Happiest Homecoming on Earth
The
Happiest Homecoming on Earth is the eighteen-month-long celebration (held through
2005 and
2006) of the fiftieth anniversary of the
Disneyland theme park, which opened on
July 17,
1955. The
Happiest Celebration on Earth commemorates fifty years of Disney theme parks, and celebrates Disneyland's milestone throughout Disney parks all over the globe.
*Happiest Homecoming on Earth
**
Disneyland Resort —
Anaheim, California, USA*Happiest Celebration on Earth
**
Walt Disney World Resort —
Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USA**
Tokyo Disney Resort —
Urayasu, Japan**
Disneyland Resort Paris —
Marne-la-Vallee, France**
Hong Kong Disneyland Resort —
Lantau Island, Hong KongDisneyland Resort
|
Sleeping Beauty Castle with its 50th Anniversary Overlay |
Disneyland's 50th anniversary was July 17, 2005, but the celebration was launched on May 5 (05/05/05) in front of
Sleeping Beauty Castle.
The Happiest Homecoming on Earth ceremony began with a dedication from then-Disney CEO
Michael Eisner. The ceremony included fireworks, speeches from
Julie Andrews - the official ambassador for the 50th anniversary celebrations, and
Art Linkletter, a performance of "When You Wish Upon A Star" by
Christina Aguilera, and
LeAnn Rimes singing the 50th anniversary theme song "Remember When", composed by
Richard Marx. A video conference featured celebrities at the
Magic Kingdom (the only live video conference, with
Wayne Brady, actor and former Walt Disney World Resort cast member),
Tokyo Disneyland,
Disneyland Paris and the construction site of
Hong Kong Disneyland.
Before the ceremony, at a media presentation in
Disney's California Adventure, Disneyland Resort president
Matt Ouimet announced the new attractions
Monsters, Inc.: Mike and Sully to the Rescue and
Turtle Talk with Crush.
In
2004, Disneyland Resort President Matt Ouimet and hundreds of cast members posed for an aerial photo above Disneyland, each person holding a large placard which, all together, formed a
collage of
Mickey Mouse. This initiated the Happiest Faces on Earth - at several locations around Disneyland are displayed larger-than-life photo collages of Disney characters and landmarks, made up of photos of the park and of guests from the past fifty years.
Many classic Disneyland attractions re-opened in 2005 after lengthy refurbishments, such as
Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room, the
Jungle Cruise and
Space Mountain. A new fireworks show,
Remember... Dreams Come True, replaces the former
Believe... There's Magic in the Stars.
Walt Disney's Parade of Dreams replaces the Parade of Stars and features elaborate floats with lighting that allows daytime or nighttime performances.
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters opened in Tomorrowland (at a ceremony with
Tim Allen, the voice of
Toy Story character
Buzz Lightyear), and a new parade featuring
Pixar characters is featured at
Disney's California Adventure, Block Party Bash. Comedian and ex-Disneyland cast member
Steve Martin opened the
Disneyland: The First 50 Magical Years exhibition and film, in which he features with
Donald Duck. The original attractions which opened with the park have also had one of their ride vehicles painted gold for the celebration.
Other refurbishments have taken place around Disneyland with many areas being re-painted and refurbished to their former glory. The second phase of the re-paint of Tomorrowland commenced after the base silver and blue scheme was laid.
Main Street USA and
Sleeping Beauty Castle have been repainted, and the castle was specially decorated for the celebration. The celebration has brought record numbers of guests to the parks, numbers unmatched since the fall of
1996, when mass crowds flooded the park to catch a glimpse of the
Main Street Electrical Parade before it went into permanent retirement.
In the second half of the celebration, in 2006, the
Rock It Mountain overlay of Space Mountain will debut on the park's annual Grad Nights, and officially premiere around July time, the month of Disneyland's fifty-first birthday.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest will have its world premiere on the
Rivers of America, as did the first film in the trilogy in
2003, on
July 7, the same day that the
Pirates of the Caribbean attraction will re-open after lengthy refurbishments to include plotlines from the movie trilogy in the attraction storyline. Also premiering in July is the new randomized drop sequence on the
Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at Disney's California Adventure. Disney hopes that these marketing opportunities will keep the celebration lasting right through Disneyland's fifty-first year of operation before it ends on September 30, 2006.
**NOTE** News reports have been buzzing around online that the Rock It Mountain and Twilight Zone Tower of Terror updates will not take place in 2006, as Disney feels the 50th Anniversary celebration has been more popular than expected and feels they do not need that extra push to get guests to visit. The Pirates of the Caribbean make-over will still take place.
Walt Disney World Resort
The Walt Disney World Resort introduced at least one new attraction or show at each of its four theme parks:
*
Magic Kingdom received a major refurbishment of
"it's a small world", a new golden overlay for
Cinderella Castle featuring many Disney characters, A new playground Pooh's Playful Spot, and the debut of the
Cinderellabration stage show from
Tokyo Disneyland.
*
Epcot received
Soarin' from Disney's California Adventure and A
Hong Kong Disneyland Preview Center
*
Disney-MGM Studios received a major refurbishment of the Streets of America area, and the
Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show.
*
Disney's Animal Kingdom temporarily exhibited
Lucky the Dinosaur, the first free-roaming automatic
Audio-Animatronic figure; in addition in 2006 the park opened
Expedition Everest, a highly themed roller coaster through the
Himalayas that features an encounter with the
yeti.
Tokyo Disney Resort
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Tokyo Disneyland: The
Rock Around the Mouse stage show in front of
Cinderella Castle, a tribute to rock 'n' roll and Californian culture from the period that Disneyland opened; and a Golden Fiftieth Mickey at the base of the Partners statue in the hub, acknowledging its sister park's milestone.
*
Tokyo DisneySea: The
Raging Spirits roller coaster opens in June, and the new
Tower of Terror is under construction (it will have its own new back-story, and will not be themed to
The Twilight Zone).
Disneyland Resort Paris
*
Disneyland Park: Space Mountain received a makeover, and is now known as Space Mountain: Mission 2, with new effects and ride configurations throughout. The Magic Kingdom has also donated the
Wishes (albeit in an edited format for an international audience) fireworks display to Disneyland Paris.
*
Walt Disney Studios Park: The smallest Disney park will not be receiving new attractions as such, but plans for extensive developments and expansions have been announced as part of the celebration. A new land, Toon Studios, and a Tower of Terror have been announced for the park as well as other refurbishments.
Hong Kong Disneyland Resort
*
Hong Kong Disneyland Resort - The fifth worldwide resort opened as part of the celebration, in September 2005, with one theme park and two hotels.
Disney Cruise Line
The
Disney Magic sailed to the
West Coast in the summer of
2005, where it offered 12 one-week cruises from
Los Angeles to the
Mexican Riviera with port calls at
Puerto Vallarta,
Mazatlán and
Cabo San Lucas. Afterward, the ship returned to its original
Caribbean itinerary alongside the
Disney Wonder.
Walt Disney World Resort advertised the celebration by noting that the Florida property imported popular attractions or shows developed for Disney's other parks around the world.
* Magic Kingdom received an abridged version of
Cinderellabration from Tokyo Disneyland.
* Epcot received Soarin' from Disney's California Adventure.
* Disney-MGM Studios received
Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show from the Walt Disney Studios.
* Disney's Animal Kingdom has developed an entirely new attraction,
Expedition Everest.
Three Walt Disney World Resort attractions recently have been duplicated at four of the other Disney parks, and the Disneyland Resort has inspired an attraction found in Japan.
* Tokyo DisneySea is constructing a version of the
Tower of Terror from the Disney-MGM Studios.
* The Walt Disney Studios also is constructing a version of the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror from the Disney-MGM Studios.
* Disneyland Paris staged a compressed version of the
Wishes fireworks developed for the Magic Kingdom for two weeks in July
2005.
* Disney's California Adventure duplicated Turtle Talk with Crush from Epcot.
* Disneyland duplicated
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters from Tokyo Disneyland.
*
July 17, 1955 -
Disneyland dedicated by
Walt Disney during a private grand opening; festivities shared via telecast by hosts
Art Linkletter,
Ronald Reagan and
Bob Cummings.
*
May 5, 2004 - Happiest Homecoming on Earth details are announced by
Michael Eisner,
Bob Iger,
Jay Rasulo and
Julie Andrews.
*
May 5, 2005 - The Happiest Homecoming on Earth officially is opened at Disneyland by
Michael Eisner,
Matt Ouimet,
Bob Iger,
Julie Andrews and
Art Linkletter with a live video conference between the five
Magic Kingdom theme parks on three continents and performances from
Christina Aguilera and
LeAnn Rimes.
*
July 15, 2005 -
Space Mountain re-opens at Disneyland after a two year overhaul hiatus.
*
July 17, 2005 - Disneyland's 50th birthday is officially commemorated with a re-reading by
Diane Disney Miller of her father's original dedication.
*
September 12, 2005 -
Hong Kong Disneyland opens.
