What did you think of the Angels Firework Salute?

[sydney]

Just curious as to what everyone thought of the Angels Firework salute tonight. I thought it was short, but sweet, and was generally satisfied.

I was in the Guest Relations lobby just afterward and the chief complaints seemed to be that the printed schedules said the fireworks would be at 8:15, when they actually went off at 8:05 and were over well before 8:15, and that they were too short.

For those that weren't there, they did do a good job for the short time the "salute" lasted, and they were synch-ed to the music of "a dream is a wish your heart makes" from (believe it or not) Steps In Time (the ex-hyperion disaster). They made some kind of announcement like "The angels dream began years ago and this year it came true..." and then launched into the song.

Anyone have an opinion to add?

[SoCalDisneyLover]

In my opinion, the Fireworks Salute was the lamest display I've ever seen. The entire display lasted Less Than 5 Minutes....Much Less!! I heard several other people grumbling about how they waited around especially to see the fireworks, and thought they stunk. Most of the fireworks were sort of shot straight in the air...not the exploding type which is normally part of Disneyland's display. Perhaps this is because CA Adventure, being the subpar park that it is, doesn't have the means to put on a regular fireworks show...the type most of the people were expecting.

I swear that the show lasted 3 minutes tops...and yes...Disney advertised it in the brochure they handed out as occuring at 8:15. If you showed up at 8:10, it was over, and people were already streaming out the exits.

This was the follow up to the disaster when they announced that contrary to everything that was advertised...the players Would Not be participating in Any Photo Sessions. This is one reason I stayed...in addition to the lousy fireworks. About the only thing they managed to do right was the parade through the park.

I had truly wanted to say that Disney pulled off a great celebration...but I left feeling that yet again, they screwed up, and I'm certain from the comments I heard towards the end, that I was not the only one who felt this way. It didn't cost me anything since I have an AP, but I heard others who had paid $45 saying that they felt ripped off. One comment I heard was..."I got taken by Disney."

[No Grape Koolaid]

Originally posted by sydney
Just curious as to what everyone thought of the Angels Firework salute tonight. I thought it was short, but sweet, and was generally satisfied.

I was in the Guest Relations lobby just afterward and the chief complaints seemed to be that the printed schedules said the fireworks would be at 8:15, when they actually went off at 8:05 and were over well before 8:15, and that they were too short.

For those that weren't there, they did do a good job for the short time the "salute" lasted, and they were synch-ed to the music of "a dream is a wish your heart makes" from (believe it or not) Steps In Time (the ex-hyperion disaster). They made some kind of announcement like "The angels dream began years ago and this year it came true..." and then launched into the song.

Anyone have an opinion to add?

all in all, I thought it was a great celebration. With the fireworks, I wasn't disappointed only because I knew what to expect. Being over Paradise Bay, then there's no way they could have big fireworks. Judging from the people around me, it was still mostly AP's.

[zapppop]

To sum it all up ( and there wasn't much to sum up ), it was 2 1/2 minutes of small fireworks not very well synched to A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes sampled from Steps In Time and yes, smoke blew onto the people a la LuminAria. It was pretty lame. I believe the emotion everyone felt was embarassment, for one reason or another.

[TP2000]

I think they should just throw in the towel on trying to host special events and things at DCA. It either comes off as obviously a marketing ploy like the Soap Opera or ABC weekends, or it comes off as just plain bad like LuminAria, New Years Eve, crusty old bands at Rockin' The Bay, and this latest Angels party.

They should just resign themselves to the fact that DCA was designed poorly and is incapable of doing anything of much value. Until they get Tower of Terror and three additional E Tickets open, and fix up all the ugly mistakes DCA opened with in 2001, Disney should just pretend DCA doesn't exist and focus everything on the park America loves, Disneyland.

[driftwood714]

Its a good thing you're not in charge, TP2000. If that were the case, Disney would have "given up" a long time ago. Sheesh.

[SoCalDisneyLover]

Originally posted by TP2000
They should just resign themselves to the fact that DCA was designed poorly and is incapable of doing anything of much value. Until they get Tower of Terror and three additional E Tickets open, and fix up all the ugly mistakes DCA opened with in 2001, Disney should just pretend DCA doesn't exist and focus everything on the park America loves, Disneyland.

This is true, but it goes beyond that. Things just seem to go wrong at CA Adventure. What makes it more comical is that so much they do comes off as flat. And even with TOT, they will still be at most 2/3 the park Disneyland is. Will they ever explain exactly what happened with the Angels photo sessions? Were the players consulted previously regarding this commitment? Or did Disney actually have no blame in the situation, and they got caught completely off guard?

There were a few players who participated in the Q & A, so props for that, and it sounds like they went on some rides. I just find it confusing as to why the park led people to believe this opportunity would exist, and then it all fell apart. I'll get over it, but there were kids there sincerely hoping to meet a player....or anybody of consequence, and when after waiting in line, it didn't happen, you could tell they were quite disappointed. But once again...CA Adventure just seemed to have this bad luck. Heck, I even heard a couple of radio stations broadcasting at the park, telling people to come down for a pic with the rally monkey itself.

Do you think Disney came through with refunds for people who paid full price today, and left feeling ripped off? Will we ever really know the AP to Paying Visitor ratio for the Angel parade day?

As an aside...is the reason for the fireworks limitations and problems due to the fact they're basically being exploded right above the place where people are congregated? Disneyland's fireworks take place in Toontown, which is closed. Is that why they work so well, and CA Adventure will always be doomed? Am I beginning to sound as pessimistic as the main writer for this site?

[sydney]

well, I do think it would be interesting to know the AP to ticket ratio for the day. as the parade was being broadcast (on 3 channels, no less) this morning from DL, the reporters kept saying what a success this day already was for disney as more than 10 thousand had showed up before 10 am. The first question that popped into my head was "yeah, sure, but how many of them paid for a ticket?"

I think the fireworks were exactly what I was expecting. we all know from LuminAria last year that the smoke/sulfur/whatever is an unfortunate side effect of doing anything more than minimal pyro in that space. I was frankly just glad they bothered to sync it to music at all, which made it a bit more fun.

Somehow I missed the "the players are s'posed to show up for the photo sessions" promise. Where was that? I'm looking at the printed program and don't see that. (if you all say they promised, I believe you, I just was wondering where that was posted)

Also, what's with starting these special event parades (angels, abc, soap) parades in hollywood, but the regular parades start at the sunshine plaza? does anyone know the reason for this?

All in all, I think they did well for only having a day and a half after knowing for sure they were going to have to put all this together.

[SoCalDisneyLover]

Originally posted by sydney
Somehow I missed the "the players are s'posed to show up for the photo sessions" promise. Where was that? I'm looking at the printed program and don't see that. (if you all say they promised, I believe you, I just was wondering where that was posted)

It was posted on the Disneyland website, and in the press release regarding the day's activities. It is also mentioned in the program, but you will have to locate it since mine is in the car. Locations were set up near Avalon Cove and the Winery...4 in all I believe.

Also, what's with starting these special event parades (angels, abc, soap) parades in hollywood, but the regular parades start at the sunshine plaza? does anyone know the reason for this?

All in all, I think they did well for only having a day and a half after knowing for sure they were going to have to put all this together.

I'm guessing there could be 3 different reasons for the parade starting in Hollywood. First could be since it allows a slightly longer route, and thus...additional room for people to get closer. Second could have to do with the fact the other route is the staging area for the Eureka and Electrical Parade floats, and no room exists for cars and special event floats. Third could be security purposes or access for celebrities.

Disney should have known there was at least a 50% possibility of this occuring, and as of last Wednesday the series was still 2-2, so they knew within a week they might have this. They had over 2 weeks since the Angels made the World Series, and they almost pulled it off.

I guess to those who know, fireworks at CA Adventure will always be poor, but those at the park who had never witnessed it before, thought it was lame. The 2 mistakes they made were failing to deliver on the photo ops publicized, and an uninspiring fireworks display after making it seem like something spectacular.

Pure and simple...they wanted to get bodies into CA Adventure. Whether or not they had been to DL that morning...or even the parade to the stadium. The did a fine job with the DCA parade and Q & A, but that's it. The question really is....did the photo opportunity with your favorite player influence people to make the final decision to pay $45 when they wouldn't have if it were just a parade and Q & A. The photos were supposed to take place from 4-7, which was a sizable portion of the DCA "event."

[GoldenEars]

I went to DCA yesterday, not because of the Angeles or anything to do with that, but just to go. I couldn't believe how crowded it was in that Park. I don't think I've ever seen it filled with so many guests! It was actually pretty exciting and the Park seemed to have a lot of energy from everyone! And it was cool to see so many in red shirts and showing their pride for the victory of the Angeles!

What really impressed me the most, was seeing the parade go down Hollywood Blvd on the red carpet. And seeing all that confetti and streamers come down...that was certainly a sight and it fit well with the whole victory thing! I didn't get a chance to view or do anything else regarding the Angeles. And I wasn't really interested in seeing the firework display at Paradise Bay, cuz I knew it wouldn't be a *real* show like they put on next door at Disneyland. And by what I've read so far, I didn't miss much of anything.

Well, it was fun, nevertheless! And way to go Angeles, this is an exciting time for them...and us! See you at the Parks!

Patrick

[Not Afraid]

I went to DCA specifically for the fireworks. We were lucky enough to meet up to other padders who made it a very fun evening (as always). However, my initial feeling after the 2 1/2 minute display of low-level "fireworks" was pure embarassment.

When anyone thinks of Disneyland Fireworks, you think of giant displays high in the sky. This was luminaria all over again (complete with smoke out). And it was so short of a display that the crowd actually booed after the "show". If Disney was trying to highlight DCA as a great venue to a new audience, they only communicated that it is NOT Disneyland. How sad. I hate to see great marketing opportunities pass on by.

[Ghoulish Delight]

This made Luminaria look like freakin' Chernobyl. If I were an Angel, I'd be angry (filthy rich, but angry ). What a pathetic "salute." After they were over, there was a good pause before the "Thank you" announcement came. Everyone was just kind of looking around in stunned silence thinking, "That's it? No, there's gotta be more." Then, finally the announcement came. Not Afraid and I just stared at each other with our mouths gaping in shock.

But, it's all okay because everyone had a chance to get a picture with the brat in the monkey suit. Oh, I would have stood in that line, but it would not have been to take my picture with him.....

Also, were we the only ones who thought the players would be at Millionaire? We walked out when we finally realized they wouldn't be

If my main reason to be at the resort hadn't been to ride Mansion, I would have been REALLY angry. As it was, I'm annoyed that I ditched out on work early for that.

[Lebo]

This family of Padres fans took perhaps our only opportunity to catch the excitement of a World Series victory parade. We didn't dress all in red and pretend to be lifelong long-suffering Angels fans, but we have made a few trips north over the years to Anaheim Edison Field, and consider the Angels to be our American League home team. We thrilled to their playoff run, and love the team-oriented never say die attitude of the Halos. We just had to make the trip to the Disneyland Resort on this special day.

The excitement was palpable the moment we turned off the freeway and entered the resort. A sea of red-tinged happy fans soon swallowed us up. The red tide carried us up along Main Street to the tune of "Lets Go Angels" and the beat of synchronized Thunder Sticks. We settled into a front row seat near the hub for the Disneyland parade.

All too soon the parade was over! The players were all packed onto three floats and a double-decker bus, and didn't seem to know how to react to the cheering throngs so they just stood there listlessly. They passed so quickly we could hardly pick out our favorite players from the group. Undaunted by the underwhelming parade but buoyed by the great fan enthusiasm we went on to enjoy some of our favorite rides.

Later in the day we crossed the esplanade into DCA, passing under the rejoicing figure of the Rally Monkey perched on the Golden Gate. We grabbed some lunch, walked onto Soaring Over California (!), and checked out Flik's. After the mandatory trek to the thrill rides (we love Screamin) we motored over to Hollywood in search of a parade spot.

With the start of the parade a mere 30 minutes distant the fans were packed 3 to 5 deep. It was looking bad when we somehow found an overlooked spot at the entrance of the Hyperion. Excitement built as the parade commencement neared. Finally, 10 minutes late the large doors opened as the parade flowed out to fan bedlam.

This time the players were seated two to a convertible. Signs on the sides of the cars identified the players. The Angels, all smiles, animatedly waved to the crowd, sometimes tossing souveniers to lucky fans. As my son's favorite Angel, Darrin Erstad, approached my young son called out his name and stretched to wave. Darrin caught his eye, smiled, sent a wave just for him, and clapped to applaud his enthusiasm! My son was glowing at the personal recognition. Eventually this much better parade was over as the crowd dispersed to a shower of confetti.

We made it just in time for the beginning of the first baseball special edition of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. The show was as fun as ever, and I just missed the hot seat by a few points! Since I couldn't justify missing two days of school we headed home, giddy from the day among jolly Angels fans.

I'm sorry to read not all shared our good time. I think it is understandable that not all planned events went off. The players spent a long, exhausting day in the fishbowl. It is only conjecture but I'd bet the Angels were the ones to nix the player photo appearances. The disappointing brevity of the Disneyland parade was probably due to tight scheduling. I think Disney did a fine job of celebrating the Angels; it is too bad they can't put on a decent fireworks show at DCA. All in all, it was our most memorable day at the resort since our honeymoon way back in 86.

[hbquikcomjamesl]

the music of "a dream is a wish your heart makes" from (believe it or not) Steps In Time (the ex-hyperion disaster).

Missed it all. Had to work, particularly considering as how my fall vacation (WDW) is coming up in about a week. But WHY THAT MUSIC?!?!? According to my research, Disney owns the Angels' Fight Song, and owned it even before they owned the team itself, and there's an all-but-forgotten march arrangement that was used as the open for Angels baseball broadcasts back in the 1960s and 1970s. I don't suppose they at least used it for the parades?
(Incidentally, you can find a really bad vocal arrangement as RealAudio on the Angels' web site.)

Speaking of the parades, has anybody got videotape of any of them? If so, please email me at jamesl@hb.quik.com

[sydney]

It seems to me that if they want to do a satisfying fireworks show at DCA, they will need to stop launching the fireworks three inches from the crowd. Does anyone know if they own land behind paradise pier anywhere (about the distance that toontown resides from Sleeping Beauty Castle) so that they could use California Screamin and the Sun Wheel as a backdrop for a Disneyland Style fireworks show?

[hbquikcomjamesl]

Does anyone know if they own land behind paradise pier anywhere (about the distance that toontown resides from Sleeping Beauty Castle) so that they could use California Screamin and the Sun Wheel as a backdrop for a Disneyland Style fireworks show?

Uh, the last time I checked, that land was the corner of Katella and West, and beyond it the Anaheim Convention Center, one of Mr. Stovall's motels, and the DTD south parking lot. And beyond those, residential and retail neighborhoods.

Somehow, it just don't seem like a very good idea. I'd say DCA is probably better off with non-aerial fireworks and maybe a laser show.

[RStar]

I agree. Unfortuunatly it looks like they will never be able to launch exploding fireworks off at DCA. The falling shells and unexploded missiles are just too dangerous. The only way would be to launch them off in the remaining parking lot next to ToT (of course it could no longer be a parking lot at that point). They plan that area for future expansions (as is happening with FFF and ToT in that space now).

And yes, at first I thought the Angels would be at Millionaire as well, but then re-read it and realized that's not what it said. I'm glad I chose the second showing of it over waiting in the photo ops that never happened! It was great, the guy got to the mill question, but lost it. The big prize was a baseball signed by the whole team. I wonder what happened to the ball since they didn't give it away? Funny, but the crowd yelled out "Give him the ball! Give him the ball!" They may have silently slip it to him afterwards anyway.

[MickeyD]

HBTiggerFan and I had forgotten about the fireworks and were already walking to the tram when they were being exploded, but, from the bit that we saw (barely) in between buildings in Downtown Disney, they seemed pretty pathetic.

As for the rest of the day:

Nothing on the program leads me to believe that the Angels were going to be at any photo ops. The only thing I see says become a "star" on baseball-themed backdrops.

The parade in DCA (I missed the Dland one) was nice. It seemed short, but, I have never been to any other victory parade to compare it to.... Thanks HBTiggerFan for patiently waiting over an hour with me for it to start. (Sarcastic) Thanks to the man standing next to us who taught HBTiggerFan how to be even louder with her Thunderstix.

The baseball Millionaire Edition. I was dissappointed that it was not *all* baseball. I thought the questions would be all about baseball, not that it would just have some baseball quesitons thrown into the regular edition. I was never under the impression that the Angels would be there, but I'm assuming from the fact that they kept announcing that they weren't going to be there in the Standby queue that others thought they would be. If anyone was at that 4 o'clock show, I was sitting in the seat right next to the cute little boy who made it into the hotseat first.

We missed all of the Q&A sessions, so I don't know how those went....

HBTiggerFan wanted to go to the Pitching clinic and lauch baseballs at the Hyperion, but I wouldn't let her. :~) (JUst kidding!)

I thought it was cool to see everybody in their best Angel's gear.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Originally posted by RStar
I I'm glad I chose the second showing of it over waiting in the photo ops that never happened!

Ha! I knew that was you in there. Your hair is wonderfully unmistakeable. Didn't have a chance to say hi since we bailed early.