The Disastrous History of Disney’s California Adventure - Part 2
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- čas přidán 7. 02. 2021
- Exploring the Troubled History of Disney’s California Adventure. A deep dive into the experiences of the park when it first opened in 2001, as well as its disastrous reception and how Disney then tried to fix their floundering new theme park.
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SOURCES:
jimhillmedia.com/editor_in_ch...
jimhillmedia.com/columnists1/b...
www.yesterland.com/avaloncove...
www.yesterland.com/california...
www.laughingplace.com/w/blogs...
www.yesterland.com/sunshine.html
www.yesterland.com/games.html
frrs.wordpress.com/2011/08/10...
VIDEOS USED:
Disneyland Resort Vacation Planner
The Imagineering Story: Hit or Miss
The Imagineering Story: Petrified
Elvis: That’s The Way It Is
The Bakery Tour - WDWNT - • The Bakery Tour presen...
Disney’s California Adventure Grand Opening Special - • Disney California Adve...
Disney’s Steps In Time at Disney’s California Adventure - Central Florida Sights and Sounds - • Disney's Steps in Time...
Superstar Limo Ride POV - MouseSteps / JWL Media - • Superstar Limo FULL Ri...
Mission Tortilla Factory Tour - thedisneylandkid - • California Adventures ...
Epcot International Food & Wine: Seasons of the Vine - BravaCentauri - • Epcot International Fo...
Paradise Pier Wave Machine - Ian Parkinson - • Disney's California Ad...
Wave Machine - Juan Moon - • Disneyland Family Trip...
California Screamin’ Teasting - CaliforniaCoasters - • California Screamin' T...
Golden Dreams at DCA - MartinsVids.net - • Golden Dreams at DCA
Disney California Adventure Kidsultants Television Commercial - Cow Missing - • Disney California Adve...
Disney Store Loop - ResortTV1 - • Disney Store | TV Loop...
DCA Golden Vine Winery Dedication - LaughingPlace.com - • DCA Golden Vine Winery...
BLAST! At Disney’s California Adventure - askcounsel - • BLAST! at Disney's Cal...
Disneyland’s 50th Anniversary: The Happiest Homecoming On Earth - WML95 - • Disneyland 50th Annive...
MrDisneyfanman - • Disney's California Ad...
World of Color Construction - MouseSteps / JWL Media - • DCA World of Color Con...
World of Color BTS - Attractions Magazine - • Making of World of Col...
DCA Grand Reopening - Inside The Magic - • Full grand reopening o...
Additional Mission Tortilla Factory Footage - shoeface25 - • MIssion Tortilla Facto...
Hollywood N Dine - MrDisneyfanman - • Disney's California Ad... - Zábava
I know how much the internet hates the Cars franchise, but you can’t deny that the theming in Radiator Springs is incredible
Especially at night...absolutely stunning
It's a shame Cars gets so much hate I really like the first movie and the 3rd one is also good.
That's true
Cars Land is the 2nd best themed land at the Disneyland resort. Out of all theme lands based on movies, Cars Land is the only one that looks like you’re in the actual land from the films. Not even Harry Potter was able to pull this off(Yes it’s locations of the films but not a 100% recreation of what you see in any given scene).
While they're far from my favorite Pixar films (those are the two Incredibles, Ratatouille, and Toy Story 3), I have a soft spot for them since my nephew and I bonded over them when he was little!
The original California Adventure is a cautionary tale of what happens when money takes priority over creativity.
100% true
its the ultimate example of a place holder being taken all the way to the completed work. "we need a new park, something cheap tho, like something we could get the pieces for nearby. California related but better" "Gotcha, california themed" "yes yes, thats fine for now but change it later ok?" "ok" 4 years later "Welcome to Disney's Cali-"
@@YesterworldEntertainment - That’s very much a problem across the USA, and not just in the entertainment field: CEOs are given extraordinary salaries - mostly by one another, as they trade places on a carousel of Fortune 500 board seats - not to improve companies for their clients or for their employees, and not even to make those companies sustainable for the long-term… but to extract as much immediate value out of the company as they can and convert it to quick cash for board members and institutional shareholders, i.e. for the hedge fund dudes who got their MBAs from the same school as the CEO.
This “raid the company for loose change” mentality is so visibly catastrophic to many entertainment ventures, it may provide a good opportunity for people to think about the damage it does to more everyday industries: banking, retail, communications, agriculture… Consider how there’s an incentive for a major business to buy its small, thriving competitor, strip it for parts and sell those at a profit, fire its employees, deliberately drive it to bankruptcy, and then claim the loss as a write-off on the larger firm’s taxes. How does the benefit these maneuvers bring to hedge funds help you, now laid off, with your town’s local auto shop/aerospace firm/family farm also gone? You don’t see a dime of what’s been removed from your economy, not unless you happen to have a Bugatti to sell to the hedge fund guy.
Or going back to Disney, how does providing the least value to consumers in order to provide the biggest quickest return to institutional shareholders help either consumers, Disney in the long run, the national economy, or indeed anyone outside of the rarefied world of luxury condo sales and Maserati dealerships? In order for that colossal wealth-extraction to trickle its way back down to you, you’d have to wait close to a century, and then be panhandling at just the right corner at just the right time, to hear the “clink” of that hedge fund heir’s coin in your little tin cup.
It’s a real aberrant smash-and-grab mentality that’s been normalized and has come to dominate the US psyche since the ‘80s, but which leads to economic and political instability in the long-run. Maybe you no longer have a local bank, a local grocery, a local department store (meaning locally-owned, like Marshall Fields was local to Illinois, and not part of a nationwide chain with an HQ hundreds of miles away from you), local farms, a local paper, or much of a local anything anymore. That means much of your local spending gets siphoned up elsewhere, and little local capital is replenished, and gradually your whole city has to cut services and accede to the wishes of the nearest Walmart just so people can remain minimally employed.
Well, you’ve got a whole buncha guys like Michael Eisner to thank for that. Charles Koch is even more to blame, by a factor of thousands, but that’s a soapbox for another day…
The “inefficiency” the invisible hand flicks out of the system? That inefficiency is me and you, along with any attempt to protect ourselves we might democratically enact. And before some troll types “Ah, ya dirty DemSoc, I happen to love 1930s Italian corporatism…” in all caps with bad grammar, I’ll point out that arguing for thriving local economies as part of a de-monopolized national economy - one in which individual, worker, consumer, and citizen rights are all respected and enforced - is hardly the statist plot Charles Koch wants you to think it is… considerably less so than control of the state and all of its resources by a handful of crony capitalists is.
In order to be truly successful, an equal amount of finance and creativity is needed to keep each other in check. Too much power on the financial leads to cheap, underwhelming experiences that will lose money. Too much power on the creative leads to over detailed, over budget experiences that no one will truly appreciate, which will lose money.
@@theotherjared9824 Didn't Animal Kingdom go over-budget and end up over-performing?
Disney’s California Adventure: the park that cost more to remodel than it did to build
Pretty amazing, isn't it?
That shows you how much people hated the original park.
Inflation lol
@@MysteryMii People didn't hate it. They just thought it was "meh". I was there when it first opened (I saw the Who's Line guys there promoting it) and just kind of felt "that's it?", but it eventually became basically another "land" of Disneyland since most the time the tickets we got worked at both parks.
I think I sort of had less interest in going after Cars Land and such opened and the park became more popular (and crowded). Some of the appeal of California Adventure was it was less crowded, lol.
if you were going to make a California-themed amusement park, why not put it in Florida to show us what we're missing? Then in California, you can follow it up with a Florida-themed amusement park
Disney's California Adventure: Michael Eisner's Mid-Life Crisis Theme Park.
Wait 'til you see Yesterworld’s future video on Walt Disney Studios Park in Paris...
YESS HAHA
BAHHAHA
This made me choke on my drink, thank you so much 😂
AMEN
Showing Seinfeld being uncomfortable about a huge age gap is hilariously ironic
And aladins face before tells it all right there
yeah if the age gap is too wide for jerry you know youve messed up
Jerry should’ve brought the pez dispenser
oh nooooooo....
@@thorn0fcamorr yes and I mean he’s ok with interspecial relationships due to the bee movie
20 years later, and I still can't believe "We'll put a scaled back replica of California in California!" was their genius move. Even at ten years old, I thought that was stupid.
I still can't imagine that a single tourist EVER, even one from the most isolated village in rural China, would decide they didn't have to visit San Francisco because the fake San Francisco in an Anaheim parking lot is just as good.
I remember a weird mcdonalds tie in too.
I can. We’re so damn egotistical here that it makes perfect horrible sense! As a kid, you weren’t cool unless you had at least one photo next to the letter of your first name out of the huge “California” letters out front. God help you if you didn’t have a name that started with one of those letters.
I think the idea could potentially work for a cheaper theme park, but with the Disney name, people expect something higher-end.
@@StarlightPrism exactly. I commented above but a point I tried to make is like you say: FOR THE SAME PRICE as a day at DISNEYLAND NEXT DOOR which would you choose if you had one day only? It just wasn't worth it.
The shots of the Drew Carey Show cast politely smiling and pretending to be entertained by a Superstar Limo ride that clearly just baffles them bring me great joy.
Drew Carey looked so dead inside when he saw himself on the ride.
More importantly, who is Drew Carey? No one outside of America would have a clue who he was. Considering the park was aimed at tourists, the choice of celebrities was so stupid.
@@keithwellerlounge74 True, but given the presumed budget restriction of not using talent you'd have to pay extra for. The talent under contract to Disney at that time was pretty America-centric.
@@keithwellerlounge74 Omg could you imagine Drew Carey still being the headliner today?? lmao Kids would be so confused.
@@epicgamerhank9509 He's... not in that clip?
I wonder which Disney executive was so hungry that they put almost 10 restaurants in each land in California Adventure!
@Edward Lee Miller while forgetting that there were already restaurants at Disneyland with decades of good reputation, or at least on par with the stuff at California adventure
Michael Eisner had probably missed lunch when they were putting the plans up. So he just said to the Imagineers that he never wanted to be hungry when he visited the park. And the Imagineers had way too many ideas for food locations so Eisner just told them to throw it all in.
And that's why about 5 of them closed or lost their major sponsors in the first year alone (SOB, Avalon Cove, Golden Vine, Hollywood & Dine, Malibu-ritos).
Restaurants are revenue enhancers for the park
Paul Pressler brought in People that were Shop Executives and Food Executives, Which is why there was more food and shop than rides.
@@JustinCoasters that's not really a new concept though, there's always more food and shops than rides at a Disney park.
They missed out on not calling that restaurant Soup Opera
That's a good idea!
So the park went from a cheap reminder that you are in California, to a good blend of California's history and Disney characters, to a random mixture of California, Disney, Marvel, and Pixar.
How sad that the park gradually improved years after its opening only for it to regress so quickly to the point it becomes incohesive
Whatever happened to "don't fix something that's not broken"
It seems kinda stupid to build an entire land within the park based on characters who are played by live-actors. What happens when Benedict Cumberbatch gets busted with an underage girl, or Tom Holland develops a heroin addiction? You can say that's Spiderman, but you're using a living actors real face in movies, and the association will always be there. The Marvel Land is so flawed, and will age out in 15 year, and all that money will be a waste.
It's just become an expansion of Disneyland, really. A place for them to include their newer properties (ie, Pixar & Marvel)
The meaning of "California" in the title changed with every iteration. At first, "California" meant a "Disney-style interpretation" of the state, like Eisner said. Then under the re-dedication with Iger, "California" meant a tribute to the state and Disney's contribution to its history. Nowadays, "California" is just a way to remind you where you geographically are. California Adventure is the park at Disneyland that's not Disneyland....that's it.
Sure it's a bit random, but so is Disneyland if you think about it. I think it's an enjoyable place to spend the next day after a Disneyland day.
i miss the tortilla factory. they used to give entire packets of fresh tortillas on your birthday instead of just the one at the end of the tour. it was great
I used to buy a pack of fresh tortillas there, then go buy the giant nacho platter, and make like half a dozen impromptu burritos. Honestly I have some great memories of that empty park back then.
wow thats cool i should have went on my birthday. that free bread was good too.
I had a birthday sticker I kept in my wallet just so I could get free tortillas when I wanted a snack! & I even liked the corn ones even tho none of my friends would ever eat them when they had corn. I really did love watching the little video at the start too, I loved when the kid would say “Maseca!” I miss it every time I come around that corner.
@@stephaniee5717 ooh sneaky xD and yeah I miss it too
But at least Gharadelli is a good chocolate place
"Oh nO, ThE wOrLd EnDs At ThE gAtE!"
This has always stuck out to me as a very creepy window into the "real" lives of Disney characters. Thanks for including this bit of surreal marketing!
Goofy is a flat earther in that commercial
I can smell the monster energy drinks from here 🤢
Video starts: “Oh no the world ends at the gate.”
Me: *THIS IS WHERE THE FUN BEGINS!*
Oh boy...
1:00
Snow White: "Oh No, The World Ends At The Gate"
Now, that has a new meaning
The park's transformation is so extensive and fascinating you could honestly make a whole 3rd episode based on the content covered in the last 3 minutes of this video.
Agreed. And I thought those last couple minutes were leading up to a part three. Bummer.
1:01 For some reason, I absolutely love the idea that Disney characters can never leave, and that means the world to them is only and will forever be Disneyland.
Lmao there's a fanfic I read that specifically has this as a plot point
@@bemiatto67 link please lmao
Epic Mickey moment
@@perrywclifton That is such an apt comparison! Thank you for commenting that, truly!
theres a fanfic with that as a plot point?
15:45 the sound of the crying baby being in the only archival recording of Steps in time is perfect
It really is
6:15
The narrator: “That’s Tim Allen!”
Me: “But is it really though?”
I like how their only thing about Tim Allen they can say is that he's "funny man Tim Allen".
Omg I said that exact quote
Woody: “You actually think you’re *the* Tim Allen? Oh! And all this time I thought it was an act! Hey guys look, it’s the *real* Tim Allen!”
Tim Allen Animatronic: “You’re mocking me aren’t you?”
It took me 10 years to realize the flight attendant and Kronk are played by the same actor
Even as a child, I could tell it was the same guy. Patrick Warburton has a very distinctive voice.
And puddy 😁
When me and my ex girlfriend was broke and working at Disney, the Mission Tortilla Factory would be dinner some nights.
Thats tough bro. Sorry and God bless
Thank god the tortillas were good though
At least you had a taco to eat then.
@RodSterling’s Grandson - Ah, the famously “generous” Disney wages… 😤
Hahaha same! My girl and I would cycle through a few times.
Not only did the Soap Bistro have recreations of the sets, but according to a TV Guide column from '01, the wait staff was supposed to be able to catch you up with what was happening (since in theory you're not watching TV while on vacation) *and* be knowledgeable on the shows' history. I have to imagine that level of commitment went out the window FAST.
Dang soap operas are really like a lifetime commitment when you think about it. And tough luck trying to watch one of the 50 yr old ones from the start
@@Jaheartsjonas As as a lifelong soap fan who cut my teeth on the ABC shows, I can say you pretty well hit the nail there.
Bummer. The Hollywood Pictures back lot didn't have anything to do with Bette Midler's epic movie "The Lottery".
"The world ends at the gate" is actually a really good prompt line for a sci fi short story or something, very grim and surreal. I mean, what's it a gate to, if the world ends there? What does Snow White think lies beyond? If she didn't guess "a Super 8", she's in for an existential crisis
Yesterworld? Doing a second part of DCA? Yes! Terworld.
This man should make a second channel called, "Yes! Tierworld!" And it's like tier zoo for amusement parks
Three more bonus fun facts:
- Mali-burritos closed only a couple weeks after opening. I just find that amusing.
- The Orange Stinger used to have bee seat covers so it looked like you were flying around as little bees. Those too only lasted a couple weeks. Also the scent of oranges in the ride attracted real bees, ironically.
- Bakers Field Bakery roasted coffee beans fresh in the morning (not sure if they stopped or for how long), which according to guests, smelled HORRIBLE.
Real bees would've added to the theming, but at the risk of being a potential sting hazard...
It's funny how disastrous this park was in the past. Actually, now I prefer and I spend more time in California Adventure than at Disneyland.
3:55 You can thank my dad for the entrance of the Animation Pavilion, as he was the one who set up the screens and projections you see, so you saying that it’s one of the best experiences at the theme park at the time makes me smile. :)
What perfect timing since today's DCA's 20th anniversary.
I think that was intentional.
@@MysteryMii Yesterworld said in the comments of part 1 that it was mostly a lucky coincidence
@@rattyeely Sometimes it's better to be lucky than good.
Disney world 50th anniversary in October will hopefully be a 3 day extravaganza
California adventure is slowly getting better. Grizzly peak has always been the best part. Buena Vista street was a great move to twist the California gimmick into something unique. The marvel section might breathe some life into the area when it opens. Cars land is really charming. Pixar pier also has some fun elements. However, all of these improvements make Hollywood land, pacific wharf and paradise gardens look even more dated and out of place, so work still needs to be done for it to feel complete.
Is it? Pixar Pier just really begs the question of "why the hell didn't they just turn it into a Pixar theme park in the first place?" The Marvel section will be great for MCU fans, not so much for Marvel fans.
How's it even slowly getting better when nothing in the park makes sense anymore???
Disney California Adventure was already great as it is after the 2012 expansion, a vast improvement from its original design, so why make those unnecessary changes like replacing the Tower of Terror, Soarin' Over California, and Paradise Pier just for newer stuff for the sake of IP show off and money??? Avengers Campus replacing a bug's land is ok since it's replacing an IP with another, but Mission Breakout was still unnecessary and Avengers Campus can still exist without the ride and should've just leave Tower of Terror alone since it's the tallest in both the park and Anaheim while also blending in so well with the park. Never fix something that's not broken.
But of course, it's Disney right? Disney's never done something wrong and well they can do whatever they want cause they're just a huge business, just leave them alone.
If there's one thing I miss, it is Tower of Terror. It fit so well with the Hollywoodland theme- and they still have it at Disney World! RIP!
@@andreacamp936 And also in Paris, and the Avengers Campus there is literally right behind the Tower of Terror. They really can just keep the Tower of Terror and still get Avengers Campus in California like Paris.
There's a photoshopped DCA map that even shows what if they kept Tower of Terror (as well as Paradise Pier and Soarin' Over California) and shows how it would've look better: twitter.com/PSI_4ce/status/1402104220946370567?s=20
Paradise Pier matches better. Now that it's gone it makes the hotel look incredibly stupid. Not only that, but it was very warm and welcoming, and calm. Pixar Pier is very overblown, obnoxious, and bright. Paradise Pier was a very sweet insight on the beach vacation side of DCA. The large blue undertoned rollercoaster was very pretty and matching, while being nicely form fitting because of its skinny and long shape with pretty decorations, while not being too much as to not steal the spotlight of the Mickey Mouse wheel, which was, in fact, and is for now, beautiful. But the undertones were turned bigger and turned an obnoxious red, with half-assed figures that were never meant to belong on such a fast and skinny rollercoaster to begin with. Bonus points for being able to watch everyone launch from the rollercoaster and hear them, well, *screaming!*
Overall Pixar Pier is obnoxious, ugly, and only brought unhappiness to me, the average consumer. Pixar Pier only left me sad, and distressed me. They were on the right track, but crashed the car. It's Cash Grab Adventure now. Not a fun insight to California.
So basically food, food and more food along with a few lazily built attractions geared towards adults rather than kids was the start, but after Eisner left and Iger took over things got better. Interesting.
I know it was a simple slip up, but "Golden Wine Vinery" made me laugh lol. (15:05)
LOL. And I believe the sponsor winery is pronounced “mon-DAH-vee”.
@@alikaalex Yes, it is, indeed, Mondavi. And Zephyr is pronounced "ZEFF-ur" not "ZY-fur." And "comprised" is not the same word as "compromised" (even when you make the same mistake twice).
The bread and tortilla really was great. I really enjoyed "Soaring over California" as well. However, I find the idea of a Coney Island boardwalk in a Disney park hilarious given Walt Disney's disdain for the run down boardwalk parks.
Oh and the media thought something Disney made good even when it wasn't? Well, that's just par for the course these days.
Hmm go to bed or watch the second half of yesterworlds DCA video. That was a easy choice
As a Sacramento native, it’s nice to see those original California lettering every summer when I go to the state fair. It’s like a little piece of the park is always with you
I’m definitely going to see them if I ever decide to take a trip to Sacramento again.
The sun icon lol. How inspiring, and how right it is to describe it as something in a mall, because there use to be one in a mall I visit a lot as a kid in Singapore... nice one Eisner.
No 😝 and the
supposedly it's in storage-for possible future use
It definitely sucks to see Michael Eisner's Disney legacy forever overshadowed by his failed theme park instead of being remembered for all the good he did in facilitating the Disney decade of the 90's lol.
Charleston Tran = Michael Eisner's secret screen name .. hahahaha But no seriously, RIP Pleasure Island 😩😭
My wife worked at the parks when Eisner was in charge. I'm not allowed to speak about anything good he did. Apparently he did nothing good for cast members from what she said.
It's not just this theme park that he's guilty of, or even the only Disney thing that he's guilty of.
I’m so happy we didn’t have to wait four or five weeks for this videos. I love how this is a 20 min video with 40 comments yet it only posted 8 min ago
I still laugh at the fact that when I was there in 2005 with my family (I was 8 at the time) we somehow weren't aware of the fact that the Sunwheel's gondolas moved on a rail. My mom absolutely panicked and we got it all on video tape, good times :')
My cousin and I spent HOURS in that brother bear area, ate countless tortillas, and rode the rapids ride at night when it was literally just us two in the entire line lol. Good memories. Probably some of the best ones I still have
6:57 At first I though that the line "...The Golden State, which was COMPROMISED of a few..." was a flub as the word should've been "comprised." However, after hearing the sad, lackluster, and dramatically scaled-back state of California Adventure, I'm fully convinced this was an intentional, subtle joke about how compromised the vision of the park was. Bravo Yesterworld, you sly dog!
I don't think so. Unless "Golden Wine Vinery" and "white in shining armor" were on purpose, too.
Can't wait for five years from now when yesterworld does a documentary about how the covid19 pandemic prevented the first theme park based entirely on a video game brand's franchises from opening to the general public for at least a year and a half.
Did that happen?
@@Mokujo
Kinda. The Super Nintendo Land in Universal Studios Japan has had its grand opening delayed until the pandemic calms down. It is open, I think. Some people have some videos of the rides.
Super Nintendo World has better theming than most of Disney tbh
@@samueld8413
It’s extremely detailed, I’ll give it that. For me it’s tied with Galaxy’s Edge in terms of immersion
@@Mokujo Right now Super Nintendo World was set to open Feb 4 to the general public but that has been postponed until the State of Emergency in Osaka Prefecture has been lifted. It's set to lift on march 7th but at this rate it could be extended again.
Let's be honest every tourism destination around 2001 was going to have a bad time because.. well world events.
_NO!!_
NOT WORLD WAR TWO!!!!
Without diving into full-on 2001 California Adventure apologia, I must disagree that Grizzly needs animatronics. I love that ride for two reasons: It's extreme unpredictability (just make sure to keep your foot over the "drains"!), and the comradery you immediately strike up with total strangers. Unlike virtually every other ride, you're all facing each other in the vehicle. I love the conversations, the laughing at each other, the hamming it up when getting soaked, the frantic cursing of the gods when the thing suddenly spins round to put your back to the splash, the kids coming out of their shells and having a good time, the shared experience overall. Giving the ride a lot more to look at or listen to would get in the way of that experience-it would cause people to want to pay attention to the paths beside the river, rather than on each other and the shared experience.
Also, the ride, like the land its in, is a lot more grounded in reality than most other Disney rides. The story it tells is already exactly what it should be: Is the spirit of the Grizzly from the associated made-up Native American myth real, or is that just a strange coincidence of the wind and rapids echoing off the cavern's walls? Seeing the monster really would spoil the magic at this point. It's different from the Matterhorn because the Matterhorn never had a monster myth tied into it from its inception-Grizz already has that, showing the monster would just spoil it at this point, like in that one episode of Doug I'm suddenly remembering.
Anyway, in my opinion Grizzly is in the top 3 best attractions at whole resort, and when you get a fun group and a fun run of the unpredictable river, it might even be my favorite. Ok, Indiana will always be #1, but Grizz is something really special.
DCA peaked around 2015. They really made lemonade out of lemons with what they had. Things like Pixar Pier and Mission Breakout concern me because they are starting to bring the park back to its tacky roots but with characters this time (although it’s still not nearly as bad as in 2001).
It might as well be renamed to Disney Acqusition Park, like what they're doing to Hollywood Studios in Orlando.
@@JCBro-yg8vd Pretty much. It’s not all bad as things like Mission Breakout are admittedly a lot of fun, but their additions end up downgrading a great park to good. DHS was not quite the same since removing the movie studio, so I’m fine with that becoming the acquisition park if it means the other 3 preserve their thematic integrity
I agree that Pixar pier seems a little cheap in comparison to other new parts of the park, but at least their is some level of cohesion and it's a definite upgrade from what was their before.
And all those acquisitions are going to be taken away by Capitol Hill when they break up the Disney company. A little thing called antitrust. Tower of Terror and even Paradise Pier will rise again. Nobody will miss Disney ownership of Marvel, Pixar, or even Lucasfilm.
I 100% agree. I wish they would have fully embraced the vintage theme they were going for in 2012. Give us a full Victorian paradise pier, fully remodel Hollywood Land into a vintage Golden age version of Hollywood (as was originally planned for the refurb but never happened), etc.
lesson, don't build a mall and call it a theme park.
Hey, Nick Universe at the Mall of America is fun.
@@JustinCoasters You have it confused. Nickelodeon Universe (RIP Camp Snoopy, you'll always be alive in my heart and memories) is a theme park built to fit in a mall, California Adventure was built as a mall disguised as a theme park. Of course Nick Universe is fun, even for the limited space allotted and indoor restrictions, it has always been and always will be a theme park first and a part of the MOA second.
Islands of shopping adventure?
Yup, the original DCA had Paul Pressler's name and merchandising background all over it.
4:55 that's a good reaction
The original concept sketches of California Adventure are... dare I say it... awesome. There's a quaintness and intimacy to it all. The Mission theming, the sun spire, the dedication to capturing the feel of different parts of California without seeming too... gimmicky... maybe it's not a usual Disney theme park but I have to think that if California Adventure were built as originally envisioned it would have been something special.
You know a part of me kinda wishes I was there firsthand to see how bad this park originally was lol
Just ONE RIDE on superstar limo!
Same here when i saw that exact commercial at 0:57 as a kid i wanted to see the park myself i was more invested to go there then actual disney land.
Now a 22 adult im looking back and seeing vidoes like this one talking about it. What the hell was with me as a kid especially seeing that ad on my disney vhs tape? Regardless you and me both i wish to see how bad it really was in person.
It was mostly just empty and you felt like there was nothing to do
@@megamalone79 I am shocked that after 20+ years, there's still no concept art or Video of what Superstar Limo was supposed to be.
Evan Daymon Lol It’s funny the ad was trying to advertise California Adventure as the next big park.
As a theme park fan, it’s surreal to me that I not only was I alive to be around for a new theme park to open, but that it’s one that’s local to me, and that I experienced it during opening year.
...too bad it had to have been DCA 1.0.
0:53-I remember seeing this on the Dinosaur DVD as a preview. Does anyone else remember seeing that?
I do
I don't think it was Dinosaur, but I definitely saw it a lot as a kid. And I believe it was on something I had on VHS
Am I the only one who was eagerly waiting for this update from Yesterworld’s History of DCA as if I were waiting for the premiere of the sequel to Star Wars?
At least this is good and not full of box ticking wokeness....unlike any sequel.
@@xr6lad that's not what he meant
DCA is a mess now
*on the phone with Eisner*
"So no tractors?"
*Smashes phone*
*destroys skateboard*
Legit went to DCA last year after not going again since 2006, I was so shocked and amazed at how incredible it is now. Fun fact: my parents loved the park back in the old days, thought it was so much more interesting then Disneyland 😂
And I thought Disney's biggest financial failure was Mars Needs Moms
Lol
Oh lord
Can we get a history of Stacey, you know the girl who does the top ten Disney rides that’s on repeat (throws me back everytime)
Yes please! 👏🏼
YES
as a child, I was upset that the new park was in California instead of Florida and my family was poor to afford the trip. and I thank my parent for not taking me there
You keep saying compromised, I believe the word you’re looking for is “comprised”
I was hoping for some sort of mention of when the park had a Tron event for the movie. I have distinct memories of going to DCA when it was mid-refurbishment and seeing Flynn's Arcade all lit up at night with special DJ shows and such. Either way, great video!
the commercial at 0:54 triggered a DEEP nostalgic response from me. I remember it so vividly, it must have been before one of the movies I watched on VHS a lot.
"You know what, Mickey. I think, this is the beginning of a new beautiful theme park which is next door to Disneyland, of course"
-Michael Eisner, 2001
Kevin Perjurer: "It wasn't."
No pictures were filmed there? They should have carried over that classic, “The Lottery” starring Bette Midler!
I never visited the park in its original form, but I can't help but feel it would have worked really well if the investment had been there. I went a few years ago and it just feels like a Pixar park with California sprinkled in. I didn't dislike it, but it's definitely my least favorite out of the U.S. parks.
Honestly, as a kid, I loved DCA. Granted that I went often (being from LA) and we had park hopper to get our more *Disney fill* at Disneyland but as a kid, I enjoyed how the park was a walking land of my home state and a good break from the classic Disney IP.
I’d still take the original Disneyland Park over California Adventure (even remodeled).
I just want to thank Mark for making these and so many videos on the Disneyland resort! Obviously there is so much more to talk about with the Florida parks, but for those of us who have never been able to visit them, seeing the history and nostalgia for our home parks is really wonderful
The best parts of the original California Adventure are still there. Screaming CA, Souring over CA, & Grizzly Rapids. The park is pretty awesome nowadays. However, the Monsters Inc. ride is on it's last legs and the surrounding area still feels like it's missing something. Also, even when the park is crowded the boardwalk games area is still usually empty. I've often wondered if they could just make the games free and let friends and family compete for bragging rights, or whatever
16:00 ah yes...
The Spinny Thing!!
The Other Spinny Thing!!
The Choo-Choo Train with the voice of a Dead man
and the Bumper Cars that are too slow to actually bump...
The generic prizes!! I still have my yellow fish I won at paradise pier in 2004 and my brother has his red crab. I was shocked when I returned to the park in 2017 and won an actual Mickey plush at the same games! I don’t know why, that really should’ve been the standard all along. I love the new Pixar pier prizes even better and am slowly collecting all the Luna plush
4:51
The Nightman Cometh vibes lol
The tortilla factory was amazing. I remember getting that fresh tortilla and being the happiest kid on Earth...just being as the Disney parks may have played into that, too.
(Aladdin after seeing the rendition of his love song for Jasmine in Steps in Time) "Genie, I wish this stage show didn't exist."
Genie: "You got it, master. This show is starting to make me feel uncomfortable too." *Shudders*
Genie: This doesn't even count as one of the three. This one is just for my peace of mind
"It was compromised of..." "Golden Wine Vinery" 😂 Didn't know they got Doc the dwarf to read these out! Unreal.
Old California Adventure gets so much crap, but like bro it was my childhood :,) It feels so safe and nostalgic. The one thing I will agree with is that it didn’t have that magical, immersive feeling you get in Disneyland- the outside world was still visible
Yeah, DCA has always been odd. I did enjoy it when it was first opened but it has improved significantly. I do miss the Mcdonalds and Pizza Oom mow mow though. That flatbread pizza they have now just... just doesn't taste good at all
"Golden Wine Vinery", I love it, they should have called it that!
Anyone who's been keeping up with the mess of Star Wars under Disney's leadership knows that Bob Iger is no savior of anything. In fact, it could be argued that he's worse than those who came before him.
The commercial of all the Disney characters looking over the park wall punched me in the face with nostalgia... I remember begging my mom to go there, in retrospect i'm glad i never saw the original trainwreck
This video brings back my memories of just how BAD this park really was! It’s vastly improved now, but how could Disney ever think it was acceptable in 2001?
California Adventure was awesome when I was there as an 11 year old in 2001, but I can see now that it had tons of flaws. I definitely remember all these Disney Channel adds from the time too.
I do miss California Screamin', and the Maliboomer though.
I miss the California version of Soaring. I loved that orange smell, and the pine.
The incredicoaster is just Screamin with a new coat of paint. Sure there is "Incredibles" theming but it isn't annoying IMO.
the rethemeing of the tower of terror is CRIMINAL i hate it so much
This is the first I heard someone talk about the ABC soap opera bistro. I am so sad I never got to experience that
the soundtracks for DCA ENtrance and Pier were LIT. Also the exit/entrance music for Golden Dreams
I really REALLY disliked the Beach Boys music but put it in calliope form and I'm THERE for it!...and now I miss it.
I learned something new today. Didn’t know California grows 80% of the worlds almonds!
It's such a nice, round number! I simply can't believe they grow EXACTLY 80%! What are the chances? Less than one in a billion! 🌈
Doubt that's true with so many companies packing up and leaving because they're sick of being taxed out of business...
@@largol33t1 orrrr you could just look it up yourself and see that it’s true 🤷🏽♂️ don’t gotta love California to state facts
The original Soarin Over California song is by far one of the greatest pieces of music to ever be heard in a Disney Park.
Thank the immortal Jerry Goldsmith for that.
A funny note, the Grizzly River Run was the third of those type of water rides to open in So.Cal, the first was at Six Flags Magic Mountain and the second one was at Knott's Berry Farm
The words compromised and comprised are different. You’re using the wrong one. A lot.
So I’m not the only one who caught that! However, at least for its first use on the video, I thought it might have been an intentional commentary on the music selections!
No, it's okay. Enough people use it in the wrong way like the word literally to mean figuratively. 🌈
Man, I remember getting warm tortillas and sourdough every time we went. My mom would let us go through the tour when it was cold in order to warm up a little before leaving the park.
Love the irony of showing Seinfeld reacting to that show when he quite literally dated a child so he probably would have been just fine with that musical number
California Adventure is amazing having Pixar Pier, Soarin, Grizzly river, Cars Land, and soon Avengers Campus it’s definitely my favorite park!
Oh man, young me wanted to go to California Adventure just because of the Cars Land, I was obsessed with that movie when I was a kid. I watched it at least once a day, and I'm still unsure if that is a good or bad thing.
Bro I had no idea of different things about Disney that almost no one knows. I love your videos and you along with a few other CZcamsrs inspired me to make my own videos. Keep up the good work and I love your channel. Have a great day man.
I remember going as a kid to disneyland and having so much fun and wonder, but I was poor so I couldn't go so often. So when I got older, in my teens, I went to California Adventure during the first few years. Man, I was so bored of the place that it made me not want to go to any disney parks for a long time.
I visited DCA when it first opened, I remember riding Superstar Limo and thinking how awkward and honestly creepy it was. My favorite memory is of Paradise pier and seeing the waves crash as I rode California Screaming. That launch caused me to bang my head, lol
LETS GOO NEW VIDEO!!! And of course you had to do this on DCAs 20th anniversary!
lol "Zie-pher"
as if the first two Mon-davy Wines weren't enough the Zy-pher comes barrelling down the tracks and smacks your ears. Ouch.
That guy getting so excited about soap operas is hilarious.
Golden "Fake" Bridge
LOVE IT!!
1:56
Oh, hey, I still own that DVD!
Ironically, since I don't like water rides, roller coasters, or the MCU, I would only want to do Soarin, Cars Land, and Midway Mania if I ever got to go there. It would be worth it to get to experience Disneyland itself, however!
I think they were building Pixar Pier when I went there in 2006. We actually enjoyed DCA for what it is. The Grizzly Falls was one of the rides we enjoyed, same with the Tortilla factory but those new addition sound alot better than what we saw.
Thanks for all you've done for not only California Adventure, but for the Disney company all together Mr. Iger!!!