Oh and I meant to second “Remember…Dreams Come True.” That was the most amazing fireworks show I have ever seen (and I have been in Washington DC for the 4th of July). The story, the coreophraphy, the lights, the fireworks- amazing. Obviously, if you haven’t seen it- I highly suggest you do.
I used to work at EPCOT and while I’ve had my share of bitching about the working conditions and the pay, I did love the whole Disney experience. Personally, I think that most of it comes down to one thing: Attention to detail.
From the ImaginEARing department that invents things to make your Disney Park experience unique (didya know that in EPCOT all the countries have different ground texture to make you feel the difference subconsciously) to the sight gags hidden in films, the love that “little things” receive can be felt throughout. (Ignore me sounding like a voice-over person here.) Agreed, sometimes the translation is cheesy or you can feel the demands of the huge corporation weighing in, but still, it’s there and it makes the difference.
As to specifics:
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Fireworks
Nothing better than a Disney fireworks display. From the music to the effects. I’m particularly partial to Illuminations with the fireworks at Magic Kingdom coming in a close second. -
Rides
Some might not be the most spectacular rides, but it’s all in the presentation. The aforementioned Tower of Terror is my favourite exactly for the reasons Sol Grundy mentioned. Or Splash Mountain, where you really ride to sing Zip-a-dee-doo-dah at the top of your lungs (…you don’t? ahem…) Or Alien Encounter, the scariness of which you don’t really expect right next to pink Cinderella Castle and where I get goosebumps at the pre-show. -
Simple but fun: the Musical Fountain at EPCOT. I really liked to sit there, listen to the classical music and just watch it.
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Holiday time at the parks
Love, love, love the holiday decorations, the carolers and the huge Christmas trees (I just like lights - can I include the Electrical Light Parade in a byline? Thanks.) -
Aladdin parade
The best of the daytime parades, admittedly it had great parade music to work with.
5a (scuseme). The movies
Could not let those unmentioned, could I? The Rescuers was my very first movie and I knew The Jungle Book by heart. While I think they got a little bit sidetracked with their quest to include “those loveable characters” in every movie, I think Lilo and Stitch was an excellent return to the old Disney ways.
I’m a lot like SolGrundy in that the way that I am (generally kinda hipstery, into mostly indie films, underground music, etc) would normally make people think that I’d run screaming away from stuff like this, but I love Disney theme parks. I’ve only been to Anaheim and Florida - in fact, I leave on Saturday for a week at my brother’s place in Celebration, FL, which is about 10 minutes from each park’s entrance. I usually go on an annual basis, so last year around this time I bought an annual pass to Disney World despite the fact that I live in Chicago. For my two trips (last Sept. and this Sept.) make it financially advantageous for me to own an annual pass than to buy two four-day passes. Let me see if I can narrow down to five …
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Epcot’s World Showcase - I pretty much love everything about this. I love the French pastry shop, the 360 degree Chinese and Canadian films, the Norway and Mexico rides … this part of the park makes it the only Disney park I can go to from open to close and not get so damn tired.
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Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin - This is one of my all-time favorite rides and I could go on it probably five times in a row and still be entertained. Aside from the overall entertainment factor, I love the interactive game aspect.
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Pirates of the Caribbean/Haunted Mansion - I realize they’re two different rides, but even before the movies came out I thought of these two almost as a unit. They’re similar in the way they create their themes and, while not huge thrill-rides, I still love going on them every time. I even have the miniature Haunted Mansion in my bedroom.
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The smells! - C’mon, they design this place to smell great. When you walk down Main Street, you’ve got smells of candy, baked goods, and pretty much everything that made you excited as a little kid. The watery smell in Pirates of the Caribbean means Disney World to me. I also love how they created a specific smell for the burning of Rome in Spaceship Earth. When you smell that stuff, you automatically know where you are.
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The atmosphere at night - If you can stand to stay at a park that long, I highly recommend walking around at night. Like Farmwoman mentioned, Epcot has lights embedded in the pavement in some areas, the purple light gives Spaceship Earth an eerie glow, and everything seems more intimate despite the fact that you’re still hanging out with 120,000 of your best friends.
Damn, this thread makes me excited that I’m going back next week!
I’m such a nerd!
For thosenostalgic moments.
In no particular order:
- Kim Possible, even if there should be more of it
- the Pixar association specifically, but more generally
- so many of the classics of my (our) youth
- Epcot and MGM. Magic Kingdom is a cute little park, but I was the weird kid who was always happiest when I was at the other two
- the fireworks
I guess I’m not really unique, but I’m certainly still impressed.
I forgot to mention that; it really is amazing. It’s like an entire show made up of fireworks show finales. And it actually manages to be clever, not just spectacular – I love the bit about the Frontierland Shooting gallery, where they have sparks and dings going off all around the castle.
Kind of – when I celebrate the amazing stuff that the company has done, and pay to enjoy it, that allows Disney to continue making that amazing stuff. It’s extremely simple-minded to believe that buying a theme park ticket makes one complicit in unfair business practices; if anything, putting money into the business and saying “I like this but not this” will be a small measure of input into keeping the company on the right track.
It’s definitely a hell of a lot more constructive and likely to affect change than just griping about it on the internet – on a practical level, who’s the company most likely to listen to? The fan who’s giving them money and pointing out the things he doesn’t like, or the guy who sets up a webpage that says “Disney SUCKS!!!” Not being able to see past the huge multinational corporation to appreciate what that corporation actually does, is pretty simple-minded and completely ineffectual.
And in any case, there’s always the question of venue and appropriateness. I’ll complain, vocally, about how Disney cut its traditional animation staff and treated a lot of its greatest talent unfairly. But I won’t do that to people enjoying themselves at a parade or on a ride. That’s not necessarily because I believe in the magic and wonder of the dreams of a child’s imagination, but just because I’m not that much of a jerk.
We’re a bunch of Disneyland nuts here, as well (only 68 days, 9 hours and 25 minutes 'till we leave for our next visit!).
Number 1: This would have to be Disneyland. I don’t care how many times I go, I always get a stupid ear-to-ear grin every time I set foot in the place.
Number 2: The Pirates of the Caribbean - The movie, not the ride (although I think it is without a doubt the best ride Disney has come up with anywhere, I include the ride as part of point #1). I was prepared to hate this movie. I mean, come on, a movie based on a theme park ride? Please!!! Luckily for all of us, they cast Johnny Depp, and produced one of the most entertaining movies I have seen is quite a long time.
Number 3: Another vote for Kim Possible. Rhiannon4804 and I enjoy it as much as, if not more than, our 7 year-old son.
Number 4: I think Disney should get some credit for keeping alive what has been an almost forgotten genre of cinema: the musical. Recently, Baz Luhrmann has made a good run at reviving the genre, but for quite a few years there were no movie musicals. Except that there were, only they were disguised as children’s movies. Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King, The Little Mermaid: all were good old-fashioned musicals, just with animated instead of live actors.
Number 5: Plain old fun family entertainment. Whether it’s theme parks, movies, or TV, if it days “Disney” on it, you can pretty much rely on the entire family being able to have fun with it together.
First and only time I went to a Disney theme park, I was 27 and on a business trip to Palm Springs. When I told the people at the seminar that I had never been to Disneyland or Disney World, a person offered to drop me off because she had to go back to Orange County for something. I was so excited, but by the time we got out of the seminar and to Disneyland, it was 5:15. I decided I couldn’t afford to pay the full admission price for only 45 minutes, so I hung out at Downtown Disney. While I was there, I decided to rent a car and drive back to Disneyland that Friday since my seminar ended at noon and my plane didn’t leave until 6 am on Saturday.
I’m so glad I splurged on the rental car. I had so much fun, even if I did go to Disneyland by myself and only had a few hours to enjoy it. I took advantage of the Flexpass and being a single rider. I got to ride a bunch of stuff, but I didn’t get to ride Small World (it was broken) or see the Tikki Room ('cause I didn’t know about that one). I finally got the Mickey Mouse ears with my name on it that I always wanted too. I even bought some for my mom, grandma, and a Captain Hook hat for my husband. 
Anyhow, I almost missed the fireworks show because I was buying the soundtracks to The Lion King and Aladdin to help me stay awake on my drive back (I’m less likely to get road daze if I sing at the top of my lungs). The clerk told me I was missing the show, so I hurried up and paid (but really didn’t think too much about it because I had seen firework shows before). Anyhow, I went out to watch the fireworks. To my astonishment, Peter Pan flew across the sky as if he jumped straight out of the movie and into the sky. It was the coolest thing. I wish I had seen the whole show.
That was the best trip. I have never felt like such a grownup/kid at the same time. Didn’t mean to hijack your thread, but reading everyone’s posts brought back some happy memories of the Happiest Place on Earth.
Gargoyles. (Kim Possible is good, but IMHO not as good as Gargoyles)
Brian
Shutterbug- the Tiki Room was down for renovations for the 50th (assuming you went in the last year or so).
And that was Tink, not Peter-- sheesh! 
I didn’t come in here to piss on Disney or start a debate about the morality or legality of what the company as a whole does.
However, this is a board dedicated to fighting ignorance, and the implication that “I know they’re evil, but they entertain me so let’s celebrate them anyway” and that supporting them does not encourage them is, well, ignorant.
Personally, I boycott them. I don’t go to their parks or watch their movies or buy their merchandise or, by extension, support any of their properties like ESPN or ABC. My one man boycott certainly doesn’t affect them in any profound way, but in my mind it is better than rationalizing that the proceeds from my Toy Story DVD only encourages them to make Toy Story 2, not develop quasi-legal business practices built to milk money out of unsuspecting customers.
You and everyone here are perfectly entitled to enjoy their products and start as many threads as you would like about them, but don’t preclude your celebration with a weak disclaimer to attempt to assuage your own guilt for doing so.
Well it takes all kinds but I can’t stand the Electrical Parade, especially the music. It gets stuck in my head and it is now there. Thanks a lot. You put that on your iPod?!?!?!
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Yes, her voice is annoying but it was a quatum leap in animation.
The multi-plane camera.
**The Hanuted Mansion/Pirates of the Carribbean/Dumbo ** are the greatest achievements in rides.
**
Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast.** Two great movies.
Donald Duck My personal life mentor.
Oh and it came out of rehab so beautiful. . .
sniff I miss having APs.
Previous posters have said that they really like the Kim Possible series. My understanding is that when the animated show Clerks went down, some(all? one?) of the writer(s) began working on Kim Possible. Supposedly the Ron character is essentially one of the clerks modified for younger audiences.
Mine expired today. I used it 40 times last year.
Certified Disney geek.
And with that user name, I would have never guessed 
Dare I ask: do you have membership to the elusive 33? Or is the name just wishful thinking?
More than just great, IMO. I daresay that these two movies were responsible for the Disney resurgence back in the 1990’s — TLM because it sparked the Disney renaissance, and B&TB because it carried the momentum. TLM got the ball rolling, and B&TB caused the public at large to take notice.
What do I like about Disney?
You mean aside from the movies, the theme parks, the music, the television shows, and all that?
I like that when half of eastern San Diego county was evacuated down to my little desert town back in 2003 because of a runaway forest fire, Disney sent out an eighteen wheeler filled with goodies and toys and in costume characters. I had never heard of the VoluntEARS before, but they came in, took all the kids who were refugeeing at the school where I taught and threw them a big ass party. Mickey and Pluto were there for good measure.
I like that when my mom got a job at Disneyland as an RN, she got back her sparkle and joy with working. She had been almost destroyed by the last job she worked. Disney made things good for her again.
I’ve got plenty of reasons to like Disney.
Hell yeah! Six different versions of it! (for the curious: the original Perrey & Kingsley version, They Might Be Giants’ version, 2 versions of the Disney parade from a promo CD, and a remix from Readymade Digs Disney, produced by one of the members of Pizzicato Five).
(bolding mine)
Yeah, keep up the good fight, brother! For someone who didn’t come in to piss on Disney or start a debate, you sure seem to want to paint the rest of us as stupid and uninformed and complicit in evil. Perhaps in some other forum at some future time, you’d take the opportunity to tear the lid off the issue and inform all of us ignorant people about the horrors you’re valiantly boycotting against; until then, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t attribute any guilt or ignorance to me that isn’t there. As other posters and I have already pointed out, any guilt in being a Disney fan comes from their being uncool, not because of any of these nebulous “unfair business practices on unsuspecting customers.”
Tell you what: While you’re busy using one hand to queue up Rage Against the Machine tracks on WinAmp and the other pat yourself on the back for being so much smarter than the over-privileged sheep who are too stupid to realize they’re contributing to an Evil Empire, I’m going to go to Disneyland and ride Space Mountain again. Hopefully the new music will be loud enough to drown out the screams of the innocent.
Chris Bailey was one of the directors of the “Clerks” animated series, and is also a director and an executive producer of “Kim Possible.” Bob Schooley and Mark McCorkle are usually acknowledged as the creators and main guys behnd “Kim Possible,” and it looks as if all three of them worked together previously on Disney’s Hercules. I’d always heard of that movie and that experience as a bigger influence on the team and the show than “Clerks,” but of course I imagine these things always have a ton of different influences.