The memoirs of veteran Imagineer Bob Gurr—the designer of the original Autopia cars, Monorails, and countless other vehicle-based Disneyland attractions—have just rolled off the press. Alas, those presses are located in Hong Kong, so we’ll have to wait about four more weeks before the first printing arrives in the U.S.

The shipment includes 2,000 books, including 1,000 signed-and-numbered collectors’ editions, the majority of which are already sold out. Pre-order your copy of “Design: Just for Fun” quick at bobgurr.com. (Bob is setting aside #614 for me!)

Bob had several niche publishers interested in putting out his book, but he knew exactly what he wanted, so decided to set up his own company, GurrDesign Publishing, to oversee the project. He hired experts to handle the technicalities of layout, proofreading, and production, and even had Dave Smith check all Disney nomenclature for exact terminology.

Fortunately, Bob’s an exacting, technical-minded fellow. “It took eight separate proofs between every stage to get it right,” he says. “Even for the final final final check I had to go thru 420,000 characters to ferret out eight computer artifacts from the printer’s electronic file!”

Plaza Gardens is finally shedding its gold paint, a last remnant from Disneyland’s 50th anniversary makeover. This week, painters could be seen returning the structure to its former red and white color scheme.

The freshening up, however, begs the question: Why is the park spending the money to spruce up a facility that is supposed to be torn down to provide a new home for the Princess Faire? Some sources indicate the relocation has been temporarily delayed, possibly due to budgetary concerns or lack of space.

“It appears Imagineering underestimated the crowds that would be attracted to the small location,” said one insider. “There is concern that long queues will spill out into the Hub, Frontierland, and the Castle. Also, think of the crowds you see at the Princess Fantasy Faire, and try to imagine them in that space where Plaza Gardens is. I think that would be pushing the fire code, don’t you think?”

Personally, I feel the longer the Faire remains out of the Plaza, the better. Consider how the AstroOrbiter intrudes into the Hub. The Faire would similarly destroy the theming of the immediate area and compete with Sleeping Beauty Castle as the main entrance to Fantasyland.

Thirty-year Disneyland Security pioneer JoAnne Rowan passed away this morning.

She started first as a Main Street merchandise hostess in 1969, eventually working her way into the security force after it began allowing female officers in 1974. In fact, JoAnne was Disneyland’s first bomb dog handler and later rose to the rank of security supervisor.

She was forced out in 1999, one of dozens of faithful old-timers who saw their jobs taken by the less experienced and, more importantly, the lower compensated. Soon after, she was hired as a legal assistant by a law firm representing numerous former cast members who were suing the park over age discrimination.

Yet, JoAnne continued to cherish her days with Disney. I can’t think of anyone else who did more to keep Security alumni in touch over the years, helping to organize breakfasts and reunions, and putting together “Mouse Cops,” a booklet of cast member anecdotes.

Speaking from first-hand experience, Joanne was kind, warm and generous with her time and memories of happier days at the park. I will greatly miss her—and her ever-present smile.

Breaking 57 years of clean-shaven tradition, effective today, cast members at Disneyland and Walt Disney World will be permitted to sport facial hair.

Quoting last week’s Employee Memo:
“The Disney Look is an important part of the history and heritage of the Walt Disney Company. As the company continues to evolve, the Disney Look appearance guidelines must also be prepared to be re-evaluated with awareness to industry standards.

“Effective Friday, Feb. 3, facial hair, specifically beards and goatees are now an approved option for U.S. based Walt Disney Theme Parks and Resorts costumed and non-costumed male Cast Members, unless otherwise restricted by regulatory codes and standards. As with mustaches, all facial hair (beards, goatees, mustaches) must create an overall neat, polished and professional look and must be fully grown in, neatly groomed and well-maintained at no longer than a quarter of an inch in length.”

The memo also announced “Casual Friday” attire for non-guest contact employees and included three pages of FAQs, such as the definition of a well-groomed beard:
“A traditional beard covers all the components of a beard, including front, sides, sideburns, and mustache. A well groomed beard has a defined cheek line and neckline, which is neatly trimmed. It is important to regularly maintain the facial hair to a ¼ inch so that it does not look unkempt.”

My own informal survey of cast members (all male) did not reveal any costumed cast members with plans to suddenly start growing whiskers. In fact, several expressed disappointment, others disbelief over their newfound freedom. (“Our standards just dropped one step lower.” “We’re one step closer to being a carnival.”)

Another common refrain was wondering how managers were “going to police this when they can’t enforce the current guidelines?” To be sure, it was a lot easier to regulate grooming when the policy was more cut and dried, and pretty much everything was forbidden. Fifty years ago, supervisors could easily spot an unshaven face or hair approaching the collar. Now, everything’s a judgment call. Although employees can’t begin growing their beards on duty (they are supposed to arrive at work with their beards or goatee fully grown in), consider that facial hair grows in at different rates for different men. One man’s full beard is another man’s scruffy. And, what’s considered “neatly groomed”? And how will they ensure beards don’t exceed 1/4 inch?

I don’t expect to see toothless hillbillies working Storybook, but I do anticipate the occasional instance of cast members who “forget” to shave and try to pass their stubble off as a follically challenged beard. The slope just got a little slipperier.

Cats, rats, mice, all manner of fowl—regular Disneyland visitors have probably spotted them all. But workers on the graveyard shift claim to have spied another, more formidable species of wildlife wandering around the park: coyotes.

Such tales have been difficult to confirm—until recently. On October 10, a coyote was found wandering inside the tunnels underneath the Disneyland Hotel.

“It caused quite a stir with the cast members. They were running away and hiding from it,” said one employee. “But the coyote was not aggressive and was just as scared. Eventually Animal Control was called to take care of the situation.”

The cast member was told the coyote was “pretty big,” and a second Animal Control officer had to be called to assist the first. Eventually, the animal was caught and taken away.

Of the countless hundreds (if not thousands) of books written over the years about Disney’s theme parks and animation, only a small percentage have yet to be released in ebook form.

A quick search of Barnes & Noble’s Nook Store showed only a dozen ebooks about Disneyland, and almost all were 99-cent quickies. There were close to 50 about Walt Disney World, but, again, few of them appeared to be of book length or quality. Amazon’s Kindle Store had an endless supply of Disney-related e-filler, but few meaty works of Disney history (and none from Disney itself/Hyperion).

Part of the reason may be that many of the best books are filled with lush graphics—not the strong point of a Kindle. But text-heavy books seem a natural for the format, particularly travel books that can be downloaded to one’s mobile device.

As much as I love the sensation of flipping pages and admiring a well-stocked bookshelf, ebooks have obvious advantages in terms of convenience.

So, I’ve vowed to make sure my books are eventually made available in the primary ebook formats. “Mouse Under Glass: Secrets of Disney Animation & Theme Parks” is now available in Kindle format (http://www.amazon.com/Mouse-Under-Gl...7153522&sr=8-1) and Nook/epub (http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/mous...tore=nookstore).

Additional titles will be released every few months.

It will be interesting to see how demand for the ebooks compares with the traditonal print versions.

An interactive, animatronic R2D2 rolled through Disneyland this weekend, but won’t be around for long.

The character, operated similarly to PUSH the talking trashcan, began appearing in Tomorrowland Friday morning August 5. “Artoo Detoo was an immediate hit with guests,” noted one employee. “Kids, grown-ups, and cast members were excited to see him. WDI and Lucasfilms planned this as a test—guest reaction and equipment durability. Artoo will be gone in a week.”

The character is expected to make its first publicized appearance August 19-21 at the D23 Expo in Anaheim. And after that? “Some cast members think the droid will be going to Florida, just like Lucky the dinosaur,” said one unhappy Disneylander. “If it happens, no one will be surprised. A lot of Disneyland cast members hate the way Walt Disney World is dictating how we operate. ‘Florida’ has become the new ‘f word.’”

Ironically, the “driver” for the new character—the updated Star Tours 2.0—is proving considerably more popular in Anaheim, where the day’s supply of FastPasses are often gone by noon, than in Orlando. Soon after the ride’s debut at Disneyland, two Imperial Stormtroopers replaced Buzz Lightyear in the area’s character meet & greets. They pose for pictures, but decline to sign autographs. Buzz was banished to Disney California Adventure.

Consequently, the cast member said, “Hopefully Artoo will stay (in California). But that all depends on Burbank. Maybe if there is enough positive guest feedback, hint, hint…”

The Disneyland Resort’s newest sweet shop picked the hottest day of the year for its grand opening, with sour results.

Dulce Aventura, a takeout window adjacent to Cocina Cucamonga in Disney California Adventure’s Pacific Wharf area, offers caramel apples, spicy peanut brittle, brownies, cookies, chocolate-covered pretzels, candy, and beverages.

The shop opened on a busy Friday, July 1, when temperatures in Anaheim soared to 97˚. Unfortunately, during the day, the store’s air conditioning cut out. So while Dulce Aventura rang up about $150 in sales on opening day, it lost over $300 in melted chocolate and caramel treats.

Some things suck about getting old, particularly for theme park visitors. In a post-PeopleMover world, there are a lot fewer options for those of us who appreciate rides for the whole family. Ever since reaching the infirmed old age of 35, I’m increasingly left dizzy by eye-popping 3-D movies, left battered by extreme coasters and simulators, and left nauseous by the parks’ greasy food options. I’ve ridden Mission: Space once, and won’t be back.

So I figured that modernizing Star Tours, a ride that typically left me with a sore back, would now borderline cripple me. How wrong I was.

Having just disembarked Star Tours: The Adventure Continues at Disneyland, I must say that, for me, the ride wasn’t just improved—it was corrected. The richer storyline, with its range of backdrops, characters, and random variations, is an obvious, overdue upgrade. But for folks like me, who want to be entertained without being maimed, Star Tours is, for the first time ever, physically enjoyable.

• The violent bumps, shakes and jolts have been smoothed out. The ride’s still intense—and arguably even more realistic—but technology and programming have removed the rough edges. Someone finally figured out that whiplash isn’t fun.

• The 3-D wasn’t a strain on my eyes. Also a big plus: there’s no gratuitous use of “comin’ at you” effects, apart from the finale.

• The ride seems shorter. In actuality, it’s probably about the same length, but it ends leaving you wanting more. With the old Star Tours, halfway through I wanted it over with. 2.0’s pacing is better, the sensations more varied (including taking you underwater), and the adventures are new, unlike the original movie, which hadn’t changed for 24 years and dropped you into the middle of "Star Wars," which we’ve all seen a hundred times, and riding it for the hundredth time.

• There’s more to look at. The fresh paint job looks great, as do the TSA parody and clever in-jokes throughout the queue. Looks are important, especially considering we may be staring at the same props for decades to come.

Now, your mileage may vary. Star Tours is still a wild motion simulator, and if the original was too rough for you, there’s no guarantee they’ve worked out the kinks for you. But for me, for the first time in a decade, I can’t wait for my next flight.

Bill Skiles, the Skiles half of the musical comedy duo Skiles and Henderson, who got their start at Disneyland, including stints as the park’s first tour guides, passed away Monday at age 79.

Skiles continued performing up until last year, and—even in his late 70s—was as frenzied and funny as ever. During my two meetings with him and several phone calls, it was hard to get him to share a straight story, free of vocal tricks, sound effects, and general zaniness, though I tried (recounting his tour guide days at www.mouseplanet.com/7593/First_Tour and his Disneyland Doodlers days at www.mouseplanet.com/7617/The_Disneyland_Doodlers).

Back in 2005, a great hope of mine was that Disneyland would bring back Skiles and Henderson as part of their 50th anniversary festivities. Skiles loved the idea, but—in a rare moment of seriousness—admitted he held out little hope anyone left at Disney would remember or appreciate Skiles & Henderson’s huge impact on Disneyland history.

“Eisner came in and ‘DeWalted’ the company,” he said. “He dropped off the good people and—boom, boom, boom—brought in the Hollywood people.”

Seconds later, Skiles was back to cracking jokes, a clown to the end.

Current plans for Disneyland's bakery to be relocated to the former Plaza Pavilion restaurant show the proposed new location with a Mary Poppins theme.

The Plaza Pavilion is currently being used to process annual passes, and there is still no sign of any coming renovations (and none is expected until late in the year). "There will be no move until a new home for the AP processing center is decided," said one insider.

The possible move would create a significantly larger space for the often-crowded bakery, while leaving behind room for indoor seating for the Carnation Cafe.

Sparked by a barrage of cast member complaints, The Inn Between (the employee eatery behind the Plaza Inn) has re-fired its grill for breakfast. The cafeteria had replaced its morning menu of sizzling bacon, eggs, hash browns, pancakes and breakfast burritos with healthier melts and muffins from Subway. (The breakfast burritos were moved to the new Westsider Grill.)

An employee for franchise operator Sodexo said the number of comment cards blasting The Inn Between’s grill for being closed for breakfast took managers by complete surprise.

Beginning yesterday morning, the full morning menu was back, except for the pancakes and french toast. “I think that will come back, too,” smiled one cast member, as he busily filled out another comment card.

The write-in campaign was so successful that cast members may next turn their sights on the backstage food window at the recently renovated Village Haus.

The cast member take-out area, according to another employee, “reopened with, it appears, the same menu as the guests’, but with prices markedly increased. The individual pizza went from $3.50 to $4.50, with no change to the pizza whatsoever. The old $4.01 you’d spend on the burger and fries is closer to $5.50 now.”

This campaign, however, may be mission impossible, since Disney does not have a history of lowering its prices.

Late next week, the sandwich chain Subway will unveil its first franchise location inside Disneyland—although the affordable fast food will be off limits to guests.

The Inn Between, the cast member cafeteria located on the backstage side of the Plaza Inn, will emerge from a rehab about February 18, with Subway taking over its sandwich counter.

The food will continue to be served by Sodexo, which operates dozens of Subways and other food franchises at airports, museums, universities, sports stadiums, and other facilities across the country.

“When Sodexo was first given the contract to take over the cast member eateries, they promised us to have a Subway, Panda Express, and—I believe—a Baja Fresh,” said one cast member. “After three years, this has finally come true. I think with so many cast members bringing in their own food, Sodexo has realized they have to improve the menu. But we are resigned to the fact that the days of low prices for cast members are now just a part of Disney lore. We are betting there will be no $5 footlongs for us.”

There are no plans to open an on-stage Subway, although Disneyland has been rolling out a “signature” hamburger line reminiscent of those heavily marketed by the fast food industry. The Tomorrowland Terrace now serves an Angus Bacon Cheeseburger and the recently reopened Village Haus serves a Pastrami Angus Cheeseburger. Supposedly, the Hungry Bear may offer a Portobello Mushroom Angus Cheeseburger when it emerges from its current rehab.

So, I was invited to last night’s preview of Disneyland’s new light-projection show (yeah, I know, I’m just as surprised as you are).

Admittedly, my expectations were low. The park always unveils its really groundbreaking shows, like the World of Color, and Fantasmic, and upgrades to its fireworks extravaganzas, at the start of the summer. And here comes “The Magic, The Memories, and You!” at the end of January, in the dead of winter (granted, a 75-degree dead of winter).

The name sounds like a chapter from the park’s employee training manual. And the technology seems like it was borrowed from the holiday castle projections, combined with the old gimmick from Luminaria of incorporating different guest images each night.

Worse, the whole theme of the show sounded more Marketing-driven than Entertainment-generated, as it just by coincidence dovetailed with the theme park division’s annual promotional theme of “Making Memories,” not to mention its quest to make PhotoPass even more visible.

Plus, Disney buried the show at the back corner of the park, projecting it on the face of It’s a Small World, and hasn’t exactly been shouting about it from the rooftops. Well, they should be. The show is flat-out amazing. This isn’t a movie projected on the building; this is a movie that brings that building to life. PR’s referring to Small World as its “canvas” sells the show short. “Memories” uses the structure’s unique shape, icons and architectural elements as its main characters. Small World’s features pop out, whirl about, radiate, and provide a varied backdrop for Disney characters.

Ironically, the guest photos are the least effective part of the presentation—at least to one-time viewers. The images, over 500 of them, are so small and pass by so quickly, usually with a half-dozen or more of them projected at once, that even if yours is one of the lucky 500, you’ll be hard pressed to spot it. I envision guests so busy trying to find their picture, their eyes darting from one end of the building to the next, that they’ll miss out on enjoying the show itself (similar to how adding Disney characters inside Small World has turned riders into character hunters, rather than enjoying the ride as intended.) The presentation, then, can be most appreciated in repeat viewings, after one’s already enjoyed the full presentation and is content to spend 10 minutes playing Where’s Waldo?

Every night, several photos are spotlighted front and center. Near the end of the show, about a dozen photos are highlighted, one at a time, so I’d imagine your family would have to be outrageously lucky, cute or well connected to earn one of these coveted spots.

There are a few ways you can enjoy the show more:

(1) Smile early and often! Although all the video and some of the photos are the same every night, the bulk of the still photos are taken that day, by the PhotoPass photographers. As entertainment producer Jennifer Magill remarked, “The more times you have your picture taken by PhotoPass, the greater the chance you’ll be part of the show.”

As well, a photo taken early in the day should have a better chance of being included than one snapped late in the day. Since each night’s photos must be laboriously selected by hand, they aren’t going to be snapping photos at 7:00 for the 7:30 show.

(2) If your photo didn’t make it in the first show, check back in an hour! There will typically be one show a night (currently set for 7:30), unless there are fireworks, in which case a light show will be scheduled 45 minutes before the fireworks and a second show—with all-new guest photos—45 minutes after the fireworks.

(3) Pick out your spot early! The Small World Mall makes a particularly awkward seating area. It’s narrow and lined with trees and tall speaker- and light-poles. So, too, the “stage” (the Small World building) is unusually wide. Some show elements will be repeated both on the left and right, but others (like individual photos) will appear only on one side or (like a cartoon locomotive that steams down the Disneyland Railroad track, momentarily disappearing behind Small World’s clock tower) will run from one side to the other.

(4) Beware the Small World factor! Although Small World was closed during last night’s preview, Magill said that normally won’t be the case. She said her crowd control gurus have devised a top-secret plan for somehow keeping the ride open during the show. (My guess is that, near the Small World toy shop, they’ll split the line of guests that runs along the west side of the Mall, diverting some to Toontown and others along the railing in front of Small World to the ride’s queue.)

That means the closest spot for viewing the show will be while waiting in line for the ride. Crowd control should have their hands full trying to keep this queue moving, since a healthy percentage of those lined up will attempt to delay boarding as long as possible.

The show officially premieres tonight at 8:00. Enjoy!

There’s an old story that in a TV interview about 20 years ago, Michael Eisner justified the company’s hardline stance against wage increases for theme park employees by saying that the typical cast member’s duties could be performed, just as proficiently, by a trained monkey.

Now the story has never been substantiated and, over the years, the apocryphal quote has been re-attributed to Paul Pressler and other villainous executives.

But cast members’ lingering perception that their work is minimally valued by management has kept the tale alive all these years. I remember even some years ago being contacted by a union rep who was desperate to get a copy of Eisner’s supposed admission on tape.

So it wasn’t a surprise to overhear the analogy again trotted out the weekend before last, when Disneyland and DCA handed out free bananas, apples and trail mix, as a treat for employees who had to work on New Years Day.

“So, did you get the fruit?”

“Yeah, I feel like a trained monkey. Or at least they're feeding me like one.”

The first director of the Main Street Electrical Parade is turning up the lights on the creation of one of Disneyland’s most beloved attractions.

Ben Sherman’s new book, "Lights: Imagination, Egos, Mystery, Deceit and 523,814 Lights," comes out this week and promises to illuminate a never-before-seen side of Disney history.

To be sure, Sherman’s bawdy tale is decidedly un-Disneylike. In fact, the book features cast members—some of them formerly top-ranking executives—engaging in so much questionable behavior that Sherman felt obliged to use pseudonyms and present his memoir as “historical fiction, based on a true story.”

Nonetheless, in the early draft I read—light years ago—it wasn’t difficult to ID the bigger personalities from Disneyland history, like Card Walker, Tommy Walker, and Bob Jani. I particularly enjoyed sitting in on the meeting in Burbank at which Card, supremely confident except when trying something new, gave the go-ahead to proceed with the parade.

And while Sherman’s priority is spinning a thrilling, often spicy yarn, facts be darned, there are some nuggets of pure gold for history-minded Disney fans like me. My favorite: Everyone knows the Electrical Parade was inspired by the Electrical Water Pageant on the Seven Seas Lagoon outside of Walt Disney World’s Magic Kigndom. But, according to Sherman, Bob Jani got the idea for the water pageant from old drawings his predecessor, Tommy Walker, had done of an illuminated procession on Disneyland’s Rivers of America.

Sherman is initially distributing "Lights" solely through his own site (www.shermanauthor.com), but does offer a Kindle version and expects to sell through Amazon by spring. Or just send a check for $13.95 each plus $3 postage to: Ben Sherman, 7205 91st Pl. SE, Mercer Island, WA 98040.

Disneyland cast members are bracing for crowd control nightmares beginning this Friday, with the debut of its Believe holiday fireworks show at an earlier hour that will tempt thousands of guests to migrate, en masse, from one bottleneck to the next.

Instead of the usual fireworks start-time of 9:35, Believe will kick off most nights at 8:40—and on some nights as early as 7:30. Fantasmic, meanwhile, plays at 9:00 and 10:15 p.m.

Meanwhile next door, closing earlier during the winter has also forced Disney’s California Adventure to move up the start times of its highly popular World of Color show—on some evenings as early as 8 p.m.

The revised schedule, noted one cast member, “will not allow guests to be equally spread out throughout the resort. Guests will now be able to go from one show to the other to the other. In particular, keep your eye out on the guest flow from Fireworks to Fantasmic. Thousands of guests will be filling the walkways looking for a spot in an already-crowded show. And the addition of the snow will just add insult to injury.”

Management’s response is that the new schedule relieves guest flow on Main Street. “It does,” the cast member agreed, “but it just moves the crowd from one location to another. And Main Street is a lot wider than the crowded Fantasmic walkways.”

During the summer, World of Color played at 9, 10:15, and 11:15; Fantasmic at 9:05 and 10:30, and the fireworks at 9:35. “You see how that works out so perfectly?” he said. “That allows the crowds to be spread out evenly throughout the resort. You have one group watching Fantasmic and World of Color, while the other group is waiting for fireworks. Fireworks can be seen from anywhere, and Fantasmic has a 10:30 show, so people can still watch all three shows without overcrowding the viewing areas.”

I look forward to hearing—or should I say dread hearing—how well the new schedule disperses the crowds.

All right, this is getting downright depressing. Late last night, yet another original Disneylander, Rima Bruce, passed away at age 85. Rima retired in 1987, most recently as secretary to Ron Dominguez.

Coupled with the loss last week of portrait-master Jess Rubio ('57-2010) and the week prior of longtime attraction lead Hank Filtz ('55-'87), Disneyland lore lost 120 years of memories within a 13-day span.

That also leaves Disneyland’s Club 55—folks who spent at least 15 years at the park, starting in 1955—with no more than a dozen-and-a-half survivors.

The cartoony mailbox in Disneyland’s Toontown (which offers smart-alecky responses whenever someone tries to pull it open) had, for a while now, been missing the black screen that covered the speaker in its lid. This past weekend, maintenance was finally sent out to investigate—and was forced to call on reinforcements.

It seems that, without the screen, guests mistook it for a REAL mailbox, and maintenance found the receptacle stuffed silly with letters and postcards. So on Saturday, a crew of three showed up—one to try to cover the hole, one to pull envelopes and postcards out the back, and one evidently to supervise. All in full view of guests.

As a temporary fix, the cast member placed a cardboard box over the hole. By the next day, a replacement screen had been affixed and the opening in the back of the mailbox resealed. But, to guard against overly powerful penmen, the lid no longer opens quite as wide as it used to.

This past Monday morning, Tom Sawyer Island and all watercraft on the Rivers of America were shut down to guests—for the amusement of Disney executives.

From 10 a.m. until after 12 noon, the execs were on a team-builder exercise, which included canoe races around the Rivers of America. Consequently, guests were inconvenienced by not being able to ride the canoes, Mark Twain, Sailing Ship Columbia, or rafts to the island.

The exercise didn’t build much team spirit among the hourly “River Rats,” either, who must arrive pre-dawn for their end-of-summer competitions. Several cast members wondered aloud “why the ‘suits’ couldn’t have their fun before the park opened, like the rest of us? It just shows their true colors. For all their prodding that the guests are so important, they are just hypocrites.”

No word on who won, but it’s easy to see who lost…

Disney Clothiers on Disneyland’s Main Street has reopened after a six-week remodel that includes installation of new flooring and fixtures. But the most noticeable change is the elimination of the guest fitting rooms. The back area has been walled off, and the dressing rooms have been converted into behind-the-scenes closets/storage nooks.

According to a cast member in Merchandise, the fitting rooms were removed “because of the increase in shoplifting, and other ‘activities’ guests were found doing in those rooms.”

Earlier, Downtown Disney’s World of Disney lost its dressing rooms, also allegedly due to shoplifting. But the park has been cutting back on wardrobe privacy for years.

The old Pendleton’s store in Frontierland, said another cast member, “used to have (fitting rooms), but they are now storage rooms. There was one at the Adventureland Bazaar, which is now an office. South Seas Trader had one, too. I have not been there recently to see if it is still there. I think the Emporium had them, too. I think the only ones left are in Fantasyland at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. But that is a specialty location, and you can’t horse around there… too many cast members.”

The remodel will likely influence the type of merchandise the shop now carries. MousePlanet’s merchandise maven Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix noted, “Clothiers sometimes sells women’s pants and skirts, that’s recently included a yoga pant in a few styles and a plaid Minnie skirt, and it’s hard to try those on without a fitting room, or to guess sizes. Same with some of the men’s clothing, shorts especially.”

Or then again, considering the immodesty of families who allow their kids to cavort half-naked in the parks’ fountains, I wouldn’t be surprised to hear of an outbreak of quick changes between the aisles.

This week’s DVD release of the EPCOT-inspired "Iron Man 2" reminds me of a unique visitor spotted at Disneyland at the time of the film's release in theaters earlier this year. She was seen walking through Fantasyland with her family—a cute little girl, about 5, wearing a blue Cinderella dress. And an Iron Man mask.

Now who said Disney and Marvel don’t mix?

Disneyland’s Alice in Wonderland attraction is expected to reopen later this week, following a four-week closure to install handrails along elevated portions of the track.

The temporary safety fix includes turquoise railing (to match the metal fencing that runs around the queue and base of the attraction), dotted with a handful of flower cut-outs in the style of those that already decorate the ride’s exterior.

Charitably speaking, the modifications look horrible. The good news is they’re temporary. The Cast Member Reference Guide lists the attraction as closed until January 2011, so it likely will go back under the knife as soon as crowds become manageable—and the Imagineers can come up with a more attractive solution.

Erstwhile toymaker Geppetto is getting out of the confectionary business. About 10 weeks ago, the former Disneyland toy store next door to Pinocchio’s Daring Journey stocked its shelves with prepackaged sweets and re-opened as Geppetto’s Candy Shoppe.

But this fall, the candy will be cleared out to help promote the November 24 release of the animated "Tangled."

Cast members are hearing conflicting stories on exactly how the location will be used. Some have heard that the shop will become a Meet & Greet location for the face characters Rapunzel and Flynn Rider.

“The second story,” a cast member shared, “is that the candy shop will be converted to selling 'Tangled' merchandise, and the empty, little-used extended Pinocchio queue will be converted to the Meet & Greet. We’ll have to wait and see which one pans out.”

Personally, I’d wager on the option that involves selling stuff.

Timing is about October 15—the day Rapunzel and Flynn Rider begin appearing at the Fantasyland Fairytale Garden at Orlando's Magic Kingdom.

With the smash success of the World of Color water show, Disney California Adventure is allowing Orlando’s Magic Kingdom to keep the Electrical Parade indefinitely. And now DCA has decided it no longer has room for another entertainment offering it borrowed from Disneyland—PUSH, the talking trash can.

This past weekend, the radio-controlled robot returned to Disneyland. PUSH had been exiled to DCA about two years ago.

“You can now find him in Tomorrowland, near the entrance of Star Tours and Star Trader,” shared a cast member. The move was “partly due to all the construction work (at DCA), and the lack of atmosphere entertainment in Tomorrowland. He and his operator should be around until the end of the year.”

Disneyland voluntarily shuttered its Alice in Wonderland until a temporary fall-protection barrier can be installed, implying that an extensive, long-term fix is in the works.

According to Suzi Brown, director, media relations & external communications for the Disneyland Resort: “During an unrelated visit to the park, a Cal/OSHA representative observed a maintenance cast member on the track of the Alice in Wonderland attraction and made us aware of a potential safety issue. We agreed with the opportunity to enhance safety and voluntarily took down the attraction until modifications can be made.”

Brown told MousePlanet that an “interim solution,” which she described as being “scaffolding or other acceptable barrier,” should be in place in the “next few weeks.”

Disneyland’s Alice in Wonderland ride remains closed for the foreseeable future, as Imagineers scramble to come up with a safety railing design that coordinates with the 52-year-old attraction’s unqiue exterior.

One cast member overheard one Imagineer saying that “The Vine will be redesigned to avoid further issues. In order for that to happen, it will be torn out and rebuilt with the safety railing as part of The Vine design.”

Yet the plan is not finalized. There are several other options on the table, but in all plans short of a full-scale rebuild the needed railings are not nearly as inconspicuous.

Cal/OSHA, however, is adamant that it had nothing to do with the shutdown. “We did not order the ride to be shut down,” said Cal/OSHA spokesperson Krisann Chasarik. “Disney engineers believed there was an issue and shut the ride down on their own.”

Chasarik said she and Cal/OSHA were first made aware of the closure by a call from this reporter on Monday morning. They confirmed with Disney that the ride was indeed closed, but not for any reason related to an action by Cal/OSHA.

Earlier this week, cast members had told me that Cal/OSHA was to blame, and their contention is backed by a post this morning by Al Lutz at MiceAge.com.

Disneyland’s Alice in Wonderland attraction remains closed for a fourth day, after the ride was suddenly locked down Friday July 16 for an unscheduled refurbishment. Ride operators turning away riders informed guests that the ride was undergoing regular maintenance, yet a group of suits from Team Disney Anaheim was spotted that afternoon walking the track.

Privately, one cast member says Disneyland was “ordered” to shut down the ride: “The length of track that runs outside from the upper level to the ground, known as ‘The Vine’ was the reason. That part of the track has no safety railings. Many of us find it odd, (since) this attraction has been running (safely) for over 50 years. As far as I know, no one has fallen off The Vine. No one knows how long Alice will be shut down.”

He had heard DOSH was to blame, but a spokesperson for the agency said they were uninvolved with and unaware of the closure. I wonder if this isn’t the work of that crack legal team in Burbank. Hopefully, Alice’s wonderful exterior won’t be disfigured with safety railings and bright yellow tape.

Art Linkletter passed away this morning and, at age 97, he left us far too young.

At least up until last year, he was still active making speaking appearances, often for no fee. A few years ago, headlining the Disneyland Alumni Club's 50th anniversary banquet, he appeared as sharp and spry as ever.

What most impresses me, however, is that 17 years ago this world-renowned television star, a multi-millionaire many times over, a then-80-year-old entertainment legend who had no business even answering my phone call, agreed to write a heart-felt foreword to a silly book of Disneyland stories by a young, first-time author. He jotted down his Disneyland war stories for "Mouse Tales," he told me, because of his close friend, Walt Disney. Over the last few years, despite renaming itself the WALT Disney Company, it had begun moving away from the ways of Walt, and Art appreciated my book's respect for the great man and his methods.

So, Art said his contribution was "a favor to Walt." I saw it, of course, as a favor to me. And that day his kindness taught me one way that we can become great men ourselves.

For more than 15 years, Disney fans have debated the question of whether or not anyone in park management follows the noisiest Disney fansites and do they ever act on Internet-aired complaints by guests and cast members? The question was answered definitively, for me at least, yesterday morning when, a few hours after my article “Lot of Anger” was published here on MousePlanet, TDA announced to its workforce that starting today and continuing until May 1, the employee shuttle stop in the green zone at Harbor Pointe would be reopened as a “test.”

Now, I’m not sure what needs to be “tested” since the shuttle stop worked fine for years. My guess is that’s Disney’s way of either hedging its bets (in case it decides to keep the stop closed) or of protecting the illusion that there was a legitimate reason that the stop had been closed in the first place.

No matter, I applaud Disney for keeping its ears open and responding quickly to a problem (quickly at least in relation to when the problem went public)—even if it meant learning something about itself from one of those nutty Disneyland bloggers.

So, is it time to start dropping hints about bringing back the PeopleMover?