If you’re a Disney history buff, then you probably already know that the very first ticket for Disneyland was reportedly purchased by Roy O. Disney. Supposedly because Walt’s brother wanted a physical souvenir of the day. Something that Roy could show his grandkids someday.
And if you’re seriously into your Disneyland history, then you’ve obviously seen this photo before.
Copyright 1955 Disneyland, Inc.
Which was taken on July 18, 1955. The day that Disneyland first officially opened to the public. Here, Walt is seen welcoming Michael Schwartner & his cousin Christine Vess. Who — the Disney history books will tell you — were the very first guests to enter Disney’s theme park.
Well, truth be told, Michael & Christine weren’t actually the first people waiting in line to enter Disneyland on that hot July morning. Prior to the start of the Anaheim theme park’s ribbon cutting ceremony, members of the Disney Studio publicity staff began scouring the crowd, looking for two cute kids to appear in a photo op with Walt. Young Mr. Schwartner and Ms. Vess were eventually selected … And that’s how Michael & Christine wound up in this historic picture with Walt.
Now, if you wanted to meet the guy who really was the very first person in line to enter Disneyland on July 18, 1955, the man who actually bought the very first ticket to that theme park that was sold to the public … Well, then you’d have to travel to Utah. To a sleepy little town up in the “Four Corners” section of that state called Monticello. Once there, you’d have to seek out an old newspaperman called Dave MacPherson.
Of course, David wasn’t always a old newspaperman. Back in 1955, he was just an English major attending Long Beach College. But — on July 17th — as he sat watching that Disneyland grand opening television special on ABC, MacPherson came up with a plan.
“I decided that I wanted to be first in line,” Dave explained. “The first person to go into the park who wasn’t a relative of Walt’s or some celebrity. The very first regular guy to go in through the front door.”
So — at midnight — MacPherson got on his Simplex motorbike. And — putt-putting along at a top speed of 30 miles an hour — he made the 10-mile journey from Long Beach to Anaheim on surface streets. Traveling along quiet two lane roads, rolling past darkened truck farms. Finally arriving at Disneyland at around 2 a.m.
“I thought for sure that there’d be someone there ahead of me,” Dave continued. “But there was no one. So I just parked my motorbike up by the entrance, walked over to the nearest ticket booth and started the line.”
Even though it was obviously late at night, MacPherson recalls that Disneyland was still a beehive of activity. Throughout that long night into the early morning hours, technicians continued to scurry about. Trying to get the theme park ready for its first official day of business.
“I remember continually hearing the pre-recorded sound of the animals inside the ‘Jungle Cruise,’ ” Dave explained. “So clearly they must have been trying to fix something back in that part of the park.”
And — as MacPherson stood there & the hours passed — slowly more & more people joined him in line. Until — by dawn — there were 6000 people behind him waiting to get into the Anaheim theme park.
“The heat & humidity that morning was just unbearable,” Dave continued. “I remember ladies fainting in line as it got closer and closer to the official opening time of the park.”
Finally, Disneyland’s ticket booths opened for business. And a photographer from the Long Beach Press-Telegram was there to capture the historic moment as young Mr. MacPherson bought the very first official ticket to Disneyland.
Copyright 1955 Long Beach Press-Telegram
Then Dave got on line at the turnstiles. After the ribbon cutting ceremony was completed, the gates to the theme park finally opened. MacPherson entered the theme park and …
“To be honest, I don’t really remember a whole lot,” Dave reluctantly admits. “But you have to understand that I’d been standing in line all night. So I was a little bit bleary by that point.”
And — given that MacPherson was scheduled to attend classes later that very same day — Dave didn’t really have any time to ride rides. So he just hit the bathroom, quickly exited Disneyland, got back on his motorbike and putt-putted his way back to Long Beach.
Ah, but MacPherson’s perserverance did eventually pay off. Because Dave was in fact Disneyland’s first really-for-real paying customer, company officials eventually decided to award him a lifetime pass to that theme park.
“I have to admit that that was a very nice reward for staying up all night,” MacPherson continued. “It got me and three friends into the park. So I used to go on a lot of double dates to Disneyland.”
Of course, the best part of getting a lifetime pass to Disneyland is that this special piece of admission material also give you free access to the Disney theme parks in Florida & Paris. Though not (intriguingly enough) the two Tokyo Disney parks as well as the still-under-construction Hong Kong Disneyland.
Of course, now that he lives in Utah, Dave doesn’t get the chance to visit the Disney theme parks all that often. But the last time he was out at Walt Disney World, MacPherson had a pretty interesting time.
“The girl at the gate made such a fuss about me being the guy who bought the first ticket to Disneyland that people kept coming up to me & asking for my autograph,” Dave recalled. “It was pretty funny, actually.”
Well, I too think that the folks at the Walt Disney Company should be making a fuss over Dave MacPherson. After all, he is the man who bought the very first ticket to the “Happiest Place on Earth.”
Here’s hoping that — as Disneyland gets closer to its actual 50th birthday — that someone in power at the Mouse House thinks to invite MacPherson & his family out to Anaheim to spend some time in the spotlight. Maybe even have Dave meet with a few members of the press, have him talk about standing there in the dark, waiting for Disneyland to open for the day.
Though I would imagine that — this time around, when MacPherson finally makes his triumphant return to Disneyland — that Dave won’t come a-putt-putt-putting right up to the entrance on his Simplex motorbike.
Your thoughts?