Report #7 - CMO Journey to Disneyland® Resort!
What Goes Around Comes Around (in a very good way!)
I’m back! The CMO job is keeping me very busy, so please be patient between my updates. I know you won’t be disappointed.
Spreading the Magic
In the Presence of History
Beyond Imagination!
Dreams Come True
Back to top | Spreading the Magic
What Goes Around Comes Around (in a very good way!)
It’s always difficult to name one or two ‘favorite’ moments on my CMO assignments. Everything I have the opportunity to see and do is incredible and I realize with every experience how fortunate I am to be in this position. That being said, hanging out with the Dream Squad is always a great way to spend a day! There are few things that remind me of the magic, mystique, and life-changing impact of the Disney Parks like getting on the front lines with the Dream Squad and seeing the smiles and hearing the stories first hand.
The last Day of my first Disneyland® Resort assignment was set to start . I was on my way to meet with the Dream Squad, as part of their mid-day team meeting. Unlike most of us in the real world, Dream Squad meetings and team-building don’t take place in a conference room or office building. The Dream Squad of course meet in the Disneyland Dream Suite inside Disneyland® Park! Here they check in with each other, share inspiring stories from their days work, and pass along important updates and information in the pinnacle of style. I was warmly welcomed as if I was a part of their team and humbled (as always) as I listened to them talk about their role in the parks. The Dream Squad members have such passion for what they do and they truly do go out of their way to make every guests’ visit to the Disneyland® Resort a magical and memorable one.
(How would you like your office to look like this? Here I am with the incredible Disneyland Dream Squad in the sitting room of the Dream Suite.)
At the conclusion of the meeting, I received a wonderful tour of the Dream Suite: a 5,000 square foot crown jewel of the Disneyland portion of the “Year of a Million Dreams” Celebration. We then stepped right out into the park so I could be a part of some official “prize drops.” The Dream Squad are provided a list of the precise locations and times where they will find and award guests, as well as what prize will be awarded. How this list is created is a secret, but I think magic must be involved.
According to the Fairy Godmothers who determine the winners, we would find our first lucky guests in Frontierland near Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Our job was to award Dream Mickey Ears (blue caps with silver blinking ears) to the lucky guests who happened to be in the right place at the right time. It really is a joyous and overwhelming feeling knowing that you are going to surprise someone with a special moment that will really brighten their day. I could instantly see why the Dream Squad members care so deeply about what they do. When making dreams come true is the first line of your job description, you must love going to work!
(On the pathway near Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Frontierland I helped make some dreams come true!)
Later on that evening I was part of something amazing! A large family had been selected to serve as the official Grand Marshals for that night’s Walt Disney Parade of Dreams. We met the family (all 16 of them!) and shared many of the wonderful details about what they were going to experience. We guided them to the beautiful white antique car and gorgeous antique fire engine and escorted them along the entire parade route. I took some pictures for the family and interacted with the crowds along the streets. The smiles on the faces of this family will stay with me long after my tenure as CMO. I should make sure that I live my life in a way that allows me to see other people this happy as often as I can!
(Following the parade, the lucky – and very grateful – Grand Marshals had a chance to pose for pictures with some of their favorite classic characters)
Back to top | In the Presence of History
When asked about this trip to the Disneyland® Resort, many people back at home in Pennsylvania want me to compare it to the Walt Disney World® Resort. Since most of the people from my hometown (and the entire east coast) tend to visit the Disney Parks in Florida. While you would think that the similarities – especially between Disneyland® Park and the Magic Kingdom® Park – would lend themselves to easy comparison, I’ve found that any attempt to explain the parks in that way does them both an injustice. Each Disney Park is unique and captivating in its own way.
Disneyland captured my imagination with its tangible sense of tradition. Everywhere you look you see something to remind you that Walt himself was here. There is a hometown charm to the park that could never be duplicated completely. The classic attractions such as Peter Pan’s flight, Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, and the Matterhorn Bobsleds in Fantasyland, as well as The Jungle Cruise, Pirates of the Caribbean, and The Haunted Mansion all help to recall a day when the Disneyland® Park was the only park of its kind in the world.
The intimate and charming nature of the park is complemented by the location of the hotels, the Downtown Disney® Area, and Disney’s California Adventure® Park all within walking distance. Yet, the Disneyland® Resort – like all of the Disney Parks – has embraced technology, innovation, and great new approaches to storytelling to create many unforgettable newer attractions like Indiana Jones™ Adventure, Splash Mountain, the Innoventions Dream Home, and even the nighttime spectacular, Fantasmic! Show.
Still, the most profound feeling I had during my time in the Disneyland® Resort was being in the presence of history. Here is a place that truly changed the way we see the world. Yet we can still visit and enjoy it today and it is as relevant and thrilling as ever. One of the incredible experiences I had even managed to deepen my respect for the history of Disneyland and is on the short list of most memorable moments of my life: Walt Disney’s apartment.
In the middle of the afternoon I was swept away from my time with the Dream Squad to take a private tour of Walt Disney’s very own apartment. While the Disney Dream Suite is based upon drawings and plans for an expansive apartment located above Pirates of the Caribbean in New Orleans Square, Walt already had modest, but charmingly perfect accommodations on the second floor of the Disneyland Fire Department in Town Square.
The roughly 400 square-foot living quarters have been maintained exactly as they were during Walt’s time overseeing the park. Lillian Disney, Walt’s beloved wife, enjoyed Victorian décor, and the apartment is still decorated with the beautiful touches, pictures, and details from that era. Lillian enjoyed the room designed with her in mind while Walt spent many late nights working in the park. The experience of being in that room gave me chills. It was such an honor to know that not only was I standing in Walt’s very own apartment, but I am now a cast member with the privilege and responsibility to carry on his impressive legacy for the millions of guests who visit the Disney Parks each year.
My guides offered me a positively thrilling nugget of trivia. When you visit the Disneyland® Park, be sure to look closely at the center window on the second floor of the Fire Department-- you will see a lamp burning. This lamp is on a small table in the apartment and back in the day, cast members and guests acould always tell when Walt was “in” by the sight of the lamp glowing behind the curtain. After Walt’s passing, it was decided to never let this lamp burn out. So, Walt is still present in Disneyland. He is with us every day and he lives in the timeless attractions, courteous cast members, and magical dreams of each guest. As long as Walt and his spirit are with us, the lamp in the apartment will burn brightly.
For a few brief moments, I was allowed to sit in Walt’s chair at Walt’s table next to Walt's lamp. I gazed around the room and out the window and wondered what it must have been like to be there in 1955 when Disneyland first opened. Humbled by the moment, I smiled for this picture and left the apartment with the realization once again that I have been given a truly life-changing opportunity.
Back to top | Beyond Imagination!
After an incredible day with the Dream Squad and a late night in the Disneyland® Park – featuring the most spectacular, memorable spot from which to view the fireworks from Walt’s window—I returned to Disney’s Grand Californian® Hotel for my last night’s sleep. A message in my room informed that I would have one more incredible surprise before heading back to Pennsylvania: I would be taking a very special tour the next morning!
Early Thursday morning I checked out of my wonderful resort and headed north with my guide. And for those of you who are really familiar with the world of Disney, the parks, and the incredible technology and innovation that helps to set us apart from every other entertainment option, you might know that not too far north of Disneyland in Anaheim lies Glendale, California – home of Walt Disney Imagineering.
We arrived in Glendale in time to join up with an Adventures by Disney tour group. Adventures by Disney is a newer division of the Disney Parks where authentic Disney-trained guides take you on tours of amazing places all around the world. One of those “Adventures” takes you to the world of Hollywood where you can experience the Backstage Magic of the Disneyland® Resort. On this incredible tour I met some of the Imagineers and saw demonstrations of some of their landmark achievements in innovative architecture, design and imagination brought to life. After a video presentation that shared the history of WDI we took a guided look around many of the miracles of design and technology that separate the work of the Imagineers from everyone else in the industry.
(Here I am with the original Snow White statue from the Disneyland® Park)
There was a model room that featured statues, moulds, and models from Disney Parks attractions around the world. The original Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs statues from the Disneyland® Park were a highlight, but I was especially entertained by the bust of Captain Jack Sparrow used to enhance The Pirates of the Caribbean attraction. I also got a first-hand demonstration of how audio-animatronics work (from the machinery to the voices to the sculpturing) and spent time in a recording studio being dazzled by the absolute brilliance of 3-D sound, (where you can hear a specific sound by standing in the right magical place) and tested the microphones the Imagineers have developed that faithfully and dramatically duplicate the way the human ear receives sound. Truly this morning trip was awe-inspiring!
Before leaving, I met and interacted with a landmark of Walt Disney Imagineering – Lucky the Dinosaur. Lucky was the first audio-animatronic dinosaur who could freely roam the parks and respond to guests. Lucky is as fascinating as he is adorable.
(I can’t tell who is Luckier! Here I am with Lucky the Dinosaur – part of the Living Characters Initiative. He is a testament to the technological achievements, storytelling abilities, and artistic design excellence of the Walt Disney Imagineers.)
After the Adventures by Disney tour departed, I was invited to see some of the confidential and highly proprietary parts of the WDI facilities. Just wait until you see what we are up to next!
As with everyone I have met, the folks from Imagineering who spent time with me were warm, friendly, and gracious. They obviously excel at what they do, which is to bring life to Disney Dreams. To even be allowed on the periphery of their world for a few hours was both eye-opening and inspiring.
Back to top | Dreams Come True
(Walt and Mickey keep a watchful and optimistic eye over Main Street U.S.A.(R) Area in the Disneyland® Park just as they do in the Magic Kingdom® Park.)
So, with that my first visit to the Disneyland® Resort as Chief Magic Official had to come to an end. Even sitting here and writing about my adventures and revisiting the pictures and memories is humbling. Everything that I had a chance to see, experience, and assist with was beyond my wildest dreams. The excellence that is the hallmark of all Disney does has never been more apparent to me. There are times when I’m still getting used to the idea that I’m part of the team and that I have an important role to play in this incredible and captivating story.
Whether it was the technology in the Innoventions Dream Home, spending time with the media in the Adventureland® Area, experiencing the Pixar Play Parade alongside John Lasseter, being a part of the team for the grand opening of Toy Story Mania, dining and sharing stories with a NASA astronaut, making dreams come true with the Dream Squad, walking where Walt himself walked, or getting an unprecedented behind-the-scenes look at Walt Disney Imagineering, I’ve never believed more strongly in the power of dreams than I do now. After only two official CMO visits, I have already seen so many of my dreams become reality, and I’ve seen the impact of being a part of making other’s dreams come true. Truly, there is Disney magic in the world.
Thank you so much for sharing this experience with me. I hope you are enjoying these updates and I sincerely do hope you will send me an email here at the site () with any questions or comments. The Disney Parks would not exist without the incredible fans and guests like you, and I wouldn’t have the chance to be CMO without the support of so many wonderful people. Thank you!
Have a magical day!
Justin Muchoney
Disney Parks Chief Magic Official
Be sure to keep checking back to learn more about the next set of incredible journeys that I will take during my unforgettable year as CMO! There are more Disney adventures in the very near future!
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