One merry afternoon in the early ‘50s, Walt Disney ventured out to Griffith Park, LA, with his two daughters, Diane and Sharon. Then came an epiphany. Watching them ride the merry-go-round, Disney had a vision for a park where adults and children could go and have fun. On July 17, 1955, that vision became a reality and Disneyland opened in Anaheim, California.
The Disney magic, however, took a while to settle, with a disastrous opening day that was later referred to as “Black Sunday”. But despite a gas leak, ride malfunctions and a plumbing strike, the park captured the hearts and minds of tourists the world over and become of the most iconic destinations in the world, later spawning new resorts in Florida, Paris, Tokyo and elsewhere.
Disneyland facts:
- Since opening day in 1955, the Disneyland Resort has welcomed more than 750 million guests
- Disneyland Park opened July 17, 1955, with 18 ticketed attractions and five free attractions/exhibits. Opening Day highlights included the Jungle Cruise, Autopia, Mad Tea Party and Mark Twain Riverboat
- The surrounding Disneyland Resort now employs some 28,000 cast members, making it the largest single-site employer in Orange County, California
- The number of bananas consumed by Disneyland Resort guests in a year could feed Abu (Aladdin’s monkey friend) 20 bananas a day for 62 years
- The Disneyland Hotel opened in October 1955 with 100 rooms. Today it offers guests 975 rooms, themed swimming pools, two towering water slides and five Signature Suites – including the Mickey Mouse Penthouse and Adventureland Suite
- Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa, which opened in 2001, was the first Disney hotel built “inside” a theme park, with an exclusive guest entrance into Disney California Adventure. It now includes Disney Vacation Club villas
- Mickey Mouse ear hats are the most popular Disneyland Resort souvenirs of all time, with more than 84 million “ears” sold since 1955. New “crystal” ears and other creative designs will debut during the Diamond Celebration
- The Disneyland Resort generates $4.7 billion annually for the Southern California economy
From the archives:
Disneyland unveiled: some time before the park's opening in 1955 (disneylandnews.com)
April 16, 1955: Walt Disney inspects the progress of the castle just three months before the park opens (David F Smith, AP)
July 18, 1955: The park opens at 10am Monday morning following a disastrous first day. Rides cost from just 10 cents and it's estimated a million guests visited the park within its first week (Orange County Register archive photo)
October 1955: When the park opened, Anaheim had just 87 beds across five hotels. That soon changed when Disney partnered with a Texan oil magnate to open the 100-room Disneyland Hotel, which connected to the park via monorail (disneylandnews.com)
1959: Kids riding on the Rainbow Ridge Pack Mules (mickeyphotosdisneyland.blogspot.com)
1959: The Mad Tea Party ride in Fantasyland wasn't so busy that day (mickeyphotosdisneyland.blogspot.com)
1967: Disneyland's Tomorrowland with North America's first monorail - and 'actual' mermaids performing in the water (mickeyphotosdisneyland.blogspot.com)
The park is now markings its 60 years with a Diamond Celebration, including various events:
- "Paint the Night – All-New Electrical Parade" – a luminescent parade with a river of light, using more than 1.5 million LEDs
- "Disneyland Forever," presented by Honda – a new fireworks spectacular tha incorporates a range of timeless Disney tales, from the sky to the buildings of Main Street, featuring specially designed digital projections
- "World of Color – Celebrate! The Wonderful World of Walt Disney" – TV star Neil Patrick Harris joins Mickey Mouse on a magical water canvas to entertain guests in a new variation of the night-time event at Disney California Adventure, featuring animated imagery, live-action film, fountains, lasers, special effects and a musical score
A more up to date picture from Disneyland's recent 'Dazzling Day' event