June Gloom

ring on the June Gloom and welcome to this special HALLOWEEN Edition of  '...But It Wasn't Always That Way'. I know we haven't been blogging for very long, but I'm sure our very lovely readers are beginning to find a grasp on our antics (and believe you me, you ain't seen nothing yet). Like our love for Disneyland, and almost as fanatical, HALLOWEEN in these parts are something to be celebrated. In fact, we don't stop celebrating. In fact, we've already made our first trip to the HALLOWEEN store this year in the Spring!

  
  And so, when this dusty, cobwebbed holiday begins to creep in and spread its orange and black plague upon the land we know as our second home, it simply brings us to our knees. With that said, it is with great DISpleasure that I present to you a few very chilling, thrilling and downright fulfilling messages. 

  I begin this dreary post with a little reminder that the Haunted Mansion art exhibit I told you about at Halloween Town in Burbank, CA is opening this Saturday. The art will be 'hanging' until July 21st and word on the street is that they’re dying to have you..

  My second bone-rattling announcement is that Disneyland has released the dates for their HALLOWEEEN Season: September 14, 2012 - October 31, 2012. 

Holy Jack-o-Lantern! 

Orange bunting! 

Candy corn! 

Autumnal foliage! 

  First and foremost, for me, this means that Space Mountain’s ‘Ghost Galaxy’ layover- just about the BEST thing Disneyland Imagineers have done in a long time  - is on its way. Being that Dolores, the fire demon that possesses Space Mountain during the HALLOWEEN season, is summoned by what seems like just a flip of a switch (and always taunting us...), you won't have to deal with a closed ride for the changes to go into effect. The wait in line IS something you will be terrified of so make sure to get a FastPass in those gnarly claws of yours, A.S.A.P.. The exterior show for 'Ghost Galaxy' is a nighttime-only experience that I personally recommend you watch in its entirety. Nothing like the ominous sound of a fire demon terrorizing the bejezus out of guests on an intergalactic adventure! Did I mention I love Halloween?

 On a more woeful note and speaking of waiting for closed rides because of a holiday overlay, 'Haunted Mansion Holiday' returns to Disneyland for both HALLOWEEN and Christmas for another tiring two seasons. Beware, HALLOWEEN fiends: I haven't heard any official dates for the downtime our beloved Mansion will need to endure the anarchy of confused elves as they deck the halls with baubles and skulls, but for past 2 years the park's track record has been as follows: 

2010:  Monday, August 30 - Thursday, September 16 
2011:  Monday, August 29 - Thursday, September 15 
And my 2012 guess is:  Monday, August 27 – Thursday, September 13 

  With that said, I implore you to get your hot and cold running chills on right NOW (meaning this Summer) in order to enjoy Mr Disney's self-proclaimed "Halloween ride" – because it will be decorated for Christmas when Halloween rolls around and you won't be able to fully enjoy the experience again until mid January when the 'Holiday' overlay is finally removed. If you are planning on paying a visit to 'Haunted Mansion Holiday' make sure you have your jolly holly FastPass or a lot of extra time; lines will be out of control. I won't be going anywhere near this 'nightmare', but I assure you, I will be pouring some out for my homeboys, Yale Gracey and Marc Davis, every time I have a Mint Julep at the French Market across the way. Perhaps this will appease the creative geniuses after rolling over in their graves for the 11th year in a row. 

  And now for a silver lining to the little black cloud I have bestowed upon you: 'Mickey’s Halloween Party' will also be returning for the HALLOWEEN season! I was able to attend this special event for the first time last year and was quite pleasantly surprised. I got to see some awesome costumes (on both children and adults!) and the treats they give away in the candy trails are the kind that make every trick-or-treaters pillowcase crawl with excitement. It was a great opportunity to experience the park in a whole different way – and we all know I like that – and even though crowds were voluminous, the HALLOWEEN spooks were working their aesthetics in full force. And besides the high-school-musical-centric soundtrack the fireworks show is set to, some of the effects are fantastic and the show does Disneyland’s fireworks reputation proud. I suggest getting your tickets to 'Mickey’s Halloween Party' early because they vanish into thin air very quickly. As an added bonus, parking is included in ticket prices balancing out the cost to a fair price if you consider the gobs of candy you will hoarde and Annual Passholders are able to buy tickets before they are available to the general public. What, Passholder Perks?? Yup, looks like Halloween brings out the ‘spooky’ in everyone. 

  Thank you for joining us for our special HALLOWEEN edition. Upon your departure, I hope you bring with you FastPasses, costume ideas for 'Mickey’s Halloween Party', some oozing goo, and an exciting look forward into the pulsating and hungry belly of All Hallow’s Eve, 2012. The June Gloom is only the beginning...

HAPPY HALLOWEEN !