Disney Anaheim Angels Winning 2002 Championships

Disneyland Salutes 2002 Baseball World Champions the Anaheim Angels

After many sports championships, athletes are often asked, “What are you going to do next?” and quite often that answer is, “I’m going to Disneyland!” So after the Anaheim Angels won their first World Series championship, on this day in 2002, the whole team did just that. Jackie Autry, the widow of the team’s founder, …

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Opening of a bug's land attraction in Disneyland

a bug’s land Opens at Disney California Adventure

On this day in 2002, guests at Disney California Adventure could spin with ladybugs, fly on a leaf, or ride on a caterpillar in the all new a bug’s land, inspired by the Disney·Pixar hit film a bug’s life. Walking through a giant box of Cowboy Crunchies cereal (from Toy Story 2), park guests can …

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Signs

Signs is Released

Former preacher Graham Hess (Mel Gibson), still grieving over the accidental death of his wife, discovers crop circles in the cornfield that surrounds his rural home in Pennsylvania. He dismisses them as a hoax, but when Graham and his brother Merrill (Joaquin Phoenix), a former minor league baseball player who has moved into the house …

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Lilo and Stitch

Lilo & Stitch is Released

When Lilo & Stitch co-writers and co-directors Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois visited Hawaii before beginning work on this beloved film about ‘ohana, the Hawaiian word describing the importance of family, they decided they would use watercolors to recreate the unique coloring, vegetation, and landscapes found everywhere on the islands. It was a technique that …

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The Rookie is Released

On this day in 2002, The Rookie swung into theaters, telling the story of high school coach Jim Morris (Dennis Quaid) who thought his dream was over. He’d had his shot playing baseball, blew out his shoulder and retired without ever reaching the big leagues. Then in 1999, he made a bet with his perpetually …

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Beauty and the Beast on Broadway

Beauty and the Beast Becomes 10th Longest Running Broadway Show of All Time

Before the The Lion King or Mary Poppins smashed Broadway box office records, another Disney Theatrical Productions—Beauty and the Beast—paved the way for Disney productions on the Great White Way. On this day in 2002, the tale as old as time became the 10th-longest running show on Broadway. Since then it has surpassed this mark …

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Snow Dogs

Snow Dogs is Released

On January 18, 2002, Walt Disney Pictures’ live-action comedy Snow Dogs raced into theaters. Directed by Brian Levant, Snow Dogs stars Cuba Gooding, Jr. as Ted Brooks, a dentist from Miami, Florida, who receives a letter from Alaska telling him that he is the heir of Lucy Watkins. It is then his mother reveals that …

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Monster's Inc.

Monsters Inc. Premieres

On this day in 2001, Pixar and Disney left audiences screaming with laughter with the release of Monsters, Inc. In 2002, the film became the second highest-grossing animated film of all time. Monsters, Inc. was also a technological breakthrough in the depiction of fur and hair. Faux llama and gorilla fur were all studied for …

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Jennifer Garner in Alias

Alias Debuts

On this day in 2001, Alias, also known as a breathtaking adventure of action-packed espionage and heart-wrenching drama, made its debut on ABC television. Jennifer Garner portrayed Sydney Bristow. Syd is not exactly your average grad student. Her life might appear normal, but she’s hiding a secret life working as a spy for the CIA. …

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photo of Toshio Kagami, Michael Eisner, Roy E. Disney, and Tokyo Disney Ambassador Satoko Shiyanagi

Tokyo DisneySea Opens

The second Japanese Disney theme park, Tokyo DisneySea, allowed guests to soak in the surroundings of a world inspired by the myths and legends of the sea. Built on the shores of Tokyo Bay, guests to the aquatic Disney Park can voyage into seven distinct “ports of call,” including Mediterranean Harbor, Mysterious Island, Mermaid Lagoon, …

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