Singing cowboy Gene Autry began his movie career in the 1930s, eventually making more than 100 films. Although his theme song was “Back in the Saddle Again,” Gene felt just as comfortable in a baseball dugout and was the founder of the team now known as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. On this day …
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Imagineers have penned some pretty extraordinary stories for Disney theme parks, and the legend they brought to life at Walt Disney World’s Blizzard Beach is certainly one of their most fanciful. The story is about a freak winter storm in Florida, which blanketed a 66-acre area with snow and gave birth to the Sunshine State’s …
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Hans Zimmer was born in Germany, and moved to London as a teenager, where he attended Hurtwood House school and quickly became immersed in the pop music world. He played keyboards with The Buggles, a New Wave band best known for their iconic 1979 song “Video Killed the Radio Star.” In the 1980s, Zimmer partnered …
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The ruby anniversary of Disneyland also marked the opening of a crown-jewel attraction in Adventureland. Indiana Jones Adventure, designed through the collaborate effort of George Lucas and Walt Disney Imagineering, takes guests on a subterranean archaeological tour through the Temple of the Forbidden Eye with Indiana Jones. The state-of-the-art attraction introduced a brand-new ride system …
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“Your attention please…” the Disneyland Railroad‘s “Fred Gurley,” Steam Train No. 3, celebrated its 100th anniversary on this day in 1994. In 1955, the Santa Fe and Disneyland Railroad, as it was then known, featured two locomotives, each of which were constructed at the Disney Studios in Burbank, California. The attraction was so popular that …
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Angels in the Outfield, the remake of the 1951 baseball fantasy, flew into theaters on this day in 1994, telling the story of Roger (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), an 11- year-old-boy praying for a father, and a struggling baseball team praying for a pennant. Danny Glover plays George Knox, the frustrated coach of the California Angels, a …
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The Lion King Celebration was the “mane” event when it roared into Disneyland on this day in 1994. As the celebration strode down the parade route to the tune of “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King,” guests were treated to a performance that took Disneyland’s live entertainment to new levels. Floats used real water …
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The Lion King, one of the highest-grossing films of all time, was released on this day in June in New York and Los Angeles (it would open in wide release on June 24). Today, almost everyone in the world knows the story of the young lion cub Simba, who tries to find his place in …
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The follow-up to the smash hit movie Aladdin materialized on this date in the direct-to-video sequel The Return of Jafar. This story takes place where Aladdin ended, with Jafar as a genie trapped inside a lamp. When he is released, he quickly plots revenge against Aladdin. Produced by Disney’s Television Animation group, this film has …
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Frank G. Wells, president and chief operating officer of The Walt Disney Company from September 1984 until his tragic death on Easter Sunday 1994, died when the helicopter carrying him, two of his friends and a guide crashed during a back-country skiing expedition in Nevada. The pilot and all but one passenger died. Wells, an …
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