# Everything you've ever wanted to ask about Disneyland...



## LogicBeetch (Mar 22, 2017)

Hello!  I'm a relative Newb on these forums but several people saw a post I made about working at the Happiest Place on Earth and had questions.  Instead of doing twenty or thirty DM's, some suggested I start a thread. It might help to have my background.
I worked at Disneyland (in California) from @1991 to 1993 full time, 1993-1995 part timer.  From 1995-2009, I was seasonal.  I was originally hired to work as a performer in a stage show and parades.  From their I moved to performing in Fantasmic and doing character work.  After a few years of that, I applied for rides or being a plaid (tour guide). I caught the attention of some really cool people and became a Jungle Cruise Guide. As a seasonal employee, I've done; Guest Relations, Ride Ops, and then became Seasonal at Disney's California Adventure where I worked across a few departments. If you have any general questions or if you'd like advice on trip planning, or just want to hear cool stories, I'd be happy to share.  Also, if you're a fellow Ex-CM, maybe we can have our own little corner of the Kiwi Farm.
(Disclaimer: The Walt Disney Legal department can be a bit aggressive if they think a current or former employee shares a little too much so there are a few things I can't discuss, but I'll always state my opinion and be careful to put things as magically as possible.)


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## omori (Mar 22, 2017)

Oh boy. I'm a massive Disney Parks sperg so I apologize in advance for dogging you with questions. 

Any personal horror stories? Favorite ride/aspect in the parks? Backstage secrets (within reason)? Opinion on the closing of ToT?


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## POWER IN MISERY (Mar 22, 2017)

do people really cum in the mascot suits?


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## Gym Leader Elesa (Mar 22, 2017)

Did you ever tap one of the girls portraying Snow White?


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## LagoonaBlue (Mar 22, 2017)

Are children _really_ scared of the mascot suits?  My parents went to Disney World back in the 90s and my mum said all the kids they saw there were screaming blue murder whenever they saw the costumed characters.


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## Some JERK (Mar 22, 2017)

One of the girls running the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad slipped me her phone number. How much (if any) trouble was she risking by doing that? (I want to know exactly how much of an asshole I am for never calling her.)

Also, how come Tomorowland smells like trash every day at around 6pm?


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## omori (Mar 22, 2017)

Also why does the area between Pirates and Adventureland always smell like an open sewer?


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## Kari Kamiya (Mar 22, 2017)

Did anything else happen during the Thunder Mountain accident incident, or is everything basically known about it, no dirty secrets covered up or whatnot?


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## Darndirty (Mar 22, 2017)

How prevalent is the rumour that walts body is hidden somewhere on the grounds.? Do they sacrifice jews to him to keep him preserved?


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## XYZpdq (Mar 22, 2017)

Is the Pirates over there haunted like WDW's Pirates?


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 22, 2017)

Kurosaki Ichigo said:


> Oh boy. I'm a massive Disney Parks sperg so I apologize in advance for dogging you with questions.
> 
> Any personal horror stories? Favorite ride/aspect in the parks? Backstage secrets (within reason)? Opinion on the closing of ToT?


Personally, I'm really bummed they're closing ToT in California Adventure.  The reasons are BS.  That ride was one of the only "dark" rides in that park.
Personal horror stories are divided into many sub-categories: Worst guest, grossest things I've seen, etc.,.
Backstage secrets? Depends on the park.  I've worked in two pretty consistently and one sparingly as a trainer.  I think most people know about the Utilidors - (large tunnels under the surface that connect the park and transport food/goods/people out of site).  Let me think on that.  

Dog away.  Specific is better.


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## Jason Genova (Mar 22, 2017)

LogicBeetch said:


> I worked at Disneyland (in California) from *@1991 to 1994* as a part timer.


holy fucking shit you're old as dirt


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 22, 2017)

timecop said:


> do people really cum in the mascot suits?


I can't speak for every suit or every employee ever. However, it would be damn near impossible to, um, pleasure yourself in 90% of the suits.  Usually, your hands are sort of unable to be used in a way that would lead to any discharge of your weapon.  Also, some of the suits have internal structures that would make it really uncomfortable.  Now, what I've seen more than enough is when someone fucking sneezes or barfs/intestinal leakage in the suit.  In the 90's, it was NOT uncommon to see questionable stains and you could either report them, which the person who made the mess should've done immediately, or write up a cleaning request yourself.  What some people may not know is that the suits vary depending on what activity you'll be doing and although there aren't as many mascot suits as you might imagine, there are different suits for different purposes of the same character. There's a full time crew of  cleaners and seamstresses now (I believe). 



Gym Leader Elesa said:


> Did you ever tap one of the girls portraying Snow White?


 Nope.  



LagoonaBlue said:


> Are children _really_ scared of the mascot suits?  My parents went to Disney World back in the 90s and my mum said all the kids they saw there were screaming blue murder whenever they saw the costumed characters.


  Some kids WIG when they see certain characters.  Mickey and Minnie are fucking terrifying for some kids.  I mean, he's a six foot tall rat that doesn't speak (Usually). If you're two feet tall, most of the fur or mascots can be quite scary.  The one or two characters that never seemed to inspire fear were Winnie the Pooh and Piglet.  I can count on one hand the number of times I saw a kid cower in fear for those two.  



Some JERK said:


> One of the girls running the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad slipped me her phone number. How much (if any) trouble was she risking by doing that? (I want to know exactly how much of an asshole I am for never calling her.)
> 
> 
> Also, how come Tomorowland smells like trash every day at around 6pm?


Depends on when it was.  In general, that's against policy and you could get a point (point system works by giving you points for violating policy, once you hit a certain number, you get warnings/fired).  If she was the lead on the ride, or had sympathetic coworkers, it probably didn't get her in trouble.  Honestly, there are guests that will just not leave you alone until you give them a number! In the past, we'd give them the Disney company's HR number, lol, or some other random number.  With cell phones, they'd always ask if they could text you or get your number and THAT was a huge no no. 

Tomorrowland and 6pm?  Hmm.  What some people don't realize is that, since the late 90's redo, almost all of the plants in TL are edible. Occasionally, we'd catch whiffs of cabbage or brocollini and it's pretty powerful.  Other than that, the only thing I can imagine is that there used to be a set of garbage cans behind Rocket Rods Pizza/Space Mountain that got ripe in the evening.  



Kurosaki Ichigo said:


> Also why does the area between Pirates and Adventureland always smell like an open sewer?


 In Disneyland it's because that's essentially what the water is, to put it bluntly.  Rivers of America, Castle Moats, Jungle Cruise, Pirates, and all the water by Big Thunder are run through the same system.  It's the worst water in the park because it's the most exposed and it's not chlorinated. It got worse when they started Fantasmic because they pump an oily substance into it three times a day to set the water on fire. But, if you've ever looked behind Big Thunder, that water is NASTY!  Add in people throwing shit (and occasionally vomit) in it all day and it's kinda' vile.  I don't think they do it anymore: but, for several years , there was a pre-opening contest between rides/crews where you had to paddle the RoA in a race for park supremacy and the joke was that falling in was taking a bath in the Ganges.


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## Flame the Sunbird (Mar 22, 2017)

What's the grossest thing you ever saw happen there?

Edit to add: Cool tidbit about the edible plants! Was that because of kids eating the plants and getting sick?


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## LagoonaBlue (Mar 22, 2017)

Why aren't adults allowed into the parks in fancy dress/cosplay?


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 22, 2017)

Kari Kamiya said:


> Did anything else happen during the Thunder Mountain accident incident, or is everything basically known about it, no dirty secrets covered up or whatnot?


  There are some websites where you can read the actual reports from OSHA and Ride Safety on that incident and they're comprehensive and factual.  Obviously, if there was a cover up, no one knows but I'm pretty certain that the blame was put on the right people.  The park was struggling with mechanics at the time.  There just weren't enough and the tag system was easily at fault.  As for the ride operators, I don't think they could've known that was about to happen except for the claim that one of them had noted an odd noise and you could argue that they should've pulled the train off until they knew what the alleged noise was.  The failure was, in some ways, a freakish accident.  Had the rod not hit the track on an uphill section, it wouldn't have vaulted the locomotive into the roof, crushing the next car.  Any other section and you might've had some minor injuries.  It also happened out of site of the public which, I think, made it more prone to speculation.  The reality is that every ride has millions of moving pieces and then you add human error and guest error and I'd say we should be surprised there aren't MORE issues.  The Disney company is pretty on the ball with repairs and shutting down rides if there's even the suggestion of a problem. Other parks aren't as careful.



Darndirty said:


> How prevalent is the rumour that walts body is hidden somewhere on the grounds.? Do they sacrifice jews to him to keep him preserved?


It's pretty prevalent but it's just that- a rumor.  Walt's body is not on the property.  Sadly, there ARE people who try to bring cremains in for a stealth dump and it's pretty nasty.



XYZpdq said:


> Is the Pirates over there haunted like WDW's Pirates?


No.  It has a different track layout/float layout.  The stories are similar but WDW's is a touch larger and has two drops (?) as opposed to the one in DL.  Personally, I love the fact that you can see Blue Bayou Restaurant on the original Pirates.


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## Shokew (Mar 22, 2017)

How bad are the food prices there? Are they worse than Six Flags?

Also, about that water system issue... Is something being done about it? If not, that's one more reason for me not to go there, besides the high costs of everything...


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 22, 2017)

Last round for this morning...


Flame the Sunbird said:


> What's the grossest thing you ever saw happen there?
> 
> Edit to add: Cool tidbit about the edible plants! Was that because of kids eating the plants and getting sick?


Grossest?  I saw the aftermath of this family that had some stomach bug and were stuck on Small World for twenty minutes.  The boat ahead of them and behind them were gagging because of the odor.  It was foul.


LagoonaBlue said:


> Why aren't adults allowed into the parks in fancy dress/cosplay?


 It's a matter of employees being instantly recognizable.  You don't want a pedophile dressed up as, say, Winnie the Pooh dressing up and using the opportunity to get close to kids for pictures and such.  You don't want to take that liability for a family from Iowa who thinks YOU are employed with the park and, therefore, fall under the policies of the park with regard to behavior.  Costumes can also become an issue on rides and just walking through the park safely.  When Disney suits go out, they are always with a cast member attendant who guides them through because it's really easy to get the costume caught on something or not notice the pavement changing and causing a fall.  There's also a point where they start drawing so much attention that it's disruptive.  You CAN go dressed up for some of the Halloween festivities.


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 22, 2017)

Flame the Sunbird said:


> What's the grossest thing you ever saw happen there?
> 
> Edit to add: Cool tidbit about the edible plants! Was that because of kids eating the plants and getting sick?


No. It was part of the campaign to make TL an example of what you can do with agriculture in your home life.  Growing your own food on a small scale could also be decorative.  For a while, they were using some of the basil and other herbs growing in the Park food. You can still grab tangerines and stuff if you're there at the right time, although the grounds keeper is pretty good about getting everything ripe off the trees/vines before guest entry.


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## XYZpdq (Mar 22, 2017)

LogicBeetch said:


> No.  It has a different track layout/float layout.  The stories are similar but WDW's is a touch larger and has two drops (?) as opposed to the one in DL.  Personally, I love the fact that you can see Blue Bayou Restaurant on the original Pirates.


I don't think WDW Pirate's ghost is because of track layout, I think it was supposed to be some contractor that died during construction, so now you have to say good morning to him if you're on the early shift or else he makes the ride break down more than usual.


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 22, 2017)

XYZpdq said:


> I don't think WDW Pirate's ghost is because of track layout, I think it was supposed to be some contractor that died during construction, so now you have to say good morning to him if you're on the early shift or else he makes the ride break down more than usual.


I misread your first question.  You asked if the Disneyland Pirate's was "haunted like" Magic Kingdom's?  I guess you're assuming it's actually haunted? Personally, I haven't spent much time in the Pirate's in Orlando; but, I've never heard any rumor about the ride being haunted.   Of course, I don't believe in ghosts so someone may have said something and I just didn't give it a second thought.  Lots of people have died in construction accidents.  I don't think I've seen any evidence of hauntings on rides.  Could be some leads were pranking a rookie and made up a story just to mess with them a bit and it caught on.  People used to say that, what is now Innoventions (used to be America Sings) was haunted at Disneyland by the ride operator that was trapped between scenes in the 70's.  The reality is that rides break and people die and more often than not, they're completely unrelated.  
I've heard some stories from employees who believe in spirits and they can be fairly convincing to someone with a similar view but, personally, ghosts must hate me because I've never had an unexplainable experience in the parks. Annoying people? Yes. Ghosts? No.


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## Big Nasty (Mar 22, 2017)

Any stories involving nudity?


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## XYZpdq (Mar 22, 2017)

LogicBeetch said:


> I misread your first question.  You asked if the Disneyland Pirate's was "haunted like" Magic Kingdom's?  I guess you're assuming it's actually haunted? Personally, I haven't spent much time in the Pirate's in Orlando; but, I've never heard any rumor about the ride being haunted.   Of course, I don't believe in ghosts so someone may have said something and I just didn't give it a second thought.  Lots of people have died in construction accidents.  I don't think I've seen any evidence of hauntings on rides.  Could be some leads were pranking a rookie and made up a story just to mess with them a bit and it caught on.  People used to say that, what is now Innoventions (used to be America Sings) was haunted at Disneyland by the ride operator that was trapped between scenes in the 70's.  The reality is that rides break and people die and more often than not, they're completely unrelated.
> I've heard some stories from employees who believe in spirits and they can be fairly convincing to someone with a similar view but, personally, ghosts must hate me because I've never had an unexplainable experience in the parks. Annoying people? Yes. Ghosts? No.


I figured more "allegations of spoopy" than actually a ghost, but that's cool


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## Tempest (Mar 22, 2017)

weirdest thing seen?
also is it true that night of joy is bad?


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## MysticMisty (Mar 22, 2017)

I don't know if you (or anyone else) remembers this but in the 90's one of the Winnie the Pooh actors at one of the parks was accused of molesting someone. Would the park really defend someone they believed guilty, or was it a matter of covering their own asses for hiring a sexual deviant? Is it really possible to knowingly feel people up in the suits, or is it difficulty to feel anything like they claimed?


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 23, 2017)

Tempest said:


> weirdest thing seen?
> also is it true that night of joy is bad?


NoJ Let's see.  How can I put this?  
Well, luckily, I had moved to Seasonal, "extra cash", "I have an actual job; but it's Disney!" mode before Joy Night became a thing.  For those unaware, Night of Joy is a event that gives Baptists who really want their friends to think they hate Disney a reason to bring the fam to Disney.  In my opinion, it started as an indignantly righteous response to Gay Days.  But, Disney or the event coordinator brings in Christian artists to perform outside the park (usually in Downtown Disney-esque areas) and all of the Bible Thumpers swarm the park.  From what I've been told by current employees, they hate Night of Joy.  Even the more religious employees get a bit stressed out and annoyed because whenever you have 20-30,000 people hopped up on Jesus, there's a lot of "holier than thou" going on.   It's not that they do anything wild - they just get really, really judgy and make a stink about things that aren't mentioned on other days.  A current CM was telling me about a gang of teens completely dogging a girl from the Netherlands for her outfit (she had on a bathing suit and shorts) by telling her she was defrauding guys and being disrespectful to the Christians.  A lot of the Joy Nighters assume that EVERYONE in the park is "with them" (like there's a test of faith at the admission gate).  

Weirdest thing?  Ooooooh, there's so much to choose from.  
I gotta' say that Frozen Banana Guy was the weirdest.  He was about 30.  Danny DiVito (who was a GREAT GUY AND GUEST ALWAYS) in stature.  Had a weird obsession with frozen bananas and would eat five or six per day.  That's weird all by itself.  But, he would eat them very suggestively and he'd sort of follow cast members or particular guests around in ways that would make you want to run and hide.  I think we all tried engaging him at different points to see what the situation was and if you asked him anything, he'd just giggle like a little kid or do some other, equally creepy shit. 
OH! And, catching anyone under the influence of...enhancers in Fantasy Land was guaranteed weird.  Watching people try to fuck in the various rides was sort of bizarre and fun to bust them.


MysticMisty said:


> I don't know if you (or anyone else) remembers this but in the 90's one of the Winnie the Pooh actors at one of the parks was accused of molesting someone. Would the park really defend someone they believed guilty, or was it a matter of covering their own asses for hiring a sexual deviant? Is it really possible to knowingly feel people up in the suits, or is it difficulty to feel anything like they claimed?


Noooooooo.  The park would NOT defend you.  They'd fuckin' fire you ricky tick.  It's INSANELY hard to feel up anyone in those suits.  It's changed now, but back when that mess was going on, alot of the suits didn't have functional hands.  You could move the arms but it was really hard to see where you were moving them and sense you had no "sensory" (you couldn't feel with your own hands) it would've been difficult to actually anything close to purposeful inappropriate touch.  The Tigger suit had some tail problems because it was well known for becoming a kiddy pugel stick (if Tigger turned quickly, it could whack kids in the nose).  I'm pretty sure that Tigger has a floppy tail now, as a result.   The company would rather deal with a labor lawsuit for terminating an employee without cause before they wanted a public relations nightmare with a character taking feelskys.  Ironically, though, I was manhandled sixty ways to Sunday on stage by guests.  I was told to suck it up.


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 23, 2017)

Big Nasty said:


> Any stories involving nudity?


Sadly, many!
Splash Mountain was sort of notorious  for flashers for a while.  It got so bad that they had to put the pictures on delay and you'd have to ok each one before it showed up on the display.  I never worked that attraction but there was a rumor that there was a three ring binder full of pics that were "lost".  People tried it on any ride with a camera and it was sort of an actual problem on rides like Space Mountain because you'd have someone trying to pull a shirt off in the dark, going 20mph, and some of the tracks are tighter than you would believe.  One chick literally lost her shirt on Space Mountain.  In fact, come to think of it, there were a few years when the floor of certain rides would have underwear, bras, shirts, etc.,. when we went lights on.  Small World and blankets were worrisome.  Peter Pan's Flight and Haunted Mansion are teen make out central.  If you wanted to embarass them, you'd send them "around again" due to a mechanical issue in HM and then throw the black curtain back as they passed by the wall of monitors...just to show them everything was seen.  If they got really into it, we'd try to stop the ride and say something over the speakers to get them to stop.   Lots of hanky panky in the castle at Disneyland at night.  There are a few niches that are quiet and if you were quiet you could almost always find couples in them. We had a guy who got blitzed on pharmaceuticals and started taking his clothes off on Matterhorn.  Pirates, too, now that I think about it.


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 23, 2017)

XYZpdq said:


> I figured more "allegations of spoopy" than actually a ghost, but that's cool


Yeah.  There are urban legends for days.  Kind of adds flavor and is fun to riff with during Hallloween.  Leads could be brutal to new CMs, if the CM was particularly young and skittish!  I knew a lead that would tell all his newbs that Haunted Mansion was really haunted and then he'd send them to do he track walk or ride through pre-opening and duck out one of the doors for a moment just to scare the shit out of them by popping in through another door.  I will say that, in my time, I never saw any of that teasing take away from actual inspections or legit safety concerns.  You could be immediately fired for any action that put guests in danger and not doing your full inspection as the lead was suicide.


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 23, 2017)

Shokew said:


> How bad are the food prices there? Are they worse than Six Flags?
> 
> Also, about that water system issue... Is something being done about it? If not, that's one more reason for me not to go there, besides the high costs of everything...


Sorry, didn't see this earlier.  Food prices at Disneyland and California Adventure are insane.  I think it's up to $7 for a soda in a cup.  Comparing Disney food to Six Flags food is like apples and oranges because Disney's food is edible and delicious.  I do have tips, though.  When I go with my family, now, I take a large bottle or container and ask for ice water (free), then I take those little envelopes or packets of fruit juice or ice tea and just drink that while we're cruising around.  Also, if you're going to be there more than a day, buy the seasonal cup and share it between family or whatever.  It'll end up saving you money because you can refill it every hour or 90 minutes.  

Blue Bayou is pretty spendy.  Each plate is in the $17-26 range, but it's fucking delicious.  If you want a cheaper, but still delicious option, hit up the Gumbo place next to the Pirate's entrance.  For under ten bucks, you can get a Boudin Bakery Sourdough Bowl full of Gumbo and if you notice that your bread bowl wasn't hollowed out much, they'll fill it again for no charge.  Usually, they hand you a cup with gumbo that you can dump in.  You can also ask for a little sample.  If you want a great experience, pay the money for the Fantasmic preferred seating thing.  Each person gets a sweet tray of goodies and drinks, plus actual chairs to watch the show.  I don't recommend doing the same for World of Color because you're going to end up standing now matter which way you go.  But, take advantage of the kids meals in California Adventure!  They're usually, calorie wise, filling and delicious for way cheaper and no one will card you or say you can't have it.  Also, don't be afraid to ask for a sample before you buy something.  Most people don't know that, if you really think the food is shit, you will get your money back no questions asked.   If you REALLY want to go econo-Disney, Cup of Noodles are a great way to go.  You can ask for hot water at any food service station or at the nursery stations. 

Regarding the water in ROA... it's an open system and unless you fall in, it's not considered a potable source, so it's sort of like any local lake or pond.  They've tried to keep it clean but, especially with the drought, they're running low level so it doesn't get diluted much.  Luckily, Splash Mountain uses a separate system and I think the drop section of Pirates is potable.  It doesn't help that it's also a duck and seagull paradise.


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## XYZpdq (Mar 23, 2017)

LogicBeetch said:


> NoJ Let's see.  How can I put this?
> Well, luckily, I had moved to Seasonal, "extra cash", "I have an actual job; but it's Disney!" mode before Joy Night became a thing.  For those unaware, Night of Joy is a event that gives Baptists who really want their friends to think they hate Disney a reason to bring the fam to Disney.  In my opinion, it started as an indignantly righteous response to Gay Days.  But, Disney or the event coordinator brings in Christian artists to perform outside the park (usually in Downtown Disney-esque areas) and all of the Bible Thumpers swarm the park.  From what I've been told by current employees, they hate Night of Joy.  Even the more religious employees get a bit stressed out and annoyed because whenever you have 20-30,000 people hopped up on Jesus, there's a lot of "holier than thou" going on.   It's not that they do anything wild - they just get really, really judgy and make a stink about things that aren't mentioned on other days.  A current CM was telling me about a gang of teens completely dogging a girl from the Netherlands for her outfit (she had on a bathing suit and shorts) by telling her she was defrauding guys and being disrespectful to the Christians.  A lot of the Joy Nighters assume that EVERYONE in the park is "with them" (like there's a test of faith at the admission gate).



As far as I've heard NoJ has been a very different thing on the East Coast, where it's just the the miserable little shits being raised by the bible thumpers being basically left unsupervised, so it's like Grad Night but without as much practical knowledge of what shit really can't fly in public that normal teens have.


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## omori (Mar 23, 2017)

@LogicBeetch I guess horror stories involving guests.

Out of all the current changes ToT being gutted is the worst.


Spoiler



My grandfather was an architect, two projects he was involved with and was the most proud of was both DCA's and WDW's towers. He passed away last year and one of my biggest regrets is not going on DCA's one last time. Sure the building still stands but it won't be the same.


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## Some JERK (Mar 23, 2017)

LogicBeetch said:


> Depends on when it was.  In general, that's against policy and you could get a point (point system works by giving you points for violating policy, once you hit a certain number, you get warnings/fired).  If she was the lead on the ride, or had sympathetic coworkers, it probably didn't get her in trouble.  Honestly, there are guests that will just not leave you alone until you give them a number! In the past, we'd give them the Disney company's HR number, lol, or some other random number.  With cell phones, they'd always ask if they could text you or get your number and THAT was a huge no no.


I didn't ask her for her number. She just tapped me on the shoulder and handed it to me. I just didn't know if it was like an instant termination thing. Some places of employment are like that. I feel better about it now.


LogicBeetch said:


> Tomorrowland and 6pm?  Hmm.  What some people don't realize is that, since the late 90's redo, almost all of the plants in TL are edible. Occasionally, we'd catch whiffs of cabbage or brocollini and it's pretty powerful.  Other than that, the only thing I can imagine is that there used to be a set of garbage cans behind Rocket Rods Pizza/Space Mountain that got ripe in the evening.


It must be the dumpster thing. Now that I think about it I seem to have the strongest memories of it smelling like trash while I was eating.


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## HY 140 (Mar 23, 2017)

Are they gonna fix epcot, and are they closing the Universe of Energy for a guardians of the galaxy rollar coaster.

Also is it true that someone died while updating the carousal of progress


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 23, 2017)

Kurosaki Ichigo said:


> @LogicBeetch I guess horror stories involving guests.
> 
> Out of all the current changes ToT being gutted is the worst.
> 
> ...


I'm so sorry.  Yeah.  The idea that they're going with a Guardians of the Galaxy theme, but maintaining the same ride, is disappointing.  Tower of Terror in DCA was so cool because it fit the theme of he "land" well ("Old Hollywood").  Even with the Buena Vista Street remodel, Tower of Terror fit.  
I got to ride it on it's first day and to think of it being gone forever is hard.    Architecturally, it was a thing of beauty.


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 23, 2017)

Some JERK said:


> It must be the dumpster thing. Now that I think about it I seem to have the strongest memories of it smelling like trash while I was eating.



I was asking a fellow old timer about this and he wanted to know if Rocket Rods was still operational when you smelled that horrible smell?  He spent about 10 years in TL and he said that the Rocket Rods would constantly smell like burning rubber and it would get overwhelming.


Dicaprio Delorean said:


> Are they gonna fix epcot, and are they closing the Universe of Energy for a guardians of the galaxy rollar coaster.
> 
> Also is it true that someone died while updating the carousal of progress


I don't know very much about the current plans for Disneyworld (which includes EPCOT).  AFAIK the Guardians of the Galaxy themed ride will utilize the Tower of Terror structure in both parks.  Did someone die while updating the CoP?  I know that on July 8, 1974, just after the ride opened a female, 18 year old ride attendant became trapped between the stationary wall and the moving wall and was crushed.   No one was in her theater when it happened; but guests in the next quarter heard screams.


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## Some JERK (Mar 23, 2017)

LogicBeetch said:


> I was asking a fellow old timer about this and he wanted to know if Rocket Rods was still operational when you smelled that horrible smell?  He spent about 10 years in TL and he said that the Rocket Rods would constantly smell like burning rubber and it would get overwhelming.



We're talking late 90's when I first noticed it. I seem to remember eating a hamburger at the time.


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## Big Nasty (Mar 23, 2017)

Any racial incidents? (#DisneylandRaceWar)


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 23, 2017)

Big Nasty said:


> Any racial incidents? (#DisneylandRaceWar)


I can remember rival gangs sort of getting... I don't know how to put it... heated at Disneyland on occasion.  There was a shooting that they attributed to gang activity before California Adventure was built but I have always wondered just how accurate that report was.  I think it was in the parking lot. 

As far as racial incidents are concerned, I guess there's always some tension in ways you wouldn't expect.  It's usually never guest on guest, overt racism.  It's usually *insert stigmatized group here* that tries to goad  a reaction to blame on race/specialness.  Pretty much daily, you're going to offend someone unintentionally because people know that Disney is pretty committed to making the guests happy and less genuine people take advantage of that by creating drama.  There was a lady, who always comes to my mind when anyone asks about racism, who got PISSED.  Not mad.  Not annoyed.  PISSED! Why? Because I was loading my Jungle Cruise Boat and I got stopped short of the normal loading area to load a wheelchair with a Make-A-Wish kid.  Understand- we make it our fucking mission to insure that that child is being treated like a Prince or Princess.  So, as I'm loading and greeting the family, I can hear this loud POS complaining about the wait.  They'd got to head of the line and the attendant was talking to them but she was mad that the last boat was at capacity and that they'd had to wait and now they were waiting MORE.  Anyway, we get MAW loaded and I pull up to the dock so angry lady can get on.  She's clearly annoyed and she starts moving toward the front instead of doing where the loader was  telling her to go.  We had MAW kid and family in the front on both sides and she is furious.  She actually asks MAW mom to move to the other side of the boat and I'm like, "OH NO FUCKING WAY!" because MAW is trying to get pics.  So, I tell the lady that I need her to take a seat so we can get going.  She finally sits and we do the whole tour.  As we round up next to Trader Sam, at the end of the ride, I do my standard joke about the deal Sam is offering and I reference the fact that it's a "Cinco De Mayo sale...FIVE his heads for, MAYBE, one of yours." and angry woman comes un-glued.  She's calling me a racist and is threatening to complain at City Hall. Finally, as we're docking I tell everyone to sit tight while we unload our special guest (MAW family) and then we'll let them off the boat and "enjoy your day in the park".  She decides she aint waiting and storms the steps, kid in tow.  She went to City Hall and complained that I ignored her family because I was anti Mexican.  Fuck that fact that it WAS CINCO DE MAYO.  I didn't get wrote up but that shit happened more than it should.

If I'm being completely honest, and it might be stereotyping, there's one group of people who culturally seem to have a blatant disregard for the safety of their kids and you'll see them encouraging little ones to do dumb stuff on rides.


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## Mason Verger (Mar 23, 2017)

After the inevitable California apocalypse, which attraction do you choose to take over and defend? The rustic detachment of Country Bears? The walled in yet centralized Space mountain? im sure you have a better answer..


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## MysticMisty (Mar 24, 2017)

I'm not surprised an incident like that would go down. I remember a few years ago a black family was trying to sue because the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland didn't touch their kids because racism. I'm pretty sure it didn't go anywhere because A) the kids sounded coached as fuck during the interview and B) the photographic "proof" of the racism didn't show any unhappy kids, even though the mom claimed they were immediately sad because of it.


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## Lackadaisy (Mar 24, 2017)

Any wacky foreign tourist stories?


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## Kari Kamiya (Mar 24, 2017)

Just a random question because this has been bothering me for years, but did the Indiana Jones ride get some kind of upgrade in the snake room after 2002? I swear to this day there were two snakes on each side of the car that lunged for whoever was sitting right in front of them when the car slowed. I had my glasses off so everything was a blur, but I _know_ the cobra lunged for me and someone else shrieked in the very back.


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 24, 2017)

Mason Verger said:


> After the inevitable California apocalypse, which attraction do you choose to take over and defend? The rustic detachment of Country Bears? The walled in yet centralized Space mountain? im sure you have a better answer..


Oh.  That's a good one. I would actually go with the Year of a Million Dreams Suite over Pirates.  Not only do you have the high ground with balconies and very well hidden access points; but you also have an unlimited supply of booze from Club 33 and some access to very cool security equipment.



Lackadaisy said:


> Any wacky foreign tourist stories?


Many.  I was blessed not to have been put on any of the janitorial crews; but, I've heard that Asians aren't toilet cultured so they tend to stand on the seat to take a dumper- or - I've actually watched a small Chinese boy just drop trou in Critter Country, sort of in a corner, and take a deuce.  I always thought they should put stickers on the back of every stall door showing proper usage of a toilet.  We had one Dutch group that came in HIGH AF.  It was slow season and all they wanted to do was ride Alice in Wonderland OVER and OVER.  We had to cut them off at one point because they were running a triangle between Alice, Matterhorn, and Tea cups while it was clear they were tripping balls or stoned.  I got yelled at by a Ugandan lady who couldn't put her seatbelt on on Soarin'.    She was literally spilling over the seat next to hear and there was no way she was getting that buckle to click.  We had some concerns about her safety and she couldn't understand why because she was somehow unaware that that ride lifts you up in the air so you feel like you're flying.  She thought the ride stayed on the ground. She refused to leave so we had to call security.  



Kari Kamiya said:


> Just a random question because this has been bothering me for years, but did the Indiana Jones ride get some kind of upgrade in the snake room after 2002? I swear to this day there were two snakes on each side of the car that lunged for whoever was sitting right in front of them when the car slowed. I had my glasses off so everything was a blur, but I _know_ the cobra lunged for me and someone else shrieked in the very back.


 In Disneyland, there's only ever been one BIG cobra head (to my knowledge). That ride still goes through fine tuning once in a while because, when it opened, it was violently rough and fast.  The Cobra strikes TWICE in quick succession.  Also, the vehicle cuts a really quick left turn there and sometimes the people in back get pushed pretty close to the cobra.  Side note: My favorite part of that ride is the dart room.


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## Mason Verger (Mar 24, 2017)

LogicBeetch said:


> supply of booze from Club 33 and some access to very cool security equipment.


Ah now that you mention club 33, who is the most surprising member?


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## Big Nasty (Mar 24, 2017)

LogicBeetch said:


> I've heard that Asians aren't toilet cultured so they tend to stand on the seat to take a dumper


We had that problem at one of the places used to work at too. There were some weird foreigners who worked the night shift, don't know from what country because I never worked nights. In the mornings you would sometimes find shoe tracks on the toilet seats or a misaimed shit blast.


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## LogicBeetch (Mar 24, 2017)

Mason Verger said:


> Ah now that you mention club 33, who is the most surprising member?


haha!  Well, since I haven't been employed there in a while and since those people pay a SHIT TON of money in membership dues and it's sort of unofficially guaranteed privacy...I'm going to keep my fucking mouth shut on the very little I do know because I want to keep my home. Disney legal, yikes!  And, in reality, the funny thing is that it's not crammed full of celebs.  Most of the people who are members are just incredibly wealthy and got on the list  YEARS ago.  I believe the last stat I heard was that nearly 25% of the membership is still comprised of original members. The turnover rate is glacial.  It's a pretty cool place though.



Big Nasty said:


> We had that problem at one of the places used to work at too. There were some weird foreigners who worked the night shift, don't know from what country because I never worked nights. In the mornings you would sometimes find shoe tracks on the toilet seats or a misaimed shit blast.


  It's a shock when you see it the first time.  People from central America seem to have a thing with toilet paper. We've watched them come out of a stall and they carry it to the sink trash (if we're lucky) or cram it in the sanitary napkin bin.  Worse, they'll chuck it in a corner.  I don't know why that is?  Maybe they believe it'll clog the plumbing?  I just know it's gross.


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## Some JERK (Mar 25, 2017)

LogicBeetch said:


> It's a shock when you see it the first time.  People from central America seem to have a thing with toilet paper. We've watched them come out of a stall and they carry it to the sink trash (if we're lucky) or cram it in the sanitary napkin bin.  Worse, they'll chuck it in a corner.  I don't know why that is?  Maybe they believe it'll clog the plumbing?  I just know it's gross.


That's pretty much correct. In parts of Mexico, Central and South America the plumbing is so shoddy and narrow that toilet paper will cause massive clogging if you flush it down the toilet. In a lot of bathrooms in very Southern California you'll find used toilet paper sitting in the trash because people from those places are used to doing it that way.


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## Yaoi Huntress Earth (Mar 25, 2017)

Is it true that if any of the lost kids they find don't have their parents claim them by the end of the day, they get grinded up and served as burgers?


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## Lackadaisy (Mar 25, 2017)

Yaoi Huntress Earth said:


> Is it true that if any of the lost kids they find don't have their parents claim them by the end of the day, they get grinded up and served as burgers?



Depends. Does Disneyland have a McDonald's?

Also, how could you afford to live in Southern California on a Disneyland park worker's salary? I'm impressed.


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## MysticMisty (Mar 26, 2017)

Spoiler: Off topic



When my mom worked in the county hospital one time they had a patient that had slipped into the country from the poorest part of central or South America. First day my mom walked in at one point to do whatever, noticed a stink coming from the bathroom and checked it out in case there was a plumbing problem she needed to report. Turned out he took a shit in the shower near the drain. Mom talked to her boss, they found a nurse fluent in Spanish, dragged his ass into the bathroom and explained what the toilet is for and how you use it. To a grown-ass man. The next day mom discovered he took a shit in the shower again, but they just didn't know what to do at that point. They had already explained the toilet to him in a language he understood and he clearly didn't grasp any of it. Needless to say it was a reoccurring problem until the day he checked out.


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## LogicBeetch (Apr 3, 2017)

Lackadaisy said:


> Depends. Does Disneyland have a McDonald's?
> 
> Also, how could you afford to live in Southern California on a Disneyland park worker's salary? I'm impressed.


The truth is that, until you reach fixed, permanent status in an admin, traning, or management role, you won't make much and you really can't afford to live in that area.  Most Disney CastMembers that you see in the park are either teens, retired folk, or college students.  OR, they live with roommates.  I don't think that has changed with the minimum wage increase in SoCal because the cost of living is insnae.  There are more families than you might believe that have made Disneyland their employer.  Usually, people meet someone on the job (even though that's frowned upon) and occasionally one Cast Member will encourage their family members to take jobs there.  I, personally, know of a five member family that are all employed by the Mouse.  When I worked there in high school, it was just money I was tucking away for school.  Later, I worked to fill in income gaps during times of need.  You can't get by on JUST one Disney paycheck.


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## Ntwadumela (Apr 3, 2017)

What were the most popular Meet and Greet characters?

Have you managed to spot any celebrities during your time working there, Disney-related or not?


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## vertexwindi (Apr 3, 2017)

What's with all the costume characters getting groped?

No seriously, why is that a thing that happens?


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## Kari Kamiya (Apr 3, 2017)

So apparently the _Haunted Mansion_ gets a different makeover every year for _Nightmare Before Christmas_, right (at least for one of the rooms)? Do they get different people to come up with different ideas, or do they cycle things every few years?


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## Jan_D3 (Apr 3, 2017)

Is it true Disney was once a racist company (there are videos of it)?
Is it true Disney is part of the Illuminati?
Does Disney even realize that "You've Got a Friend In Me" sounds wrong on a lot of levels (listen closely to the lyrics)?






^^^listen closely to the lyrics^^^


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## MysticMisty (Apr 3, 2017)

Ntwadumela said:


> What were the most popular Meet and Greet characters?


Since the answer probably varies depending on what movie was hot at the time I want to take this question a step further and ask who was/is consistently popular?


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## omori (Jun 30, 2017)

@LogicBeetch now that it's running what do you think of the tower?


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## HY 140 (Jun 30, 2017)

What was the worst attraction to work at?


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## LogicBeetch (Jul 4, 2017)

I'm sorry I fell behind in addressing these.  Life got crazy.


Ntwadumela said:


> What were the most popular Meet and Greet characters?
> Have you managed to spot any celebrities during your time working there, Disney-related or not?


It really depended on who was "hot" at the moment.   When I was there, it was Tink' and Mickey.  But, the princesses are the most consistent popular meet-and-greets.  Celebrities are frequent guests.  I'd say, when I was there, we'd get 2-3 a week.  Usually, they arrange to have a Plaid (Guest Services/Tour Guides) who sort of escort them to Front of Line and help them avoid being noticed. Also, any time a Disney movie is ready to drop, there are usually actors from that movie who are in the park as part of any publicity engagements.  



vertexwindi said:


> What's with all the costume characters getting groped?
> 
> No seriously, why is that a thing that happens?



It doesn't happen often.  But, when it does, the motive is almost always (I'd say 95% of the time) about getting that selfie and less about perverted harassment.  Anytime a character is out, they have a handle to helps them avoid unwanted touches.



Kari Kamiya said:


> So apparently the _Haunted Mansion_ gets a different makeover every year for _Nightmare Before Christmas_, right (at least for one of the rooms)? Do they get different people to come up with different ideas, or do they cycle things every few years?


I can only speak for Disneyland (not Disney World).  The Night Before Christmas HM decorations go up in October.  Really, due to the space (which is actually quite small and limited, there are only so many gags you can pull or change.  It's the same year to year.  But, as technology gets better, you might notice a few new things now and then.


Jan_D3 said:


> Is it true Disney was once a racist company (there are videos of it)?
> Is it true Disney is part of the Illuminati?[/question]
> Not illuminati confirmed.
> I don't see overt racism now.  Disney is addressing it's lack of movie and character diversity to keep up with the times.  People forget that society was different in the fifties.    Yes.  There are some racism issues from times past on a corporate level. I can't elaborate because I just don't have all the information.
> ...


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## Daughter of Cernunnos (Oct 5, 2020)

LogicBeetch said:


> There are some websites where you can read the actual reports from OSHA and Ride Safety on that incident and they're comprehensive and factual.  Obviously, if there was a cover up, no one knows but I'm pretty certain that the blame was put on the right people.  The park was struggling with mechanics at the time.  There just weren't enough and the tag system was easily at fault.  As for the ride operators, I don't think they could've known that was about to happen except for the claim that one of them had noted an odd noise and you could argue that they should've pulled the train off until they knew what the alleged noise was.  The failure was, in some ways, a freakish accident.  Had the rod not hit the track on an uphill section, it wouldn't have vaulted the locomotive into the roof, crushing the next car.  Any other section and you might've had some minor injuries.  It also happened out of site of the public which, I think, made it more prone to speculation.  The reality is that every ride has millions of moving pieces and then you add human error and guest error and I'd say we should be surprised there aren't MORE issues.  The Disney company is pretty on the ball with repairs and shutting down rides if there's even the suggestion of a problem. Other parks aren't as careful.
> 
> 
> It's pretty prevalent but it's just that- a rumor.  Walt's body is not on the property.  Sadly, there ARE people who try to bring cremains in for a stealth dump and it's pretty nasty.
> ...





> It's pretty prevalent but it's just that- a rumor. Walt's body is not on the property. Sadly, there ARE people who try to bring cremains in for a stealth dump and it's pretty nasty.


Why was it nasty? Did they include bone fragments?


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