Since our Members are so extremely pumped up this year for the Halloween Season, we decided to give everyone a little dose of Halloween Fun each day for the month of October. Yep, we are doing the 31 Days of Halloween – Disney Style, exclusively at The Main Street Mouse! We will still bring you the latest Disney news along with our well known personal articles, we’re just going to add a little bit of extra spooky fun to our daily routine. If you have ideas on what you would like to see us write about, with a ghostly twist, please let us know!
To kick off our month of spooky fun, I thought I’d start with some scary facts about Disneyland. We all have heard of Urban Legends and tall tales when it comes to Disneyland and Disney World, but here’s a few that you may or may not have known! Enjoy!!
1. This spooky fact probably could be a “tale as old as time” in the Dis Community, but it’s worth the mention this time of year. Is the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland really “haunted?” Some say yes. Reason being…. the fact that on more than one occasion, family members have left ashes of their deceased loved ones scattered throughout the ride. While Disney tends to downplay these situations (probably in an attempt to discourage copycats or to not scare guests), the dumping of human remains has caused the attraction to be completely shut down a number of times while the ashes are removed from the ride. I’ve heard of this happening at both Disneyland and Disney World… some say it’s just a tall tale, others swear it’s true! Creepy, either way!!
2. Ray Bradbury’s own “Halloween Tree” can be checked out at Disneyland Park. Named after the tree from Ray Bradbury’s 1972 novel, a newer oak tree in Disneyland’s Frontierland has been called the “Halloween Tree.” Dedicated in 2007 with Bradbury himself lighting the tree for the first time, the oak (which is decorated with lights and pumpkins for the Halloween season) is located near Frontierland’s Zocalo Park “Day of the Dead” exhibit, which is in sync with Bradbury’s original story, and deals with how the fear of death has shaped culture throughout history. Spooky….. bwahahaha……
3. A black cat could cross your path at Disneyland. Nature observers who visit might notice black cats – along with cats of many other varieties – wandering around the park. The closed-off ecosystem of Disneyland has its own interesting wildlife, including a large population of stray cats, which allegedly help keep the bird and rodent population down. Mickey might find this fact a little scary…. being a mouse and all.
4. Fan favorite, the wicked Maleficent can be found lurking around Sleeping Beauty Castle. The Disneyland castle contained a walk-through attraction with a series of dioramas in its early days, but after some neglect, the scenes and castle were shut down for many years. In 2008, the castle walk-through exhibit was re-opened, with great new scenes that used the latest special effects technology to tell the story of Aurora and her nemesis, Maleficent. Near the end of the exhibit, alert guests might spot Maleficent’s shadow looming on the wall as she creeps through the castle. It would be worth it to keep an eye out!
5. Lets turn our attention back to the Haunted Mansion, and take a look at the architecture of the facade that entails an intriguing bit of history. The original mansion that Disneyland’s building is modeled after was a Baltimore home called the Shipley-Lydecker House. At one point in its storied history, the manse was utilized by Maryland veterans as a memorial to the dead of World War II. It was torn down years ago, but many wonder if the ghosts of those lost during the war might have found their way to Disneyland’s duplicated version. After all, Walt himself declared the Mansion would be a gathering place for ghosts found throughout history. Interesting, right?? We thought so!
I hope you enjoyed this little taste of what’s to come for this month!! Granted, I can’t say for 100% certain that all these odd spooky stores are true, but it’s really fun to escape reality and wonder “what if” while reading! More ghoulish entertainment tomorrow!! ~M
Michele also contributes theme park news for Fox 35 Orlando 11pm news and on the radio on WDBO.
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