Tag: Doug Marsh
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Update on Fantasmic! – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
As if Daylight Saving’s Time wasn’t bad enough, last month we leaped a year ahead (or 29 years behind) our usual thirty years ago. This month we are back on track but will be starting out on the wrong side of the park. Yes, this is an update on the construction of Fantasmic!, but first…
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Mickey’s Toontown Then… and Now! – 29 Years Ago at Disneyland
I hope you did a double-take at the title of this month’s blog. 29 years ago at Disneyland? 30 years was an odd enough choice. But why change it now? This is not really a change, just an acknowledgment of an item that is better presented a year in advance. You see, Toontown, which opened…
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1992: Another Original Year – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
You remember a year ago that in this blog I kind of complained about the 1991 promotional “theme” for Disneyland? That after the incredible 35th anniversary year of 1990, with the alluring (and admittedly kind of baffling) Party Gras theme, the best they could come up with was “The Original?” Really. That was the theme…
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It’s Been a Year, But We Still Keep Finding Hidden Secrets of WandaVision!
A whole year ago the MCU launched its first streaming TV series with the ambitious and quirky WandaVision. As many readers will recall, I offered a series of articles at that time, detailing “hidden secrets” behind the shooting locations, sitcom roots, and odds and ends of the series. I even offered WandaVision Bingo for the…
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Mickey’s Nutcracker – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
In 1991, the former Videopolis stage in Fantasyland offered a holiday entertainment that could have easily become a long-running seasonal tradition at Disneyland. Mickey’s Nutcracker promised to be a contemporary version of the well-known Christmas entertainment but proved to be a quirky retelling of the beloved ballet with some dancing, some singing, and some other…
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Imagining… Fantasmic! – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
In planning, this blog entry was to be the first of two parts, spanning October to November. In execution, it is one bog entry, appearing at the end of November. In my defense, it is a pretty big subject. While that Afternoon Avenue promotion was dominating the east side of Disneyland, over on the west…
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The Celebration USA! Parade – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
Have I mentioned that back in the old days, say, thirty years ago, Disneyland used to put on a new daytime parade every single year, without giving a thought to the idea of keeping it around for three, five, or ten years more? Of course, everyone knew what to expect when night fell and catchy…
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Doug Marsh to Share About Walt Disney’s Backyard Railroad at Train Collectors Association Toy Train Expo in Burbank
Train lovers should be in Burbank this weekend at the Los Angeles Marriott Burbank Airport Hotel this weekend for the Toy Train Expo. This weekend celebration of all that is toy trains began today and will continue through tomorrow. Not only will there be full operating layouts of toy trains, there will also be trains…
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Whatever Happened to Port Disney? – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
July is, of course, an important month for fans of Disneyland. July 17 is the anniversary of the day that Walt’s dream was officially revealed to the public. July 18, by the way, is the actual opening day, but we won’t get into that. The events of July 17, 1991 were not as auspicious as…
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Disneyland Honors the Men and Women of Desert Storm – Thirty Years Ago at Disneyland
This month’s entry is quite appropriate as we enter the Fourth of July weekend. Disneyland has never shied away from patriotic spectacle. Indeed, Walt Disney is quoted as saying, “If you could see in my eyes, the American flag is waving in both of them and my spine is growing this red, white and blue…
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Introducing the Disneyland Resort! – 30 Years Ago at Disneyland
When this blog began in January of 2020, I had no idea that taking “virtual visits” to Disneyland in the 1990s would become such an attractive idea. The “Disney Decade” began with soaring announcements and exciting expectations. For Disney fans the spring of 2021 is also marked with announcements and expectations. We can only hope…
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Plane Crazy On Stage at Disney Afternoon Live!
Excited kids who flocked to Disneyland for the 1991 promotion of The Disney Afternoon could spend as much time as they liked exploring Afternoon Avenue and experiencing the Rescue Ranger Raceway and the Motor Boat Cruise Through Gummi Glen. As if that wasn’t enough excitement, there were the five daily performances (SIX on Saturday!) of…
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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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Marvelous WandaVision – GEEKS CORNER – Episode 1124 (#547)
Welcome to GEEKS CORNER! This week it’s all about the Marvel-ous world of WandaVision, well mostly. For a bulk of the show Mr. DAPs, Caitie Bear, and Doug will geek out about this show before pivoting to talk about what they expect from The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. We hope you enjoy geeking out…
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Hidden Secret Odds and Ends of WandaVision
Incredibly enough, the season finale of WandaVision is upon us. While it will be a relief to finally have the intricate plot lines pulled together (assuming they all are), it has been a lot of fun to speculate about them. It is not the intention of this article to explain it all, but rather to…
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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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The Hidden Secrets Behind WandaVision On Location
Marvel’s WandaVision has sparked a frenzy of speculation with each new episode. After the first three teased fans with traditional sitcoms from the 1950s through the 1970s, episode four finally offered up a look at what was going on just outside Westview, New Jersey. The next two episodes have returned viewers to the sitcom adventures…
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A Look Back at a Grand Opening – GEEKS CORNER – Episode 1119 (#542)
Welcome to another episode of GEEKS CORNER! This week, the geeks are joined by Disney expert and historian Doug Marsh! Doug was at the grand opening of Disney California Adventure and shares about his experience with the geeks as they geek out about all that is Disney California Adventure! We hope you enjoy this special…
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The Grand Opening of Disney’s California Adventure: A Personal Memoir
Can you recall, precisely, where you were in the early morning hours of February 8, 2001? I certainly recall where I was. I was at the Happiest Place on Earth, trying to get some sleep on the freezing cold pavement of the parade route between Sleeping Beauty Castle and the Matterhorn. As I shifted from…
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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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A New Legacy? – DISNEY Reporter
Welcome to the DISNEY Reporter! Each week we highlight the top five stories of the week from Disney and geek news! This week, there is a lot happening in the parks and also some entertainment stories. First off at the Disneyland Resort, with the lifting of California’s stay-at-home order, the Downtown Disney District and Buena…
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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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A Look at Buena Vista Street and Avengers Campus Ahead of New Stay At Home Order
Today Southern California began another stay at home order as coronavirus cases again rise in the area. Yesterday, DAPS MAGIC team member Doug Marsh (30 Years Ago At Disneyland) ventured over to Downtown Disney District and Buena Vista Street to see what there was to see and share it with our readers! This adventure led…