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Tales from the parking lot

“I liked it better when it was a parking lot.”

That somewhat infamous wisecrack was reportedly made by the late great John Hench. The legendary Imagineer was supposed to have said this line in response to someone asking him what he though of DCA.

But — you know — I actually have to agree of John. Not because I dislike Disney’s California Adventure’s assortment of rides & attractions. But — rather — because I miss Disneyland’s old parking lot.

Now, I know, I know. That sounds kind of silly. But how many of you have fond memories of driving up to the park’s Harbor Boulevard entrance, giving the parking lot attendant a few bucks and then zooming out across that great sea of asphalt.

Eventually, you’d be directed into your parking spot by a Disneyland attendant. Then you’d kill the engine, climb out of your car and see .. There! On the horizon! The train station! And — right behind that — the Matterhorn & Space Mountain, both towering over the entire theme park. And — if you just stood there for a moment and listened carefully — sometimes you’d hear that ghostly howl of a wolf coming from the “Haunted Mansion,” pistols being fired somewhere deep in the brush on the “Jungle Cruise,” the steam whistle on the Mark Twain …

All in all, it was a pretty magical way to start your day at Disneyland. Other longtime DL fans (who also miss the parking lot) sometimes compare that moment to the scene in the 1939 MGM classic, “The Wizard of Oz.” You know, the one where Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodsman and the Cowardly Lion get their very first glimpse of the Emerald City.

Of course, then — what with having to haul all of your stuff across the hot parking lot to the tram, then inhaling all those diesel fumes as you rode to the ticket booths — that initial warm-and-cozy feeling faded away fairly quickly. But — at least for a few seconds there — it was a pretty magical time.

So — with the hope that some of you JHM readers might also have some fond memories of Disneyland’s old parking lot — I thought I’d share a few stories that I’ve heard over the years about those former “wide open spaces.”

Take the stairs (literarily!)

The first story that I have actually predates the opening of the park by a week or two. You see, there was this farm house — the old Peltzer place, to be exact — that once sat in the north end of the parking lot. And — while Disneyland was being constructed — this house was used as the field office for Duning Construction.

Well, as June gave way to July, it was now time to officially begin work on Disneyland’s parking lot. Which meant that it was finally time for the folks from Duning to clear out of the old Peltzer place. So that this old farm house could be pulled down.

Now a normal General Manager would have just had a bulldozer flatten that place. But C.V. Wood, Jr. — the colorful Texan that Walt Disney hired to supervise construction of his Anaheim theme park — was NOT your normal General Manager. Knowing that Disneyland’s construction crews were flat-out exhausted from having put in 14-hour days for the past few months, C.V. knew that his guys needed to blow off a little steam. Which is why Wood announced that he was going to hold a little party.

A house wrecking party, to be exact.

So — one evening in early July — about 50 of Woody’s “good old boys” showed up at the old Peltzer place. C.V. provided the beverages (Whisky & beer, or so I hear). He also provided an assortment of crowbars, sledge hammers and axes. After thanking everyone for turning out for this rather unique event, C.V. reportedly ordered everyone assembled to “drink up and tear down.”

And that they did, folks. After kicking back a few brewskis, these hardened construction types gleefully set to work tearing down the farm house. Ripping out the plumbing. Breaking all the windows. Tearing the doors off their hinges, then tossing them outside.

Now — at this point in the story — I guess I should mention that the Peltzer farmhouse was a two story affair. Which is what made life kind of difficult for the guys working upstairs when the crew working downstairs actually tore out the stairs.

To this day, no one’s ever explained to me how the Disneyland construction workers who were stuck up on the second story of the Peltzer place ever got down back on the ground. Though I would imagine that — once Woody set fire to the first floor of the building — that these guys then had sufficient incentive to jump.

All in all, I heard it was a pretty fun time. A real bonding moment for C.V. and his crew.

Parking lot hi-jinks

Of course, Woody and his construction crew weren’t the only ones who had a fine time working in the old Disneyland parking lot. The theme park’s parking lot attendants (Who — it should be mentioned here — are some of the hardest working & least appreciated employees in the entire Disneyland Resort cast) also managed to keep themselves amused for the 42+ years that this part of the park was in operation.

Most of the time, these hi-jinks were just silly pranks. Like that time in the late 1960s when the parking lot crew conspired to send every single person who drove to Disneyland that day in a yellow Volkswagon to a specific section of the lot. I’m told that some attendants actually stayed in the parking lot for hours after their shift was over. Just so that they could watch the fun when all those tired tourists finally came stumbling out of the theme park and tried to determine which yellow ‘bug was theirs.

But there were also those who eventually got bored with this low-paying job and — rather than toying with the tourists — tried to see if they could put one over on Walt. Like the Parking lot foreman who — back in the late 1950s — cooked up a scheme to resell old Disneyland parking lot tickets. This man reportedly skimmed ten of thousands of dollars before Mickey finally caught on. (FYI: This is why now all Disneyland parking tickets have the date stamped on them. To prevent this sort of scheme from ever happening again.)

Mind you, there were also those honest types who — through hard work — eventually rose above this humble position and went on to do great things in life. Take — for example — master architect Peter Dominick. Peter’s very first job was working as a Disneyland parking attendant. From there, he eventually went on to become a star at the Urban Design Group. Where Dominick designed such landmark WDW hotels as the Wilderness Lodge and the Animal Kingdom Lodge.

Which was why — in January of 2001 — Peter couldn’t help but comment on the irony of this whole situation. I mean, here was this master architect, taking part in the dedication ceremony for yet another beautiful hotel that he’d designed for the Walt Disney Company: The Grand Californian Resort. And this 750-room luxury hotel had actually been built in Dominick’s old stomping grounds: the Disneyland parking lot. (Right on top of where the old Peltzer place used to be, by the way.)

When I chatted with Peter after the Grand Californian’s dedication ceremony and pointed out the irony, the gracious architect just laughed. “Yeah, I just can’t escape this place,” Dominick said. “After I die, I’ll just have my family scatter my ashes out by the rose garden. Right around where the old Eeyore lot used to be.”

Mickey’s a very patient mouse

Please note that Peter was very specific about where he wanted his ashes to be scattered. Could it be that the architect has some fond memories of that portion of the old Disneyland parking lot? Or is there a more intriguing explanation here? Like Dominick wanting his remains to remain on a part of the property that the Walt Disney Company actually owns?

Strange but true, folks. The Mouse doesn’t actually own all of the old Disneyland parking lot. There are huge patches of this part of the property that the Walt Disney Company only controls through long term leases.

“How much of the old parking lot are we talking about here?,” you ask. Well — to be specific — there’s:

So now you see that there may actually be a reason why certain sections of Disney’s California Adventure look like they could be torn down and packed up in just a day. That may actually be the case, folks. Given that the Mouse doesn’t actually own the land that pieces of this theme park are built on.

Though — to be fair — I guess I should point out that, based on what Disneyland insiders have told me, most of this leased property is actually out in the Timon parking lot. Of course, the downside of this situation is: This long term lease situation may prevent DCA from expanding much beyond its current footprint. Which — given that Disney’s California Adventure is a theme park that is already severely wanting when it comes to rides & attractions — doesn’t exactly bode well for DCA’s future.

Anyway … That’s a few tales from Disneyland’s old parking lot. Does anyone else out there have any fond memories of this old part of the resort that they’d like to share with JHM readers?

Your thoughts?

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