In the original Narnia books by C.S. Lewis, time moves differently between the human world and Narnia—what seems like an eye blink here may take an eternity over there, and vice versa. There is no rhyme or reason to predict which way the elasticity of time might bend; sometimes it’s faster in one realm, and sometimes in the other.
Something similar happens in the Disney universe; specifically, I’m thinking of those moments when a ride goes on “hiatus” or is considered “temporary.” One one end of the spectrum, the attractions on “hiatus” include Light Magic and Rocket Rods at Disneyland (both would never be seen again after a short run). I guess that “hiatus” lasted longer than the name might imply! On the other end of the spectrum, we have “temporary” attractions that stick around for decades. This past Friday night, the “temporary” Mickey’s Birthdayland (I mean “Mickey’s Starland”… oh wait… I mean, “Mickey’s Toontown Fair”) has been shuttered, to clear space for a piece of the Fantasyland Expansion.
No bathroom key in a gas pump, and no hot dog stand. But the Pete’s
Garage bathrooms will still live in memory.
Born of a desire to exploit (er, “celebrate”) Mickey’s 60th birthday in 1988, Mickey’s Birthdayland was an odd duck to begin with. It’s not as if the Disney animated characters had no place to go in the Magic Kingdom. If the original purpose of Adventureland was to give a home to “True-Life Adventureland” documentaries and the point of Frontierland was to give home to Zorro and Davy Crockett (two amazingly popular Disney properties of the 1950s), then the point of Fantasyland was to provide a place for the animated characters.
But Mickey’s 60th anniversary in 1988 offered a chance to celebrate in a big way (back then, Marketing was a pretty big concept for driving attendance, as opposed to adjusting programs or pricing… or creating artificial demand via discounts and incentives), and the “powers that be” decided to give the Fab Five their own area. It would be a temporary land, dominated by tents and hastily-constructed facades, but it would be their own. Guest response was positive, so the area stuck around as “Mickey’s Starland” (1990-1996) for a while, then finally was dubbed “Mickey’s Toontown Fair” in 1996.
Mickey and Minnie in Toontown Fair
For perhaps an entire generation, that’s all the land has been: the “homes” to Mickey and Minnie. Technically, these are the “vacation” homes for Mickey and Minnie. After the success of Mickey’s Starland, Disneyland in Anaheim decided to build a “Mickey’s Toontown” that would build on the success of the Roger Rabbit movie (from 1988) and construct a town of three districts: commercial, civic, and residential. When that land opened in 1993 in Anaheim, it supplanted Mickey’s Starland (the Magic Kingdom equivalent at that time) as the “official” home of Mickey and Minnie. The structures in the Magic Kingdom were relegated to the “vacation” homes of our resident rodents.
By 1996, the powers that be in the Magic Kingdom decided to keep Mickey’s Starland around, but rename it to Mickey’s Toontown Fair. They couldn’t call it Mickey’s Toontown, since Mickey appeared to now live in Anaheim—so this was rethought to portray his vacation home in Mickey’s Toontown Fair. And now, in 2011, Mickey’s Toontown Fair has ceased to exist.
Not a view we’re likely to see again any time soon.
Inquiring minds want to know—was this the first time that Disney parks have eliminated an entire land? It turns out that there may be a few precedents if you think about it.
One that might come to mind is Bear Country, the corner of Disneyland that used to be home to the Country Bear Jamboree and…, er…, not much else. It was renamed in 1989 to Critter Country to welcome the addition of Splash Mountain. Was this the first land "discontinued" at a Disney park? Possibly, especially if you mean a "land" in the classic sense of the word. But they didn't rip everything out, bulldoze the structures, and start over. Rather, they kept most of the buildings, added a few decorations, and included a giant new E-Ticket. Significant? Yes. But not exactly the same as removing an entire land.
Goodbye Toon Park!
Yet that's what we're getting here in Orlando: a fresh start. It may not be the first area removal, but it's arguably the first SIGNIFICANT land removal in the Disney company history. It's certainly the first “land” removal here in Central Florida, which alone makes it important. With the exception of the Barnstormer coaster (rethemed to the Great Goofini), there will not be any holdovers in the new land. We are to expect new structures, new play areas, and new facilities. Alas, at latest report it looks like some of those structures will be based out of tents.
Minnie’s House is closed… forever.
Why tents? Becaue the new land will be themed to a circus and renamed to Circusland. There is already audio on the train spiel to this effect. Apparently, the Great Goofini will be joined by "Pete's Silly Slideshow" (a theater attraction?) and "Big Top Souvenirs" (with the Three Little Pigs as hosts—something called The Flying Piggolinis). Looking at the conceptual artwork, we can also expect a standalone Casey Jr. train (probably a prop - maybe a food stand?) and an interactive water playground, as well.
Mercifully, the planned tents will not be same ones in use now, but instead will be new. Still... one has to wonder. Tents?! Really? Is that a fiscal compromise or is this some misguided attempt to match supposed customer expectation of tents in a circus area? Because if so, let me express my hope that the general public doesn't really want tents.
Chip 'n' Dale sponsored the Farmer’s Market.
The irony is not lost on me that Disney intends to replace Mickey's Toontown Fair with yet another attempt at the circus theme. Since the few tries at a Circus presentation at Disneyland never really took root (even at the behest of Walt himself), I politely ask that the Orlando executives never, ever try the circus theme again.
As ever though, the devil is in the details. At this point in time, I'm willing to give Disney the benefit of the doubt, though it's hard to see how a circus theme can ever be truly "Disney." But let's say they get it right. If so, fine--they've proven the doubters wrong before. But there are myriad ways to get it wrong, and if they get it wrong, I do hope they stop trying with this particular theme. I think the visitors have spoken with their wallets.
Cornelius Coot, the “founder” of Toontown Fair (and the mayor of
Duckburg, the original ostensible name of this area in 1988).
Speaking of the devil being in the details, it may be worthwhile to pause for a second and properly eulogize Mickey’s Toontown Fair. While some fans disdained this section of the park, this was no fly-by-night operation. It was a full-on Disney immersive environment, with details to spare if you just took the time to look. On the surface, you had buildings dedicated to Donald (the boat), Mickey (his house), Minnie (her house), and Goofy (Barnstormer). Pluto was represented via a doghouse behind Mickey’s house.
But dig a bit deeper and you saw connections, even a tentative storyline, connecting the structures. A huge, ragged hole in one side of Donald’s Boat had no explanation in the boat area itself. But if you ventured into Mickey’s house, you saw a “photograph” of Donald’s boat under attack by a shark, and this shark later saluting the camera even as Mickey reeled in a fish (the same fish, natch, which was on display elsewhere in Mickey’s house). Posters in Minnie’s house paid tribute to the Barnstormer and to the land in general. You merely had to look beyond the surface level of the interactions in Mickey’s Toontown Fair to see how the gang all lived together in harmony.
Donald’s Boat – wave goodbye!
All in all, these were details worth exploring. Perhaps they weren’t on the same level as the intricate backstory of Disneyland’s Indiana Jones Adventure, but neither were they slapdash paintings on the order of “Afternoon Avenue,” a misguided attempt in 1993 to retheme the Motorboat Lagoon and then-Fantasyland Autopia to cartoons on TV.
My seven year old has trouble with any kind of change, so he’ll miss this
corner of the park. But he’ll also welcome the new when it’s here!
As Mickey’s Toontown Fair wrapped up its final evening, with the fireworks of Wishes exploding over Mickey’s House, I found myself wishing that the rubberhead Mickey Mouse would have come out to say goodbye. It’s not like legions of adoring fans were nearby—you saw perhaps two dozen shutterbugs, nothing more. But to the park’s credit, those who DID stick around (manager types, mostly), were extremely gentle in suggesting that now was the time to move along. I’d go so far as to suggest they were respectful of the desire (need?) to take last-second photographs of the land, and the “closing” of Mickey’s Toontown Fair took perhaps a half hour longer than it should have. But we were never rushed, and I wanted to express my appreciation to the Cast Members for that.
Fireworks over Mickey’s (vacation) house.
Farewell, Mickey. As they used to sing on your TV show while spelling out your name (M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E), I will “see you real soon!” This particular chapter in Disney park history may have closed, but the book is eternal, and I look forward to the next one.
The Barnstormer had an actual barn door. Are they closing the barn door “too late”?
40x40 Schedule Updated
If you previously bookmarked (or copied) my list of attraction celebrations in the Magic Kingdom, part of a recognition that the park has been open for 40 years and thus needs attention paid to 40 different attractions, please note that I tinker with the schedule occasionally, especially whenever operational realities intrude on the original plans.
We've previously moved Snow White (closing soon?) and Tiki Room (damaged by fire), and now it's time to move another attraction up the list also, lest it close on us unexpectedly. So Dumbo will be the attraction this coming Saturday – join us if you can at 2pm! You can keep track of the current list here at this link. |
