Life Falls From Tiki Room's Tangaroa

I'm a day late for The Enchanted Tiki Room's 50th birthday, but there's no time like the present for celebrating with a tribute to a Disneyland character you don't want to tick off.

Walt Disney's willingness to stretch the boundaries of what the public would accept as popular entertainment was a lot bolder than most people assume. Exhibit A: Tangaroa, Father of All Gods and Goddesses, standing guard at the Tiki Room.

He isn't just a talking tree. He isn't just a talking tree with a unique nose. Voiced by the incomparable Thurl Ravenscroft, he's a male tree who gives birth in front of the waiting crowd!

"Oh, Mystic Powers, hear my call! From my limbs, let new life fall!"

"BOO-YAH!"

He doesn't actually say, "Boo-yah." But he has every right to. This happy blooming has been taking place many times a day, nearly every day for fifty years. That's a lot of offspring, and just one of the many ways in which Disneyland takes guests further off the beaten path of everyday expectations than most people would ever guess.

Villainous Handouts at World of Disney

In Downtown Disney, the villain-themed room at the massive World of Disney store gets the most attention from true-blue Disney fans; Not only does it contain the best art collectibles, but it features some wildly inspired fixtures, including these creepy, wonderful...er...sconce-like things.

Each villain's personality is brilliantly summed up with a single hand holding a signature film prop.

These just might be the coolest retail wall fixtures on the planet.

Two Tips For the Matterhorn Bobsleds

Here we are, settled into our bobsled and ready to plunge into the icy caverns of the Matterhorn! While we wait, I'd like to share two great tips for this classic attraction.

A Pair of Rolly Crump Tikis

I enjoy the Tiki Room's outdoor pre-show nearly as much as the main event. Pele's a big attention-getter as she spouts real fire. Until recently, I hadn't realized that these wonderful tikis had been designed and sculpted by Rolly Crump, one of Disney's most imaginative and innovative artists.

Ngendei is one of my favorite characters in the entire park. Even though he sounds frazzled as he reveals the sad truth about his job, there's something incredibly jolly about the way he rocks to and fro.

Did you know Rolly Crump sculpted these tikis in the Imagineering parking lot--using a plastic cafeteria fork? Book mini-review time!

I'm certainly not the first Disney blogger to recommend this book, but--seriously--Rolly Crump's It's Kind of a Cute Story is one of the most delightful, eye-opening and entertaining behind-the-scenes books I've ever read. His blunt, good-natured, down-to-earth recollections of his work on some of Disneyland's most famous attractions make this a must-read for all Disney fans.

It's available right now on Kindle and iBooks, and it's a gem.

Dark Ride Magic: Roger Rabbit's Falling Room

There's a moment on Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin where you seem to be hurled into the air by an explosion. You have to return to Earth somehow, of course...

How about a hundred-story fall between skyscrapers toward the distant skylight of the Acme warehouse? My blurry photos don't do it justice, but the "Falling Room" is one of my favorite Disney ride scenes: a horizontal hallway that makes you feel as though you're plummeting vertically.

It's simple, shorter than it looks, and effective simply because it's so well designed and painted--and it even gets its point across while your cab is spinning in circles (trying to keep the cab facing forward while snapping pictures is a challenge in itself!)

All of Disneyland's black-light dark rides have their own unique mood and approach. Roger's ride is full of mess-with-your-perception visual gags that do a fantastic job of making you feel off-balance and disoriented--exactly how a human chasing a gang of weasels through Toontown should feel.

Crocodile Smiles at World of Disney

The Crocodile from Peter Pan gazes down upon shoppers at the World of Disney Store, and I don't think he's got customer service on his mind. What a fantastic character design; Who could blame Hook for being afraid of this critter's single-minded quest for Captain a la Carte?

Most artists drawing a cartoon crocodile would probably focus on the sharp teeth, but Disney's animators zeroed in on what's truly scary about this guy: his gaping bottomless pit of a gullet. The croc (unofficially known as Tick Tock) gave me nightmares when I was a small child, and--though he's one of my favorite characters--his mouth still creeps me out big-time!

The Cursed Treasure and the Lost Story Point

"No fear have ye of evil curses, says you. Properly warned ye be, says I. Who knows when that evil curse will strike the greedy beholders of this bewitched treasure!"

It's hard to believe, but there's a whole new generation of Disneyland fans who have never heard those classic lines on Pirates of the Caribbean!

Consider this messed-up scenario: Ride inspires movie. Movie focuses on the ride's cursed treasure plot point. Ride is altered to incorporate the movie, but the plot point that inspired the movie in the first place is completely removed from the ride!

A Victim of Remodeling: World of Disney's White Rabbit

The White Rabbit is one of my favorite Disney characters, so I was delighted to find him freaking out from inside his residence above the mountain of plush toys in the original version of the "Alice" room of Disneyland Resort's World of Disney Store. Once upon a time, his entire house formed the focal point of that section of the shop.

Unfortunately, W. Rabbit and his house vanished during a major remodeling of the sales floor, and in their place the store got...well....um...nothing memorable.

The Queen of Hearts' exhausted, stressed-out herald can still be found in several spots in Disneyland, but the World of Disney Store is now, regrettably, de-bunnyfied.

Indiana Jones and the Long...Long...Long Entry

Today's post is rated PG-13, because we're heading into the wondrous, occasionally gruesome, amazing--and amazingly long--entry to Disneyland's Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye.

The ride is a huge, sprawling, multi-level Adventureland attraction -- which Disneyland's Adventureland has absolutely no space for. The clever solution involved building the ride's entrance and exit (set in a ramshackle base camp) on a modest strip of Adventureland real estate, while locating the ride itself far, far away on the other side of the park's railroad tracks.

The journey to the ride thus becomes an adventure in itself and an important part of the story. Darn good exercise, too.

The base camp setting and "recently discovered" temple entry immediately cast us as the main characters in this story. It's our decision to enter this temple.

Adventureland After Park Closing

When Disneyland's open late, it's always fun to be one of the last riders admitted to Pirates of the Caribbean. When it's over, your park exit route leads through an Adventureland that's been closed for nearly twenty minutes.

Dole Whips in the Tiki Room (with Fish Heads & Crumbs)

Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room delights children and adults on both coasts (teenagers tend to flee its awesomely corny jokes and Jose's Bing Crosby tribute, but they'll come around eventually). The Disneyland version has one great bonus feature: the popular Dole Whip frozen treat is for sale in the pre-show area (along with other Dole pineapple selections) and you are encouraged to bring your snack into the attraction to eat during the show!

Don't worry: the birds won't try to mooch a taste. As for the other inhabitants of this place of joyous songs and wondrous miracles, well...cue today's comic strip...

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Disneyland's Haunted Mansion Vs. Walt Disney World's

The Haunted Mansion recently closed for its annual Nightmare-Before-Christmas overlay, so here's one last look at HM Classic before Haunted Mansion Holiday opens on September 14th.

I love both the California and Florida Haunted Mansions. Although the rides are mostly identical, each has its own touches. If pressed, I'd say the Walt Disney World Haunted Mansion gives a slightly superior experience. The exterior looks more foreboding, and the ride includes a couple of brief, wonderful scenes not found in Disneyland.

Yet there are elements of Disneyland's HM that I prefer. I like entering through the front of the building. I like the fact that the stretching room floor goes down here, as opposed to the ceiling rising in Florida -- it just feels creepier knowing you're descending away from the "living" world. I like walking through the hall of paintings.

And, of course, I grew up with this version and it will always feel like "my" Haunted Mansion. I'm sure Walt Disney World fans feel the same way about their awesome mansion ride.