As the continued process of re-themeing and enhancing takes place in Disney’s California Adventure park, Mulholland Madness is next on the list of attractions to receive an update. The family coaster, which has been called “unimaginative” in the past, will get a Goofy’s Sky Skool “refreshing” as part of the $1.1-billion effort to add a heavy dose of Mickey Mouse and friends to the under-performing theme park.

While not a horrible ride, Mulholland Madness is simply a stock “wild mouse” ride with little appeal beyond the typical wild mouse ride experience. The attraction has been blamed as part of the problem that earned Disney California Adventure its “on-the-cheap” reputation.

The new themeing will get its inspiration from the 1940 cartoon short “Goofy’s Glider” where the storyline follows the clumsy anthropomorphic dog’s attempts to teach a group of novice pilots how to fly in which things go awry, Goofy style.

Riders will climb to the top of the 55-foot-tall coaster through clouds festooned with Goofy-shaped holes and pass a series of step-by-step billboards explaining how to fly before finally exiting through an airplane hangar façade.

The Mulholland Madness cars themselves, which hold four riders, will get a modest makeover, replacing the automobile theme with a new paint job, Goofy graphics and a small winglet on the nose.

Scheduled to debut in 2011, the complete makeover will be the third attraction that Disney has retooled in the last three years in an effort to add more classic Disney characters to the California Adventure park, the other two being Mickey’s Fun Wheel and the Silly Symphony Swings.

Concept artwork courtesy of L.A. Times.

I just love all the great content that Disney Parks Blog puts out. Today they released a short video demonstrating the massive control room that controls over 18,000 active points in the “World of Color” show at Disney’s California Adventure. It is indeed one of the biggest show control systems ever built.

Of special interest is the fact the the actual control room is tucked away in one of the parade rooms, out of view of the lagoon itself. That certainly doesn’t hinder them from being able to completely see what is going on as you will see in the video.

The video also shows the telemetry for what Disney Imagineering calls “subs” which are comprised of three giant rooms, each about the size of a semi-trailer, which contain all the electrical distribution for the show.

Now with no further ado, enjoy this behind-the-scenes peek at the World of Color control room.

Disney Imagineering has so graciously provided a sneak peek at the vehicle testing for Radiator Springs Racers, a thrilling new attraction that is set to open in 2012 with the debut of Cars Land at Disney California Adventure park.

Disney Parks Blog points out that vehicle testing is an important milestone in the development process. Testing is expected to continue through the end of July, then the car comes off the track while construction of the E Ticket attraction is completed.

The bright cars you see in the video below will each carry six guests through the twists and turns of Ornament Valley. Radiator Springs Racers covers a lot of ground – nearly half of the 12 acres in Cars Land. Check out the video and imagine what this high-speed adventure will be like.

Having see a full-length version of Disney’s Wonderful World of Color as captured by a park guest who then so graciously posted the footage on YouTube, I can say that the show is quite impressive. At just under 27 minutes, the attraction uses an array of water fountains and water screens, lighting, fire, video and other special effects to bring a wide variety of Disney characters to life in stunning color.

As a reminder, the world premiere of the show is tonight which Disney will be video streaming live on Ustream and the attraction officially opens to park guests tomorrow, June 11.

Disney Parks Blog which has been doing an excellent job chronicling the development of this amazing attraction has released the latest video which covers just about everything you might want to know about the show and also includes some interviews from the key people involved with “World of Color.”

Check it out and if not at the premier tonight, be sure to tune into the Ustream live feed at 8:30 pm PST tonight.

If you are like me and not one of the fortunate few who will be able to attend Disney’s “World of Color” premier on June 10th at Disney’s California Adventure Park, here’s good news for us all. Disney will now livestream the premier of their newest attraction on Ustream, allowing the whole world to watch as it happens.

The event is scheduled to take place June 10th, 2010 at 8:30 pm (PST) and will be livestreamed on Ustream. So mark your calendars and bookmark http://www.ustream.tv/worldofcolor so you can be part of the festivities. I know I’ll be watching.

I just hope Ustream can handle the traffic. YouTube did a pretty good job airing the U2 360 Pasadena concert to the world late last year but when trying to view the “preview” of the show at Ustream prior to writing this post, Firefox crashed … several times!

At any rate, if all works out, this is a great way to see what should be one of the most fantastic shows Disney Imagineering has put together to date. I can’t wait!

With an official opening date of June 11th, the newly renovated and re-themed Silly Symphony Swings began “soft opening” runs last Friday morning. What was formerly known as the “Orange Stinger” has been re-themed to the 1935 Mickey Mouse short feature “The Band Concert,” with the music of Rossini’s “William Tell Overture.” Corey Burton provides the attraction’s narration.

Here are a few highlights of the attraction:

• Unlike before, the attraction now has “tandem” swings, which will accommodate one child between 40″ and 48″ tall and one adult.

• There are two main lines—one for single swings and one for tandem swings.

• A separate entrance is available for guests with mobility impairments who need more time to board.

• If a family does not need a tandem swing, then a lone adult may sit in the adult (yellow) seat side. Adults, however, may not sit in the red seat of a tandem swing, and two adults are not permitted to share a tandem swing.

• The ride lasts about one minute, but the load cycle can take up to 5 minutes.

Along with the attraction comes the new boardwalk beneath the ride platform which has several alcoves with benches and serves dual purposes – an overflow queue on busy days and also perfect for enjoying the view of Paradise Bay.

Photo credits: Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix of MousePlanet

Disney Parks Blog has come out with some additional exciting details surrounding the current makeover portions of The Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim are receiving. They include enhancements to the pool area as well as the addition of two new dining establishments. The Dreams Tower (to be renamed Adventure Tower) has already been under renovation and is scheduled to be completed in 2010.

According to Disney Parks, the pool area is getting a whole new look, including a brand-new pool, all-new water play area and a complete redesign of the Never Land Pool. Plans also call for a new restaurant and bar, and re-theming of the hotel’s two additional guest room towers.

The Pool Area

With a nod to the iconic original park signage, “Disneyland” will be spelled out in familiar blocks atop a platform supporting two huge water slides. The larger slide will be 26 feet high and will stretch 187 feet before it plunges into a splash pool below. Then reminiscent of the original Monorail station at the Disneyland Hotel, at each slide’s entrance will sit a replica Monorail Car that guests will glide through as they twist and turn their way to the pool below. How cool! The pool will also feature a third, two-lane mini slide, perfect for little guests, which is just 3 1/2 feet high and is 19 feet long.

The Never Land Pool

This section of the resort will receive a complete cosmetic makeover but will retain its unique shape. A new, four-foot deep pool will be built between the Never Land Pool and the water play area. A footbridge will stretch over this new pool, connecting both sides of the courtyard area and giving easy access across the property (see illustration below). Additionally, six new cabanas will also be added.

New Eatery and Bar

Two new dining locations will be introduced in the current location of Hook’s Pointe, Croc’s Bites and Bits, the Wine Cellar and the Lost Bar. A new “smart casual” dining concept will feature Tahitian architecture that is reminiscent of the ’50s and ’60s era of the hotel and the original Tahitian Terrace restaurant in Disneyland park.

Finally, a  new bar will draw on the adventure theme from the Jungle Cruise attraction.

The new water play area, pool and dining locations are scheduled to be completed by summer 2011, and the remodeled Never Land Pool is slated to be completed by summer 2012. All makeover work on the two additional towers should be complete by 2012 as well.

So if you’re planning a trip to the Anaheim resort in the next couple of years and want to stay at Disneyland Hotel, you might want to wait until all makeovers are complete so as to enjoy everything that is being put into place. In the meantime, should you still want to stay on property, there is the Grand Californian and Paradise Pier for your consideration.

If you have been to Disneyland in Anaheim recently, you most likely noticed the construction walls around the Rivers of America and even have spotted the drained riverbed while the attraction underwent a lengthy refurbishment. Now that the rivers are being refilled, the LA Times reveals what new and exciting changes guests to the park can expect to see.

Refreshed riverbank scenes, a more concise plant palette and a newly focused storyline are just the beginning of additions and enhancements to this most beloved themed area of the park.

While mechanical refurbishments were put in place such as a new guide track for both the Columbia sailing ship and Mark Twain paddle-boat, Imagineers went back to the original concept art for the Rivers of America drawn by Disney artists Marc Davis and Sam McKim for inspiration for the enhancements that were added during this current rehab.

“Through the years, the river had grown rather eclectic,” said Walt Disney Imagineer Kim Irvine, who oversaw art direction of the rehab. “The scenes and sets didn’t really tell a clear story.”

Now the circular waterway will boast four distinct regions based on famous American rivers: the Mississippi, Columbia, Potomac and Rio Grande.

Here are some of additions/enhancements that were made during the four month refurbishment:

• A new 2,500-foot-long guidance track was installed for the Columbia and Mark Twain.

• The Mark Twain received a new paddle.

• Nine docks were replaced.

• 4,000 shrubs and 130 trees were added to the newly themed banks.

• 26 animal figures have been placed along the shore.

• A revised narration has been created which will point out the new features along the river.

• The burning settler’s cabin is now the newly remodeled home of Mike Fink, the friend and rival of Davy Crockett. The pair can be heard arguing as the riverboat glides past the scene.

• The river now traverses through four distinct and diverse environments including the Mississippi where colors are grayish green, and the plants are weepy and droopy, evocative of the New Orleans Square surroundings; the Columbia where riverbanks feel more lushly forested, populated with firs, pines and cedars; the Potomac where plantings change color all year long, making for a varied palette; and finally the Rio Grande features a more arid desert look, with warm reds and oranges, befitting the rockwork surrounding the nearby Big Thunder Mountain Railroad roller coaster.

The map below provides a glimpse of how this newly-themed land is laid out.

I’m sure the map will not do justice to seeing the changes in person. So, next time you visit the park, be sure to look for these changes.

Along with the long-awaited debut of the June 11th launch of the ‘World of Color’ Water Spectacular at Disney’s California Adventure, the resort has announced their line-up of Sumner Nightastic! activities which are scheduled to run from June 11th – August 29th.

It’s an exciting list of shows and activities designed to draw crowds to the resort during the summer season.

Here’s the line-up of shows and activities:

• “Fantasmic!” – The classic show on the Rivers of America was just enhanced last year with a fully animated 40-foot-tall dragon, cutting-edge digital video technology and an appearance by Flotsam and Jetsam, the slithering eels who serve Ursula the Sea Witch in “The Little Mermaid.”

• “Magical” – The fireworks show over Sleeping Beauty Castle features a host of characters, including Tinker Bell and an airborne Dumbo.

• Toy Story Mania! – Tom Smith at Disney Parks Blog recently gave a sneak peek of the new faces coming to this Paradise Pier attraction and also announced the new Lotso character appearing in the Park.

• TLT Dance Club – Dance the night away at this dance club in Tomorrowland Terrace in Disneyland park, where live bands and DJs from the hottest Southern California radio stations will appear on selected nights throughout the summer.

• Pixie Hollow Enchantment – For a pixie-dusted evening, check out the light show at Pixie Hollow and see Tinker Bell and her friends come to life at night.

Personally, I can’t wait to see the new dragon (debuted last year) for the Fantasmic show as well as the World of Color but unfortunately for me, I won’t be back at the park till October. Nevertheless, looks like a great time to experience the magic of Disney.

Disneyland’s Matterhorn Bobsleds was down for a brief refurbishment last week. During the downtime, a new prototype of bobsled (ride vehicle) was spotted. Unlike the current “cuddle” seats in the current sleds which typically accommodate two people per car, these new sleds holds three passengers per car in individual seats.

However don’t expect to see them right away as a cast member was reported as saying that last week’s goal was simply to test the prototype sleds, and that there is still “a lot” of work to be done.

It was rumored that the new sleds included a lap bar for restraint, similar to the system used on Walt Disney World’s Space Mountain, but in reality these prototypes have seat belts. What looked to be a lap bar in some photos is actually the headrest for the individual seats.

Here is  comparison of the new (on your left) compared to what is currently in place.

A Disney cast member is quoted as saying that riders were not permitted in the new sleds during their testing and that another closure is likely to conduct additional trials after adjustments are made based on the results of this last testing. New station gates will also have to be added to the attraction before the new sleds can be put into normal operation.

What do you think? Do you feel the new sleds will increase or decrease the amount of people the attraction can accommodate in any given timeslot? What about comfort? Do you think these new sleds will be more comfortable or take away from the ride experience all of us who have come to love the bobsleds enjoy?

Comments are open!