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Tag: disneyland

  • Disney Announced Disneyland After Dark Themes, And Dates. – LAmag

    Disneyland After Dark will include 70 Years of Favorites, Sweethearts’ Nite, Disney Channel Nite, Star Wars Nite, and Pride Nite with dates being announced for all.

    Disneyland recently announced the dates and initial details for all five of the 2026 Disneyland After Dark events, including new themes, new events, and fun new perks. Disneyland After Dark is a separately ticketed event held at Disneyland on select nights from January to June. The events take place from 9 pm-1 am, but admission includes a pre-party mix in allowing guests into the park as early as 6 pm. The purchase of tickets also includes unlimited digital downloads of Disney Photopass photos, and a commemorative event guide map, and a keepsake. 70 Years of Favorites, Sweethearts’ Nite, Disney Channel Nite, Star Wars Nite, and Pride Nite have been announced as the five themes for this year’s Disneyland After Dark. 

    Sweethearts’ Nite

    The night is dedicated to celebrating love for all sweethearts, whether spouses, family, or friends will be returning this year. With nine nights, including January 22nd, 25th, 27th and February 3rd, 5th, 8th, 10th, 12th, and 7th, it is a good way to kick off the year. Bringing back the same environment as past years, the nights will also include a few new events and items. 

    Entertainment will include: 

    • The “Celebrate Love Cavaclade” as it glides down Mainstreet, USA (new) 
    • “Once Upon A Dream – A Musical Journey Through the Disney Songbook” featuring live singers and culminating in a nighttime ball beneath the stars (new) 
    • A Valentine’s Dance Party at Tomorrowland Terrace featuring Donald Duck and Daisy Duck 
    • Disney Duets Festive Karaoke in the Golden Horseshoe (new)
    • Photo Backdrops staged throughout the park referencing all your favorite films like “The Aristocrats”, “Tangled”, “Aladdin”, and “Lady and the Tramp” 

    Specialty food will include:

    • A Triple Berry Slushy with a Mickey-Shaped Glow Cube at Galactic Grill (new)
    • Surf N’ Turf loaded fries at Red Rose Taverne
    • Mickey Shaped Strawberry Cream Puff at Rancho Del Zocalo Restaurant 
    • Additional specialty items are available at table-service restaurants like Café Orleans, River Belle Terrace, and Carnation Café, but reservations are recommended

    Sweethearts’ Nite will also feature Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse ear headbands, trading pins, T-shirts, zip-up hoodies and tumblers for sale. 

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    70 Years of Favorites

    One of the new themed nights is 70 Years of Favorites, celebrating the seven decades of unforgettable moments at Disneyland park, in honor of Disney’s 70th anniversary. There will be just two nights, on March 3rd and 5th. Events will include:

    • Swing dancing at the Royal Theatre in Fantasyland
    • A Videopolis Dance Party at Tomorrowland Terrace, featuring a live DJ and ‘80s tunes in a throwback setting
    • Line dancing at The Golden Horseshoe, paying tribute to “Woody’s Round Up” show, a staple on the Frontierland stage in the late ‘90s and early 2000s
    • Photo opportunities thrown back to past entertainment like “Mad T Party”, “Main Street Electrical Parade” and Club Buzz
    • Encounters with “Long Lost Friends” including those from Disney Afternoon, “Mother” and “Father” from Carousel of Progress, Merlin, Flik and Atta, and the Fantasmic! Monkeys 

    And as with all Disneyland events, special food will be featured as well, including:

    • Mushroom Philly Sandwich (plant-based) and Maple Bacon Cinnamon Roll at Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe
    • Birria Mac and Cheese in a Bread Bowl at Refreshment Corner
    • Gaston Brew at Red Rose Tavern
    • Additionally, Blackened New York Steak and Prawns will be available at River Belle Terrace, but reservations are recommended

    Disney Channel Nite, Star Wars Nite, and Pride Nite are all returning themes for Disneyland After Dark, with further details about their entertainment and specialty foods to be announced early in 2026. Disney Channel Nites will be a blend of entertainment, characters and music, celebrating the beloved eras of the iconic TV channel will take place April 12th, 14th, and 16th, followed by Star Wars Nites on April 28th and 30th, as well as May 4th and May 6th. The two Pride Nites will take place during the month of June, Pride month, on the 16th and 18th to celebrate and bring together allies and members of the community for a festive evening featuring rainbow projection, lively decor, and dazzling entertainment. 

    Tickets for the 70 Years of Favorites and Sweethearts’ Nite go on sale to the general public on December 11 at 9 am. Magic key presale holders can get tickets on December 9th if they are Inspire Key holders, while All-Key holders get access to tickets on December 10th. Sale dates for the other three nights will be announced along with their other details in 2026. These nights will be full of magic and fun so don’t miss out.

    Taylor Ford

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  • Enter for your chance to win a 4-pack of DISNEYLAND® Resort 1-Day, 1-Park tickets!

    Enter for your chance to win a four (4)-pack of Disneyland®Resort 1-Day, 1-Park tickets and enjoy Holidays at Disneyland®Resort!

    Holiday magic returns with the beloved “A Christmas Fantasy” Parade at the Disneyland® Park with dancing gingerbread cookies, toy soldiers and more. Over at Disney California Adventure Park, Festival of Holidays fills the air with diverse cultural celebrations, festive bites, and joyful entertainment. For reservations and planning guides visit here.

    Holidays at Disneyland® Resort ticket giveaway runs from November 17, 2025 – November 28, 2025.

    Twenty five lucky winners will receive a four (4)-pack of Disneyland® Resort 1-Day, 1-Park tickets.

    Monday through Friday during the Sweepstakes Period from 6am PT, you may enter the “SECRET CODE” in the link below.

    Only open to residents of the KABC-TV DMA who are at least 18 years of age. See Official Rules here.

    Both a Theme Park reservation and valid ticket for the same Park on the same date are required for Park entry. Park reservations are limited and subject to availability and not guaranteed. Entertainment, experiences and offerings may be modified, limited in availability or unavailable, and are subject to restrictions, and change or cancellation without notice. Park admission and offerings are not guaranteed. Check for show times. Visit Disneyland.com/Updates before visiting the Disneyland® Resort. Check for showtimes.

    As to Disney properties: © 2025 Disney © 2025 Disney/Pixar

    For best results, enter the sweepstakes using Google Chrome as your browser on your desktop or laptop computer at abc7.com/promotions.

    If you need to change any of your personal information associated with our giveaways, go to my.disney.com or call 1-866-5DISNEY for assistance.

    Copyright © 2025 KABC Television, LLC. All rights reserved.

    KABC

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  • Deadpool Will Be Back for More Merry Mayhem at Disneyland

    The Merc With a Mouth will return to Avengers Campus this fall to kick off the holidays at the Disneyland Resort, spreading holiday cheer and sassy jokes among the Deadpool faithful.

    This year, the merry Marvel Studios feature at Disney California Adventure Park will be reimagined as The Story Time with Deadpool Holiday Special. With that nostalgic broadcast show twist, we’re expecting special guests will surely pop in and out of the multiverse to get in the hot seat for jolly ol’ DP. We’re thinking definitely Wolverine, as he was a fun co-star in the park’s initial run of the live entertainment show during the promo period for Deadpool & Wolverine.

    Avengers Campus has had its fair share of fun festive shows, including a Hawkeye holiday action stunt-heavy performance and that short run of Rogers: The Musical. Hey, we’d be happy if that came back; the Hyperion theater is just sitting there!

    © Disney Experiences

    There will be no shortage of Christmastime chaos from Deadpool, as Disney foodie fans will be delighted to hear about the chimichangas. That’s right, Pool’s fave food is making a debut at Pym’s Test Kitchen in Avengers Campus. And it looks so delicious. The Marvel-themed chimichanga is set to include seasoned beef, charred poblano, refried beans, and shredded cheese on a pool of Guajillo sauce with a pico de gallo side salad. All of that needs to get in our belly posthaste.

    Mickey's Christmas Carol
    © Disney Experiences

    While it’s particularly exciting to see more of the MCU dig into the spirit of the season with characters and themed food, it’s so awesome to see the unique ways this year’s offerings are gearing up to be a blast at the Disneyland Resort. Even with the Disney icons, we’re interested in side-questing for the Mickey’s Christmas Carol Feast dining experience, where you can meet the version of Mickey and friends, including Goofy in Jacob Marley ghost form. You can book that Storyteller’s Cafe at the Grand Californian hotel.

    The holidays begin November 14 at the Disneyland Resort.

     

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

    Sabina Graves

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  • All the Strangest, Creepiest Halloween Foods I Ate at Theme Parks This Year

    Fall marks the start of the holiday season at theme parks, and with it come seasonal food and drink offerings tied to their Halloween events.

    Every Halloween, theme parks offer tasty tricks and treats for grown-ups, from slasher-themed Five Nights at Freddy’s slices at Halloween Horror Nights to haunted rum-based cocktails inspired by Pirates of the Caribbean. As a theme park insider, there has been so much I’ve enjoyed on my own trips throughout this Halloween season at Disneyland, Knott’s Scary Farm, and Halloween Horror Nights, even after trying some of them at food reveals and media events at Universal Studios Resorts, Disney Parks, and Six Flags.

    So far 2025 is a really good year for tasty, sometimes terrifying eats. Read on for the best spooky season foodie finds of Halloween 2025 around your favorite theme parks!

    Five Nights at Freddy’s Cupcake – Halloween Horror Nights Orlando

    © io9/Gizmodo

    Chica’s cupcake companion from the Five Nights at Freddy’s universe gets a tasty variant at Halloween Horror Nights Orlando. It tops the version at HHN Hollywood, as the East Coast dessert comes filled with delicious cannoli filling at the core and a raspberry dollop within the pink cream top. The tasty flavor combo makes you feel like it would be the kind of fun menu item at a real Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza you’d expect for a birthday surprise—along with the animatronic band coming to life.

    Five Nights at Freddy’s “Why Not Have Both Pizza & Pasta” – Halloween Horror Nights Orlando

    Fnaf Pizza
    © io9/Gizmodo

    While Horror Nights Hollywood opted to just put an ordinary personal-size pizza in a Freddy Fazbear box, the food team in Orlando got a bit more creative. At first, I thought there was no way pasta on pizza would work, but after screaming through a few houses and needing a carb refuel, it really hit the spot. The cheese holding the thin spaghetti along with meatballs is a dementedly delicious delight on a slice. From a FNAF fan standpoint, I can also see Afton putting this on the menu to slow down any potential victims, so it’s grim yet satisfying.

    Terrifier “Starry Night Spritz” Cocktail – Halloween Horror Nights Orlando

    Art Starry Drink Hhn East
    © io9/Gizmodo

    The Terrifier “Starry Night Spritz” at Horror Nights Orlando’s Clown Cafe is a tart gin-based drink that evokes the works of Art the Clown and is way better than, say, the West Coast’s charcoal black concoction that looks like him. The blood-red cranberry and bubbly prosecco really make it easy and refreshing to drink in between houses, plus I loved the Clown Cafe photo ops where the drink is available. Pro-tip: you might run into Santa Art here.

    Terrifier “Sunflower Glasses” Cookie – Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood

    Terrifier Glasses
    © io9/Gizmodo

    This cookie is a playful callback to Art the Clown living his best life before taking a life at a costume shop in Terrifier 2. The sunflower shape is held by a fruity mousse that is tart like Art! It tastes great and is not the kind of sculpted treat that you’d toss after taking an Instagram snap and a single bite. The lemon flavor provides a great balance for a cookie that’s not overly sweet and is tasty as a snack on its own.

    Jason Universe “Camp Creamy Gouda Fondue” – Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood

    Friday The 13th Fondue
    © io9/Gizmodo

    The snacks at Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood are absolutely redeemed by this inspired snack straight out of Camp Crystal Lake. The Jason Universe booth’s best-kept secret is a sourdough bowl filled with warm gouda dip that’s infused with Angry Orchard apple cider. It works so well and comes with a side of sliced apples that are a crisp dipping addition (alongside the demolishable bread)—and so you can tell yourself you’re being somewhat healthy. If this was my last meal before getting got by Jason, it would be so worthwhile. I want to go back to Horror Nights Hollywood just for more of this before the season is over; it’s that good.

    “Ursula’s Enchanted Waffles” – Disney’s California Adventure

    Mickey Waffles
    ©io9/Gizmodo

    The best hidden gems at the Disneyland resort right now are the seasonal themed waffles at Schmoozies, the milkshake window at Disney California Adventure. The walk-up quick service stop is one of the few places you can order the classic Mickey-shaped waffles past breakfast. If you’re an all-day breakfast fan, you’ll be excited to know it’s been theming the waffles to the parks’ seasonal events. For the 70th Anniversary, it had a birthday cake and sprinkles flavor, for example. For Halloween, though, the theming went all out in a very special way with Ursula’s Enchanted Waffles. Inspired by the Disney villain, the flavor profiles evoke the sea witch’s colors of purple through an ube custard filling and black with a dark chocolate waffle exterior. It’s my favorite waffle yet, with a perfect balance of sweet and dark! I would sign my voice away to her to keep this on the menu.

    “Darth by Chocolate Parfait” – Disneyland

    Darth By Chocolate
    © io9/Gizmodo

    The Galactic Grill’s iconic dessert parfait returns to Tomorrowland at Disneyland. It’s layers of silky smooth and sinfully rich chocolate on chocolate that I can’t get enough of. I promise it’s not overkill; the pudding on the red velvet with chocolate cake and Oreo crumbles differentiates the kinds of chocolates you get all the way down for a tasty variety. It’s not too on the dark side, thankfully, and it’s still the best of all the Star Wars parfaits it has done.

    Indiana Jones and Halloween Drinks at Jock Lindsay’s Hangar Bar – Walt Disney World

    Jock Lindsay's Hangar Bar Io9 Gizmodo
    © io9/Gizmodo

    The Disney Springs watering hole inspired by Indiana Jones’ trusty pilot is pouring out spooky spirits this season at Jock Lindsay’s “Halloween Bar.” Three of the offerings hit the mark, evoking the mystical and deadly energy of our daring archeology professor’s side hustle adventures. As pictured above from right to left, if the “Scarab Beetle Essence” is a sweet, colorful, pineapple- and rum-forward poison, then I’d say the color-changing, ginger- and gin-strong “Cauldron Cooler” is the perfect antidote. The variety of flavors really works here, as they exotically capture flavors you’d expect to find travelling the world with Indiana Jones.  However, it’s the “Spike Trap” that comically nods to the traps from the Lucasfilm franchise, complete with a spiked ghostie marshmallow, while the drink itself wins as a sweet, fizzy, and misty cocktail that tastes like inhaling boozy vanilla Halloween fog.

    Pirates of the Caribbean Drinks at Beak and Barrel – Walt Disney World

    Beak And Barrel
    © io9 Gizmodo

    This is actually an all-year-round location, but Beak and Barrel, the Magic Kingdom’s Pirates of the Caribbean immersive bar, opened its doors just in time for Halloween in a moment of serendipity. The experience really feels like you’re living the pirate’s life, complete with its space feeling like ship quarters; one booth is styled like the jail cell from the ride, there’s a parrot mascot animatronic, and there are activations of certain effects such as shipwrecking storms hitting the decks (in that imagineering projections and sound effects way, like on the ride). However, the drinks easily make this such a treasure to escape to. In particular, I love the nod to the iconic attraction and movie franchise’s skull with the sweet blackberry-leaning “Plunderer’s Punch,” a Kraken Black Rum-based libation that’s served in a pirate skull mug. My personal favorite is the “Salty Seas mARRRgarita,” which has ube-infused blanco tequila and is, of course, salty like the sea.

    Pastrami Pizza – Six Flags Magic Mountain Fright Fest

    Six Flags Pizza
    © io9/Gizmodo

    Pizza slices that have no right being this good because they’re food mashup abominations abound! At Six Flags Magic Mountain’s Fright Fest, which did not have the Conjuring Universe drinks I was hoping for, I still quite enjoyed the monster pastrami pizza. Truly, pastrami baked into mozzarella with pickles on pizza drizzled with mustard is cursed, but I dug it.

     “The Enchanted Elixir” and “Pickle Hitchin’”- Knott’s Scary Farm

    Knotts Scary Farm Elixir
    © io9/Gizmodo

    Knott’s Scary Farm’s “The Enchanted Elixir” is another gin-based, color-changing drink I loved that tastes like a spellbinding spirit the Green Witch brewed herself. While you had the option to potion bottle it up and carry it with you, I much preferred it iced in the cup, which featured Knott’s Scary Farm’s legendary icon, because it brought out the fresh notes of citrus—but you do miss out on the color-changing effects. At least the cup lights up! You can get it at the medicine wagon next to the Boogeyman bar at Scary Farm, which also has the best under-the-radar drink of the season, “Pickle Hitchin’.”  Picture it (because taking a good snap of it was nearly impossible in the dark hole in the wall shack): half a theme park pickle snack but hollowed out to be filled with whiskey and pickle juice—it’s a drink and a snack that’s filling and will take the edge off screaming your face off all night.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

    Sabina Graves

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  • Disney’s Rough Time Gets Rougher

    Disney is having a week, and it’s only Wednesday.

    In the aftermath of the Jimmy Kimmel fallout, where Disney seemingly acquiesced to the Trump administration’s attempt to control what the media says about the right, the company is dealing with the loss of a lot of bipartisan public trust. Reinstating Kimmel to advocate for the comedian’s First Amendment rights came a little too late for many; the numbers were felt from those who boycotted the company by cancelling their Disney+ subscriptions. To make matters messy, Disney then went ahead and raised the price of its streaming platform while pushing out Tron: Ares, a lukewarmly received tentpole, at least by critics.

    Disney decided then that this was the perfect time for some Disney resort-wide price increases. It’s never a good time to get the news that Disney Parks are getting more expensive, especially in this unprecedented economic times. Variety recently reported that one-day, single-park tickets to Disney World or Disneyland now cost more than $200 for the first time ever during peak vacation times during the winter holidays. That’s a 5% increase for the Orlando resort and up 8.7% at Anaheim’s original park. It’s a headache to see the pricing get more expensive the more days you add to a vacation or if you want to opt-in on tickets that will let you go park to park on the same day.

    And with a packed park comes the option to add Lightning Lane passes, yet another additional fee beyond your entry ticket, which now runs a whopping $34 per pass at Disneyland. Lightning Lane pass prices also increased across the parks at Disney World, with multipasses increasing between $4 and $6, and individual ride passes increasing a couple of dollars depending on the ride.

    Similarly, the theme park’s annual passes, known as Magic Keys at the Disneyland Resort, have also seen a price increase for their top-tier options. Variety also mentioned that Disneyland’s most expensive pass, the “Inspire Key,” now costs $1,899 (an increase of $150) and the “Believe Key,” which has more blockout dates in comparison (days where it’s not admissible for park entry), went up $100 to $1,474.

    Weirdly, the lower-tier passes, “Enchant” and “Imagine,” did not see an increase, remaining at $974 and $599, respectively. Sadly, that reinforces the public belief that these moves are to price out middle- and lower-class families during the holidays in favor of folks with deeper pockets who can spend more during those peak times or for pricier-tiered pass holders who they want to give more access to the parks compared to the average park-goer.

    That wasn’t the only unfortunate news Disney found itself dealing with this week. Entertainment Weekly reported today that a guest at Disneyland was found unresponsive at the end of Haunted Mansion, one of the park’s most popular rides, and declared dead at a local Orange County hospital near the theme park. The cause of death has not been determined as of yet. This passing follows the death of another park guest at Orlando’s Epic Universe, where a young man was found unresponsive after riding Stardust Racers, a new coaster at Universal Studios’ recently opened theme park.

    At least it’s not all bad for the Disney Parks division, which is still largely holding it down for the company as holiday season travel is meant to kick up despite the government shutdown (though airports need air traffic controllers stat). Today the company also confirmed that The Muppets Rock n’ Roller Coaster is set to open next summer at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

    Before that, one of the quieter attraction refurbishments, Zootopia Better Zoogether!, will be opening up November 7. The new show will be taking over the space Pixar’s It’s Tough To Be A Bug occupied under Animal Kingdom’s Tree of Life. I’m already endeared to the neat animatronic Clawhauser that will host the “4D” show that centers on the residents of Zootopia’s many biomes preparing for Zoogether Day.

    Speaking of animatronics, Frozen Ever After at the Epcot Norway Pavilion is finally getting the good animatronics—just like the new ones seen at World of Frozen over in the international parks. Gone will be the outdated animatronics with the haunted-looking digital screen faces that looked washed out on a good day and on a bad one would glitch out in really nightmarish ways. Whether or not they’ll be worth eating the extra prices on tickets to get in and see them, however, remains to be seen.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

    Sabina Graves

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  • Disney raises ticket prices for Disney World and Disneyland theme parks

    Disney said on Wednesday that the entertainment giant is raising admission prices for its theme parks, effective immediately. 

    Some types of entry to the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, and to Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, will cost more, the company told CBS News. On some of the most popular days of the year to visit the two parks, a single-day ticket will cost roughly $199, currently the most expensive pass.

    The price hikes come amid growing demand to visit Disney’s park on certain days, like New Year’s Eve. For the week of Thanksgiving, from Nov. 24 to Nov. 29 the cost of entry to Disneyland will rise from $199 to $224, according to Disney’s website. Prices will rise by the same amount for the holiday period between Dec. 20 and Jan. 3. 

    At Disneyland Resort, pass prices are also increasing. It offers seven different ticket tiers, five of which are increasing by 3% or less, Disney told CBS News. The lowest-priced ticket will remain unchanged at $104.

    Disney’s Inspire and Believe Magic Key Passes — its highest-tier passes — will increase in price by $150 and $100, respectively. The Inspire Key now costs $1,899, and the Believe Key costs $1,474. The Enchant and Imagine passes will not rise in price, the company said. 

    At Walt Disney World, the lowest- and highest-priced tickets on sale through October of 2026 remain unchanged.

    “Disney Parks offer a full day of experiences each day, with ticket, hotel and dining options designed to suit a wide range of needs and budgets for all who visit. Our commitment to creating magical experiences for everyone remains at the heart of what we do — and that will never change,”  Disney officials said in a statement.

    Megan Cerullo

    Megan Cerullo is a New York-based reporter for CBS MoneyWatch covering small business, workplace, health care, consumer spending and personal finance topics. She regularly appears on CBS News 24/7 to discuss her reporting.

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  • The Unsung Hero Behind Disneyland As We Know It: Dave Bradley

    For as difficult as it would be for Angelenos of the present to imagine a world where the Beverly Center didn’t exist at the corner of Beverly and La Cienega, it was even more unfathomable for the Angelenos who lived in L.A. between the years of 1943 and 1974 to imagine a world without Beverly Park. Because, for thirty-one years, the “Kiddieland” (as those types of parks were once generically called) dominated that intersection, capturing the hearts and imaginations of children all over the county. And eventually, thanks to its influence on Walt Disney, the hearts and imaginations of children all over the globe.

    That Beverly Park arrived around the end of World War II was not a coincidence. And perhaps more than many other towns in the U.S., Los Angeles felt the dark pall cast over the nation by the war. Starting with its close (or close enough) Pacific proximity to Pearl Harbor, the “instigating incident” that finally prompted Franklin D. Roosevelt to enter the war officially. Or the fact that Hollywood celebrities getting involved in promoting the “war effort” (e.g., the Hollywood Canteen) were just a stone’s throw away from the mere mortals of the city.

    And while Hollywood might have done its best to keep things “light” (relatively speaking), there was no denying that the yearning for a return to normalcy (the phrase many learned again so well during and after the Covid pandemic) was in the air. This being a key aspect as to why there was such an uptick in the building of amusement parks after the war. In other words, it was time to have fun again and stop thinking about death, doom and destruction all the time (even if bomb shelters were about to become all the rage). Plus, the baby boom was bound to furnish an amusement park boom, too—offering a place where parents could take their children to unleash all that excess energy.

    Beverly Park was just one such place, emerging from the rural-looking fairgrounds (plus a baseball field) then owned by a company called Arden’s Milk. Located next to Ponyland, a property owned by Leo and Viva Murphy, it seemed like a perfect spot for the Frock & Meyer (as in Elden Frock and William Meyer) Amusement Company to establish another Kiddieland after the one they had built near Watts in 1941. But just two years after their second park was built in ’43, Meyer sold it to Dave Bradley after Frock died of a heart attack.

    The sale was kismet for Bradley, who had been considering a life in amusement parks ever since traveling around the country with saxophonist Freddy Martin and his band (Bradley served as the manager), with many performances done outdoors in venues like fairs and parks. Getting a feel for that type of setting, it appeared to activate the dormant fascination within Bradley that had begun ever since seeing those rides at the Venice Pier when he himself was just a child. Besides that, he had long had an itch to put his skills in the fields of entertainment and mechanics to good use. And what more highly specific way to do that than operating an amusement park?

    However, even the most talented people need a partner in crime, which is where Bradley’s wife, Bernice, came in. In fact, she actually left her job to help him run Beverly Park. No small ask considering she had a rare gig (particularly for a woman in that era): leading the story research department at Disney Studios. Therefore, it was her link to Walt Disney that ended up “aligning” these two men together. After hearing about why Bernice left the job, Walt started going to the park regularly in the late 1940s, as research for what would become Disneyland started to ramp up. And Disney would grill the kids at Beverly Park as much as he did Bradley, asking them what kind of rides they liked and what else they would want to see at an amusement park. Bradley’s counsel, in addition to making the park like a second office to Walt (Disney Studios was right nearby), was indispensable to the eventual final product that would become Disneyland.

    So indispensable, in fact, that Walt even hired him as a consultant, sending Bradley off to Europe to gather more intel on various theme parks, taking plenty of photos for reference along the way. It was also Bradley who suggested two key theme park innovations that would become staples of all theme parks going forward: 1) that there be a “Main Street” of the park and 2) that themed photo opportunities were offered to patrons.

    While some might insist that Disney exploited Bradley or “ripped off” his idea entirely, it can’t be emphasized enough that Bradley was a willing and eager participant in helping the animation mogul birth a new breed of theme park. A theme park that, to this day, remains in a competitive class all its own. As for its blueprint, provided by Bradley, it can be said that inspiration is a cycle. One inspiration begets another, and so and so forth. That much was made clear by the fact that Bradley himself was inspired by the rough-hewn version of an “amusement park” at Venice Pier when he was child.

    In 1974, shortly after the 1973 oil crisis that plagued L.A. in particular (see: Licorice Pizza), the Beverly Oil Company announced to Bradley that they were raising the price of the lease. Bradley, both unable to afford the higher price and lacking the same enthusiasm for the park as he once had, did not renew. And it marked the end of an era in L.A.

    But while the Beverly Center might have Beverly Park beat in terms of amount of time in existence, it’s the latter that will remain forever in the hearts of people not just in Los Angeles, but all over the world. For Beverly Park is what forged the foundation of Disneyland (though, to be honest, not everyone is grateful for that).

    Featured image credit: Jay Jennings, author of BEVERLY PARK: L.A.’s Kiddieland, 1943-74

    Genna Rivieccio

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  • Disneyland’s ‘larger than life’ Walt Disney animatronic weighs 2,000 pounds

    The 2,000-pound Walt Disney animatronic at Disneyland weighs 10 times as much as the average American man and a thousand pounds more than the 9-foot-tall Frankenstein’s monster animatronic that just debuted at Florida’s Epic Universe theme park.

    “It’s a lot of machinery,” according to Walt Disney Imagineering’s Jeff Shaver-Moskowitz. “It’s 2,000 pounds of an Audio-Animatronic figure that steps and rises during its performance.”

    Shaver-Moskowitz revealed the new details about the “larger than life” Walt Disney Audio-Animatronic figure at Disneyland during “The Happiest Story on Earth” special on ABC’s “20/20” newsmagazine TV show.

    ALSO SEE: Disneyland swings big and hits a home run with Walt Disney animatronic

    The $5 million “Walt Disney — A Magical Life” animatronic show debuted in July in the Main Street Opera House as part of Disneyland’s 70th anniversary celebration.

    Imagineering vowed to create the “most life-like animatronic ever” and succeeded with the world’s first robotic figure of Walt Disney.

    “That was a huge feat for the team to accomplish,” said Shaver-Moskowitz, an Executive Creative Producer at Imagineering.

    An Audio-Animatronics of Walt Disney greets visitors to the Main Street Opera House during “Walt Disney – A Magical Life” inside Disneyland on July 14, 2025, in Anaheim, CA. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    The impressive Walt animatronic appears to walk toward the audience as he puts his hands on the edge of the desk, leans forward and takes a couple steps.

    The robotic Walt weighs 10 times as much as the 199-pound average American man, according to the National Center for Health Statistics.

    ALSO SEE: Prince Harry says he wants to work at Disneyland

    The Walt animatronic weighs more than five times as much the 375-pound Shaman of Songs animatronic in the Na’vi River Journey at Disney’s Animal Kingdom and more than twice as much as the 800-pound Frankenstein’s Monster animatronic in Universal’s new Monsters Unchained dark ride.

    An Audio-Animatronics of Walt Disney greets visitors to the Main Street Opera House during "Walt Disney - A Magical Life" inside Disneyland on July 14, 2025, in Anaheim, CA. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
    An Audio-Animatronics of Walt Disney greets visitors to the Main Street Opera House during “Walt Disney – A Magical Life” inside Disneyland on July 14, 2025, in Anaheim, CA. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

    The 2,000-pound robotic Walt is by no means the heaviest animatronic ever built.

    The 8,000-pound Yeti animatronic in the Expedition Everest roller coaster stopped operating shortly after debuting in 2006 at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. At the time, the 25-foot-tall Abominable Snowman was the largest and most complex animatronic figure ever built by Disney, according to Orlando Park Stop.

    ALSO SEE: IShowSpeed goes to Disneyland with his millions of live stream followers

    The temperamental Maleficent animatronic dragon in Disneyland’s “Fantasmic” nighttime spectacular — mockingly nicknamed Murphy by fans after Murphy’s Law — weighed 18,000 pounds before it was destroyed in a spectacular fire in 2023.

    The 55,000-pound King Kong animatronic made by Italy-based EOS Rides is the centerpiece of a 2018 spinning roller coaster at Carthageland in Tunisia, according to Blooloop.

    ALSO SEE: Disneyland ‘Blinkin’ Lincoln’ animatronic used to go crazy and smash his chair in a robotic fit

    The new “Walt Disney — A Magical Life” animatronic show will initially run solo before playing in rotation with “Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln.”

    The original Abraham Lincoln animatronic created for the 1964 New York World’s Fair weighed 140 pounds, significantly lighter than the 180-pound U.S. President, according to a memo from WED Enterprises, the precursor to Imagineering.

    Brady MacDonald

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  • The Best Disney Park Ride Overlays, and Where to Find Them

    In case you didn’t know, Nine Inch Nails is currently soundtracking the Tron Lightcycle Run coaster at Walt Disney World, and that is wild when you think about combining the power of Disney with the legendary industrial metal act. There is, of course, synergy, as the music comes from the NIN score for the upcoming Tron: Ares. 

    Seasonal and promotional ride overlays are now ways to draw in more people to revisit beloved attractions at Disney’s parks or give passholders a reason to come back over and over. Over time some have had more longevity than others, as the most popular overlay continues to be Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion Holiday, which has Jack Skellington and friends take over the West Coast haunt with his spooky Christmas shenanigans. Meanwhile, the haunted version of Space Mountain: Ghost Galaxy seems to have exorcised its spirit—it just might have been a tad too scary, while Star Wars: Hyperspace Mountain stays beating out the rest.

    Here is a compilation of some of the most out-there and unique Disney experiences overlays, along with their current statuses at the parks.

    Tron Lightcycle Run (NIN Tron: Ares Collaboration)

    © io9 Gizmodo

    io9 recently got to experience the Tron: Ares overlay at the Magic Kingdom’s Tron Lightcycle Run coaster (Walt Disney World admission and Lightning Lane were provided), which for the first time features the actual score from the new movie. When we covered the opening of the ride back in 2023, Disney creatives revealed that the on-ride music was a new arrangement based on Daft Punk’s score for Tron: Legacy made specifically for the purposes of the attraction. You can, however, still hear the iconic Daft Punk tracks featured throughout the coaster’s queue and exit areas. Inside the ride itself, the usual Tron blue hue is swapped for Ares‘ crimson aesthetic as part of a new narrative of the ride, as we’re tasked with seemingly working with a program-gone-rogue before deleting it to preserve the grid (perhaps giving us a hint at what Ares will be about).

    With the release of Tron: Ares, the coaster transforms into Nine Inch Nails: The Ride in the best way, with their signature industrial instrumentals, which fit perfectly in the world of the Grid gone rogue. It really works as a tonal opposite companion to the Team Blue track that usually plays. If the ride were ever built elsewhere, it would be such a cool dual coaster utilizing both instrumentations. At night the Ares theming looks incredible, to boot.

    Haunted Mansion (Haunted Mansion Holiday)

    Haunted Mansion Holiday Disney Parks Youtube
    © Disneyland YouTube

    The Haunted Mansion Holiday is what happens when The Nightmare Before Christmas’s popularity gets out of hand (thanks, Hot Topic). Don’t get me wrong, we love the film and Jack Skellington’s frightful festive branding, but we believe it takes over the Haunted Mansion too early. The Christmas-themed overlay goes up in September for Halloweentime at the Disneyland resort, even though the Haunted Mansion is the perfect ride for Halloween. Its ghosts and scares make more sense to continue until the end of October! But I guess those of us in the camp that thinks this incredible overlay of holiday cheer should start in November are in the minority, because the queue for it is always over an hour or even longer during its fall and winter run.

    Space Mountain (Rockin’ Space Mountain, Ghost Galaxy, Hyperspace Mountain)

    Hyperspace Mtn Disneyland
    © Disneyland Resort

    Space Mountain at Disneyland (sorry, Magic Kingdom, and your sad Christmas music overlay) is hands down the champ of seasonal theming. What began with Rockin’ Space Mountain when the coaster got a Red Hot Chili Peppers soundtrack has only glowed up from there. For a while, it was the home of a space specter that might have been too scary during Halloweentime’s Space Mountain: Ghost Galaxy. I can attest from my personal experience that I am still haunted by the memory of the thrilling, creepy music and jump-scare projections of being chased through dead space by a very angry fiery ghost with hollowed eyes. It hasn’t held up residence in the coaster since 2018, though it has gone over to Hong Kong Disney’s Space Mountain variant.

    However, Space Mountain’s current reigning seasonal offering is Hyperspace Mountain, where you zoom through the Star Wars galaxy in a dogfight between X-Wings and TIE Fighters, all set to the films’ legendary John Williams score. Its debut predates the opening of Galaxy’s Edge and remains a better experience than Smugglers Run because we want that hyperspeed thrill of being in the fights we grew up watching. You can usually catch it in the spring during Disneyland’s Season of the Force events in the run-up to Star Wars Day.

    It’s a Small World (Baby Groot)

    Tokyo Disneyland Official Small World Groot Image
    © Tokyo Disneyland

    It’s a Small World at Tokyo Disneyland recently received new pint-sized guests thanks to Baby Groot and friends. Earlier this year, Avengers fans were able to see Earth’s mightiest and tiniest figures throughout the attraction at the Asia park. Along with Groot, it included Ms. Marvel, Thor, Hulk, and Black Panther, among others. Yet, there’s no word if either of the states’ versions of the ride would ever get this. Perhaps Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom version could, since it definitely needs some love.

    It would be too crammed at Disneyland’s original ride, as it currently has more of a permanent addition in the form of iconic characters being given the original ride artist Mary Blair treatment within their corresponding countries. For instance, you can find Cinderella in France, and new for this year, they added Pixar’s Coco heroes Miguel and Dante to the Mexico section of the ride.

    Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout (After Dark)

    Guardians Of The Galaxy Mission Breakout After Dark
    © Disneyland Resort

    For Halloween at Disney California Adventure, Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout gets infested by monsters after dark. The drop tower attraction overlay is a current Halloweentime staple at the Disneyland resort for those who want to get even more terrified. The storyline takes a turn when various creatures from the collection are let loose, leaving riders to go into a dark monster house version of the Collector’s fortress to rescue Groot.

    Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (September, Holiday Remix)

    Guardians Of The Galaxy Xmas Marvel StudiOS
    © Marvel Studios

    Speaking of the Guardians, over in Disney World, the Epcot attraction Cosmic Rewind gets a few cute variants. From September 21 through the 30, the ride only plays Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September,” which is usually one of the songs that plays on random rotation from the ride’s usual mixtape, a nod to the Awesome Mixes from the James Gunn movies. It’s such a silly nod to the meme-fication of your parent’s fave disco-era track, but endearing nonetheless. I still haven’t gotten this song on my rides of the mixtape-based coaster and missed this guarantee by a few days recently! I did, however, get to experience the holiday overlay on it, Holiday Remix, which only lasted one year in 2022 and was set to the tune of “Run, Run, Rudolph” but parodied as “Run, Run, Rocket”. Cute!

    Jungle Cruise (Jingle Cruise)

    Jingle Cruise Facade Disneyland Youtube
    © Disneyland YouTube

    The Jingle Cruise is missed at Disneyland. It felt as if nostalgic vintage holidays threw up on the riverboat ride. It’s more of a chaotic added theme that the skippers use as fodder for their Jungle Cruise bits on the fly, as you can see the animals on the ride appear to have gotten into some Christmas cargo. And the holiday puns are always top tier! Every year I wish it would return to Disneyland (it ended on the West Coast in 2017), but thankfully it is still operating during the holidays at the Magic Kingdom’s Jungle Cruise in Walt Disney World.

    Living With the Land (Glimmering Greenhouses)

    Living With The Land Holiday Walt Disney World Resort
    © Walt Disney World Resort

    Lastly, Epcot’s sustainable garden and farming zen ride, which is a favorite to decompress on, gets a lovely holiday lights tour overlay during the winter. It makes the relaxing and educational voyage away from the overstimulating bustle of the park even more wondrous to behold as festive key ingredients of holiday dishes from around the world are nerdily described over the course of the attraction. It’s theme park ASMR and chill holiday vibes. I hope Disney never changes this, because this little gem is something completely unexpected yet comforting to bask in at Epcot during Disney World’s busiest times.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

    Sabina Graves

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  • Hong Kong Disneyland Teases Avengers and Pixar Attractions

    Disneyland Hong Kong first opened 20 years ago, and to celebrate, the company showed off concept for what’s coming in the future.

    Concept art below shows teases for attractions based on Marvel and Pixar. For the superheroes, one art features the Avengers headquarters, while another shows Spider-Man with Doctor Strange, Black Panther, and Thor in Asgard around a pod of parkgoers dropping through the Bifrost Bridge. This concept art—and a previously released art of Spidey holding a pod while fighting Doctor Octopus near a portal—suggest a drop ride in the vein of “Mission Breakout.” Disney hasn’t given this ride an official title, but teased it’d be “a team-up with the Avengers for an unexpected adventure!”

    This’ll be Marvel’s third addition to the Hong Kong’s Stark Expo in Tomorrowland, and was first announced back in 2024. At the moment, it’s unclear if this attraction is still focused on Spider-Man with some guest stars, or has fully converted into an Avengers attraction that also features the wall-crawler.

    Meanwhile, the Pixar art shows Mike, Sully, and others Monsters Inc. workers moving doors around in front of a crowd with Boo hanging around in the background. Like the Marvel attraction, there’s no official name for this, or what it’ll entail; the description for this one promises other Pixar characters will participate in “an all-new immersive theatrical experience celebrating the joy of friendship and the power of play.”

    No release window for either so far, but we’ll have more on what’s to come for Disneyland Hong Kong as information comes out.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

    Justin Carter

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  • Disney World’s New Line-Skipping Pass Costs Up To $450 A Day Per Person

    Disney World’s New Line-Skipping Pass Costs Up To $450 A Day Per Person

    Disney has announced a new way to skip the lines at its parks. But depending on where you go and when, you might have to spend over $400 a day per person to take advantage of the new Lightning Lane Premier Pass.

    Disney’s New Post-Apocalyptic Anime Proves The Mouse Has Good Taste

    On Wednesday, Disney announced its plans to roll out a new tier of Lightning Lane, a pre-existing program that lets visitors pay extra to skip the lines for certain rides in Disney World and Disneyland. Previously, Lightning Lane Multi Passes, which let you skip the line on multiple rides, cost $32 a day per person, though the price could increase for various reasons. These passes forced guests to select a time to arrive for their “line skip,” which could cause problems if you were late. This newly announced tier of line skipping, Premier Pass, does away with that restriction, but at a steep cost.

    As spotted by GameSpot, the new “Premier” pass—which will be available later this month—will cost up to $450 a day per person at Disney World. The price varies depending on the park and when you go, with Disney saying that the highest prices will be found on a “limited number of days over peak travel periods.”

    Here are the prices for each park, but keep in mind that you still need to buy a ticket to the park, and at Disney World, only folks staying in Disney World hotels on property will be eligible to buy these new, limited passes.

    • Disney’s Animal Kingdom: $129 to $199
    • EPCOT: $169 to $249
    • Disney’s Hollywood Studios: $269 to $349
    • Magic Kingdom: $329 to $449

    Meanwhile, at Disneyland, the Premier pass will cost $400 per person until December 31. In 2025, the pass will drop to $300 to $400 a day per person, based on what dates you visit.

    In 2023, Disney CEO Bob Iger said that the massive company had been “too aggressive” about increasing prices at the parks and wanted to make them more “accessible.” This, uh, doesn’t seem like a good way to do that. And sure, you can argue that people don’t need to buy these passes, that they can just wait in line, but ride queues can get quite long and waiting sucks. Besides, the big appeal of Disney World and Disneyland is the rides! And making it more expensive to actually enjoy them seems like the opposite of making your parks more accessible to more people.

    .

    Zack Zwiezen

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  • 35-year-old vlogger dies after collapsing at finish line of Disneyland half marathon

    35-year-old vlogger dies after collapsing at finish line of Disneyland half marathon

    35-year-old vlogger dies after collapsing at finish line of Disneyland half marathon


    By Madilynne Medina | SFGATE

    A 35-year-old man died after crossing the finishing line of a Halloween half marathon at Disneyland over the weekend, officials said.The Disneyland Halloween Half Marathon Weekend, Sept. 5-8, occurred as a triple-digit heat wave engulfed the Anaheim area and greater Southern California. The runner, who was identified by the Orange County Coroner’s Office as Bobby Graves, died after the race Sunday. Graves was known by his middle name, Caleb, according to his social media.Graves crossed the finish line at approximately 7 a.m., grasping his chest and subsequently collapsing, Matthew Sutter, a spokesperson for the Anaheim Police Department, told SFGATE. Medics and fire crews attempted to treat Graves at the scene, and he was transported to a local hospital while in full cardiac arrest. After being treated for an hour, Graves was later pronounced dead at the hospital, Sutter said. “We are deeply saddened by this tragic loss, and our hearts are with Caleb’s family and loved ones during this difficult time,” Jessica Good, Disneyland Resort spokesperson, told SFGATE.Officials from Disneyland Resort did not answer SFGATE’s additional questions about the heat wave or if they would consider moving the annual race to a cooler time of year.Sunday was a “toasty” day for Anaheim, Casey Oswant, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, told SFGATE. The lowest temperature was 75 degrees at 6 a.m., and the temperature during the warmest part of the day, around 2 p.m., reached 107 degrees. Temperatures have risen to at least 100 degrees every day since Wednesday, she added.The Anaheim area is under an excessive heat warning, first issued by the weather service on Sept. 4. It expires Sept. 10 at 8 p.m., Oswant said. September to early November are usually the hottest months of the year for the Anaheim area, and extreme temperatures can be dangerous for some individuals sensitive to heat. “Heat is one of the more dangerous weather hazards that occur, and specifically the way heat affects you kind of varies from person to person,” Oswant said. “It is usually recommended to avoid doing strenuous activities during the hottest part of the day and to make sure you’re remaining hydrated.”Sutter said Graves did not have any known existing medical conditions. And according to Graves’ TikTok account, which has more than 19,000 followers, he often ran long-distance races. Graves dedicated his account, @calebgtravels, to creating Disneyland and Disney World vlogs, which show him running several other Disney races in the past. He ran a full marathon at Walt Disney World earlier this year and a half marathon at Disneyland, according to his account. Just a day before Sunday’s race, Graves posted a video saying he had passed out from heat exhaustion after walking his dog outside.“I really hope I get through the race tomorrow morning,” he said. His comments are now flooded with hundreds of followers’ condolences. The coroner’s office told SFGATE that Graves’ cause of death has not been determined. In 2019, a runner died after collapsing during a Walt Disney World Wine & Dine race in Florida.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter

    ANAHEIM, Calif. —

    A 35-year-old man died after crossing the finishing line of a Halloween half marathon at Disneyland over the weekend, officials said.

    The Disneyland Halloween Half Marathon Weekend, Sept. 5-8, occurred as a triple-digit heat wave engulfed the Anaheim area and greater Southern California.

    The runner, who was identified by the Orange County Coroner’s Office as Bobby Graves, died after the race Sunday. Graves was known by his middle name, Caleb, according to his social media.

    Graves crossed the finish line at approximately 7 a.m., grasping his chest and subsequently collapsing, Matthew Sutter, a spokesperson for the Anaheim Police Department, told SFGATE. Medics and fire crews attempted to treat Graves at the scene, and he was transported to a local hospital while in full cardiac arrest. After being treated for an hour, Graves was later pronounced dead at the hospital, Sutter said.

    “We are deeply saddened by this tragic loss, and our hearts are with Caleb’s family and loved ones during this difficult time,” Jessica Good, Disneyland Resort spokesperson, told SFGATE.

    Officials from Disneyland Resort did not answer SFGATE’s additional questions about the heat wave or if they would consider moving the annual race to a cooler time of year.

    Sunday was a “toasty” day for Anaheim, Casey Oswant, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, told SFGATE. The lowest temperature was 75 degrees at 6 a.m., and the temperature during the warmest part of the day, around 2 p.m., reached 107 degrees.

    Temperatures have risen to at least 100 degrees every day since Wednesday, she added.

    The Anaheim area is under an excessive heat warning, first issued by the weather service on Sept. 4. It expires Sept. 10 at 8 p.m., Oswant said. September to early November are usually the hottest months of the year for the Anaheim area, and extreme temperatures can be dangerous for some individuals sensitive to heat.

    “Heat is one of the more dangerous weather hazards that occur, and specifically the way heat affects you kind of varies from person to person,” Oswant said. “It is usually recommended to avoid doing strenuous activities during the hottest part of the day and to make sure you’re remaining hydrated.”

    Sutter said Graves did not have any known existing medical conditions.

    And according to Graves’ TikTok account, which has more than 19,000 followers, he often ran long-distance races.

    Graves dedicated his account, @calebgtravels, to creating Disneyland and Disney World vlogs, which show him running several other Disney races in the past. He ran a full marathon at Walt Disney World earlier this year and a half marathon at Disneyland, according to his account.

    Just a day before Sunday’s race, Graves posted a video saying he had passed out from heat exhaustion after walking his dog outside.

    “I really hope I get through the race tomorrow morning,” he said. His comments are now flooded with hundreds of followers’ condolences.

    The coroner’s office told SFGATE that Graves’ cause of death has not been determined.

    In 2019, a runner died after collapsing during a Walt Disney World Wine & Dine race in Florida.

    See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter

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  • This Is How Deadpool Works at Disneyland

    This Is How Deadpool Works at Disneyland

    Disneyland and Deadpool. Yes, you read that right! Wade Wilson has managed to make his way to the mouse house and Avengers Campus to play nice for the usually very naughty Marvel comics superhero. Starting today you can meet him at Disney California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort–with Wolverine along for the ride, to keep Deadpool on a tight leash.

    Disney has shared more on their Deadpool and Wolverine offerings to celebrate this week’s release of the latest Marvel movie. The limited time interactions with Deadpool at Disneyland include “Story Time with Deadpool,” which will see a the merc with a mouth use said mouth to recount “family friendly tales” to “delight, charm, and inspire in the way only Deadpool can.” Which means, in all likeliness, not to expect Wade’s typically twisted tongue in the parks. Wolverine will also be participating in the show, as you can see below in a brief clip from a performance today:

    Not gonna lie, that Splash Mountain gag as pretty good, at least! It’s a fun way to bring in Deadpool’s meta-humor. Beyond “Story Time,” Deadpool will also interact with the crowd throughout Avengers Campus, as well as crash various shows too, including  “Avengers Assemble!” and “Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Dance Off!” as he attempts to coax his way onto Marvel’s various teams.

    Beyond Deadpool and Wolverine themselves, it wouldn’t be Disney without some food: namely, chimichangas! Here’s a look at the new food item added to Pym’s Test Kitchen. The beefy creation even has Wolverine’s claw marks of approval.

    Screenshot: Disneyland App

    Deadpool and Wolverine will be appearing for a limited time at Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure, so if you want to get up close and personal with Marvel’s latest movie heroes, you’ll need to head down to the parks soon.

     

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

    Sabina Graves

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  • Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Breaks 87 Years of a Weird Disney Princess Canon

    Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Breaks 87 Years of a Weird Disney Princess Canon

    Over the past few days Disney fans who have managed to ride Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at Walt Disney World have been among the first to experience the continuation of Tiana’s fairytale after the events 2009’s The Princess and the Frog. The ride itself serves as a sequel in attraction form, where guests follow Tiana and friends as they put together a band for their Mardi Gras celebration. But there are so many more details revealed even before you board the flume water ride for fans of the beloved Disney film.

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    One of the biggest official reveals is that unlike the Disney Princesses that came before her—even as far back as Snow White—New Orleans’ very own princess has a real last name. In the queue for Walt Disney World’s attraction, fans have noticed that Tiana is referred to as Tiana Rogers, daughter of Sargent James Rogers, in newspaper clippings and cooking awards for Tiana’s Palace and Tiana’s Foods (her culinary co-op). And this was intentional, Disney Imagineer Ted Robledo shared: “There’s so much of her story that was touched upon in the film, the relationship with her father, a World War I veteran; her relationship with her mother, [who] we like to say was the entrepreneurial inspiration for her to be the successful businesswoman that Tiana is today in our story.”

    See below for the in-universe confirmation of Tiana Rogers’ last name.

    Image: Sabina Graves/Gizmodo

    The fairytale fandom has been very tricky when it comes to the Disney Princess lineup and their official titles. Technically Rapunzel could have taken Eugene Fitzherbert’s name—but it’s never canonized in Disney content, much like the other married princesses including Snow White or Cinderella (can the real Mrs. Charming please stand up?). Even in the case of The Princess and the Frog, Tiana did marry Prince Naveen of Maldonia, which would make her Tiana Rogers, Princess of Maldonia, since she clearly kept her father’s name to honor him with her successful food company in New Orleans.

    “Tiana’s story is going to be furthered in a new series that was announced,” Robledo continued, confirming that Disney Imagineers worked closely with Disney animation to keep within canon on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure as the studio prepares for her Disney Plus series Tiana, which will dig a little deeper with what’s next for the princess and her family. The series will focus on things like, “Her relationship with her husband, who is from another country of likely of mixed race. It’s a time of Indigenous people and colonization. I think that team, from what little we heard, is going to explore that route. But I will say this about Naveen: we knew early on, and even if Naveen plays a small role or big role in this story, he has a role—they’re a married couple, they care about each other. So to honor that, we want to make sure he’s included somewhere in a real way. And actually, it’s quite humorous, as this little performance of our story.” We can’t wait to see Tiana and Naveen return with more adventures down in New Orleans with Disney+ series Tiana, but for now going on bayou log boat rides will do at Disney Parks.

    Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is now open at Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL and is set to open soon at Disneyland in Anaheim, CA.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

    Sabina Graves

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  • Disney Made It More Difficult to Ride What You Want, Just in Time for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure

    Disney Made It More Difficult to Ride What You Want, Just in Time for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure

    If you’re going down the bayou to ride Walt Disney World’s Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, there’s a few things you need to know to make sure you’ll be able to experience the Magic Kingdom’s newest exciting attraction. It won’t have a traditional “wake up early and rush to the line” queue, but rather an online virtual queue you’ll have to wake up early to enter on the MyDisneyExperience app (with a second shot in the afternoon)—or as a pay-as-you go Lightning Lane, which has replaced Genie+ just in time for the in-demand ride’s opening.

    Florida Family Takes NASA to Court Over Home Damaged by Space Trash

    When Does Tiana’s Bayou Adventure open?

    Disney’s Orlando theme park has officially opened the long-needed replacement for the dated and problematic Splash Mountain with a property that fans love. The Princess and the Frog universe expands with a continuation in ride form following Tiana’s adventures through the swampy, magical land of New Orleans with the bones of Disney World’s iconic log flume ride. Soft previews in the past few weeks and first-day reactions are flooding the internet with praise celebrating the incredible animatronic work, sets, and music with Disney Animation’s original cast—including Tiana herself, Anika Noni Rose, singing the ride’s finale song. So if you’re heading to Disney World this summer, it’s not to be missed if you want to keep cool on a water ride and see Princess Tiana’s fairytale continue before her Disney+ animated series Tiana arrives.

    Image: Sabina Graves/Gizmodo

    How to Ride Tiana’s Bayou Adventure

    Here’s the spice: in order to ride without any additional costs beyond park admission, make sure you have the MyDisneyExperience app downloaded before your trip. On the app, ensure that your entire party’s tickets are saved under the trip planner’s profile (pick the most tech-savvy person in your group to handle this)—but multiple people can try to book on the Virtual Queue for the entire group at the same time; you just have to make sure they select all party guests for your boarding group lottery.

    Walt Disney World’s Virtual Queue is available twice a day, once at 7 a.m.(which can be done at your leisure from anywhere on property) and then at 1 p.m.—the catch at Magic Kingdom is that TRON Lightcycle/Run currently still only has virtual boarding groups, so you have to choose between Tiana and Tron. If you want to do both, you can try for Tiana in the morning but not get it, and then have a hard choice at 1 p.m. to try to secure the free boarding group pass for Tiana’s again (not guaranteed) or Tron (also not guaranteed). It’s worth noting that in order to try for a second time at 1 p.m., your party has to be inside of Magic Kingdom to be eligible—and you can only hold a boarding group once per day during the park’s operating hours.

    It feels tricky—it is tricky!—but there’s another way to make sure you’ll get to ride Tiana’s Bayou Adventure and Tron, or any high demand ride like Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind which is restricted to the Virtual Queue and does not have standby lines currently available.

    What is the new Lighting Lane option at Walt Disney World?

    Genie+ is gone! Poof! Disney Experiences’ pay-as-you-go option has streamlined the process by rebranding as simply Lightning Lane, the line that used to contain the free fastpass (RIP to that feature). It’s had multiple names since becoming a financial add-on at both Disney World and Disneyland but will now be known as Lightning Lane, broken down into Lightning Lane Multi Pass (a three-ride package) or Lightning Lane Single Pass for an individual ride.

    Purchasing a Lightning Lane Multi Pass allows you to make up to three Lightning Lane selections in a theme park. If you’re staying at a Disney hotel or a participating neighbor hotel, you will be able to access this up to seven days before your trip to make selections, and you’ll be able choose available times as you make your ride choices. If you’re purchasing the Multi Pass the day of your visit, your selections will vary on availability. Your three ride selections will come from three levels: one from rides that have the highest demands like an E-ticket new attraction (think Tiana or Tron), and two that will be lower in demand level (think classics, i.e. Haunted Mansion). The cost of a Lightning Lane Multi Pass will vary depending on when you go, scaled between peak vacation days and the off-season.

    If you only want to secure a single new Lightning Lane for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure or other in-demand rides or attractions, the same booking rules apply—and day of availability will vary, with the stipulation that you’ll only be able to buy into two single Lightning Lane options for your party.

    This is what the options look like on Day 1 in the afternoon at Walt Disney World.

    Image for article titled Disney Made It More Difficult to Ride What You Want, Just in Time for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure

    Image: Sabina Graves/Gizmodo

    Don’t miss out on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure by not being in the know—and make sure you plan your Disney World vacation with the above in mind. And if you miss out or have a Disneyland trip planned this year instead, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure will also open on the West Coast soon in Walt Disney’s original park in Anaheim, CA.

    Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

    Sabina Graves

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  • Direct ‘Disney to Disney’ flights are back at Orlando International Airport

    Direct ‘Disney to Disney’ flights are back at Orlando International Airport

    click to enlarge

    Photo via Walt Disney World/Facebook

    Breeze Airway is bringing back its “Disney to Disney” flights, offering nonstop travel from Orange County, Florida, to Orange County, California.

    The flights resumed after a months-long stop on travel, according to Orlando Business Journal.

    The flights are direct from Orlando International Airport to John Wayne Airport in California — allowing travelers to easily access both Walt Disney World and its Anaheim predecessor, Disneyland.

    One-way flights to each location start at $89. The flights depart from Orlando International Airport on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.

    This coast-to-coast opportunity was put on pause in September 2023, partly due to John Wayne Airport’s request for airlines to reduce flights.

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    Sarah Lynott

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  • Niles: Disneyland deserves more than clones as it moves forward

    Niles: Disneyland deserves more than clones as it moves forward

    With DisneylandForward winning approval from the City of Anaheim, Disneyland fans now are looking forward to August’s D23 event to hear some specifics about what Disney is planning to build at the resort.

    The only commitment that Disney officials have made so far is CEO Bob Iger’s promise that an Avatar attraction will be part of the new construction at the resort. In addition, Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro has teased that an Anaheim installation of Hong Kong Disneyland’s World of Frozen land could be included, too.

    Having seen that land in person, I would love to see World of Frozen come to Anaheim. It’s a beautiful setting that features my favorite attraction type, an indoor boat ride. The company’s concept art for a new Avatar attraction looks enticing as well, even more so if it is based on the magnetic boat ride system first used on Shanghai Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle of the Sunken Treasure, as the concept image seems to suggest.

    But if all DisneylandForward delivers are clones of existing lands and ride systems from other Disney parks, it will go down not just as the biggest investment in resort history, but also its biggest missed opportunity.

    Disneyland deserves not just something different from its DisneylandForward projects, but something extraordinary and innovative. For decades, Disneyland has set new standards for the theme park industry. The park itself established a new model for a hub-and-spoke layout that included differentiated lands based on multiple themes — a model that parks around the world would copy.

    Disneyland’s Matterhorn Bobsleds was the world’s first tubular steel roller coaster, a development that would unleash a new era of roller coaster development — and popularity. The Enchanted Tiki Room brought the first use of Audio-Animatronic figures. Star Tours showed the world how a flight simulator could become a thrilling motion theater show. Then Indiana Jones Adventure took the next step with that technology, delivering a motion base dark ride.

    Fantasmic created a new industry template for multimedia night-time spectaculars. More recently, Disney’s Imagineers have introduced Stuntronics with the Spider-Man stunt show at Disney California Adventure and free-roaming robot characters with its BD units in Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge.

    Robert Niles

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  • Disney Receives Another Key Approval To Expand Southern California Theme Parks – KXL

    Disney Receives Another Key Approval To Expand Southern California Theme Parks – KXL

    FILE – Visitors pass through Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif., April 30, 2021. Disney is seeking approval from local officials to expand its California theme park offerings over the next four decades. The proposal wouldn’t increase the company’s geographic footprint in Anaheim, Calif., but would allow for new attractions, for example, on what is currently a large parking lot. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

    ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Disney has received another key approval to expand its Southern California theme parks in its first push to make major changes to its iconic Disneyland in decades.

    The Anaheim City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to approve the plan to transform Disney’s 490-acre campus by moving parking and redeveloping a massive lot with new entertainment and rides.

    It was a second, required vote for the plan after the council gave initial approval last month.

    The proposal doesn’t expand the parks’ physical footprint but will help Disney create new, immersive experiences for visitors.

    It requires Disney to invest at least $1.9 billion in the project over the next decade.

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    Grant McHill

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  • Senators Wants to Limit TSA’s Use of Facial Recognition Technology

    Senators Wants to Limit TSA’s Use of Facial Recognition Technology

    Senators Wants to Limit TSA's Use of Facial Recognition

    Senators Wants to Limit TSA’s Use of Facial Recognition

    The use of facial recognition technology by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in under scrutiny. A group of bipartisan senators want more oversight and say they are concerned about travelers’ privacy and civil liberties.

    The group of 14 lawmakers called on Senate leaders to use the upcoming reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration as an opportunity to place more checks and limits to TSA’s use of the technology.

    “This technology poses significant threats to our privacy and civil liberties, and Congress should prohibit TSA’s development and deployment of facial recognition tools until rigorous congressional oversight occurs”, the letter says.

    Congress passed the Aviation and Transportation Security Act back in 2001. It established the Transportation Security Administration and authorized it to use biometric technologies for security screening. At the time, fingerprints were the “best known and most widely used” biometric. But the senators say that the TSA leveraged this authorization to begin rolling out facial recognition technology on travelers, representing the first facial recognition enabled government checkpoint in the country.

    The technology is currently in use at 84 airports around the country and is planned to expand in the coming years to more than 400 airports covered by TSA.

    The letter also note that TSA has failed to show that this practice actually makes air travel safer. They have shown no evidence that more false identification documents have been discovered since the introduction of facial recognition.

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    DDG

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  • Disneyland Resort Announces 2024 Summer Ticket Offer Launching May 29

    Disneyland Resort Announces 2024 Summer Ticket Offer Launching May 29

    Disneyland Resort 2024 Summer Ticket Offer

    Disneyland Resort will soon launch a limited-time ticket offer and new hotel offers. Guests will have multiple options to save while enjoying three days of magic at The Happiest Place on Earth.

    Located in Anaheim, Calif., the Disneyland Resort features two spectacular theme parks. There’s Disneyland Park (the original Disney theme park) and Disney California Adventure Park. Additionally there are three hotels and the Downtown Disney District dining, entertainment and shopping complex.

    With the 3-Day Disneyland Ticket Offer, guests can visit the Disneyland Resort theme parks for as little as $50 per child, per day (ages 3-9), and $83 per adult, per day. These three-day, one-park per day tickets start at $149 for children and $249 for adults. Those tickets are only good for admission Monday through Thursdays.

    If you plan on visiting any day including weekends (based upon availability and theme park reservations) then prices start at $199 for children and $299 for adults. Upgrades such as Park Hopper tickets or Disney Genie+ service are also available at the time of purchase.

    The limited-time tickets will be available for purchase beginning May 29, 2024, at Disneyland.com or through a travel professional, and can be redeemed on any three eligible days (which can be non-consecutive) June 10 through Sept. 26, 2024. Valid admission and theme park reservation for the same park on the same date are required for park entry.

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    DDG

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