Cartoon alchemist Walt Disney first introduced the world to theme parks when he opened the doors to Disneyland on a former orange grove that spanned 160 acres in Anaheim, California.
The date was July 17, 1955, and a ticket to enter cost just a dollar (50 cents for children), the equivalent of around $12 (£8.92) today – although the park operated a pay as you ride system, with prices costing 23 cents for adults and 10 cents for kids.
Disney fans today can take their pick from six resorts – two in the US, one in Europe and three in Asia, with a brand new park set to open in Abu Dhabi in the ‘early 2030s’ – but what did the very first incarnation of Walt Disney’s vision look like?
The opening day wasn’t a success by all accounts, and became known as ‘Black Sunday’ by Disney employees because of the number of disasters that unfolded. It was so hot under the Californian sun that the asphalt melted under visitors’ feet, the drinking fountains didn’t work and several rides malfunctioned.
Disneyland estimated around 20,000 people would attend on its first day and tickets were sent out on an invitation-only basis. However, bootleg tickets meant around 35,000 attended and many more crowded the park’s entrance too.
Eventually though, Walt and his first team of magic makers – now known as the Disney Imagineers – honed their theme park formula for fun.
Two decades later, the brand’s flagship attraction, Walt Disney World, now the world’s most visited theme park, opened its doors in Orlando in 1971…and the rest, as they say, is history.
Here’s what visitors arriving at the park on that very first day in the mid Fifties enjoyed…
After the success of Steamboat Willie, Walt Disney’s 1928 black and white film featuring Mickey Mouse, it was no surprise a steamboat featured at Disneyland in 1955. It was the first brand new steamboat to be built in the US since the turn of the century, and was named the Mark Twain SteamboatThe familiar fairytale castle, which featured on the theme park’s logo for over 20 years, has become an enduring feature at Disney parks around the world. Early versions of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck can be seen hand-in-hand strolling from its gatesMeet-and-greets with Mickey and Minnie are now very much part of the Disneyland experience, though the characters have evolved over the years since actors were paid to dress up as the cartoon couple in 1955Popular: Around 35,000 people – thousands more than anticipated – arrived on the opening day of the park, with various disasters leading to the first day being dubbed ‘Black Sunday’ All aboard: This photo, originally published in the Los Angeles Examiner in July 1955, showed Walt Disney driving executives around the new parkStar appeal: US singer Eddie Fisher (left) was a host at the opening of Disneyland, where he served on the Coca-Cola refreshment corner. He’s pictured giving spaceman Don MacDonald a drink as Fisher’s famous wife Debbie Reynolds looks onHey Dumbo! An early incarnation of Disney’s famous elephant is pictured strolling down Main Street USA at DisneylandCinematic maestro Walt Disney pictured with Steamboat Willie (aka Mickey Mouse) on the Mark Twain steamboatJust like now: crowds line Main Street USA to experience one of Disney’s famous paradesTaking centre stage: Walt Disney rides with two children in a horse-drawn carriage as they pass the Frontier Trading Post on the opening dayHow the park’s social areas looked in the mid Fifties; the authentic US street styling remains a fixture at all of the Disney parks across the worldDisney’s famous princesses – including Snow White and her seven dwarves – also played a part in the opening day paradeA whirl in a teacup: American animator Walt pictured with his wife, Lillian, and their daughter, Diane, on a spinning cup rideOn July 17, 1955, a Disneyland ticket cost just a dollar (50 cents for children), the equivalent of around $12 (£8.92) todayWhile the photos from the opening day paint a picture of success, there were problems faced by visitors – the weather was so hot, the asphalt melted under their feetThe Mark Twain Steamboat, named after the famous US author, was built to a 5/8 scale of the boats that used to float down America’s famous Mississippi riverSoda store: The first guests enjoyed another American favourite – Coca-cola – at the park’s parlourFormula for success: The concept was clearly a hit from the opening day, with a seventh theme park now set to open in Abu Dhabi in the ‘early 2030s’ The jam-packed Disneyland parking lot pictured on the attraction’s opening day Walt Disney (right) and California Governor Goodwin Knight ride an early Pierce-Arrow car through the brand new park
