10/10: Miley's Birthday Bash, Fortuosity Shop, more Nightmare merch, refurbs, +MORE!
Posted 10-10-2008 at 01:58 AM by Dateline Disneyland
Updated 10-10-2008 at 12:46 PM by Dateline Disneyland (Added links to LA Times blogs for more info on Miley Cyrus' Sweet 16)
Updated 10-10-2008 at 12:46 PM by Dateline Disneyland (Added links to LA Times blogs for more info on Miley Cyrus' Sweet 16)
It's time again for Dateline Disneyland! Before we start, I'd like to thank David "Darkbeer" Michael for his contributions to this week's update. Alright, let's get to it!

Overall, my first impressions of the shop were less cynical than they were pleased. I found the shop it to be a breath of fresh air, despite the many items that can be found in the other shops along Main Street. Still, the shop offers plenty of Disney and non-Disney-branded items that were previously not available elsewhere on Main Street. The selection and variety is nice.

The theming in the shop is detailed and engaging, and it's nice to see an effort to offer new things in an area of the park in which the offerings were largely a lot of the same.
Hopefully the idea catches on with park guests, and the Annual Passholders this shop seems to be aimed at, and if it does, I hope the selection of unique, Disney items grows - more of the really cool Disneyland attraction poster shirts would be a great start.



SWEET SIXTEEN
Last weekend Disneyland hosted Disney Channel star Miley Cyrus' special-ticket Sweet 16 party.


The party impacted the park heavily on Sunday with some areas closing as early as 3 p.m. and the park as a whole completely closing to regular guests at 5 p.m.

Frontierland was bombarded with theme-shattering party decorations and set-up throughout the weekend.











LA Times Funland blogger Brady MacDonald has a few Miley Sweet 16 stories over at his blog:
Video: Miley Cyrus celebrates Sweet 16 birthday at Disneyland
Miley Cyrus parties nonstop at Disneyland Sweet 16 birthday celebration
Miley Cyrus invites celebs to Disneyland Sweet 16 party
REFURB AND CONSTRUCTION ROUND-UP
Work continues at the New Orleans Square railroad station.


The roof work atop the Frontierland Shooting Exposition is out from behind tarps.

The River Belle Terrace entry walkway is now uncovered.

The outdoor vending set-up has returned at the base of the Skyway stair queue.

It's much more elaborate and better themed than its previous incarnation.

The set-up also offers frozen and hot drinks.

Toon Town is getting some paint.


The Tinker Bell meet and greet is starting to resemble a tea pot.

The Tomorrowland repaving project presses on...






Over at Disney's California Adventure the new Lounge at the Golden Vine Winery is open in the location that previously housed the pricey Vineyard Room restaurant.


The billboard that used to tout Burger Invasion is now behind walls.

And the Sun Wheel, which was originally scheduled to close September 11 for refurbishment and retheming will finally close after it hosts its last guests on Sunday, October 12.

The Sun Wheel will be re-themed as Mickey's Fun Wheel which will not only help tie together Paradise Pier's new character-heavy theme, but also play a role in the upcoming World of Color water and light show.

Artist rendering copyright Disney
And in Downtown Disney, Department 56's downsizing project is now complete.



And Downtown Disney is getting ready for the holidays already; the multi-colored lighted balls are strung up in the trees.

MORE NIGHTMARE MERCH
And Saturday's Nightmare Before Christmas 15th Anniversary saw even more collectibles released that what was previously on display in Disneyana's window.











AROUND THE PARK
And finally, various shots from around Disneyland









That should do it for this week. Many thanks again to David Michael for his photos in today's update. As always, many more of his shots can be found in his smugmug galleries: darkbeer.smugmug.com.
Also, you can find a lot of my Disney theme park photos in my flickr photostream: flickr.com/photos/andycastro.
Thanks for reading, and be sure to discuss below!
See you next week!
- Andy
WELCOME TO DISNEYLAND!
The first loading area at the Mickey and Friends tram stop is being used again after being closed for most of the summer season following an incident where a tram hit one of the billboards in the loading area.

SOMETHING NEW, SOMETHING OLD
Inside Disneyland, the new Fortuosity Shop has opened up where New Century Timepieces was formerly located.

The store still features working watch artists and watches, but a largely reduced selection.



The new shop also features an eclectic mix of Disney clothing, knick knacks, chocolates, and other wearables that are, or at least appear, upscale.

According to the official DisneyGallery.com description, the new shop is supposed to harken back to the old One-of-a-Kind Shop that used to call New Orleans Square home.
The first loading area at the Mickey and Friends tram stop is being used again after being closed for most of the summer season following an incident where a tram hit one of the billboards in the loading area.

SOMETHING NEW, SOMETHING OLD
Inside Disneyland, the new Fortuosity Shop has opened up where New Century Timepieces was formerly located.

The store still features working watch artists and watches, but a largely reduced selection.



The new shop also features an eclectic mix of Disney clothing, knick knacks, chocolates, and other wearables that are, or at least appear, upscale.

According to the official DisneyGallery.com description, the new shop is supposed to harken back to the old One-of-a-Kind Shop that used to call New Orleans Square home.
Fortuosity Shop features timeless treasures galore! On October 3, 2008, New Century Timepieces will re-open its doors as the new Fortuosity Shop. "The name of the shop was inspired by the opening song from The Happiest Millionaire," says Walt Disney Imagineer and Director of Concept and Show Design, Kim Irvine. "We chose it because it is a Disney word created to express good fortune, which we hope everyone will find some type of fun fortune or treasure each time they visit the shop."
Fortuosity is based on the One Of A Kind shop in New Orleans Square - with lots of old pieces of furniture for displays, lots of funky lights and chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, all to create the feel of a shop one would find on Main Street in the early 1900's. With its eclectic offering of accessories, apparel and gift items, this ever-changing location will continuously reinvent itself, while continuing to offer a selection of our Disney watches, clocks and ever-popular artisan watches. So be sure to take more than a moment to linger in this unique shop and discover unexpected keepsakes that you will treasure for a lifetime.

Overall, my first impressions of the shop were less cynical than they were pleased. I found the shop it to be a breath of fresh air, despite the many items that can be found in the other shops along Main Street. Still, the shop offers plenty of Disney and non-Disney-branded items that were previously not available elsewhere on Main Street. The selection and variety is nice.

The theming in the shop is detailed and engaging, and it's nice to see an effort to offer new things in an area of the park in which the offerings were largely a lot of the same.

Hopefully the idea catches on with park guests, and the Annual Passholders this shop seems to be aimed at, and if it does, I hope the selection of unique, Disney items grows - more of the really cool Disneyland attraction poster shirts would be a great start.



SWEET SIXTEEN
Last weekend Disneyland hosted Disney Channel star Miley Cyrus' special-ticket Sweet 16 party.


The party impacted the park heavily on Sunday with some areas closing as early as 3 p.m. and the park as a whole completely closing to regular guests at 5 p.m.

Frontierland was bombarded with theme-shattering party decorations and set-up throughout the weekend.











LA Times Funland blogger Brady MacDonald has a few Miley Sweet 16 stories over at his blog:
Video: Miley Cyrus celebrates Sweet 16 birthday at Disneyland
Miley Cyrus parties nonstop at Disneyland Sweet 16 birthday celebration
Miley Cyrus invites celebs to Disneyland Sweet 16 party
REFURB AND CONSTRUCTION ROUND-UP
Work continues at the New Orleans Square railroad station.


The roof work atop the Frontierland Shooting Exposition is out from behind tarps.

The River Belle Terrace entry walkway is now uncovered.

The outdoor vending set-up has returned at the base of the Skyway stair queue.

It's much more elaborate and better themed than its previous incarnation.

The set-up also offers frozen and hot drinks.

Toon Town is getting some paint.


The Tinker Bell meet and greet is starting to resemble a tea pot.

The Tomorrowland repaving project presses on...






Over at Disney's California Adventure the new Lounge at the Golden Vine Winery is open in the location that previously housed the pricey Vineyard Room restaurant.


The billboard that used to tout Burger Invasion is now behind walls.

And the Sun Wheel, which was originally scheduled to close September 11 for refurbishment and retheming will finally close after it hosts its last guests on Sunday, October 12.

The Sun Wheel will be re-themed as Mickey's Fun Wheel which will not only help tie together Paradise Pier's new character-heavy theme, but also play a role in the upcoming World of Color water and light show.
Artist rendering copyright Disney
And in Downtown Disney, Department 56's downsizing project is now complete.



And Downtown Disney is getting ready for the holidays already; the multi-colored lighted balls are strung up in the trees.

MORE NIGHTMARE MERCH
And Saturday's Nightmare Before Christmas 15th Anniversary saw even more collectibles released that what was previously on display in Disneyana's window.











AROUND THE PARK
And finally, various shots from around Disneyland









That should do it for this week. Many thanks again to David Michael for his photos in today's update. As always, many more of his shots can be found in his smugmug galleries: darkbeer.smugmug.com.
Also, you can find a lot of my Disney theme park photos in my flickr photostream: flickr.com/photos/andycastro.
Thanks for reading, and be sure to discuss below!
See you next week!
- Andy
Total Comments 26
Comments
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 03:18 AM by tcsnwhite
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 03:26 AM by peoplemover1
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 07:38 AM by WheresMickey
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 07:46 AM by Rixter
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 08:28 AM by omiyage
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Thanks for the update Andy. Any idea when they are going to give hands to the clock outside of the Fortuosity Shop?Posted 10-10-2008 at 08:42 AM by toemblem
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 08:52 AM by Chasbo
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 08:52 AM by dl_appurtenant
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Fantastic update Andy!
What upset me about the Miley birthday party was the loud fireworks that woke me up at Midnight. I have to wake up at 4am every Monday morning. Needless to say that I was totally PISSED that Disney decided that Ms. Cyrus "Sweet 16" was more important than my eight hours of sleep.
Posted 10-10-2008 at 08:54 AM by Dustysage
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 09:01 AM by dsnylndmom
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 09:23 AM by disneyland255
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Wow another great update. I go to DL every Saturday and always feel like I'm a better informed guest due to your updates! Thanks Andy.
I guess I'm showing my age though when I say I don't get this whole Miley Cyrus thing. Is she a big enough star to close the whole park for? I don't think they ever did that for Annette.Posted 10-10-2008 at 10:44 AM by RikiTiki66
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 11:06 AM by cellarhound
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 11:19 AM by NetteNutt
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Yikes! Yeah, I heard about the midnight fireworks. I wonder how much in noise ordinance citation fees Disney shelled out to the City of Anaheim for that ruckus?Quote:Originally Posted by DustysageFantastic update Andy!
What upset me about the Miley birthday party was the loud fireworks that woke me up at Midnight. I have to wake up at 4am every Monday morning. Needless to say that I was totally PISSED that Disney decided that Ms. Cyrus "Sweet 16" was more important than my eight hours of sleep.
Miley's birthday was less of a favor for her, and more of a publicity stunt for Disney theme parks. The event essentially kicked off the "What will you celebrate?" marketing campaign for 2009 with a huge birthday party. Incidentally, birthdays are the main draw of the new marketing campaign -- as everybody is eligible for free admission to a Disney theme park on their birthday in 2009. So using Disney's biggest star right now to promote Disney theme parks is Disney synergy at its best (or worst, depending on how you look at itQuote:Originally Posted by RikiTiki66Wow another great update. I go to DL every Saturday and always feel like I'm a better informed guest due to your updates! Thanks Andy.
I guess I'm showing my age though when I say I don't get this whole Miley Cyrus thing. Is she a big enough star to close the whole park for? I don't think they ever did that for Annette.
)
- Andy
Dateline DisneylandPosted 10-10-2008 at 11:37 AM by MasterGracey
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 12:15 PM by vfire
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 01:06 PM by Abominable Snowman
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 01:43 PM by 2DieFR
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 06:39 PM by Squirt_101
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Posted 10-10-2008 at 06:45 PM by hadesthecat










