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Haunted Mansion
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Report of updates to
Haunted Mansion as reported in the Fall 2007 edition of Vacation
Magic, a publication sent to Disney Vacation Club
members. Aronda received her copy of Vacation
Magic on Tuesday, September 4, 2007.
New Magic for
Florida's Mansion
The Haunted Mansion may be covered in
cobwebs and steeped in haunted history, but Imagineers
are committed to keeping the creeps current. To learn
more about updates slated to materialize at the Florida
attraction in September, Vacation Magic caught up with
Imagineering Creative Show Producer Kathy Rogers.
"We're focused on employing the
latest technologies and ideas to keep our classic
attractions relevant to today's audiences," Kathy
said. "Often, these advancements enable us to bring
our stories closer to Guests than ever."
The enhancements begin in the
attraction's famous stretch room and doom buggy
vehicles, where new digital audio systems will free the
Ghost Host to move eerily about, speaking "directlt"
to unsuspecting Guests as they embark on their
"chilling challenge to find a way out."
(Insert menacing laught here.)
Changes on the visual front start in
the ride's portrait gallery, where wandering eyes are
being replaced by storm-induced transformations (much
like the portraits in the pre-load area of California's
mansion).
Next up is the grand staircase, once a
dark and lonelt home to a pair of giant spiders. The
eight-legged freaks have left the building , making way
for a dimensional "endless staircase"
illusion. (Don't cry for the spiders. Rumor has them
finding a new home at the Jungle Cruise attraction.)
Moving on to the seance scene, Madame
Leota's iconic crystal ball will appear to float freely,
much like the already enhanced scene on the West Coast.
Also inspired by the California attraction are changes
to the attic scene, where the ghost bride's story
expands to include magically transforming wedding
photos depicting the demise of her late husbands. The
updated bride herself, who moves from the right side of
the track to the left, holds a wilted bouquet that turns
into an ax as she delivers the foreboding vow, "'Til
death do us part."
"We're really excited about this
project," Kathy said. "All of these new
features and effects will combine to give the attraction
a new sense of being." |
Happy haunts -- 999 to be exact -- welcome ghoulish-loving
guests to The Haunted Mansion at Walt Disney World Resort with
a doom buggy-full of tricks and treats in the eerie gothic
manor.
A Magic Kingdom classic, The Haunted Mansion is one of the
most beloved attractions at Walt Disney World Resort and has
been eliciting all-in-fun chills and shrieks since Walt Disney
World Resort opened its gates Oct. 1, 1971.
The Haunting Highlights:
- Once inside the wrought-iron gates that surround the
stately mansion, guests step gingerly past the home’s
cemetery, with tombstones featuring witty epitaphs to the
dearly departed.
- Summoned to the front entrance, guests enter the foyer
and then an octagonal gallery that stretches…and
stretches -- or does it? Paintings on the wall grow
longer, but the floor and ceiling never seem to move.
Other portraits morph into ghastly images, including a
dapperly dressed gentleman that transforms into a decrepit
corpse.
- Guests board doom buggies for their ghost-guided tour of
the mansion. Sound and lighting effects create the mood as
the darkened, eggshell-shaped vehicles glide silently
through the cobwebbed library, conservatory, hallways,
ballroom, attic and graveyards. Guests even ride through
Madame Leota’s séance, a collection of flying objects
choreographed by a disembodied spirit trapped inside a
crystal ball.
- Synchronized speakers inside each doom buggy allow a
narrator to explain the supernatural scenes to riders.
- Thanks to a little Disney magic, ghostly apparitions
seem to appear out of thin air to dance and sing in
certain rooms. An eager, “hitchhiking” ghost even
appears inside each doom buggy at the end of the ride to
follow guests home.
Tips:
- Though the premise of The Haunted Mansion is a frightful
one, the ride is intended for the entire family. The
attraction is presented in a humorous light, though
parents should be aware of the dark rooms and a few things
that “go bump in the night.” Birnbaum’s Walt
Disney World For Kids By Kids, the official Walt
Disney World guide authored by children and teens, rated
The Haunted Mansion as one of its “Reader Pleaser”
attractions at Walt Disney World Resort.
Fright Facts:
- The five singing busts in the graveyard scene warble the
attraction’s theme song, “Grim Grinning Ghosts.”
Though sometimes mistaken for Walt Disney, the face on the
bust farthest to the left actually belongs to Thurl
Ravenscroft, the song’s soloist. Ravenscroft is known to
millions of fans as the voice of Tony the Tiger, the
mascot of Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes cereal.
- The witty epitaphs on the tombstones at the
attraction’s entrance pay tribute to the designers,
developers and artists who originally created The Haunted
Mansion. One of the newest tombstones honors the late Walt
Disney Imagineer Leota Thomas (her maiden name was
Toombs). Periodically, Leota’s tombstone can be spotted
slowly opening and closing the eyes on its sculpted head.
- Madame Leota also graces the crystal ball in the
attraction’s séance scene. Leota Thomas provided the
face for the crystal ball, and voice artist Eleanor Audley
provided the voice. Audley is also famous as the voice of
the evil Maleficent in Disney’s classic animated feature
“Sleeping Beauty.”
- In addition to its home in the Liberty Square area at
Walt Disney World Resort, The Haunted Mansion is featured
at Disneyland Resort (in New Orleans Square), Tokyo
Disneyland (in Fantasyland) and Disneyland Paris (known as
Phantom Manor and located in Frontierland). It is the only
Disney attraction to be featured in four different park
“lands” worldwide.
- Ghosts aren’t the only ones hiding in The Haunted
Mansion. There are several “Hidden Mickeys” to be
found as well. The ballroom scene features one of the most
famous -- a plate and a pair of saucers on the dining
table form Mickey’s familiar silhouette.
- Legendary voice artist Paul Frees -- known to many as
Boris Badenov from “The Bullwinkle Show” -- is the
attraction’s narrator, or “ghost host.”
Madame
Leota is a recent addition to the queue area cemetery. The way
she suddenly opens her eyes to
stare at you while you wait for
entry into the Haunted Mansion is, admittedly, just a little
creepy!
Beware
of hitch-hiking ghosts! you are warned. An overzealous ghost
who wishes to
rejoin the world of the flesh always jumps
aboard your Doom Buggy with you!
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