In this episode we welcome friend and former Disneyland Custodial Cast Member Kelly Merrell. Kelly worked with both Ken and Lynn in Disneyland Custodial, and has very fond memories of that role, but now has a new role as a bartender at Trader Sam's. Plus the latest in the Disneyland Resort Current Events, and more!
Also We are participating in the MiceChat Gumball Rally on Feb. 8, 2020 and would love if you could find a space on website for a link to that as well and also saying that we will be there participating.
Disneyland Resort Current Event
5 new books Disneyland fans might enjoy
BY MARLA JO FISHER
October 24, 2019
"‘Cleaning the Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present’ by Ken Pellman and Lynn Barron. Panenbrume Publishing, 2019. $16. 240 pages.
“This is the second in the Cleaning the Kingdom series that follows the stories of custodial care at Disneyland, following the 2015 book “Cleaning the Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless.” That book relied on personal memoirs of the authors working as custodians from 1990 to 2007. This new book goes back to the beginning of Disneyland Custodial and also looks at the night crew and what they do.”
Orange County Register
Avengers E-Ticket attraction will boast all-new ride system at Marvel land in Disney California Adventure
BY BRADY MACDONALD
October 15, 2019
"Disney and Marvel used New York Comic Con 2019 to reveal new details about the Avengers Campus themed land set to debut at the Anaheim theme park.
"The first phase of the new land will open in 2020 with a Spider-Man attraction, Doctor Strange show, Ant-Man and the Wasp restaurant and Marvel character meet-and-greets and rooftop shows. A second phase will open at an unannounced date with an Avengers E-ticket attraction.
"The new Avengers ride will be different than Disney flight simulator attractions such as the Avatar Flight of Passage at Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Florida and Soarin’ Around the World at Disney California Adventure in Anaheim and other parks"
Orange County Register
Spider-Man attraction will let riders sling virtual webs from their wrists at Disney California Adventure
BY BRADY MACDONALD
October 9, 2019
"The new Spider-Man attraction coming to a new Marvel-themed land at Disney California Adventure will let riders shoot virtual webs from their wrists as they battle an army of escaped spider-bots."
Orange County Register
Disneyland’s Star Tours sets a new course to ocean moon from ‘Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker’
BY BRADY MACDONALD
October 23, 2019
"Star Tours will add new destinations on Dec. 20 inspired by the launch of “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” in theaters on the same date."
Orange County Register
Disneyland announces dates for 2019 Candlelight Ceremony
BY BRADY MACDONALD
October 10, 2019
"The 2019 Candlelight Ceremony will be held at Disneyland on Saturday, Dec. 7 and Sunday, Dec. 8, according to Disney officials.
"In past years, the candlelight choir has paraded down Main Street U.S.A. for two performances each night in Disneyland’s Town Square."
Orange County Register
Snow falls on Sleeping Beauty Castle as Disneyland prepares to bid farewell to Halloween and welcome Christmas
Disneyland crews have begun installing the faux snow atop Sleeping Beauty Castle as the Halloween season draws to a close at the Anaheim theme park.
By Brady MacDonald
PUBLISHED: October 23, 2019
"Disneyland crews have begun installing the faux snow atop Sleeping Beauty Castle as the Halloween season draws to a close at the Anaheim theme park.
"The 64-year-old Disneyland icon got a little bit of TLC in the spring that included a bold new paint job, fresh gold leaf on the finial ornaments, a new roof and a sprinkling of star-shaped pixie dust on the shingles above the drawbridge entrance.
The man-made blizzard dusting the pitched rooftops of the castle will be followed glowing icicle lights, Christmas wreaths and holiday bunting."
San Gabriel Valley Tribune
Disneyland to unveil centralized FastPass kiosk for 3 Tomorrowland rides in pilot program
BY BRADY MACDONALD
October 8, 2019
"Disneyland plans to unveil a new centralized FastPass kiosk for three Tomorrowland rides as part of a pilot program that will let visitors obtain paperless attraction reservations tied to the Anaheim theme park’s mobile app.
"A new centralized Tomorrowland kiosk will distribute FastPasses for the Space Mountain, Star Tours and Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters attractions, according to Disneyland officials.
"The new Tomorrowland FastPass kiosk is expected to open in mid-October. Laughing Place reported that the new Tomorrowland FastPass kiosks will debut on Oct. 15."
Orange County Register
Disneyland eases rules on beards and jewelry for cast members with latest Disney Look standards
BY BRADY MACDONALD
October 23, 2019
"Disneyland will make adjustments to the Disney Look appearance guidelines regarding beard length and acceptable jewelry on Monday, Oct. 28, officials said.
"For decades, male Disneyland employees were famously forbidden to grow mustaches or beards. Mustaches were first allowed in 2000. Beards and goatees were permitted for the first time in 2012."
Orange County Register
[Note: This next tragic story is about an incident that is still being investigated. Delfon was a much beloved cast member, known for being very friendly with everyone. - Ken]
Wife of suspected Bottoms Up gunman is at a loss about why he’d shoot up bar
Jeremiah Dobruck
"Delfon worked as a custodian at Disneyland for almost 30 years, according to Patricia. Former Disneyland co-workers also said they were shocked by the shooting, calling Delfon a happy, friendly person."
Long Beach Post News
Disneyland closes the Matterhorn Bobsleds on weekdays for repairs
BY MARLA JO FISHER
October 25, 2019
Health officials warn of measles exposure at Disneyland and Starbucks
BY BRADY MACDONALD
October 23, 2019
Orange County Register
Commentary: What works, what’s missing and what needs fixing at Disney’s Galaxy’s Edge
By Todd Martens
Staff Writer
Oct. 7, 2019
"But the perception that there’s a problem — or, rather, lower-than-expected demand for Galaxy’s Edge — has been fueled by Disney CEO Bob Iger himself as much as it has been by any media account. Disney in August reported a 3% dip in attendance for its domestic theme parks, despite the opening of its most buzzed-about resort addition since the launch of Cars Land in 2012."
LA Times
Disneyland Update: Construction-O-Ween in the Parks
By Nathan Villamor -October 7, 2019
MiceChat
Disneyland Update – Packed! Huge Crowds Return to Disneyland
By Nathan Villamor -October 14, 2019
MiceChat
Disneyland Update – Crowds, Construction & Christmas
October 21, 2019
Disneyland Experiments with the Future of Fastpass
By Dusty Sage -October 8, 2019
"It’s hard to believe, but Fastpass has been around at the Disney parks for 20 years now. There have been additions and changes to the system over the years, as well as endless operational tweaks. In 2017, a digital version of Fastpass called MaxPass was rolled out at Disneyland which no longer required paper tickets. The system has slowly grown in popularity and increased the overall number of guests using the digital rather than paper option.
"As the number of guests booking their Fastpasses on their phones via the MaxPass system increases, the need for physical Fastpass machines decreases. That creates an opportunity for the park to start reclaiming the space used by some of the Fastpass machines for other purposes."
MiceChat
Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railroad Construction Begins
By Nathan Villamor -October 11, 2019
"The next major project at Disneyland has begun. Backstage buildings, including most of the ToonTown hills have been removed to make way for Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway attraction. Although construction inside the land has not yet begun, guests visiting ToonTown will notice that something looks a little different."
MiceChat
Attention Bobsled Riders – Disneyland’s Matterhorn Closed Weekdays Through October for Refurbishment
By Natalie Kipper -October 25, 2019
You can listen to show 271 on iTunes or go to Libsyn service here.
Show Notes for Episode 271
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Former Disneyland Custodian Kelly Merrell