queue was closed for good.  All Guests must now wait in the same line. 
FastPass: 
No.  Although lines can be as long as an hour on crowded summer and holiday days,
Toy Story Midway Mania!
is not linked to the park’s
FastPass
system.  If you’re on a tight schedule and you want to include
Midway Mania!
in your visit, put it at the top of your itinerary as soon as the park opens.  Leave other crowded attractions (
California Screamin’
,
Soarin’ Over California
, etc.) for later, since they offer
FastPasses
. 
Kid’s Eye View:
  I love it!  It’s 3D and you get to shoot targets and earn points.  At the end you see how many points you have.

World of Color
/ Glow with the Show
(FP)

[
FastView:
 
There are a lot of ways to catch this extravagantly beautiful, award-winning show, and you should catch it at least once, one way or another, during your visit.  Close to the bay you have the clearest views, get sprayed with water, and feel the heat of the flames on your face.  Mid-distance views are enchanting (and you don’t get splashed).  If your hotel room has a theme park-view, watch the show from the comfort of your room and enjoy the big picture.  Add extra fun to the show by wearing glowing bracelets and necklaces, or
Ear Hats
that change color in synch with the
WOC
performance.
]

Without a doubt the most highly anticipated new show at the resort,
World of Color
lives up to all expectations as a must-see extravaganza.  There’s no question that
World of Color
’s digital projection of
Disney
images onto massive mist screens is, in terms of clarity and impact, well beyond
Fantasmic! 2.0
.

Just how good is this new show?  In November 2010, the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) gave
World of Color
the Thea Award for Outstanding Achievement–Nighttime Spectacular.  According to the November 16, 2010 Disneyland blog post, TEA described
World of Color
as “a visual and technical marvel”.  And by the end of January 2011,
World of Color
was already celebrating 500 performances, all delivered to kudos and rave reviews.

Imagineers
and construction crews labored for five years to make this innovative water-and-light show a reality. In keeping with
Disney
’s “green” ideology,
DCA
’s
Paradise Bay
was drained slowly in an ecologically respectful process that preserved the water to be reclaimed when construction concluded.  Without its water, the vast concrete crater of the bay was a bit of an eyesore, but
Disney
promised the lengthy construction period would be well worth the wait.

For months
, Guests on the eastern rise of the pier and those riding the Ferris wheel, roller coasters and rocket jets, were able to watch the fascinating transformation of
Paradise Bay
.  Hard-hatted workers scrambled like industrious ants over the bottom of the bay–a three-acre space with a work area larger than a football field–as did trucks, bulldozers, and backhoes.  1,200 nozzles, each with its own LED light, were installed along with miles of wiring.

In autumn of 2009
Imagineers
began to fill the bay again, slowly.  Much of the show’s mechanical and technological components had been installed, but additional work continued.  Work crews raced to have the show ready for its promised debut in summer 2010.

What could demand so much material and so many man hours?  Guests visiting the
Walt Disney
Imagineering
Blue Sky Cellar
in
Golden State
(now
Pacific Wharf
) were able to see models, drawings, and videos re:
Paradise Bay
’s new spectacular,
World of Color
.  Guests staying in park-view rooms at
Disney’s Grand Californian
in late 2009 and early 2010 were sometimes treated to tantalizing views of
World of Color
tests at 4:30 am.  Guests knew that if the new extravaganza were only half as exciting as
Imagineers
–and test runs–promised, it could eclipse
Fantasmic!
as the resort’s “must” nighttime viewing event.