Mickey and Minnie celebrate the golden ears- Alameda Times- Star- 5/9/05

Disneyland paints the town gold in honor of its 50th annniversary

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But what we on the West Coast care about is what's new and what's good in Disneyland itself. For those of us who grew up with the park, it will always be the best. The others have good points, but there's just something special about the one that started it all.

The good news is that the Walt Disney Company, now one of the world's corporate behemoths, has wisely chosen to make Disneyland gleam in honor of its birthday.

There's hardly a corner of the park that hasn't been touched up, spiffed up or otherwise transformed into something gold and shiny.

The park hasn't looked this good in years, and in addition to some excellent new features — a ride, two parades, a fireworks show and an exhibit — some much-needed attention has been lavished on some classics. Both the Jungle Cruise (1955) and the Enchanted Tiki Room (1963) have been thoroughly renovated and look terrific.

On the Jungle Cruise, the tropical rivers have been infested with piranha, and there's a new baby elephant spraying guests at ride's end. In the Tiki, Tiki, Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room, where the birds sing words and the flowerscroon, there's abundant fresh plumage on aviary performers, and the plants have shiny new petals.

Vehicles in some of the rides (Mad Tea Cups, Autopia) have been painted gold, and the 50th anniversary logo — a round 50 with Mickey Mouse ears on it — is just about everywhere you look.

Except for the inevitable crowds excited by the anniversary hoo-ha, this is a great time to visit Disneyland, especially if you're already a fan.

The new attractions that celebrate the park itself are especially rewarding.

I know there have been hundreds of articles covering the 50th kickoff posted, but I like this one because it makes comments on the improvements that have been made in the park- seems to be written from more of a fan's perspective, instead of adapted from an official press release.

Thought you all might enjoy it. :D

Great article!!

All I can say to this is wow. Never thought my small-town newspaper would make it on a site this big. I must say the journalism of the Alameda Times-Star is less than professional because of its local routes, but I do read it from time to time. I stopped reading after they refused to write a review on my Senior musical. The drama dept wrote a letter to them saying if they felt our musical was too 'amatuer' to review, we thought their paper was too 'amatuer' to read.