1 00:00:02,279 --> 00:00:06,720 Speaker 1: Hey, Happy Saturday. Today's classic continues last Saturday's story of 2 00:00:06,720 --> 00:00:10,120 Speaker 1: how Disneyland's Haunted Mansion came to be the iconic attraction 3 00:00:10,160 --> 00:00:12,719 Speaker 1: that it is today. So join us while we talk 4 00:00:12,800 --> 00:00:15,480 Speaker 1: about the happy Haunts and the bumps in the road 5 00:00:15,560 --> 00:00:20,480 Speaker 1: that resulted in one of Disney's crown jewels, and as always, 6 00:00:20,680 --> 00:00:28,479 Speaker 1: beware of hitchhiking ghosts. Welcome to stuff you missed in 7 00:00:28,560 --> 00:00:38,680 Speaker 1: history class from works dot com. Hello, welcome to the 8 00:00:38,680 --> 00:00:42,400 Speaker 1: podcast I'm calling from. I'm Tracy V. Wilson, and we 9 00:00:42,560 --> 00:00:45,080 Speaker 1: left you with a cliffhangers time around. We were talking 10 00:00:45,080 --> 00:00:48,400 Speaker 1: about the history of the Haunted Mansion in Disneyland and 11 00:00:48,440 --> 00:00:50,640 Speaker 1: how it came to be built and how that concept 12 00:00:51,159 --> 00:00:53,760 Speaker 1: went from just an idea in the early fifties to 13 00:00:54,000 --> 00:00:56,960 Speaker 1: becoming an actual thing that park visitors know about today, 14 00:00:57,360 --> 00:00:59,440 Speaker 1: because it really is quite a long and winding road 15 00:00:59,520 --> 00:01:02,720 Speaker 1: for that that right in particular. Uh. And so when 16 00:01:02,720 --> 00:01:07,319 Speaker 1: we left off, really Crump and Yale Gracey were two 17 00:01:07,400 --> 00:01:09,840 Speaker 1: gentlemen that we're working on effects that we're going to 18 00:01:09,880 --> 00:01:13,600 Speaker 1: go into the Haunted Mansion, and they had done this 19 00:01:14,120 --> 00:01:19,360 Speaker 1: really amazing uh demonstration where they kind of made a 20 00:01:19,400 --> 00:01:21,920 Speaker 1: mock up of the whole attraction and how it would work, 21 00:01:22,400 --> 00:01:27,600 Speaker 1: and other imagineers and Walt and other stakeholders in Disneyland 22 00:01:27,680 --> 00:01:29,760 Speaker 1: got to walk through it and experience it. They were 23 00:01:29,800 --> 00:01:34,200 Speaker 1: all completely blown away by it. So amazing. Uh. Was 24 00:01:34,280 --> 00:01:39,800 Speaker 1: also very slow. Yeah, those amazing effects had really wowed 25 00:01:39,800 --> 00:01:41,760 Speaker 1: the whole crowd, but they also took a way too 26 00:01:41,800 --> 00:01:44,800 Speaker 1: long to play out. Uh. And the show was deemed 27 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:47,080 Speaker 1: inefficient at that point, So there was no way they 28 00:01:47,080 --> 00:01:50,520 Speaker 1: could move people through quickly enough to avoid long lines 29 00:01:50,560 --> 00:01:55,440 Speaker 1: and log jams. And there's a h term that's often 30 00:01:55,560 --> 00:01:59,160 Speaker 1: used for rides when they're talking about um load and 31 00:01:59,160 --> 00:02:01,520 Speaker 1: how quickly they can get things through that they wanted 32 00:02:01,560 --> 00:02:03,200 Speaker 1: them to be people eaters, like, they had to just 33 00:02:03,240 --> 00:02:05,960 Speaker 1: be able to move people through really quickly. Uh. And 34 00:02:06,040 --> 00:02:08,320 Speaker 1: so even if some of the elements of this show 35 00:02:08,360 --> 00:02:10,680 Speaker 1: had been omitted, the time it was going to take 36 00:02:10,720 --> 00:02:13,040 Speaker 1: to reset some of the effects for each new group 37 00:02:13,120 --> 00:02:15,560 Speaker 1: coming through on the tour was just still not going 38 00:02:15,600 --> 00:02:18,960 Speaker 1: to be workable. In addition to this whole timing issue. 39 00:02:19,600 --> 00:02:22,040 Speaker 1: While it had kind of cool and on this idea 40 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:25,840 Speaker 1: of the Haunted House being a walk through attraction, Sleeping 41 00:02:25,880 --> 00:02:29,079 Speaker 1: Beauty's Castle features a walk through story display that's been 42 00:02:29,080 --> 00:02:32,040 Speaker 1: there since the opening, and he had really never been 43 00:02:32,080 --> 00:02:35,639 Speaker 1: too happy with it. And then, to make matters worse, 44 00:02:36,040 --> 00:02:38,080 Speaker 1: we talked about this in the first episode. There had 45 00:02:38,080 --> 00:02:41,200 Speaker 1: been a debate over whether the exterior should look pristine 46 00:02:41,400 --> 00:02:44,680 Speaker 1: or just a shambles. UH. Walt wanted it to look 47 00:02:44,720 --> 00:02:47,000 Speaker 1: pristine to match the rest of the park, and other 48 00:02:47,040 --> 00:02:50,799 Speaker 1: designers wanted it to look crumbling, like a crumbling old 49 00:02:50,800 --> 00:02:53,600 Speaker 1: mansion and a little rundown like a haunted house. Normally 50 00:02:53,639 --> 00:02:55,280 Speaker 1: would the kind of place you'd look at and go 51 00:02:55,400 --> 00:02:58,320 Speaker 1: that is haunted me. Yeah, So that had been a 52 00:02:58,320 --> 00:03:01,680 Speaker 1: little bit of a problem, and by Quinn ken Anderson, 53 00:03:01,760 --> 00:03:04,919 Speaker 1: who was head of UH this project at the time, 54 00:03:05,919 --> 00:03:07,960 Speaker 1: UH had been talking to Walt about it, he just 55 00:03:08,000 --> 00:03:10,160 Speaker 1: decided he would move to focusing on the interior and 56 00:03:10,160 --> 00:03:13,120 Speaker 1: they would table this issue. But they had just stopped 57 00:03:13,120 --> 00:03:15,480 Speaker 1: talking about the outside of the attraction. There had never 58 00:03:15,600 --> 00:03:18,919 Speaker 1: been an agreement on how it was actually gonna look, 59 00:03:19,080 --> 00:03:24,000 Speaker 1: and so that remained unresolved. So as the nineteen fifties 60 00:03:24,040 --> 00:03:27,280 Speaker 1: came to a close, so did plans for a Disneyland 61 00:03:27,360 --> 00:03:30,639 Speaker 1: Haunted House, and they basically put the whole thing on hold. Yeah, 62 00:03:30,680 --> 00:03:35,600 Speaker 1: So the Haunted House, uh, just to um review quickly, 63 00:03:36,240 --> 00:03:39,440 Speaker 1: had been part of the plan for Disneyland since Walt 64 00:03:39,480 --> 00:03:43,360 Speaker 1: first envisioned the whole park in so they had spent 65 00:03:43,400 --> 00:03:47,040 Speaker 1: almost a decade at this point working on things, and 66 00:03:47,080 --> 00:03:50,320 Speaker 1: then they just had to kind of say goodbye to 67 00:03:50,360 --> 00:03:53,000 Speaker 1: it for a bit. Yeah, and sometimes I get frustrated 68 00:03:53,080 --> 00:03:55,240 Speaker 1: when I am banging my head against something trying to 69 00:03:55,240 --> 00:03:56,960 Speaker 1: work on it for like an hour and a half 70 00:03:57,960 --> 00:04:00,520 Speaker 1: and they have been banging their head is working on 71 00:04:00,560 --> 00:04:02,720 Speaker 1: this for like ten years. Yeah, I mean, not the 72 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:06,040 Speaker 1: whole team, although they do go on for many more years. 73 00:04:06,040 --> 00:04:11,240 Speaker 1: But so the Haunted House project then languished until so 74 00:04:11,240 --> 00:04:13,680 Speaker 1: it was a couple of years, but what was still 75 00:04:13,720 --> 00:04:17,720 Speaker 1: really eager to expand the park, and the W E. 76 00:04:17,880 --> 00:04:21,320 Speaker 1: D Team or WED depending on what you prefer, which 77 00:04:21,360 --> 00:04:24,280 Speaker 1: eventually became Disney Imagineering, decided that they were going to 78 00:04:24,400 --> 00:04:28,120 Speaker 1: once again take on this troubled project. There was such 79 00:04:28,120 --> 00:04:30,279 Speaker 1: a strong desire to get this thing up and running 80 00:04:30,360 --> 00:04:33,080 Speaker 1: that they started passing out handbills in the park that 81 00:04:33,279 --> 00:04:37,360 Speaker 1: very year, announcing that in nineteen sixty three, two years 82 00:04:37,400 --> 00:04:40,159 Speaker 1: down the road, the Haunted Mansion, as it was now 83 00:04:40,200 --> 00:04:44,160 Speaker 1: officially was being called would be open to guests and haunts. 84 00:04:44,560 --> 00:04:47,920 Speaker 1: So a little bit of let's light a fire under 85 00:04:47,960 --> 00:04:50,400 Speaker 1: ourselves to get this done, and also a little bit 86 00:04:50,440 --> 00:04:53,719 Speaker 1: maybe putting some of the cart before the horse. Yeah, 87 00:04:53,760 --> 00:04:56,160 Speaker 1: I mean they were throttled by the deadline, and so 88 00:04:56,200 --> 00:04:59,760 Speaker 1: construction really did kind of catapult forward, but even so 89 00:05:00,080 --> 00:05:03,080 Speaker 1: was not quite at the pace that was hoped for. Uh. 90 00:05:03,120 --> 00:05:05,880 Speaker 1: And while the exterior of the Haunted Mansion was in 91 00:05:05,920 --> 00:05:09,240 Speaker 1: place pristine by the way, they went with Walt's pristine plan, 92 00:05:09,320 --> 00:05:12,479 Speaker 1: which is not really a surprise. Uh. In nine three, 93 00:05:13,360 --> 00:05:16,520 Speaker 1: the exterior was completely done, but the interior was far 94 00:05:16,640 --> 00:05:21,040 Speaker 1: from finished. Walt asked Martins Sklar to come up with 95 00:05:21,200 --> 00:05:23,960 Speaker 1: copy for a real estate sign that would be inviting 96 00:05:24,040 --> 00:05:28,440 Speaker 1: ghosts to move into this home in Disneyland. And here's 97 00:05:28,480 --> 00:05:31,760 Speaker 1: the sign that appeared outside the empty building. Do you 98 00:05:31,760 --> 00:05:36,480 Speaker 1: want to read this? I bet you like it? Sure? Uh. 99 00:05:36,600 --> 00:05:40,880 Speaker 1: It reads Notice all ghosts and restless spirits post lifetime 100 00:05:41,000 --> 00:05:44,640 Speaker 1: leases are now available in this haunted mansion. Don't be 101 00:05:44,720 --> 00:05:47,880 Speaker 1: left out in the sunshine. Enjoy active retirement in this 102 00:05:48,000 --> 00:05:51,800 Speaker 1: country club atmosphere for the fashionable address for famous ghosts. 103 00:05:52,120 --> 00:05:54,920 Speaker 1: Ghosts trying to make a name for themselves and ghosts 104 00:05:54,920 --> 00:05:58,800 Speaker 1: Afraid to Live by themselves. Leases include license to scare 105 00:05:58,839 --> 00:06:02,320 Speaker 1: the daylights out of guests visiting the Portrait Gallery, Museum 106 00:06:02,360 --> 00:06:07,240 Speaker 1: of the Supernatural, Graveyard, and other happy hunting grounds. For reservations, 107 00:06:07,279 --> 00:06:11,800 Speaker 1: send resume of past experience to Ghost Relations Department, Disneyland. 108 00:06:11,960 --> 00:06:15,279 Speaker 1: Please do not apply in person. I love that it's 109 00:06:15,279 --> 00:06:19,960 Speaker 1: so charming. So things were behind schedule at this point, 110 00:06:20,120 --> 00:06:24,040 Speaker 1: but they were progressing along. Guests were getting at least 111 00:06:24,040 --> 00:06:26,239 Speaker 1: a little sense of the flavor of the attraction because 112 00:06:26,279 --> 00:06:28,960 Speaker 1: the exterior was there, and so things were kind of 113 00:06:28,960 --> 00:06:31,880 Speaker 1: back on course. But then they were put on hold 114 00:06:31,920 --> 00:06:35,120 Speaker 1: again when Walt agreed to build four attractions for the 115 00:06:35,160 --> 00:06:39,080 Speaker 1: nineteen sixty four to nineteen sixty five World's Fair. Yeah, 116 00:06:39,120 --> 00:06:42,440 Speaker 1: and this is an interesting one as a brief aside. 117 00:06:42,600 --> 00:06:45,920 Speaker 1: I have heard people say before when you're talking about 118 00:06:45,920 --> 00:06:50,279 Speaker 1: disney history, like you do, which I do. Uh, there's 119 00:06:50,320 --> 00:06:52,960 Speaker 1: often this misconception that the World's Fair actually came before 120 00:06:52,960 --> 00:06:57,520 Speaker 1: Disneyland opened, and that because some of the pieces that 121 00:06:57,560 --> 00:07:00,320 Speaker 1: Walt worked on for the World's Fair moved into disney Land. 122 00:07:00,360 --> 00:07:03,039 Speaker 1: I think there's been this confusion about the timing of 123 00:07:03,040 --> 00:07:06,400 Speaker 1: when Disneyland happened, but in fact it was up and running. 124 00:07:07,040 --> 00:07:11,920 Speaker 1: They just paused on all current projects. Um, because those 125 00:07:11,920 --> 00:07:14,400 Speaker 1: four projects that Walt was doing for the World's Fair 126 00:07:14,560 --> 00:07:16,800 Speaker 1: ate up all of his time and all of the 127 00:07:16,840 --> 00:07:19,640 Speaker 1: time of the designers and artists that he routinely used, 128 00:07:19,680 --> 00:07:21,840 Speaker 1: because he had put them all to work on these 129 00:07:21,880 --> 00:07:25,640 Speaker 1: World's Fair projects. Uh So every project for Disneyland that 130 00:07:25,680 --> 00:07:28,400 Speaker 1: was going on, including the Haunted Mansion, was just going 131 00:07:28,440 --> 00:07:30,400 Speaker 1: to have to wait until the attractions for the New 132 00:07:30,480 --> 00:07:35,080 Speaker 1: York displays were complete. Once the World's Fair projects were completed, 133 00:07:35,200 --> 00:07:36,800 Speaker 1: it was time to go back to the Haunted Mansion. 134 00:07:38,040 --> 00:07:41,520 Speaker 1: So in July nineteen sixty four, the team was reassembled 135 00:07:41,760 --> 00:07:44,440 Speaker 1: and it shuffled around a little bit. Ken Anderson had 136 00:07:44,440 --> 00:07:47,200 Speaker 1: gone back to work in the studios, but Rollie Crump 137 00:07:47,200 --> 00:07:50,320 Speaker 1: and Yale Gracie returned to the mansion, and Walt added 138 00:07:50,360 --> 00:07:54,200 Speaker 1: Mark Davis, Claude Coats, and x Attensio to the mix. 139 00:07:54,640 --> 00:08:00,000 Speaker 1: X is short for Xavier yes Um and Mark David, 140 00:08:00,200 --> 00:08:03,280 Speaker 1: who had worked on other Disneyland attractions, was tasked with 141 00:08:03,400 --> 00:08:06,200 Speaker 1: creating the inhabitants of the mansion, so the ghosts were 142 00:08:06,280 --> 00:08:09,520 Speaker 1: under him. Uh. Claude Coates put his skills as a 143 00:08:09,560 --> 00:08:13,440 Speaker 1: background artist to work, uh, designing the environments throughout the attraction, 144 00:08:13,960 --> 00:08:16,760 Speaker 1: and Extencio worked on the script. He had just done 145 00:08:16,800 --> 00:08:19,920 Speaker 1: one for Pirates of the Caribbean, so every member had 146 00:08:19,960 --> 00:08:23,600 Speaker 1: a role to play and assigned duties. But they were 147 00:08:23,600 --> 00:08:26,480 Speaker 1: starting with kind of a clean slate story wise, so 148 00:08:26,600 --> 00:08:29,720 Speaker 1: initially they were all coming up with pitches for different 149 00:08:29,840 --> 00:08:33,000 Speaker 1: versions of the story that would run the Hide Mansion. Yeah, 150 00:08:33,080 --> 00:08:37,359 Speaker 1: and uh, just for clarification, so really Crump and um 151 00:08:37,440 --> 00:08:40,559 Speaker 1: Yale Gracie were still working on effects, so we didn't 152 00:08:40,600 --> 00:08:43,240 Speaker 1: mention them, but they were all still working on it. Uh. 153 00:08:43,240 --> 00:08:45,599 Speaker 1: And there was another major element of this reboot of 154 00:08:45,640 --> 00:08:49,240 Speaker 1: the project and that they had decided to add an omnimover, 155 00:08:49,400 --> 00:08:52,079 Speaker 1: which is a car system rather than a walk through 156 00:08:52,160 --> 00:08:54,760 Speaker 1: as had originally been envisioned, so that they could keep 157 00:08:54,800 --> 00:08:57,880 Speaker 1: people moving through this attraction at the rate of thousands 158 00:08:57,880 --> 00:09:00,320 Speaker 1: of people per hour. So that's how the Doomed Keys 159 00:09:00,360 --> 00:09:03,240 Speaker 1: were formed, uh, which are the cars that go through 160 00:09:03,240 --> 00:09:06,720 Speaker 1: the Haunted Mansion. And one of the installations that Disney 161 00:09:06,720 --> 00:09:08,720 Speaker 1: and his team had done for the World's Fair was 162 00:09:08,760 --> 00:09:11,680 Speaker 1: this people mover that had been developed in conjunction with 163 00:09:11,760 --> 00:09:14,760 Speaker 1: the Ford Motor Company. Uh, And it was basically this 164 00:09:14,840 --> 00:09:17,800 Speaker 1: omnimover system and that had been a really great success 165 00:09:18,360 --> 00:09:21,360 Speaker 1: at the World's Fair, so it pretty quickly was that 166 00:09:21,480 --> 00:09:24,160 Speaker 1: concept was adopted over, not just into the Haunted Mansion, 167 00:09:24,160 --> 00:09:27,880 Speaker 1: but in several places in Disney. That's a common element 168 00:09:28,000 --> 00:09:30,240 Speaker 1: that you will see. And there is still a people 169 00:09:30,280 --> 00:09:35,160 Speaker 1: mover Magic Kingdom. Oh, it's a magic Kingdom. You were right, 170 00:09:35,840 --> 00:09:38,040 Speaker 1: I was smashing them all in my head together. Well, 171 00:09:38,040 --> 00:09:40,520 Speaker 1: it seems it's in Tomorrowland, which is a little futuristic, 172 00:09:40,600 --> 00:09:42,800 Speaker 1: so people it's easy to do that, to slip it 173 00:09:42,840 --> 00:09:45,400 Speaker 1: over to like Epcot's Future World. Yeah, it's a great 174 00:09:45,440 --> 00:09:48,800 Speaker 1: place to take a break, especially if it's hot out 175 00:09:48,840 --> 00:09:50,920 Speaker 1: to eat a nice craol ride. You get to go 176 00:09:50,960 --> 00:09:53,559 Speaker 1: inside some of the attractions while you just sit placidly. 177 00:09:53,800 --> 00:09:57,160 Speaker 1: Pretty much anything that involves sitting in a boat or 178 00:09:57,200 --> 00:10:00,000 Speaker 1: sitting in a little car, yea for like ten minute, 179 00:10:00,080 --> 00:10:03,720 Speaker 1: about ten minutes awesome. Yes, Roly Crump's work when they 180 00:10:03,760 --> 00:10:06,280 Speaker 1: were working on concepts was way outside of what the 181 00:10:06,280 --> 00:10:09,440 Speaker 1: other men were working on, and even he admitted when 182 00:10:09,440 --> 00:10:12,439 Speaker 1: Watt was reviewing everybody's work, but he didn't know how 183 00:10:12,440 --> 00:10:15,400 Speaker 1: it fit into the attraction. He had designed things like 184 00:10:15,480 --> 00:10:19,959 Speaker 1: a melting candleman and as sentient walking chair. Yeah. So, 185 00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:22,520 Speaker 1: as they were all pitching these new versions of the 186 00:10:22,520 --> 00:10:25,120 Speaker 1: Haunted Mansion story and like how it would all go 187 00:10:25,200 --> 00:10:30,600 Speaker 1: together in terms of uh continuous thematic thread, Roly Crump 188 00:10:30,679 --> 00:10:33,440 Speaker 1: was just drawing these bizarre things that no one knew 189 00:10:33,440 --> 00:10:35,240 Speaker 1: what to do with, and he was off in his 190 00:10:35,280 --> 00:10:39,520 Speaker 1: own world of weak, weird kind of. I mean, he's 191 00:10:39,520 --> 00:10:42,400 Speaker 1: still alive today and he talks about it a lot. Uh, 192 00:10:42,440 --> 00:10:45,480 Speaker 1: But yeah, his style of art is really unique. Um, 193 00:10:45,520 --> 00:10:49,200 Speaker 1: it's now pretty much accepted that he his some of 194 00:10:49,240 --> 00:10:51,440 Speaker 1: his crazy designs are what led to the famous Damma 195 00:10:51,520 --> 00:10:54,640 Speaker 1: squallpaper that's got the eyeballs in the Haunted Mansion. For 196 00:10:54,679 --> 00:10:57,320 Speaker 1: a while, it was a matter of debate over where 197 00:10:57,360 --> 00:10:58,880 Speaker 1: that actually came from. But if you look at some 198 00:10:58,960 --> 00:11:01,679 Speaker 1: of his early sketch is and some of these works 199 00:11:01,720 --> 00:11:05,040 Speaker 1: he was puzzling over its very similar style to some 200 00:11:05,120 --> 00:11:09,760 Speaker 1: of the pieces there. Um. And so after having done 201 00:11:09,760 --> 00:11:12,120 Speaker 1: this review where Roly Crump is like, I don't know 202 00:11:12,160 --> 00:11:14,680 Speaker 1: how it fits in. It's I'm just spit bawling weird 203 00:11:14,760 --> 00:11:17,440 Speaker 1: things that I think, are you know, a little bit 204 00:11:17,520 --> 00:11:20,400 Speaker 1: more new and interesting than the standard like haunted mansion 205 00:11:20,480 --> 00:11:23,360 Speaker 1: fair Um, because you know, he didn't want to do 206 00:11:23,400 --> 00:11:25,520 Speaker 1: the same stuff that any other haunted house would have. 207 00:11:25,600 --> 00:11:28,679 Speaker 1: He wanted unique and interesting and outside of what people 208 00:11:28,720 --> 00:11:33,920 Speaker 1: had experienced before. Uh So, apparently after not sleeping on it. 209 00:11:34,200 --> 00:11:37,520 Speaker 1: Because interviews with Crump, he loves to tell this story, 210 00:11:37,760 --> 00:11:42,200 Speaker 1: and he specifically always mentions that when uh Waltz comes 211 00:11:42,240 --> 00:11:44,120 Speaker 1: to see him the next morning, that he was actually 212 00:11:44,160 --> 00:11:46,360 Speaker 1: there before really Crump got there, sitting in his chair. 213 00:11:46,760 --> 00:11:48,760 Speaker 1: He was wearing the same clothes as the day before, 214 00:11:48,800 --> 00:11:50,480 Speaker 1: and said that he couldn't get any sleep because he 215 00:11:50,520 --> 00:11:53,760 Speaker 1: was thinking about what to do with these designs. Walt 216 00:11:53,800 --> 00:11:56,280 Speaker 1: had decided at that point that Role's designs were going 217 00:11:56,320 --> 00:11:58,760 Speaker 1: to be part of what he called a museum of 218 00:11:58,760 --> 00:12:00,920 Speaker 1: the weird that would fall at the end of the 219 00:12:00,960 --> 00:12:03,400 Speaker 1: attraction as guest exited, and that they could walk through 220 00:12:03,400 --> 00:12:06,080 Speaker 1: at their own pace, so kind of the way that people, 221 00:12:06,520 --> 00:12:10,559 Speaker 1: um will know, now, many rides in any Disney park 222 00:12:10,600 --> 00:12:12,400 Speaker 1: will kind of shoot you out into a gift shop. 223 00:12:12,880 --> 00:12:15,800 Speaker 1: This was going to shoot you out into this weird museum. Yeah, 224 00:12:16,160 --> 00:12:20,360 Speaker 1: Roly Crump's Museum of the weird. Once Crump had been 225 00:12:20,400 --> 00:12:23,400 Speaker 1: tasked with making this museum show, he came up with 226 00:12:23,480 --> 00:12:27,120 Speaker 1: all kinds of odd and wonderful things for it. He 227 00:12:27,240 --> 00:12:29,880 Speaker 1: pulled out things he'd worked on earlier in the attractions 228 00:12:29,920 --> 00:12:33,760 Speaker 1: development process and embellished their designs, and he envisioned lots 229 00:12:33,760 --> 00:12:35,640 Speaker 1: of things that will kind of ring familiar to those 230 00:12:35,679 --> 00:12:38,880 Speaker 1: who've been to the Haunted Mansion in Disneyland or disney World, 231 00:12:39,280 --> 00:12:44,000 Speaker 1: like a seance with floating furniture, marble busts whose gazes 232 00:12:44,200 --> 00:12:49,000 Speaker 1: followed the guests, portraits that morphed and changed before people's eyes. 233 00:12:49,360 --> 00:12:57,800 Speaker 1: There was even a haunted fortune teller's cart. Shall we 234 00:12:57,840 --> 00:13:00,400 Speaker 1: get back to the Haunted Mansion? Nothing would these people? 235 00:13:01,200 --> 00:13:05,760 Speaker 1: I love it so much so all Disneyland projects, including 236 00:13:05,920 --> 00:13:09,640 Speaker 1: the Haunted Mansion, went back on hold again when it 237 00:13:09,720 --> 00:13:12,040 Speaker 1: was time for the installations at the World's Fair to 238 00:13:12,120 --> 00:13:15,640 Speaker 1: be moved into their permanent residence in Disneyland, And even 239 00:13:15,720 --> 00:13:19,760 Speaker 1: after the task was completed, other projects were then prioritized 240 00:13:19,800 --> 00:13:23,600 Speaker 1: over the now basically beleaguered Haunted Mansion. Yeah, that's poor. 241 00:13:23,640 --> 00:13:26,280 Speaker 1: Things been going on forever. They just were trying to 242 00:13:26,360 --> 00:13:29,400 Speaker 1: drag it to the finish line. Empty buildings, standing there 243 00:13:29,400 --> 00:13:31,440 Speaker 1: with a sign in front of it. Nobody can go 244 00:13:31,480 --> 00:13:34,040 Speaker 1: in because there's not stuff in it. Yet. People are like, 245 00:13:34,320 --> 00:13:39,760 Speaker 1: wasn't this supposed to been years ago? Yes? Uh, and 246 00:13:39,800 --> 00:13:43,640 Speaker 1: then things kind of take a really rough turn. At 247 00:13:43,640 --> 00:13:45,839 Speaker 1: this point, Pirates of the Caribbean is under construction and 248 00:13:45,880 --> 00:13:50,480 Speaker 1: almost complete, I think. Uh. Tomorrowland was being refurbished, work 249 00:13:50,520 --> 00:13:54,000 Speaker 1: on a second park in Florida was underway, and Walt died, 250 00:13:54,440 --> 00:13:56,199 Speaker 1: and to some people it seemed very sudden, But I 251 00:13:56,240 --> 00:13:58,000 Speaker 1: think it's one of those cases where he never talked 252 00:13:58,000 --> 00:14:01,280 Speaker 1: about being sick. Uh. He had undergone a surgery in 253 00:14:01,280 --> 00:14:03,840 Speaker 1: November of nineteen sixty six to remove a tumor in 254 00:14:03,880 --> 00:14:06,200 Speaker 1: his lung that had been discovered when he went in 255 00:14:06,200 --> 00:14:08,280 Speaker 1: for treatment of a neck injury that he had gotten 256 00:14:08,480 --> 00:14:12,640 Speaker 1: from a sporting injury. Uh, and then just that following month, 257 00:14:12,679 --> 00:14:15,360 Speaker 1: December fifteenth of that same year, he died of acute 258 00:14:15,400 --> 00:14:19,400 Speaker 1: circulatory collapse that was associated with his lung cancer. So 259 00:14:19,560 --> 00:14:23,200 Speaker 1: this was really just emotionally devastating for the people who 260 00:14:23,200 --> 00:14:26,320 Speaker 1: worked for him, and losing Walt meant that there was 261 00:14:26,400 --> 00:14:29,640 Speaker 1: no longer a referee in the whole Haunted Mansion project, 262 00:14:29,640 --> 00:14:33,120 Speaker 1: which had always had a problem of just big personalities 263 00:14:33,240 --> 00:14:36,520 Speaker 1: clashing and disagreeing over how to do things. Yeah, and 264 00:14:36,640 --> 00:14:38,280 Speaker 1: especially when it's set up in that way where you 265 00:14:38,320 --> 00:14:40,120 Speaker 1: have a lot of really brilliant people and you're like, 266 00:14:40,240 --> 00:14:42,400 Speaker 1: everybody pitched me a new version of this, and they 267 00:14:42,440 --> 00:14:44,520 Speaker 1: all want their's to be the one that goes forward. 268 00:14:44,520 --> 00:14:49,240 Speaker 1: Of course, it could be contentious. Um and with or 269 00:14:49,400 --> 00:14:52,400 Speaker 1: W E D leadership felt that the best solution at 270 00:14:52,400 --> 00:14:54,680 Speaker 1: this point was to put the team of Mark Davis 271 00:14:54,680 --> 00:14:58,240 Speaker 1: and Claude Coats in charge of the mansion. Uh. At 272 00:14:58,240 --> 00:15:00,640 Speaker 1: this point, the Haunt the Pirates of the Caribbean had launched, 273 00:15:00,640 --> 00:15:02,680 Speaker 1: and they had worked a lot on it and it 274 00:15:02,720 --> 00:15:07,720 Speaker 1: had been very successful, so they seemed like the ideal team. However, 275 00:15:07,880 --> 00:15:10,960 Speaker 1: it turned out that after that big success, each of 276 00:15:11,000 --> 00:15:12,840 Speaker 1: the men kind of felt like he should be the 277 00:15:12,840 --> 00:15:14,720 Speaker 1: one that was in charge, with the other taking a 278 00:15:14,800 --> 00:15:18,520 Speaker 1: secondary management role. And you can imagine how well that 279 00:15:18,600 --> 00:15:21,520 Speaker 1: played out. Yeah. At this point, there had been a 280 00:15:21,560 --> 00:15:25,920 Speaker 1: decade of exasperating on again, off again production, and then 281 00:15:25,920 --> 00:15:28,800 Speaker 1: there was the grief over the loss of Disney. The 282 00:15:28,920 --> 00:15:32,360 Speaker 1: headbutting of the two leaders created this perfect storm for 283 00:15:32,440 --> 00:15:35,960 Speaker 1: what had become really one of the most contentious battles 284 00:15:36,000 --> 00:15:40,480 Speaker 1: in Disney imagineering history. It sounds silly, but the question 285 00:15:40,600 --> 00:15:44,200 Speaker 1: of whether the Haunted Mansion should be funny or scary 286 00:15:44,720 --> 00:15:47,720 Speaker 1: caused these huge arguments and a giant split in the 287 00:15:47,760 --> 00:15:52,520 Speaker 1: development team. Yeah, Mark Davis really preferred more of the funny, 288 00:15:52,680 --> 00:15:56,640 Speaker 1: character driven stuff, whereas Coates, who was an environmental designer, 289 00:15:56,720 --> 00:16:01,080 Speaker 1: wanted it to be about spooky, scary erie. Because they 290 00:16:01,080 --> 00:16:03,680 Speaker 1: were having such a hard time co managing this project, 291 00:16:04,160 --> 00:16:06,760 Speaker 1: it just became this tug of war between these two concepts, 292 00:16:06,800 --> 00:16:09,080 Speaker 1: and designers were kind of lining up on either side 293 00:16:09,080 --> 00:16:13,080 Speaker 1: of the debate, and it really was just constant bickering 294 00:16:13,760 --> 00:16:17,560 Speaker 1: over something. It seems so small, but you can see 295 00:16:17,560 --> 00:16:19,360 Speaker 1: how when the stakes are high, because it is a 296 00:16:19,440 --> 00:16:21,680 Speaker 1: thing that's gone on forever. You have just lost your leader, 297 00:16:22,960 --> 00:16:25,960 Speaker 1: you are a little chuffed with your you know, success, 298 00:16:25,960 --> 00:16:27,640 Speaker 1: and feel like you're not maybe not getting as much 299 00:16:27,680 --> 00:16:29,240 Speaker 1: credit as you want. You could see how it could 300 00:16:29,320 --> 00:16:32,760 Speaker 1: quickly become this boiler pot, especially with a bunch of 301 00:16:32,760 --> 00:16:36,200 Speaker 1: creative people. Well, I'm a creative people. I'm married to 302 00:16:36,240 --> 00:16:41,040 Speaker 1: a creative person, and I know we can have some tempers. Yeah, 303 00:16:41,200 --> 00:16:43,840 Speaker 1: you know what I think is funny what the jump 304 00:16:43,880 --> 00:16:47,000 Speaker 1: scare at the very beginning of the ride, when all 305 00:16:47,040 --> 00:16:51,640 Speaker 1: the little kids completely lose their minds. This is because 306 00:16:51,680 --> 00:16:54,480 Speaker 1: I'm a terrible person. Now it's fun. It is fun. 307 00:16:54,560 --> 00:16:57,120 Speaker 1: I mean, it's you're kind of enjoying everyone experiencing it. 308 00:16:57,200 --> 00:16:59,120 Speaker 1: And for some people it is the terror of it. 309 00:16:59,520 --> 00:17:02,440 Speaker 1: And it's that's part of like what makes any haunted 310 00:17:02,480 --> 00:17:05,040 Speaker 1: house like kind of fun is watching people freak out, 311 00:17:05,119 --> 00:17:07,879 Speaker 1: So I understand, So how do they get over this? 312 00:17:07,960 --> 00:17:12,440 Speaker 1: Holly Well, eventually, um Dick Irvine, Richard Irvine, who was 313 00:17:12,560 --> 00:17:15,640 Speaker 1: the w E D Vice president of design, he kind 314 00:17:15,680 --> 00:17:19,320 Speaker 1: of sided more with Mark Davis's vision and so at 315 00:17:19,359 --> 00:17:22,199 Speaker 1: least verbally, that was how it settled. But even so, 316 00:17:22,280 --> 00:17:25,880 Speaker 1: the attraction kind of is segmented, and if you think 317 00:17:25,920 --> 00:17:28,760 Speaker 1: about it when you go through it, it's almost like, 318 00:17:28,880 --> 00:17:31,560 Speaker 1: here's the Cloud Coats part, Here's the Mark Davis part. 319 00:17:32,040 --> 00:17:34,880 Speaker 1: Um Coats's vision for the Moody and Creepy is really 320 00:17:34,920 --> 00:17:36,760 Speaker 1: more the first half of the ride, like when you're 321 00:17:36,760 --> 00:17:39,919 Speaker 1: going through all those environments and you're seeing you know, 322 00:17:39,960 --> 00:17:42,359 Speaker 1: the creepy coffin with the guy talking out of it 323 00:17:42,440 --> 00:17:46,600 Speaker 1: and the long hallway trip and there aren't a lot 324 00:17:46,640 --> 00:17:49,080 Speaker 1: of characters about there aren't a lot of like ghosts 325 00:17:49,080 --> 00:17:52,119 Speaker 1: that you see. You have like this about mood, like 326 00:17:52,200 --> 00:17:55,840 Speaker 1: the doors that are knocking themselves exactly. And then the 327 00:17:55,920 --> 00:17:59,520 Speaker 1: second half becomes more about the characters and the illusions 328 00:18:00,080 --> 00:18:02,280 Speaker 1: that Mark Davis was really a fan of. So that's 329 00:18:02,280 --> 00:18:05,720 Speaker 1: when you start seeing the ghosts in the ballroom and um, 330 00:18:05,840 --> 00:18:09,960 Speaker 1: you know Leo to Seance and all of those elements 331 00:18:09,960 --> 00:18:14,760 Speaker 1: and the Big Peppers ghost illusion which is the ballroom. Um, 332 00:18:15,040 --> 00:18:17,000 Speaker 1: that's when all of that happened. So it's kind of 333 00:18:17,040 --> 00:18:20,240 Speaker 1: like the ambiance portion at the front and then the 334 00:18:20,760 --> 00:18:24,120 Speaker 1: funner we're gonna set the stage and then we're gonna 335 00:18:24,160 --> 00:18:26,480 Speaker 1: have a story. Yeah, And some people have even said, 336 00:18:26,520 --> 00:18:30,040 Speaker 1: like as a this kind of set up a perfect 337 00:18:30,080 --> 00:18:32,240 Speaker 1: like act break to the story of the Haunted Mansion, 338 00:18:32,320 --> 00:18:34,520 Speaker 1: that it did break out in that way that one 339 00:18:34,560 --> 00:18:38,040 Speaker 1: half favors one design philosophy and one half favors the other. 340 00:18:39,920 --> 00:18:44,399 Speaker 1: So this was only ex Atensio's second ride script. Before 341 00:18:44,480 --> 00:18:46,479 Speaker 1: he had written the script for Pirates, he had been 342 00:18:46,520 --> 00:18:49,159 Speaker 1: a storyboard artist who worked in the story department at 343 00:18:49,160 --> 00:18:51,600 Speaker 1: Disney Studios, and it failed to him to find some 344 00:18:51,680 --> 00:18:54,800 Speaker 1: kind of way to marry all these disparate elements that 345 00:18:54,880 --> 00:18:58,199 Speaker 1: had been thrown out by this team that was of 346 00:18:58,280 --> 00:19:03,680 Speaker 1: two different kind of incompatible stylistic minds. Yeah, poor guy 347 00:19:04,320 --> 00:19:07,119 Speaker 1: just like makes sense of this. We've built it, figure 348 00:19:07,119 --> 00:19:09,440 Speaker 1: some outing out well, and you and I both edit 349 00:19:09,680 --> 00:19:11,919 Speaker 1: as some of our work here. Yeah, And we know 350 00:19:12,040 --> 00:19:14,719 Speaker 1: that feeling when you get something that is like somebody 351 00:19:14,800 --> 00:19:17,119 Speaker 1: sent you their notes salad and you're like, how do 352 00:19:17,160 --> 00:19:21,520 Speaker 1: I make this note salad into a thing one thing 353 00:19:21,800 --> 00:19:25,639 Speaker 1: that's not note salad. Now picture two note salads and 354 00:19:25,680 --> 00:19:28,760 Speaker 1: they argue with each other and you have to find 355 00:19:28,760 --> 00:19:30,960 Speaker 1: a way to make peace. And if you've ever seen 356 00:19:31,400 --> 00:19:36,200 Speaker 1: interviews with Extensio, I have to say I can see 357 00:19:36,240 --> 00:19:38,399 Speaker 1: where he was the perfect person for this job because 358 00:19:38,400 --> 00:19:43,520 Speaker 1: he has a very um calm demeanor. He seems very 359 00:19:43,560 --> 00:19:48,399 Speaker 1: you know, sweet and earnest, uh, but also extremely smart. 360 00:19:49,040 --> 00:19:51,639 Speaker 1: And so you can see where and and he'll talk 361 00:19:51,680 --> 00:19:53,919 Speaker 1: about often how you know, while Disney one of his 362 00:19:53,960 --> 00:19:57,600 Speaker 1: greatest um what Exctencio feels is one of Disney's greatest 363 00:19:57,920 --> 00:20:01,040 Speaker 1: triumphs was that he could see people were capable of 364 00:20:01,119 --> 00:20:02,600 Speaker 1: even if they had never done it and didn't know 365 00:20:02,640 --> 00:20:05,239 Speaker 1: they could. Uh. And so that's kind of how he 366 00:20:05,280 --> 00:20:07,959 Speaker 1: became a scriptwriter on shows. Disney just said, I think 367 00:20:07,960 --> 00:20:09,159 Speaker 1: you're the guy to do this, and he's like, I 368 00:20:09,200 --> 00:20:11,240 Speaker 1: don't know how to do this, You'll be fine, and 369 00:20:11,280 --> 00:20:13,920 Speaker 1: he was. Uh. And so in the end he drew 370 00:20:14,000 --> 00:20:17,680 Speaker 1: inspiration from that real estate signed copy that Marty Sclar 371 00:20:17,800 --> 00:20:20,800 Speaker 1: had written. And so that's how he wove the story 372 00:20:20,840 --> 00:20:24,840 Speaker 1: of the nine happy Haunts throughout the Haunted Mansion that 373 00:20:24,840 --> 00:20:27,280 Speaker 1: are ready to recruit number one thousand and it could 374 00:20:27,280 --> 00:20:30,359 Speaker 1: be you. So all the way from the stretching portrait 375 00:20:30,440 --> 00:20:34,000 Speaker 1: room to the hitchhiking ghosts, it's all about, you know, 376 00:20:34,080 --> 00:20:37,080 Speaker 1: these many different spirits that have made their home in 377 00:20:37,080 --> 00:20:40,200 Speaker 1: the Haunted Mansion and how they would love to invite 378 00:20:40,240 --> 00:20:43,280 Speaker 1: another member, which I think it's kind of fabulous and 379 00:20:43,760 --> 00:20:47,119 Speaker 1: an ingenious solution to this problem. Well, and it wound 380 00:20:47,200 --> 00:20:51,119 Speaker 1: up being a really memorable one. Yeah. I've been to 381 00:20:51,160 --> 00:20:53,240 Speaker 1: Disney twice in my life, once when I was five 382 00:20:53,320 --> 00:20:58,240 Speaker 1: and once when I was in my late thirties. Uh. 383 00:20:58,320 --> 00:21:00,920 Speaker 1: And from that five year old to me, you watch 384 00:21:00,960 --> 00:21:06,879 Speaker 1: me freak out and um, one of the because you know, 385 00:21:06,880 --> 00:21:09,880 Speaker 1: you don't remember giant piles of stuff when you were 386 00:21:09,960 --> 00:21:13,520 Speaker 1: five it's usually impression, kind of piecemeal. And one of 387 00:21:13,560 --> 00:21:16,600 Speaker 1: the few absolutely clear memories I have of Disney from 388 00:21:16,640 --> 00:21:19,000 Speaker 1: the trip when I was five is the hitchhiking ghosts 389 00:21:19,040 --> 00:21:23,320 Speaker 1: in the Haunted region. Yes, they're very lovable. I think 390 00:21:23,320 --> 00:21:25,879 Speaker 1: I was quite concerned that one of them actually was 391 00:21:25,920 --> 00:21:28,240 Speaker 1: coming home with me. I'm always quite sad that they're 392 00:21:28,280 --> 00:21:32,919 Speaker 1: not in the car when I leave. Like Phinny has 393 00:21:33,000 --> 00:21:45,000 Speaker 1: come on so at long last. On August nine, nineteen 394 00:21:45,160 --> 00:21:49,679 Speaker 1: sixty nine, more than eighteen years after the product had started, 395 00:21:49,760 --> 00:21:53,199 Speaker 1: and six years after the empty house that appeared on 396 00:21:53,440 --> 00:21:57,960 Speaker 1: in a corner of Disneyland, finally the Haunted Mansion opened 397 00:21:58,200 --> 00:22:01,080 Speaker 1: its doors. Yeah, if you ever want perspective on a 398 00:22:01,160 --> 00:22:04,879 Speaker 1: work project, just remember like Golf was doing his designs, 399 00:22:04,960 --> 00:22:08,680 Speaker 1: his first sketches in I also want to gripe away 400 00:22:08,760 --> 00:22:12,320 Speaker 1: less about like video games that get perpetually delayed or 401 00:22:12,400 --> 00:22:15,520 Speaker 1: maybe never happen. Usually that does not go on for 402 00:22:15,600 --> 00:22:20,200 Speaker 1: eighteen years. Yeah, that's it's a long time. And I 403 00:22:20,240 --> 00:22:22,640 Speaker 1: can only and I think that also led to kind 404 00:22:22,640 --> 00:22:25,320 Speaker 1: of some of the I mean, we we talked about 405 00:22:25,320 --> 00:22:28,160 Speaker 1: it tying in, but I can only imagine the fever 406 00:22:28,320 --> 00:22:32,119 Speaker 1: pitch of potential frustration and just taught nerves by the 407 00:22:32,240 --> 00:22:34,160 Speaker 1: end of it. While they're having all those arguments about 408 00:22:34,160 --> 00:22:36,600 Speaker 1: the style of it, and they've just been on this 409 00:22:36,680 --> 00:22:39,959 Speaker 1: project for some of them a decade or more, just 410 00:22:40,080 --> 00:22:42,240 Speaker 1: be it. They just probably want it done and they 411 00:22:42,240 --> 00:22:43,800 Speaker 1: want to go home and have a life. That has 412 00:22:43,920 --> 00:22:47,520 Speaker 1: nothing to do with the hont To Mansion. But it 413 00:22:47,600 --> 00:22:50,840 Speaker 1: was immensely successful from day one. There are photographs from 414 00:22:50,880 --> 00:22:52,600 Speaker 1: day one where you can just see the crowd. Just 415 00:22:52,720 --> 00:22:56,400 Speaker 1: the line goes on forever. Uh. And a week later, 416 00:22:56,480 --> 00:23:00,439 Speaker 1: the Haunted Mansion set a single day attendance record. Two thousand, 417 00:23:00,480 --> 00:23:04,560 Speaker 1: five hundred and sixteen guests went through its doors one day. 418 00:23:05,040 --> 00:23:07,760 Speaker 1: I have a hard time imagining that many people's leader. 419 00:23:08,119 --> 00:23:12,200 Speaker 1: That's how that works. So there was a rumor leading 420 00:23:12,280 --> 00:23:14,439 Speaker 1: up to the opening that one of the reporters at 421 00:23:14,440 --> 00:23:17,760 Speaker 1: a press viewing had had a heart attack and died, 422 00:23:18,000 --> 00:23:20,840 Speaker 1: causing the ride to be redesigned at the last minute. 423 00:23:21,440 --> 00:23:24,960 Speaker 1: Extensio has said that the preview period for attractions always 424 00:23:25,000 --> 00:23:29,480 Speaker 1: reveals some problems that need tweaking, but no, no one 425 00:23:29,600 --> 00:23:32,960 Speaker 1: died of fright. One of the early tweaks to the 426 00:23:33,040 --> 00:23:35,439 Speaker 1: ride was the removal of a character that is now 427 00:23:35,480 --> 00:23:38,560 Speaker 1: referred to as the hat Box Ghost. And this is 428 00:23:38,640 --> 00:23:40,960 Speaker 1: one that if you are into Disney, particularly if you're 429 00:23:41,000 --> 00:23:44,399 Speaker 1: into the Haunt imagine you know about uh. This featured 430 00:23:44,400 --> 00:23:47,320 Speaker 1: an elderly looking ghost that was holding surprise a hat box, 431 00:23:47,960 --> 00:23:49,919 Speaker 1: and his head was supposed to vanish off of his 432 00:23:49,960 --> 00:23:52,040 Speaker 1: shoulders and then appear in the hat box and then 433 00:23:52,040 --> 00:23:55,760 Speaker 1: switch back again. But the allusion never worked quite right. 434 00:23:56,240 --> 00:23:58,399 Speaker 1: It didn't work as planned at the angle at which 435 00:23:58,800 --> 00:24:01,359 Speaker 1: guests would see it in the place that it was 436 00:24:01,359 --> 00:24:04,480 Speaker 1: meant to go in the mansion from their doom buggies, 437 00:24:04,960 --> 00:24:06,960 Speaker 1: so it just never worked well enough and they ended 438 00:24:07,000 --> 00:24:09,560 Speaker 1: up pulling it really quickly because they didn't want a 439 00:24:09,600 --> 00:24:12,440 Speaker 1: mediocre effect. Um. And as I said, the hat Box 440 00:24:12,480 --> 00:24:16,119 Speaker 1: Ghost is now immensely popular amongst Hana Mansion fans. H 441 00:24:16,160 --> 00:24:19,080 Speaker 1: An updated version of it appeared at d twenty three, 442 00:24:19,080 --> 00:24:22,679 Speaker 1: which is the official Disney convention, just last month so 443 00:24:22,720 --> 00:24:26,360 Speaker 1: this summer, and there have been rumors that if Germo 444 00:24:26,440 --> 00:24:29,040 Speaker 1: del Toro's Haunted Mansion movie ever comes to Fruition, which 445 00:24:29,080 --> 00:24:31,520 Speaker 1: is another on again, off again, on again, off again, 446 00:24:31,960 --> 00:24:34,639 Speaker 1: people say it's canceled. Gaermma Deltor will say in an interview. No, 447 00:24:34,720 --> 00:24:38,120 Speaker 1: we're still working on it, so we don't really know. Uh, 448 00:24:38,359 --> 00:24:40,400 Speaker 1: but the rumor is that the good old hat Box 449 00:24:40,440 --> 00:24:43,600 Speaker 1: Ghost will be prominently featured. But what plans, if any 450 00:24:43,640 --> 00:24:45,840 Speaker 1: Disney really has for the character is not known to 451 00:24:45,840 --> 00:24:48,639 Speaker 1: the public at this time to the best of my knowledge. 452 00:24:48,720 --> 00:24:53,639 Speaker 1: So hopefully hat Box comes back. There is a I 453 00:24:53,680 --> 00:24:55,560 Speaker 1: think there is a site called well, I know that 454 00:24:55,600 --> 00:24:58,240 Speaker 1: they're a site called doom Buggies dot com, and I 455 00:24:58,280 --> 00:25:00,320 Speaker 1: think they have a picture that someone may naged to 456 00:25:00,359 --> 00:25:03,240 Speaker 1: take very early on in those either preview days or 457 00:25:03,280 --> 00:25:05,080 Speaker 1: one of the first days that it was open before 458 00:25:05,080 --> 00:25:07,000 Speaker 1: it got pulled, where you can see what the hat 459 00:25:07,000 --> 00:25:11,199 Speaker 1: Box Ghost looks like. Nice. He's very popular. Versions of 460 00:25:11,240 --> 00:25:14,000 Speaker 1: the Haunted Mansion have been installed in Walt disney World 461 00:25:14,000 --> 00:25:19,000 Speaker 1: in Florida and Tokyo Disneyland. Reimagined versions of the attraction 462 00:25:19,119 --> 00:25:23,439 Speaker 1: appear in Disneyland, Paris and Hong Kong. Disneyland. Phantom Manner 463 00:25:23,520 --> 00:25:26,280 Speaker 1: in Paris is set in a wild West mining town, 464 00:25:26,440 --> 00:25:30,320 Speaker 1: and Mystic Manner in Hong Kong has an adventurer kind 465 00:25:30,320 --> 00:25:33,919 Speaker 1: of world explorer theme. Yeah, it's almost for people that 466 00:25:34,280 --> 00:25:37,280 Speaker 1: have been to Disney and years prior this place is 467 00:25:37,320 --> 00:25:38,840 Speaker 1: now closed, but there used to be a place in 468 00:25:38,880 --> 00:25:41,840 Speaker 1: Downtown Disney called the Adventurers Club, which is kind of 469 00:25:41,840 --> 00:25:44,119 Speaker 1: like an old school hunting club, like the place you 470 00:25:44,160 --> 00:25:47,480 Speaker 1: would expect to see Hemingway hanging out. Uh. And the 471 00:25:48,080 --> 00:25:50,600 Speaker 1: Mystic manner is almost like a marriage of that concept 472 00:25:50,640 --> 00:25:54,280 Speaker 1: and the Haunted Mansion idea, so they have slightly different twists. 473 00:25:54,359 --> 00:25:57,879 Speaker 1: The Phantom manner is fascinating and it has really good music. 474 00:25:58,200 --> 00:26:01,320 Speaker 1: Mystic Manner has music done by day any Elfman, so 475 00:26:01,440 --> 00:26:05,800 Speaker 1: you know it's awesome. Each holiday season, the original Anaheim 476 00:26:06,320 --> 00:26:09,760 Speaker 1: Hanted Mansion in the Tokyo Disneyland Haunted Mansion, UH, they 477 00:26:09,800 --> 00:26:12,320 Speaker 1: both get a nightmare before Christmas overlay, which is called 478 00:26:12,320 --> 00:26:15,439 Speaker 1: Haunted Mansion Holiday. And so from roughly the beginning of 479 00:26:15,440 --> 00:26:17,639 Speaker 1: October through the end of the year and usually the 480 00:26:17,640 --> 00:26:20,159 Speaker 1: first couple of days of January, instead of going and 481 00:26:20,160 --> 00:26:22,840 Speaker 1: seeing the usual haunts that you would see on the attraction, 482 00:26:23,280 --> 00:26:25,720 Speaker 1: the visitors get to see Jack and Sally and Zero 483 00:26:25,840 --> 00:26:27,960 Speaker 1: and Oogie Boogie and the rest of the inhabitants of 484 00:26:28,000 --> 00:26:30,600 Speaker 1: Halloween Town because it's kind of turned into a Halloween 485 00:26:30,640 --> 00:26:33,680 Speaker 1: Town situation and it is amazing. I cried the first 486 00:26:33,720 --> 00:26:35,200 Speaker 1: time I was on, and I'm not embarrassed to tell 487 00:26:35,200 --> 00:26:39,320 Speaker 1: you because I also love Nightmare before Christmas. Um, it's lovely. 488 00:26:39,359 --> 00:26:40,800 Speaker 1: I wish I could go every year, but I never 489 00:26:40,840 --> 00:26:44,800 Speaker 1: managed to do so. So uh, probably will not be 490 00:26:44,960 --> 00:26:48,200 Speaker 1: a surprise to anyone that there have been many, many 491 00:26:48,240 --> 00:26:51,240 Speaker 1: claims of actual ghost sightings in the various haunted mansions 492 00:26:51,280 --> 00:26:54,600 Speaker 1: around the world, both by guests and by cast members. 493 00:26:55,280 --> 00:26:59,080 Speaker 1: He and there's always the stories of people scattering ashes 494 00:26:59,119 --> 00:27:02,480 Speaker 1: in the mansion. I don't like that idea, no, and 495 00:27:02,560 --> 00:27:05,600 Speaker 1: Disney doesn't either. I don't know if there have ever 496 00:27:05,640 --> 00:27:10,199 Speaker 1: been any confirmed ones, but uh, you'll hear kind of 497 00:27:10,240 --> 00:27:12,439 Speaker 1: apocryphal stories where people are like, no, we vacuum that 498 00:27:12,600 --> 00:27:15,320 Speaker 1: right up. Um, So if you think you might want 499 00:27:15,320 --> 00:27:18,719 Speaker 1: to do that, no, that you're not. Really They're going 500 00:27:18,760 --> 00:27:22,120 Speaker 1: to end up in a vacuum, and that seems inconsiderate 501 00:27:22,200 --> 00:27:25,720 Speaker 1: of Yeah, it's not good, you know. I don't want 502 00:27:25,720 --> 00:27:29,520 Speaker 1: to dison how people choose to express their grief and 503 00:27:29,760 --> 00:27:33,280 Speaker 1: their wishes of loved ones. I do not really approve 504 00:27:33,320 --> 00:27:37,119 Speaker 1: of the idea of getting other people's remains on me 505 00:27:38,080 --> 00:27:39,959 Speaker 1: while I'm in a theme park. Rod I adn't right, 506 00:27:40,000 --> 00:27:42,480 Speaker 1: I understand there's no where I would rather be scattered, 507 00:27:42,560 --> 00:27:46,560 Speaker 1: but you know, those are the rules. And what is 508 00:27:46,840 --> 00:27:50,080 Speaker 1: missing in this final build of the Haunted Mansion was 509 00:27:50,200 --> 00:27:53,400 Speaker 1: Raley Crump's Museum of the Weird because as they were, 510 00:27:53,960 --> 00:27:56,560 Speaker 1: you know, really ramping up towards the that last chunk 511 00:27:56,600 --> 00:27:59,840 Speaker 1: of production, they realized it wasn't gonna work. Um, So 512 00:28:00,080 --> 00:28:02,320 Speaker 1: it got scrapped. But many of his ideas for the 513 00:28:02,400 --> 00:28:06,560 Speaker 1: museum are in the attraction itself. Uh And as we mentioned, 514 00:28:06,560 --> 00:28:08,720 Speaker 1: like the seance room with the floating furniture that was 515 00:28:08,760 --> 00:28:13,879 Speaker 1: his idea originally. The busts that follow people, which is 516 00:28:13,920 --> 00:28:17,359 Speaker 1: a really cool trick. They're actually cast in recess, so 517 00:28:17,400 --> 00:28:20,200 Speaker 1: they're set back and it's just kind of a natural 518 00:28:20,240 --> 00:28:23,359 Speaker 1: cool effect that when you go by the way they're painted, 519 00:28:23,400 --> 00:28:26,439 Speaker 1: they look like they're bus standing outside, but they're actually 520 00:28:26,440 --> 00:28:31,119 Speaker 1: a negative and it looks like they're following you. It's awesome. Um. 521 00:28:31,160 --> 00:28:35,119 Speaker 1: And what's interesting is that, um there is in some 522 00:28:35,240 --> 00:28:38,200 Speaker 1: of the parks there's a souvenir stand outside because it 523 00:28:38,280 --> 00:28:41,000 Speaker 1: doesn't dump out into a gift shop, and the souvenir 524 00:28:41,040 --> 00:28:45,000 Speaker 1: stand looks a lot like really Crump's Haunted Fortune Teller 525 00:28:45,080 --> 00:28:47,920 Speaker 1: cart which is kind of fun. And that's another thing 526 00:28:48,000 --> 00:28:50,520 Speaker 1: that there have been rumblings about through the years that 527 00:28:50,600 --> 00:28:52,800 Speaker 1: the Museum of the Weird is being kicked around as 528 00:28:52,840 --> 00:28:56,680 Speaker 1: a possible starting point for a full length feature film script, 529 00:28:56,960 --> 00:28:59,280 Speaker 1: that it's going to be incorporated into a video game. 530 00:28:59,360 --> 00:29:01,000 Speaker 1: There have even and rumors that it's going to be 531 00:29:01,040 --> 00:29:04,480 Speaker 1: its own attraction eventually, but so far those have not materialized. 532 00:29:05,120 --> 00:29:06,720 Speaker 1: There was a story I think that l A Times 533 00:29:06,760 --> 00:29:09,760 Speaker 1: ran like three years ago, that Ahmed Zappa was working 534 00:29:09,800 --> 00:29:13,800 Speaker 1: on a script treatment about it, and then Disney was like, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, 535 00:29:13,960 --> 00:29:19,040 Speaker 1: that's not happening. So you don't know, there's there's always 536 00:29:19,080 --> 00:29:22,120 Speaker 1: more to talk about with hot imagine more. Yeah, I mean, 537 00:29:22,120 --> 00:29:25,240 Speaker 1: we've hit on some of the higher points, but there's 538 00:29:25,320 --> 00:29:28,960 Speaker 1: so much story there and legacy, and because so many 539 00:29:29,000 --> 00:29:32,760 Speaker 1: of those imagineers are still with us and are often, um, 540 00:29:32,800 --> 00:29:35,840 Speaker 1: you know, make appearances or do interviews. Really Crump's book 541 00:29:36,000 --> 00:29:37,880 Speaker 1: came out at the end of last year, and it's 542 00:29:37,920 --> 00:29:40,920 Speaker 1: quite fun. He's kind of a pistol. He's got an 543 00:29:40,960 --> 00:29:44,360 Speaker 1: interesting history both in and outside of Disney, and you know, 544 00:29:44,400 --> 00:29:46,920 Speaker 1: he's led a wildlife in many ways, and he doesn't 545 00:29:46,920 --> 00:29:50,040 Speaker 1: really hold back. He's very fun excitencia. Like I said, 546 00:29:50,080 --> 00:29:52,120 Speaker 1: just comes across as the sweetest man you would ever 547 00:29:52,160 --> 00:29:54,200 Speaker 1: want to meet on the planet. And they love to 548 00:29:54,200 --> 00:29:56,680 Speaker 1: wax rapsodic and talk about the old times and working 549 00:29:56,720 --> 00:29:59,880 Speaker 1: on this project. And I'm sure it was a trial 550 00:30:00,040 --> 00:30:02,040 Speaker 1: I fire, but they still seem to look back at 551 00:30:02,080 --> 00:30:05,480 Speaker 1: it kind of lovingly because they recognize what it became. Yeah, 552 00:30:05,520 --> 00:30:08,719 Speaker 1: if I had been working at Disney in the in 553 00:30:08,760 --> 00:30:12,200 Speaker 1: the fifties, I'm sure I would be waxing or rephsodic 554 00:30:12,240 --> 00:30:16,000 Speaker 1: about that all the time, even if it was really hard, 555 00:30:16,160 --> 00:30:18,320 Speaker 1: because of what it grew into. Yeah, and it does 556 00:30:18,400 --> 00:30:20,840 Speaker 1: sound like it again. It's one of those things where 557 00:30:21,160 --> 00:30:24,280 Speaker 1: we see it today and it's a huge, massive company 558 00:30:24,320 --> 00:30:27,720 Speaker 1: and you know, uh, many people talk about how they 559 00:30:27,760 --> 00:30:29,600 Speaker 1: their dream job would be to work for Disney, and 560 00:30:29,920 --> 00:30:31,800 Speaker 1: it was even for these guys. But I think people 561 00:30:31,800 --> 00:30:35,120 Speaker 1: don't realize it wasn't like you instantly get rich. Like 562 00:30:35,160 --> 00:30:37,400 Speaker 1: I was watching an interview with Roly Crump not too 563 00:30:37,400 --> 00:30:39,200 Speaker 1: long ago, and he was saying when he got hired 564 00:30:39,240 --> 00:30:41,960 Speaker 1: at Disney, they offered him less than half of what 565 00:30:42,040 --> 00:30:44,760 Speaker 1: he was making working in Uh. I think a ceramic 566 00:30:44,800 --> 00:30:47,560 Speaker 1: tile factory, and he was like, I have a kid 567 00:30:47,600 --> 00:30:49,480 Speaker 1: on the way, I don't know what to do. Man, 568 00:30:49,560 --> 00:30:52,040 Speaker 1: I really want to work for Disney. Uh So he 569 00:30:52,080 --> 00:30:53,800 Speaker 1: took it, and he had to take a second job. 570 00:30:53,920 --> 00:30:56,440 Speaker 1: Like I mean, these weren't like Pie in the Sky, 571 00:30:56,600 --> 00:30:59,960 Speaker 1: super dreamy, easy coasting jobs. They worked really, really hard. 572 00:31:00,000 --> 00:31:02,080 Speaker 1: Word so I could see, we're looking back, you would 573 00:31:02,120 --> 00:31:04,040 Speaker 1: be very proud of that work because you really had 574 00:31:04,040 --> 00:31:07,480 Speaker 1: to be committed. Uh So that's our who let the 575 00:31:07,520 --> 00:31:12,280 Speaker 1: Hawks rest for now? Hey, as we close out this 576 00:31:12,320 --> 00:31:15,720 Speaker 1: Saturday Classic, we wanted to mention that ex Atensio, who 577 00:31:15,760 --> 00:31:18,760 Speaker 1: we spoke about as being still alive in the second installment, 578 00:31:18,800 --> 00:31:21,720 Speaker 1: did pass away on September tenth of this year. If 579 00:31:21,720 --> 00:31:24,400 Speaker 1: you listen to last week's Classic, which is part one 580 00:31:24,400 --> 00:31:26,400 Speaker 1: of this, you may recall that we mentioned at the 581 00:31:26,440 --> 00:31:29,920 Speaker 1: beginning that we selected these episodes specifically is our way 582 00:31:29,920 --> 00:31:33,080 Speaker 1: to acknowledge his death and honor his memory. If you 583 00:31:33,080 --> 00:31:36,400 Speaker 1: want to email us, our email address is History Podcast 584 00:31:36,400 --> 00:31:38,520 Speaker 1: at how stuff Works dot com, and you can find 585 00:31:38,600 --> 00:31:41,840 Speaker 1: us across the spectrum of social media as Missed in History. 586 00:31:42,080 --> 00:31:44,720 Speaker 1: You can also find us at missed in History dot com, 587 00:31:44,800 --> 00:31:47,280 Speaker 1: and you can visit our parent company, how stuff Works 588 00:31:47,520 --> 00:31:58,920 Speaker 1: at how stuff works dot com. For more on this 589 00:31:59,160 --> 00:32:10,280 Speaker 1: and thousands of other topics, visit how staff works dot com. 590 00:32:09,720 --> 00:32:09,760 Speaker 1: M