Rome wasn’t built in a day, but Disneyland was built in less than a year! With a “heigh ho”, workers began construction on the first magic kingdom on this day in 1954. Just a few months later, in October, Disneyland, the television series debuted. In the first episode, ” The Disneyland Story,” Walt personally let viewers see the plans for what he called, “Our latest and greatest dream… Disneyland.” While the shows essentially were promoting the upcoming park, it never felt that way. Walt’s own enthusiasm excited viewers as he showed the plans and models of what he called, “A place of hopes and dreams, facts and fancy, all in one.” In future episodes, viewers were able to follow the actual construction development through time-lapse images and filmed footage of the giant work-in-progress. Even with Tinker Bell, the Blue Fairy, and the Fairy Godmother on their side, having the park ready for opening day was quite the challenge. Final touches were still being applied right up until the gates opened… and then some! Shortly before her passing in 2008, Disney Legend Harriet Burns of Disney’s legendary Model Shop told D23’s Scott Wolf about the day before the park opened. “Walt said there was a gap in Tomorrowland, where nothing was. He said, ‘Take some models down there and just put them in as fillers.’ And Fred (Joerger of the Model Shop) came back and he said, ‘Oh my gosh, that place can’t open tomorrow! There’s rebar in the street and there’s rolls of wire and lumber and stuff all over the place.’ He said, ‘Poor Bill Evans hasn’t even planted stuff yet. It’s just awful. I don’t see how it can open.’ Well, of course they worked all night and they did it.”
