2004:
The Disneyland Monorail System is re-dedicated and honored for its
achievement in the world of modern transportation on its 45th anniversary!
2005:
Disney's Tarzan II is released to DVD and VHS. The sequel features the
voices of Harrison Chad (as Tarzan), George Carlin (as Zugor), Brad Garrett
(as Uto), Ron Perlman (as Kago), Estelle Harris (as Mama Gunda),
and Glenn Close (as Kala).
Singer-actress Robie Lester, the singing voice behind Eva Gabor in Disney's The Aristocats and The Rescuers, passes away at age 75 in Burbank, California. Lester also helped teach millions of children how to read beginning in 1965 as the “Disneyland Story Reader,” on the record label's 7-inch book and records sets. She also sang the title theme for Disney's 1964 The Three Lives of Thomasina. (TV fans may recognize her voice as Jessica in the holiday special Santa Claus is Comin' to Town.)
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1895:
Cliff Edwards, the voice of both Jiminy Cricket in Pinocchio and Jim Crow in Dumbo, is born in Hannibal, Missouri. (Although the absence of any official records leave some historians to believe the date and place is incorrect.) Also known as "Ukelele Ike," Edwards will enjoy considerable popularity in the 1920s and early 1930s - specializing in jazzy renditions of pop standards and novelty tunes. In the 1950s and early 1960s, Edwards will make a number of appearances on the Mickey Mouse Club, in addition to reprising his Jiminy Cricket voice for various Disney shorts and the Disney Christmas special, From All of Us to All of You. When Edwards dies in 1971, nearly broke and alone, Walt Disney Productions, remembering his many contributions to their films, will offer to pay for his funeral. (The Actors Fund of America and the Motion Picture and Television Relief Fund will actually pay for the burial - but the Disney Company will pay for Edwards' tombstone.) Cliff Edwards will be named a Disney Legend in 2000.
1906:
Actor/dancer Gil Lamb is born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His Disney credits include the live-action films The Boatniks, The Love Bug, The Horse in the Gray Flannel Suit, Blackbeard's Ghost, and The Gnome-Mobile.
1909:
Singer-actor Burl Ives, whose Disney credits include the 1948 So Dear to My
Heart (as Uncle Hiram Douglas) and the 1963 Summer Magic (as Osh
Popham), is born in Hunt, Illinois. TV fans may recognize his voice as Sam the
Snowman from the classic TV special "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer."
1916:
Actress Dorothy McGuire is born in Omaha, Nebraska. Her Disney credits include the live-action films Swiss Family Robinson (as Mother Robinson), Summer Magic (as Margaret Carey), and Old Yeller (as Katie Coates). Her long Hollywood career include such features as A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Three Coins in the Fountain, and The Greatest Story Ever Told.
1951:
The Disney TV special Operation Wonderland airs. Walt presents clips and interviews from his next film Alice in Wonderland.
1958:
Disneyland's Columbia ship opens on the Rivers of America. It is a full-scale
version of the first ship to carry the American flag around the world. It actually was built in large part from the
plans for the HMS Bounty (of mutiny fame). Disney's shipbuilders couldn't find plans for the original Columbia, so they relied heavily on those of Captain Bligh's ship, which had similar dimensions. It has cost $300,000 to build.
Fowler's Harbor (named after Admiral Joseph Fowler, who helped to build Disneyland) is also officially opened
on this day to dock the new ship.
The Disneyland attraction Alice in Wonderland debuts in Fantasyland. Actress,
Kathryn Beaumont, voice of Alice in the 1951 animated movie, provides the voice for the dark ride. It follows the
path of the movie, as the riders (as Alice) follow the White Rabbit down the Rabbit Hole into Wonderland.
Disneyland's first "Alice" attraction, Mad Tea Party (a spinning tea cup ride) has been operating since the park's
debut in 1955.
Also on this day at Disneyland, the Matterhorn Mountain with its Matterhorn Bobsleds, opens. It is the first roller coaster to use cylindrical rails and urethane wheels (which will become standard in the roller coaster industry). At 147 feet tall, the Matterhorn contains 500 tons of structural steel.
The Submarine Voyage ride is officially dedicated on this day as well in Anaheim. (The attraction has cost about $2.5 million to create.) The Nautilus and seven sister submarines - the Triton, Sea Wolf, Skate, Skipjack, George Washington, Patrick Henry, and Ethan Allen allow 38 Disneyland guests at a time to take their own voyage to the North Pole.
Visiting Disneyland this day is actor Ronald Reagan, his (first) wife actress
Jane Wyman, and their son Michael.
C1959:
The first urban monorail system in the U.S., the Disneyland-Alweg Monorail System, begins operation in California's Disneyland. The two Mark I trains run on a .8 mile track around Tomorrowland. Walt Disney and U.S. Vice president Nixon and his family are on hand for the dedication of the
"Highway in the Sky." (In June 1961, the Monorail will become a true transportation link instead of just a sightseeing ride. With an extended 2 1/2 mile track, Disneyland Hotel guests will be able to board the Monorail at the hotel and begin their park visit in Tomorrowland.)
1975:
Disneyland's and Disney World's new parade America on Parade both debut. The parade features the "People of America" - eight-foot-tall characters with doll-like heads (including Ben Franklin, Miss Liberty, Uncle Sam, and Pilgrims).
1989:
The Disney Channel airs episode 38 of MMC. Today is Anything Can Happen Day!
1994:
Dave Brubeck's 1957 Disney-theme record album,
Dave Digs Disney is released on compact disc.
1996:
Epcot's Universe of Energy (closed since January 21) reopens with newly repainted dinosaurs and flat screens for the pre-show.
1997:
Disney's Hercules has its world premiere at the New Amsterdam Theater in New York
City. (It will be officially released in the U.S. 13 days later.) Disney's Main Street Electrical Parade comes out of
retirement to brighten up the festivities through Times Square.
1999:
The computer controlled sign that welcomes guests to the main entrance of Disneyland's parking lot is removed. Its site will be absorbed into the new California Adventure area. (This is only the second sign to greet guests as they entered Disneyland in the park's 44 year history. The original marquee, erected in 1958, had letters that had to be changed by hand!)
2000:
Tokyo Disneyland welcomes its 250-millionth visitor, Mrs. Hisae Do.
2001:
Lightning strikes a wire box controlling power to a monorail at Walt Disney
World in Florida, forcing the train to shut down temporarily. The monorail,
which is filled with scores of tourists, is towed back to its destination.
2002:
The Lizzie McGuire episode "Just Friends" debuts on Disney Channel.
2003:
Mickey's Toontown of Pin Trading takes place at Disney World.
The American Society of
Mechanical Engineers named
the Disneyland Monorail an
Historic Mechanical
Engineering Landmark
in 1986.
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JUNE
In the United States, Flag Day is celebrated on June 14. It commemorates the adoption of the flag of the United States, which happened that day by resolution of the Second Continental Congress in 1777.
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2008:
Disney Channel debuts "A Hard Day's Knight," the 31st
episode of the animated series Phineas and Ferb.
advertisement
JUNE 14
Today is Flag Day
JUNE 14
THIS SITE MADE
IN THE
USA
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"My adventures in Wonderland began when I followed the White Rabbit down the rabbit hole. All of a sudden, I fell! Down, down, down!" -Alice
Disneyland's monorail debuts
"Heigh-Ho" has been developing of late as a closing number for a night-club set, being one of those free-wheeling tunes with an orthodox structure, which lends itself to creating a climactic feeling of excitement."
-portion of original liner notes from the Dave Digs Disney LP
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1992:
Film and television actor Daryl Sabara is born in Torrance, California. Playing the role of Peter Cratchit in Disney's A Christmas Carol, you may also recognize Sabara from the series Wizards of Waverly Place and the feature film The Polar Express.
1974:
Disney World’s "Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue" dinner show debuts in Pioneer
Hall at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground. Created as a college
workshop summer production only, guest response will be so positive that Walt Disney World entertainment
will continue the show with a permanent professional cast at the end of the 1974 summer!
1910:
Evelyn Henry - one of the unsung heroines of animation’s past - is born in Alberta, Canada. First hired by Disney in 1932, she worked as an inker on the Silly Symphony shorts. Later promoted to department head, she acted as a supervisor for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. During the production of Snow White, Evie marred future Disney Legend Claude Coats - a background painter for the studio.
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