Welcome To Screamscape!

Buy Disneyland Tickets Now

Park News - (6/30/09) The construction walls are down and what used to be the Cosmic Waves area is now open again... as a bunch of planters and the same old spinning stone sphere that you remember in the middle. You can see some pics posted to Westcoaster this week. Also thanks to DisneyGeek for sending in some new photos (see sidebar) from the Magical, new fireworks show, as well as the new enhancements to Fantasmic!
  (6/22/09) The DisneyGeek crew sent in a new picture (see sidebar) of the former Cosmic Waves location where it looks like those new concrete structures really aren’t going to be some kind of new bouncing water fountain or anything “wet” but instead are simply planters for some new shade trees to surround the big spinning marble. Check out more in their official update here.
  (6/19/09) The Astro Orbiter is back open, but the construction walls are still up around the old Cosmic Waves area. You can see photos posted to Westcoaster.
  (6/10/09) The LA Times reports that Fantasmic’s new awesome animatronic dragon figure wont be ready in time for the June 12th relaunch of the show. From the sound of things there has been some technical setbacks that will delay the beast’s introduction until “later this Summer”.
  (6/7/09) The L.A. Times has posted an article about the new Flotsam & Jetsam characters being added to Fantasmic! this year as well as an article about the new Flying Dumbo character going into the fireworks show.
  (6/5/09) A new video showing off a sneak preview performance of Magical, the new fireworks show at Disneyland, has been posted to YouTube an embedded below.

  (5/27/09 Check out the new construction update posted to Original D this week and you’ll see that the new pieces of the Astro Orbiter being installed have been repainted to be mostly silver this time around, so it looks like the ride may have a new look when it comes back. They’ve also got a new look at the Cosmic Waves area where it looks like something else may be installed into the area around the central spinning rock fountain, so perhaps they will install a few smaller fountains instead.
  (5/20/09) Westcoaster has posted a good general update from the Disney parks this week, including a look at the Astro Orbiter going back up.
  (5/18/09) All new construction pictures (see sidebar below) of the filled in Cosmic Waves fountain and the new Pixie Hollow fountains have been sent in by DisneyGeek. Visit their site to see even more.
  (5/16/09) While I’m not one of the iPhone crowd I have been sent a bit of news about a new App available for the device (or the iPod Touch) called the Disneyland Park Guide from TimeStream Software. In contains over 120 pages of Disneyland information all about the attractions, hotels, tickets, park tips, park hours, FAQs, show and parade info, and much more. They do point out that at this point in time the App does not contain any information or photos about Disney’s California Adventure… yet.
  (5/14/09) According to a reader who searched through the Disneyland website calendar, Fantasmic first scheduled performance ride now isn’t until June 12th. The new Magical fireworks show isn’t listed to perform until June 11th, with the last night for Remember, Dreams Come True scheduled on June 9th.
  (5/12/09) A new construction update has been posted to OriginalD showing off the new improvements to Pixie Hollow, the Astro Orbiter pieces going back into place, and a big pile of gravel has been dumped into the Cosmic Waves hole.
  (5/7/09) Special thanks to DisneyGeek for sending us a picture (See sidebar) confirming that rumor we posted months ago about new powered Flotsam and Jetsam characters being added to Fantasmic this year. The update also shows off a new animatronic Tic-Toc Croc as well as an all new Dragon for the finale. They also reported that Pixie Hollow is being updated with some new after-dark effects and lighting that will allow it to remain open in the evenings, as well as some new information about the new fireworks show called Magical.
  (5/6/09) According to a few sources the main top part of the Astro Orbiter tower was removed for the rehab. The best guess as to why is that the park may finally be trying to fix the revolving planets around the top half of the ride, which have been broken for years now.
  (5/5/09) Original D has posted a new photo update showing off changes to the parks this past week, but if you look at the one showing off the Astro Orbiter, it looks like the ride has almost been completely removed. This seems to be almost more than just a rehab… could the long rumored plan of putting it back on top of the tower where the old ride used to be finally be coming to pass? Somehow I don’t think they’re ready to do this just yet, after all, with the old elevators gone, there would be no good way to get guests up to the top level anymore, so those would have to come back as well. Anyone know more?
  (4/30/09) Original D has posted a new construction update from both parks this week, but starts off with a look at the Food & Wine event at DCA, but then goes over to Tommorland where you can see that the Astro Orbiter has been taken apart down to the metal framework on the central tower. The old Cosmic Waves fountains have also been gutted down to nothing more than the central “ball”. Anyone know what the future holds for either of these?
  (4/29/09) A new construction update from Disneyland as well as California Adventure has been added to MouseTimes this week.
  (4/28/09) While I don’t have any firm information on this, I’ve heard a rumor that the park may add a number of new improvements to the Indiana Jones Adventure ride in late 2009 and possibly more in 2010. From what I’m told first phase is to upgrade the first and last Indy animatronic figures seen on the ride with newer and more impressive models. They may also add some kind of impressive new effect early on in the ride as well, though I don’t know any more than that. According to our source, these improvements will take palce sometime between the end of Summer and late Fall, whenever they schedule the attraction for a lengthy rehab.
  Beyond this, in 2010, I’m told that we can expect to possible see a few more new effects added to the ride as well as restoring some of the existing scenes to work the way they were intended to, but haven’t done so in a long time. (So does this mean we’ll see the return of the crumbling cavern roof / ice machine effect come back?) Anyone know more?
  (4/27/09) Disneyland fans will enjoy taking a look back in time at the construction of the Indiana Jones Adventure thrill ride, posted to Beary-Tales.net.
  (2/27/09) Good news for classic Disneyland attraction fans, as we have been informed that there has been a change in plans and Mr. Lincoln is once again set to be reinstalled in his theater sometime in the fall of 2009, along with the install of a new pre-show.
  (1/7/09) Disneyland is promoting a special 40th Anniversary Merchandise Event for the Haunted Mansion on 09/09/09. Tickets are quite a bit of coin for the event, but the teaser is very interesting, “The Plot Thickens. . . After five husbands and five untimely deaths, the Black Widow Bride of the Haunted Mansion will wed once more. Has she found her soul mate? Or will another groom meet his doom? Join us, Foolish Mortals, and we'll dig up the answers at our ghostly celebration that everyone's dying to attend.” They also mention that if you pre-register before the end of February you will get a “early demise” pin.

Ride Rehabs - The following information is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate.
Astro Orbiter - NOW CLOSED though UNKNOWN
Fantasmic – NOW CLOSED through 6/11/09
Peter Pan’s Flight – 5/4/09 through Late May or Early June
 

2009 - It’s A Small World Rehab - (2/12/09) One of our readers has sent in a ton of new pictures taken inside the reopened It’s A Small World showing off many of the new Disney/Pixar characters added to the ride.

  (2/9/09) It’s a Small World reopened late last week and the videos are starting to flow into YouTube over the weekend. I’ve embedded a two-part video below showing off the newly renovated version of the ride, that now features various Disney/Pixar characters mixed into the scenes. The renovation also includes the addition of a new “American” western scene in place of the old Rainforest scene where you’ll find Jessie, Woody and Bullseye.


  (2/4/09) The LA Times has posted a brief piece about the re-recording of the soundtrack for It’s A Small World. Last I heard the ride is still set to reopen to guests on Friday.
  (1/20/09) If your curious about which Disney characters may have made the cut to be added to It’s A Small World then check out the new Small World collectors pin set that gives the secret away. It features new Small World pins of Mulan, Cinderella, Woody/Bullseye, Pinocchio, Aladin/Jasmine, Ariel/Flounder and Lilo & Stitch.
  Meanwhile details of the park’s Annual Passholder plan for the ride have also come out, with a planned special Passholder preview of the ride set for February 5th from 10am to 8pm. Just show your pass to gain entry.
  (11/24/08) While It’s a Small World reopened the Holiday version of the ride this past weekend, we will have to wait until February 2009 to see what changes will be made to the standard version of the ride.
  (7/3/08) According to Screamscape sources Disneyland is moving ahead with a scaled back plan to renovate Small World by adding in a few Disney character figures into the mix in appropriate scenes. If it’s anything like the new Hong Kong version, I’m sure the changes will be welcomed by the time it opens and nothing to worry about.
  (4/30/08) Small World purists opposed to the changes of adding in Disney characters to the ride should check out the slew of new videos showing off the Hong Kong Disneyland version of the ride before they slam the concept entirely.
  (2/27/08) According to the latest news from MiceAge, Disneyland has asked Imagineering to add in several Disney characters to the scenes in It’s a Small World in much the same fashion that they will be added to the new version opening in Hong Kong later this year. They are also planning on adding an “American” themed section to the ride which previously did not have one.
  (10/19/07) Screamscape sources have confirmed that the rumors of a 9-10 month closure of It’s A Small World (From January 2008 to November 2008) are right on the money. It seems that the time has finally come to replace the flume and fleet of boats that have been running around It’s A Small World for decades. This means that the last time you’ll be able to see the Classic version (not Holiday) of Small World before early 2009 would be this weekend.

2009 - Celebrate! Party In The Streets - (1/21/09) The LA Times has posted a piece about the new Celebrate! A Street Party that will open at Disneyland on March 27th along with a new piece of concept art.
  (1/6/09) A reader tells us that according to a CM the new parade isn’t likely to start until March now. Anyone know more?
  (11/6/08) I’ve been told that a new parade called Celebrate! Party In The Streets will begin as soon as the winter holiday is over and they retire the Parade of Dreams. The new parade will run twice daily and feature colorful floats featuring Disney characters with banners and ribbons connecting the floats as if in a long chain. The parade is expected to stop several times along the route to “party” with the guests, along with the use of a ton of confetti to be shot from cannons placed along the parade route.

2010 - (11/17/08) Sources tell us that rumored new parade based on the design of Tokyo Disneyland’s Jubilation Parade is still in development for Disneyland for the park’s 55th Anniversary Celebration in 2010. You can see a video of the Tokyo parade from YouTube embedded below for your enjoyment.

2010 / 2011 - Star Tours 2 - Semi-Confirmed - (5/5/09) The LA Times has posted an extra interesting bit of information about the Star Tours 2 production. Just this past November the reported had been lucky enough to interview Frank Oz, who does the voice of Yoda, and got an unexpected Star Tours tip-off. Upon asking Frank Oz about the last time he did any Yoda voice-work Frank responded that he had just been recording new dialog for “the new Disney ride” not long ago. At this point it seems the Lucasfilm handlers stepped in and asked for that bit of information to not be shared until there was something more detailed about the project to discuss, such as the shoot in Hollywood this past week.
  (5/2/09) According to SlashFilm, a top secret Star Wars themed production shoot has been taking place in West Hollywood this past week. According to the article, they believe this shoot is actually to create some new footage that may be used as part of a Star Tours 2 attraction, where the new story may involve your Star Speeding being chased around by Boba Fett. They believe that the new footage may actually being shot in 3D as well. This matches up with an old rumor I received about the ride possibly going “3D” this time around, and we also received a new rumor this week claiming that they are also looking at stealing perhaps one of the best effects from DisneySea’s StormRider simulator ride which will involve your ship being hit by debris at some point, with one piece breaking through the hull of the ship and through the roof of the cabin itself near the end of the ride.
  (3/21/09) What a difference six months makes as it looks like the Star Tours 2 project has been delayed until 2011 according to an update at MiceAge from a few weeks ago. However, shortly after that article was posted, I was contacted by one of my sources who reported that the story about the delay was old news leftover from last summer. With everyone in fear of losing their jobs these days, I’m told that the Star Tours 2 project was brought back out of the closet and is being worked on once again to prove that the department staff is needed because they are still in the middle of a major project.
  While there is no solid timeline set for it yet, there are some issues going on between Disneyland and Disney World management over this new attraction. Disneyland wants the full fledged, crank the knob up to 11, full of new in-cabin special effects version of Star Tours 2. Orlando on the other hand, always ready to snip away at attraction budgets, is asking for a more bare-bones, no-frills version, and to reuse as much of what’s already installed as possible version. The funny part is that in an effort to push this thing along, both may get their wish, with Orlando being willing to put in the low-budget version while Disneyland installs a version of many cool new effects. What could help or hurt the scheduling here however is just how willing the Oriental Land Company is to get involved in the project as well, providing additional cost-sharing capital to the project which would help them all move into production more quickly.
  (7/3/08) The latest buzz on Star Tours 2 is that the project is now looking at a Fall 2009 opening date due to some project delays, but it’s still very possible for it to slip back to early 2010.
  (5/28/08) After all these years of following rumors for the next version of Star Tours confirmation of the project has finally been leaked in an article about the GCI effects for the latest Indiana Jones film. While interviewing Hayden Landis, a head GCI guru for Lucasfilm’s ILM, the last paragraph says, “Next up for Landis is another nostalgia-oriented project--a redo of the Star Tours ride at Disneyland.” We can only assume that the project will also be launched at the other three Star Tours attractions around the globe at the same time or shortly afterwards.
  (4/25/08) Screamscape sources tell us that we should finally expect to see Star Tours shut down sometime in 2009 in order to begin work on the massive overhaul it will receive for the Star Tours 2 concept rebirth. Apparently we shouldn’t expect to see it reopen for close to a year or more since this is said to be a complete overhaul and not just Disney dropping in a new ride-film.
  (2/25/08) News updates about Star Tours 2 are few and far between but a source has heard an interesting new development rumor for the project. Our source tell us that while currently one of the pods (#3?) at the Disneyland attraction is “down for maintenance”, the truth is that WDI has been playing around inside the cabin after hours and playing It’s Tough To Be a Bug footage of all things. While this seems odd at first, apparently they are doing it to test a new 3D projection system they are working on for the cabins for the new Star Tours. The good news is that they may be working on the idea of finally opening the new Star Tours 2 ride as part of the Tomorrowland 2010 project that may see the entire land refurbished once again for the park’s 55th Anniversary.
  (6/6/07) New rumors have surfaced about new plans and developments for the long awaited Star Tours 2 project. For the latest information posted this week, read the entry at the Disney-MGM Studios page.
  (3/9/07) Screamscape has heard some early work is being done again on the Star Tours 2 project. Park management has been inspired by the success and popularity of the Star Wars themed Jedi Academy show how playing in the park and is interested in updating Star Tours once again.
  (4/25/05) I think one of the oldest rumors that I had when I started this website years ago was that Star Tours would someday be updated to have a new ride film. This rumor evolved over the years to the Pod Racer concept from Episode I when the multiple ending idea and at Disney World they even went so far as to retheme the outside of their gift shop to an Episode I themed Tatooine building. But still no new ride... and after years of delays and rumors that Lucas and Eisner had just had it out with each other and the ride would never happen, I gave up on it. Now George Lucas himself made a statement at the Star Wars Celebration III event, reported on ComingSoon.net, that Star Tours “will be getting an overhaul soon”.

2011/2012 - PeopleMover v3 / Tomorrowland 2010 - Rumor - (4/25/08) From what I’ve been told, a new future for Tomorrowland is finally on the way. The new Star Tours 2 concept is apparently just the first phase of a larger makeover for Tomorrowland. Once the new version of Star Tours opens the plan is to demolish the old Rocket Jet Tower to make way for an all new tower that will once again house a next generation Peoplemover ride station as well as the base unit to return the Astro-Orbiter back to it’s rightful place high in the sky on top of this new tower.
  (2/25/08) Screamscape sources tell us that there has been some activity along the old Peoplemover / Rocket Rods tracks after hours in anticipation of reinventing the ride once again for the Tomorrowland 2010 project. If the rumors are true people have been seen poking around the track areas in various locations, though most commonly in the old loading station area. Apparently there is some debate about if they should try to reuse the old Rocket Tower location as the loading station once again or if perhaps they may be better off loading from a new location, such as the enclosed tunnel areas near that travel next to the upper floor of the arcade. With the end near for the run of Honey, I Shrunk The Audience, it seems there is talk about reusing the area for the new project as well. As for the theme… no one seems to know right now, though we have heard that The IncrediPod concept may have been tossed out in favor something new. Makes me wonder if the rumor about having all of the Tomorrowland 2010 projects themed to Star Wars may have actually come to pass.
  (12/4/07) With the Submarine Voyage successfully launched not everyone is focused entirely on the future of California Adventure it seems. I’ve been told for quite some time that the next big project for Disneyland itself would most likely be to fix the rest of Tomorrowland, namely creating a new attraction to take over the old Peoplemover / Rocket Rods track that winds throughout the entire land. While no theme has been given, the details leaking out do sound like they would fit that IncrediPod concept we had previously heard about. Guests would be able to ride inside a four passenger “pods” unit, with controls to make the pod spin in a circle (ie: Buzz Lightyear) to control their own viewing angle.
  (9/5/07) According to a report last week at Jim Hill Media, George Lucas and Disney execs will be meeting soon to not only go over the progress of Star Tours 2 but to talk about the possibility of turning the the Tomorrowland 2010 project into a Star Wars themed project. The Star Wars theme wouldn’t touch most of the classic attractions like Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, the Autopia or the Submarine Voyage but could be applied to just about everything else.
  (6/7/07) Screamscape sources have confirmed only that the old PeopleMover / Rocket Rods tracks will return to life once again in the next few years, likely for the planned 2010 Tomorrowland update. Sorry to beat a dead horse, but I’ve got to say how much I’d love to see this transformed into a Star Wars themed Speederbike ride around Tomorrowland. This time around, I think they could use the Vekoma Booster Bike launched coaster system but retheme to bikes to look like Star Wars Speederbikes, replacing some of the track layout sections around the Autopia and Submarine Lagoon with more thrilling and twisted track sections of the final run of the ride. It just sounds more fun than the IncrediPods.
  (3/12/07) If the latest rumors are true there are huge plans in development to fix the Tomorrowland 1998 disaster left behind by the Pressler era. The plan right now is to not only “fix” Tomorrowland, but give it the true facelift it needs to carry it through the next couple of decades at least. All the little rumors we’ve been hearing about for years (Star Tours 2, IncrediPods, etc...) are all apparently going to come together as part of this massive overhaul to one of Disneyland’s most popular lands. All the planets are aligning once again to make this happen, and Disney’s new successful relationships with players like Steve Jobs and John Lasseter and even Roy Disney is said to have had enough effect to restore George Lucas’ faith in Disney quality once again. The newer attractions like Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, Subs and Autopia will be left alone of course, but everything else is fair game it seems. We’ve been told they are also looking at making a new 4D attraction to replace Honey, I Shrunk The Audience as well as another unknown attraction that I imagine could take the place of the Innoventions building. Though... I’ve got to wonder if they do bring the people mover tracks back to life, would they just add speed ramps to the old station once again like before (since the old Rocket Rods queue is now home to Buzz Lightyear) or would they try to move the load/unload station to the upper floor of the Innoventions building instead? Of course, what I’d personally like to see is the Astro Orbiter returned to it’s rightful place back on top of the rocket tower once again.

2011/2012- Matterhorn w/ New Cars - In Development - (10/3/08) The latest rumor on the proposed new Matterhorn cars claims that any plans to retire the current trains in favor of a new fleet will have to wait until at least 2011 at this point, as it was not approved for the next year’s budget.
  (5/6/08) You know this may just be crazy talk but I’ve been thinking about the whole idea of buying new cars for The Matterhorn. With the latest buzz claiming that the conversion to the new train style most likely to happen in early 2009, this also coincides with the rumored timeline of when Walt Disney World is supposed to be shutting down their Space Mountain for an extended make-over, possibly just as extensive as the one done to Disneyland’s own Space Mountain not too long ago. With an audio system rumored to be in the works as well for the Florida makeover, it would seem that they would need a new fleet of trains as well. Now the current fleet of cars running in Florida aren’t that old (as far as coaster cars go), as the entire ride received new trains back during the whole Millennium Celebration, switching over sometime in mid-1999 as I recall.
  I bet you know where I’m heading with this. I don’t think it would be entirely unheard of for Disneyland to make a cheap purchase agreement to buy those old 2nd Gen Space Mountain trains from Florida, apply a new coat of paint and rehab them to work as your new California bobsleds.
  (4/29/08) It has been awhile since we’ve heard a peep about adding a new fleet of Matterhorn cars, but the latest rumors claim that the new 3-seat cars are still on the way. We’ve been told we can expect to see them show up most likely during the next major Matterhorn rehab that is set to take place somewhere between the end of 2008 to early 2009. Anyone know more?
  (11/19/07) A reader pointed out a little bit of information to me about the new 3 seat Matterhorn cars in the works. While it is true that the current cars hold 4 adults at once (8 per train), they point out most trains only go out with anywhere form 4 to 6 riders right now because so many people don’t want to sit on someone’s lap. Add in the extra “weight” factor where it often it can be a bit uncomfortable for two “full sized” adults to sit together and you realize that the six individual seats may actually increase the ride’s capacity in the end.
  (11/14/07) I had no idea this was in the works, but as you can see in the photo sent in new trains are being considered for the Matterhorn based on the individual seat designs used on Florida’s Space Mountain. While this will likely make the ride a more comfortable experience, it could increase the length of the line and raise the height limit for the ride. The old cars would usually hold four riders and the new cars can only hold three, and since you can’t hold your small children on your lap anymore, expect to see the height limit raised to at least 40 inches… or maybe even 44 inches since that is what they use on Space Mountain in Florida. The current height limit on Matterhorn is just 35 inches.