As we come down the homestretch in the building of Disneyland, I knew you are as happy as I am with the way in which this dream of ours is coming to full life. Your contribution to the construction, the development and the details of the park has made it possible for us to foresee that we will open Disneyland, virtually completed.
The few days remaining before our television preview on Sunday, July 17th, will be all important to us, but I know that we can count on you and every one of your fellow employees to do your utmost to meet our schedule.
I would like to cordially invite you and your family to participate with us in the thrill of the Disneyland premiere. Within the next few days, we will have your preview tickets available. They will be distributed to you at Disneyland and will assure you and your family of a wonderful afternoon, as our guests, on all the rides and amusements in Disneyland.
I am sure your family will be as proud of your effort as all of us are.
Sincerely, Walt Disney
1988:
The opening of Disney's Grand Floridian Resort ushers
in an era of accelerated hotel building at Disney World,
during which 10 new resort hotels have been added to
date. The Grand Floridian, located at 4401 Floridian
Way, is the third Magic Kingdom monorail resort located
on the beaches of the Seven Seas Lagoon between the Polynesian Resort and the Magic Kingdom. The luxurious hotel - the crown jewel of the Walt Disney World resorts - is themed to be reminiscent of turn-of-the-century Victorian Florida. Also opening in the hotel is Flagler's restaurant, 1900 Park Fare restaurant, M. Mouse Mercantile shop, Narcoossee's restaurant, Victoria and Albert's restaurant, and the Grand Floridian Cafe restaurant. (In 1997 the hotel's name will be changed to The Grand Floridian Resort & Spa when a top-of-the-line facility spa and health club is added.)
1975:
Writer Rod Serling, best known for creating & hosting TV's
Twilight Zone series, dies at age 50 after open-heart surgery at
Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, New York.
1932:
Actor Pat Morita - the voice of the Emperor in Disney's 1998 feature Mulan - is born in Isleton, California. (Best known from The Karate Kid movies, TV fans may also remember him for his role as Arnold on ABC's Happy Days.)
1940:
Disney's first Pluto cartoon Bone Trouble is released. It is also the first cartoon directed by Jack Kinney.
 | ||||
1999:
At Disneyland, a Main Street Window is dedicated to the former Chairman of the Walt Disney Attractions, Dick Nunis. (Receiving a window on Main Street is the highest honor any Cast Member can achieve.) Mr. Nunis and Mickey Mouse ride out from the gate beside the Mad Hatter in a little blue motorcar while the Disneyland Band plays Zip A Dee Do Dah.
2002:
The Lizzie McGuire episode "Those Freaky McGuires" debuts on Disney Channel as does the Disney Channel Original Movie Get a Clue.
2003:
The world premiere of The Pirates of the Caribbean:
The Curse of the Black Pearl takes place at Disneyland.
2004:
Adam Pascal, who created the role of Radames in the long-running
Broadway musical Aida, returns to the Disney show. He plays the role of
the ill-fated Egyptian captain who falls for the Nubian princess.
Production begins on The Chronicles of Narnia in New Zealand.
It is announced that after years of research and testing, Walt Disney
Imagineering has perfected a new innovation in fireworks launch
technology. The new technology uses compressed air to lift fireworks, virtually eliminating the
need for smoke-producing black powder and other materials at launch. This significantly reduces
ground-level smoke and noise while continuing to provide an entertaining show.
2005:
Disney's The Pacifier is released on DVD and VHS.
Disney fans snap up tickets for a charity day at Hong Kong Disneyland within the first 3 hours of their online sale! The charity day is set for September 4, which will let visitors see the theme park 8 days before its official opening.
1963:
Count Basie and His Orchestra begin a week of performances at Disneyland.
| ||||||
1995:
The Main Street Athletic Company shop opens on Main Street in the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World.
1926:
Director, writer, producer, and actor Mel Brooks is born Melvin Kaminsky in
Brooklyn, New York. In 1989 he will co-write a short-lived comedy series called The Nutt House for
Touchstone/Disney. The same year Brooks will meet with Michael Eisner and Disney Imagneers to design a
theme park attraction for Disney-MGM. A Castle Young Frankenstein attraction (based on Brooks' 1974
comedy feature Young Frankenstein) eventually would be scrapped for ... the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror!
The video for the Beach Boys'
1988 hit song "Kokomo" was
filmed on the "beach" at
Disney World's
Grand Floridian Resort
in Florida.
Performing in the video is "honorary Beach Boy" and
Disney fan - actor John Stamos!
1958:
The Saturday Evening Post runs the article "Intrepid Kids Of Disneyland," which includes this tidbit from Walt Disney himself:
"Disneyland has a variety of water attractions - a river boat, canal boats, keelboats, rafts, canoes and motorboats, and kids occasionally fall in. Last August, a six-year-old slipped from a Storybook Land boat while leaning too far out to see the miniature house of Pinocchio. After being fished out of the shallow canal, the boy was taken to Disneyland's wardrobe department, where his wet clothes were replaced with a cowboy outfit, which he was allowed to keep. A week later, a playmate of this youngster fell in 'accidentally' at the same spot. Instead of a cowboy outfit, he received only a reprimand while his clothes were being dried and pressed for him."
1984:
The Disney Channel debuts the new series Big Bands at Disneyland.
"I just want them to remember me a hundred years from now. I don't care they they're not able to quote a single line that I've written. But just that they can say, 'Oh, he was a writer.' That's a sufficiently honored position for me." -Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling
JUNE
2008:
It is reported that Walt Disney World is shutting down the six nightclubs at Pleasure Island to make its party district at Downtown Disney more family friendly. Such clubs as BET SoundStage Club, Mannequins Dance Palace, and 8Trax will close after September 27. During the next few years, Disney will reopen the Pleasure Island venues with a broader mix of restaurants and shops.
A baby elephant is born at Disney's Animal Kingdom. Twenty-six-year-old Moyo gives birth to a 327-pound male elephant after 21 months gestation. This newest addition is the heaviest elephant calf ever born at the theme park. (The baby will be named Tsavo - pronounced sah-vo - a few weeks later.)
Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa turns 20!
1990:
Actress Jasmine Richards is born in Scarborough, Ontario. Disney Channel fans know her as as Margaret "Peggy" DuPree in the movie Camp Rock. She also took part in the 2008 Disney Channel Games.
advertisement
JUNE 28
JUNE 28
THIS DAY MADE
IN THE
USA
| ||||
| ||||
1981:
Dumbo becomes the first of the Disney animated features canon to be released on videocassette for rental. (In 1980 Disney released their very first video tapes - which included live-action features and animated compilations.)
1955:
Walt Disney writes a letter to his employees from the Disney Studios and others who assisted on the creation of his new Anaheim park, inviting them to attend the grand debut on July 17. (He is concerned that there won’t be enough people scattered throughout the park for the television cameras.)
1987:
Snow White is bestowed the 1,850th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Special guests attending include animators Ward Kimball, Marc Davis and Art Babbitt as well as Adriana
Caselotti - the original voice of Snow White.
Grand Floridian Resort opens
2009:
Annual Passholders get a sneak preview of Disney World's updated attraction The Hall of Presidents (which has been closed since late 2008). Now featuring 44th U.S. President Barack Obama, it is scheduled for a July 4th weekend grand reopening.
The Art Directors Guild Film Society and American Cinematheque honor the late Production Designer and Special Effects designer Peter Ellenshaw with a screening of Disney’s 1974 feature The Island at the Top of the World.
1929:
Disney's Mickey Mouse cartoon The Plowboy is released. Mickey flirts with Minnie while farming, but she wants nothing to do with him - making him look bad in the eyes of his helper Horace Horsecollar (who makes his film debut).
1971:
Walt Disney World announces their plans for an airstrip to be built on the Florida
property. The Lake Buena Vista STOLport (located not too far from the Contemporary Resort) will consist of a
2000-foot runway and a terminal building. STOLport will be open only to commercial air traffic, with a second
airport for corporate and private flights to be built later. (Neither the terminal or the second airport will ever be built
and STOLport will only be in business for about one year.)
AIRPORT OF THE FUTURE
| ||||
