Disneyland Celebrates its 60th Birthday
The official celebration kicked off in May, but today is the actual 60th anniversary of Disneyland's official opening.
We will be at the park today, posting photos to Twitter (@ThemePark) and right here, helping you celebrate the big day with us... wherever you are!
If you're in the park today, please say hello if you see us... and if you're not at Disneyland today, send us your photo and coverage requests in the comments. The hashtag for all Disneyland coverage today is #Disneyland60.
Want to see what the park was like 60 years ago today? Here is the original ABC telecast of the opening event, hosted by Art Linkletter, Bob Cummings... and future US president Ronald Reagan:
Disneyland also will recreate the opening day on its Twitter feed, with the #LiveFrom55 hashtag. The park is encouraging visitors to dress up as if it were 1955 today, too.
Singing 'Happy Birthday' to Disneyland this morning. Photo courtesy Disney
9:50am
Happy #Disneyland60 Day! pic.twitter.com/kvfyK8j6Jb
— Theme Park Insider (@ThemePark) July 17, 201510:25am
Free #Disneyland60 cupcakes pic.twitter.com/AIaoxuD75R
— Theme Park Insider (@ThemePark) July 17, 2015Here are highlights from the 10am "Happy Birthday" ceremony in front of the castle:
12:40pm
The best choice for lunch on #Disneyland60, or any day @Disneyland pic.twitter.com/wzqfu5OcCC
— Theme Park Insider (@ThemePark) July 17, 2015Just before lunch, I watched the premiere performance of the Disneyland Band, which offers a much younger and more diverse group of musicians, performing a lively collection of songs from Disney attractions and movies, including "Let it Go" and "Hooked on a Feeling."
3:15pm Waited over an hour for Peter Pan's Flight, the only newly upgraded attraction for the 60th I hadn't experienced yet.
The crowds seem to have evened out -- it appears to have been an early arriving crowd. Waits are on the long side but it doesn't appear that there's much risk of the park hitting capacity.
The party continues through midnight, with performances of the Diamond Celebration shows, Paint the Night and Disneyland Forever.
More Disneyland Diamond Celebration Reviews:
- Disneyland Recharges its Electrical Parade with Paint the Night
- 'Disneyland Forever' Takes Fireworks to Dazzling New Heights
- Hatbox Ghost Returns to the Haunted Mansion
- A New Yeti Moves in on Disneyland's Matterhorn
Replies (9)
Happy Birthday Disneyland. I was a cast member at Walt Disney World for a few years in the mid-seventies. I started out working on the monorail part-time and part-time as a character on floats in the Bi-Centennial Parade. Then I moved around into Fantasyland and spent my final year at Space Mountain. Had a good time working there. As I have seen posted in comments from others, I also question why the Disney company has chosen to focus so much on properties outside of the United States. After all, this is where the Magic began. I feel disheartened when I see neglect here at the properties in America. The last time that I went to Epcot, I was disappointed to see how things had changed since it's opening. Granted, it was a few years ago that I was there, but the Living Seas was just a shell of its former self. It does feel sometimes that our parks are being treated like the ugly step-sisters. I hope that Disney discovers the emotional attachment that many of us have to the parks and decides to focus much more of their attention and resources to our domestic properties.
What, no giant cake overlay for the castle? Missed opportunity.
Happy Birthday Disneyland from the U.K. I hope to visit next year, having been to WDW and Disneyland Paris, 12 times each.
As Homer would say.... "MMMMMMM.... fifty dollar cupcake" (drools)
This isn't just the 60th anniversary of Disneyland.. it's the 60th anniversary of modern theme parks.
Happy birthday Disneyland, and let's hope the next 60 years is even better for us theme park geeks..
Thanks for the coverage today, Mr. Niles. It's been fun following along, but now it is bedtime. Good night, Disneyland... And Happy Birthday!
If Homer could read, he would know the cupcakes were "free." But then Homer has never been the brightest bulb on the board.
Homer doesn't care.... and I'll have you know I went to high school for seven years... I'm no dummy.
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TPI is always all over it!