Category: Blogs
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The Disney Afternoon Live! – Thirty Years Ago at Disneyland
Thirty years ago at Disneyland the park launched a modest promotion that became one of their more fondly remembered events of the 1990s. The Disney Afternoon Live! (yes, the exclamation mark was officially part of the title) ran from March 15 through November 10 of 1991. It could be found in the area between Storybook…
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Photo Gallery – The Magic of A Touch of Disney Opening Day
On Thursday, March 18, 2021, A Touch of Disney opened at Disney California Adventure. This magical food experience is full of magic, music, food, and continues through April 19, 2021. The event runs from 12:00 PM to 8:00 PM every Thursday through Monday during its run. While the food is great at A Touch of…
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Looking Back: One Year After Disneyland’s Closure
One year ago today, I was making my way over to the Disneyland Resort for what I thought would be my last day at the parks for a few weeks. There was a sense of uncertainty but there was definitely no recognition over how significant of a day this would end up being. One year…
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A Morning Stroll on Buena Vista Street on Its Final Weekend as Part of the Downtown Disney District
On Friday morning I entered Downtown Disney District at opening to check out Buena Vista Street on its last weekend as a part of Downtown Disney District. Next week, it will no longer be open to guests who want to wander in from the rest of Downtown Disney District in preparation for A Touch of…
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A Leisurely Amble Around Disneyland: The Original – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
Last month, you may recall, we learned that the 1991 Disneyland promotion was “Disneyland: The Original.” This month’s blog will follow that theme with a somewhat “original” amble around the park. These photos were taken days (and in some cases months) apart, but pretty much represent what Disneyland looked like in the early winter months…
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An Original Idea for 1991 – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
1990 had been a memorable, event packed year for Disneyland. Kicking off on January 11, the 35th birthday of the park had driven attendance (and profits) to new heights. It was only natural that the powers-that-be at the top of the Walt Disney Company wanted to continue that success. But it must have been difficult…
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Bring the Celebration Home – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
Disneyland’s 35th anniversary year was coming to a close, and there was only one thing that could definitively draw the curtain on the Party Gras: the holidays. Christmas had been exuberantly celebrated at Disneyland from its very first year, and 1990 was no exception. Christmas is a season of giving, and Disneyland wanted to be…
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Party Gras! Disneyland’s Official 35th Anniversary Parade! – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
To wind down this year’s columns for 30 Years Ago at Disneyland, we will look at something that was briefly covered all the way back in January. You will recall that on January 11, in addition to a glittering ceremony to kick off all the anniversary promotions, Disneyland also debuted a brand new parade. The…
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Happy Thanksgiving! The Thanksgiving Promise – A Thanksgiving Tradition
Happy Thanksgiving! Wishing you all a safe and wonderful day as we celebrate what we are thankful for. Know that we are thankful for each and every one of you. We love sharing our love of Disney and geekdom with you and we are thankful that you join us in doing this. However you celebrate…
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Visiting Virtual Disneyland – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
Even at my age, whenever September rolls around, I find myself with an odd, nagging feeling in the back of my mind. There’s something looming, something just around the corner. And I know what it is. It’s… Back to School. For students, spontaneous trips to the Magic Kingdom have to wait for next summer. And…
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Thoughts on the Pros and Cons of Walt Disney World Resort After a Phased Reopening Visit
At the end of last month, Murray and I flew out to Florida for a week at Walt Disney World Resort. The trip was fairly last minute in nailing down details and actually deciding to go. This is mainly due to the uncertainty of the time in which we live. Just a couple of weeks…
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The Main Street Electrical Parade – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
The Greatest Nighttime Parade That Ever Rolled Down Main Street USA Over the last few months of covering Disneyland’s 35th birthday, you’ve heard a lot about the Party Gras Parade, and its haunting theme song that lingered on long after all the confetti had been swept away. But there was, of course, another parade running…
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A Conversation About HOWARD with Director Don Hahn, the New Disney+ Documentary with the Only Person Who Could Make It.
Next week Howard will be arriving on Disney+. This is the story of Howard Ashman, the lyricist behind the music of Disney animated classics like The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast. Recently, DAPS MAGIC had the opportunity to sit down (via zoom) with director Don Hahn and several other news organizations to chat…
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Happy Birthday Disneyland – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
Happy birthday Disneyland! This is a greeting Disneyland fans hear a lot on July 17 every year (well, except for a few cranky die-hards who keep insisting that Disneyland’s REAL birthday is the public opening day, July 18). After the big “Ten-cennial” celebration in 1965, years in multiples of ten (and even five) became the…
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Dick Tracy Starring in Diamond Double Cross – 30 Years Ago At Disneyland
If you have been reading this blog over the last few months, you will recall that in April I wrote about the closing of a popular stage show at the Videopolis Theater. One Man’s Dream had been in place for only a few months when it was shuttered, to make way for another show that…
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Splashing into the 35th Anniversary – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
Disneyland’s 35th Anniversary had everything, or so it would seem. There was a vivid logo and a boatload of merchandise covered with it. There was a brand new parade with a theme song that stayed stubbornly lodged in your memory for days. There were stage shows and promotions (they gave away a free car EVERY…
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One Man’s Dream – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
I missed Videopolis by just a few weeks. Perhaps I should explain. This month’s entry is all about a stage show that was presented on the Videopolis Stage in the Winter of 1989 through the Spring of 1990. It closed on April 29. The stage was part of a larger venue called Videopolis. This area…
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“Believe…There’s Magic In The Stars” – Monday Memories
I hope you are all enjoying Doug’s column ’30 Years Ago at Disneyland!’ It’s a fun look at the start of the ‘Disney Decade,’ and one of the best anniversary celebration Disneyland has ever had! In this edition of ‘Monday Memories,’ I go back 20 years to the year 2000 and the Disneyland 45th anniversary…
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An Annual Pass, the Disney Decade and a Day at the Park – 30 Years Ago At Disneyland
After spending two months to cover a single day thirty years ago at Disneyland, this month’s entry will cover a lot more ground. In fact it will cover a month, a decade, and many, many years. The month is March 1990. We’ll take a look at what a typical day was like. The decade is…
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The Little Man of Disneyland
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! It seems like a perfect time to look back at The Little Man of Disneyland. Originally this was a book that was released in 1955 in Disney’s Little Golden Books series. It was published as A Mickey Mouse Club Book in this series. For me personally, this was a book I grew…
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A Return to Walt Disney World – Monday Memories
With the temporary closure of Disney Parks and Resorts worldwide, my regular column ‘Sunday Recap Report’ is on hold. But don’t worry, because we can still share some of the fun we’ve had throughout the years visiting the Parks. Welcome to ‘Monday Memories!’ I will share with you a memory of Park visits from the…
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Sunday Recap Report – A Day Full of Fun and Friends!
It was an absolutely beautiful day to visit the Disneyland Resort! The sun was shining brightly, there was a slight breeze, and colors on photos were brighter than they had been in quite awhile! I got to Disneyland around 11:45am, took some photos, and then sat on a bench outside of Disneyana. Soon after, Jeff…
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Sunday Recap Report – Magic Happens!
It started off as a nice day at the Disneyland Resort. Sprinkles and very light rain would later fall, but that was okay! I arrived at Disneyland around 11:50am, picked up a Disneyland Park map, and took my obligatory photos of the train station. I walked into Disneyana to see if any Indiana Jones Funko…
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Sunday Recap Report – A Return to Disneyland
We are back from Dallas, and that meant it was back to our ‘normal’ Sunday at Disneyland! Of course, we had a chance to enjoy one more Sunday without a parade at Disneyland and before the food and wine festival begins at Disney California Adventure. When I arrived around 11:50am, it seemed a bit busy…