It’s hard to imagine that a 183-foot-tall building could be overshadowed
by anything, but that’s exactly what happened when the Twilight Zone Tower
of Terror ride opened at Disney’s California Adventure Wednesday morning.
True, the Disneyland Resort was filled with media from as far away as
Australia, but they were all gathered around Disneyland’s Sleeping Beauty
Castle, where Disney executives were unveiling their plans to celebrate
Disneyland’s 50th Anniversary.
A burst of pyrotechnics heralds the opening of The Twilight Zone Tower
of Terror. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.
But perhaps this was a fitting opening for a ride that is simply a copy
of a similar concept at Walt Disney World, and has already been open for
nearly a month to cast members, annual passholders, special event attendees
and eventually the general public during “soft open” previews.
Matt Ouimet (center) accepts the 13 Diamond award from AAA representatives.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.
In a brief ceremony Tuesday afternoon, Disneyland Resort President Matt
Ouimet accepted a “13 Diamond” award for the Hollywood Tower
Hotel from AAA, an “honor” previously given to the Hollywood
Tower Hotel at Walt Disney World (the award is a comedic nod to automobile
association’s actual diamond ratings program).
Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Connie and Carla)
shies away from a ghostly pair of bellhops at the red carpet premiere
of the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. © 2004 Disney. All rights reserved.
Used with permission.
The big grand opening event held was Tuesday night, attended by Disney
executives and Imagineers, celebrities, invited guests, the media, and
a few hundred off-duty Disney cast members who volunteered to act as “screaming
fans” along the red carpet entrance to the Hollywood Pictures Backlot.
Imagineer and Tower senior show producer Cory Sewelson meets the press
along the red carpet. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.
Michael Eisner walked the red carpet, as did model Tyra Banks, actress
NIA Vardalos, actor Jason Ritter and several faces who seemed to delight
the foreign media present, but left local reporters asking one another,
“Who was that?” Disney archivist Dave Smith made his way down
the carpet, and then returned to claim a spot with is fellow cast members
on the sidelines to watch the new arrivals. Imagineer and Tower senior
show producer Cory Sewelson answered questions for Disney-related media,
while Imagineer Michael Sprout modeled the Tower of Terror opening crew
jacket.
Model Tyra Banks came out to see the new ride, and promote the next season
of her reality television show. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.
As Disney CEO Michael Eisner introduced the new ride later that night,
he called it, “one the most advanced multisensory attractions anywhere
in the world.” Eisner said that the Tower of Terror was an example
of how the Disney company was keeping Walt Disney’s vision by designing
“new” attractions, creating “new” technologies, and
seeking “’new’ ways in which to dazzle our guests as never before.”
Video of Rod Serling, projected onto a giant “moon balloon,”
set the tone for the opening ceremony. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.
Carol Serling, wife of Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling, was
also on hand to help dedicate the ride. She thanked Eisner for bringing
the Tower to California, and said, “I wouldn’t be surprised to hear
that one of these days a hotel will be built in France, Japan and Hong
Kong.” She said that her late husband would be thrilled to see his
“beloved 5th dimension” brought to life.
Carol Serling, wife of Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling, talks
about the new ride. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.
With a flash of pyrotechnics, the lightning storm from the ride’s introductory
video was reenacted on the actual tower to the delight of the crowd gathered
below, “damaging” the neon sign and leaving it in its permanent,
flickering state. Then the guests were invited to join the party and ride
the new attraction, sample the buffet, dance to the music of a swing ensemble,
and marvel over the sculpted-ice martini bars, where cocktails were served
after being poured through a 10-foot tall wall of ice. A press release
explained that the Tower of Terror area could be rented for glamorous
private parties.
Bellhops wait to serve drinks to delighted partygoers. Photo by Adrienne
Vincent-Phoenix.
The public debut Wednesday morning was downright low-key, covered by
a handful of local radio stations and attended mostly by local Disney
fans eager to raise their ride count by midafternoon. Some speculated
that Disney had intentionally distracted the media from hovering near
the Tower as it opened its gates to the public for the first time, so
as to avoid notice of the low turnout for this E-ticket introduction.
Park visitors redeem their online Fastpass vouchers. Photo by Adrienne
Vincent-Phoenix.
Although a handful of die-hard fans had arrived at DCA park as early
as 7:00 a.m. to stand in line for the new ride, by noon the stand-by wait
for Tower was just over an hour, and Fastpass tickets were still available.
The next few months should indicate if a reworked Florida attraction will
be enough to boost DCA attendance, or if Disney is going to need create
something truly “new” to draw visitors to the park.
