Archive for the 'Orange County' Category
Theme park news: Kobe rides Terminator coaster; bring back Captain EO; Hong Kong Disneyland expansion
July 4, 2009 7:29am
A roundup of my theme park Twitter updates for the last week:
* Online petition: Bring back Captain EO as a tribute to Michael Jackson at Disney Parks. Watch EO in 3-D at home. (Distant Creations)
* New lands at Hong Kong Disneyland: Grizzly Trail (a.k.a. Frontierland), Mystic Point (supernatural rain forest), Toy Story Land. Marquee rides: Big Grizzly Mountain coaster, Mystic Manor (a.k.a. Haunted Mansion), shuttle coaster on a U-shaped track. (Disney and More)
* Spoiler: Tinker Bell does double duty as Dumbo during Disneyland fireworks show. (Mouse Planet)
Theme park news: Animatronic Obama, Battlestar Galactica dueling coasters, Hong Kong Disneyland expansion
June 27, 2009 7:33am
A roundup of my theme park Twitter updates for the last week:
* Prowler wooden coaster construction time-lapse video at Worlds Of Fun in Kansas City, Mo. 70,000 images, one per minute over eight months.
* First official POV video of iSpeed coaster at Mirabilandia in Italy. (Parksmania)
* Journey to the Center of the Earth 4-D movie starring Brendan Fraser coming to Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., from June 12 to Aug. 2. (Screamscape)
* Scale-model pictures of Battlestar Galactica dueling coasters at Universal Studios Singapore. (CoasterForce)
Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel Silver Anniversay Sale with rooms starting at $205
June 25, 2009 2:15pm
Room rates at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel that are regularly $455 per night have been knocked down to $205 weekdays and $275 on weekends in celebration of their 25th Anniversary. It sounds considerably familiar to their California coastal resort sale that took place in May. The deal is good for garden or pool view rooms with the lowest rate valid Sunday - Wednesday. Make your travel arrangements quickly as you have until June 27 to book for travel through Sept. 30, 2009.
Kobe Bryant soaks in Laker love during Disneyland parade
June 18, 2009 2:25pm
One victory parade just wasn’t enough for Kobe Bryant.
The NBA Finals MVP celebrated the Los Angeles Lakers‘ 15th championship Thursday with a parade at Disneyland amid cheering fans and flying confetti. (Check out the Times’ photo gallery of the parade.)
Kobe’s wife, kids and fellow Lakers skipped the celebration. Mickey Mouse and a bunch of Disney characters joined the NBA star on the parade float along Main Street U.S.A.
After the parade, Kobe invited Pomona resident and Lakers fan David Guerrero and his 4-year-old son, Jonathan, to take a ride on the Matterhorn roller coaster.
More photos after the jump.
Disneyland Hotel to get long-overdue makeover
June 16, 2009 12:09pm
The long-anticipated renovation of the Disneyland Hotel will begin in phases in August and is scheduled to wrap up in time for the 2012 debut of Cars Land at Disney’s California Adventure.
Built in 1955, the old and outdated hotel — which Disney euphemistically calls “historic” — has been showing its age for years.
The major rehab features extensive interior and exterior facelifts and a complete infrastructure upgrade — including a much-needed overhaul of the plumbing, electrical, heating and air conditioning systems.
Construction will proceed at one vertical half of a tower at a time — starting with the Dreams tower, which is scheduled to be completed by June 2010. The Magic and Wonder towers will follow. The hotel and all three towers will remain open throughout construction.
Theme Park news: interactive Space Mountain queue; Witch Mountain motion simulator; Dino Mountain returns
June 13, 2009 7:02am
A round-up of my theme park Twitter updates for the last week (I sense a mountain theme):
* Dream job: Get paid $25,000 to ride 67 rides in Orlando. (Coaster Critic)
* Construction permits call for addition of an “interactive queue” as part of $12.3 million Space Mountain rehab at Walt Disney World. (Orlando Sentinel)
* Tightrope-walker Nik Wallenda to walk a high wire 80 feet in the air without a net or safety line at Knott’s Berry Farm on Sunday, June 21 at 2:30 p.m. The King of the High Wire will pull a similar stunt at Worlds of Fun in Missouri on Sunday, June 14. (Amusement Today)
First look: Tinker Bell float in Electrical Parade at Disney’s California Adventure
June 10, 2009 6:04pm
The Electrical Parade marks its return engagement at Disney’s California Adventure on Friday night with Tinker Bell taking over the lead float position from the Blue Fairy.
The new Tink float features a magic wand-wielding face-character waving from the basket of a hot-air balloon amid a sea of shimmering emerald green lights.
The Electrical Parade reboot also includes a return of the mothballed Snow White and Pinocchio floats, upgraded audio of the classic theme song and a sprinkling of “pixie dust” lighting on all the old floats.
More photos after the jump.
Read the rest of this entry »
Disneyland dragon not ready for Fantasmic reboot
June 9, 2009 11:46am
While the OMG Web rumors aren’t true, the new Maleficent dragon won’t make her scheduled debut this weekend at Disneyland in the upgraded Fantasmic show due to “technical issues.”
Disneyland officials say those “technical issues” do NOT include the latest Internet rumor du jour pinging around the Twittersphere — that the 40-foot-tall dragon’s neck snapped during testing and that the head fell off!
The show will go on sans the dragon — with the new Fantasmic making its official debut on Friday (June 12) with the new Flotsam and Jetsam eels and high-definition video projections on the mist screens.
Theme park news: Little Mermaid ride, Star Wars weekend, Hollywood Horror Nights, backyard coaster
June 7, 2009 8:53pm
A round-up of my theme park Twitter updates for the last week:
* Uber-Imagineer Tony Baxter discusses the Little Mermaid attraction that never was at Disneyland Paris. (Disney and More)
* Star Wars Weekend: Get your geek on at Disney’s Hollywood Studios — 100s of Pix. (Mouse Steps)
* 6-foot-tall version of desk lamp mascot Luxo Jr. hopping over to Pixar Animation Studios at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. (Orlando Sentinel)
* $6 million pirate-themed water park in the works for Savannah, Georgia. (Augusta Chronicle)
* Universal Studios Orlando releases dates for Halloween Horror Nights 2009. (Lifthill)
* Photo tour of homemade backyard roller coaster – with a loop! (Theme Park Review)
* POV animation video of Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit coaster from Universal Studios Orlando. (Orlando Attractions) Read the rest of this entry »
Knotts Berry Farm celebrates 75 years of Chicken Dinners
June 6, 2009 7:05am
America’s first theme park started with chicken.
At the height of the Depression, Walter Knott convinced his wife, Cordelia, to sell her delicious fried chicken at a berry stand outside of their farm in Buena Park to earn some extra money.
Soon the lines outside the Knott’s berry farm were so long that Walter Knott began adding old ghost town buildings to the farm to keep customers entertained while they waited for his wife’s chicken and pies. The Knotts named the restaurant, appropriately enough, the Chicken Dinner Restaurant.
Eventually, Walter Knott added a covered wagon show, a narrow gauge railroad and the Bird Cage Theater, where comedian Steve Martin got his start.
Thus began Knott’s Berry Farm, recognized by the National Amusement Park Historical Assn. as America’s first theme park.
On June 13, Knott’s Berry Farm will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Chicken Dinner Restaurant. The guest of honor at a rededication ceremony at 1 p.m. will be Marion Knott, the last surviving daughter of Walter and Cordelia Knott. For more details, go to the park’s website.
– Hugo Martín, Times Staff Writer
(Photo: Knott’s Chicken Dinner Restaurant with staff and children, 1956. Credit: Orange County Archives.)
