Hearsay and Rumors 2: Hatbox Ghost

Hatbox Ghost from Doombuggies.com

Time to return to the hearsay and rumor page to fill you in on a subject that "materializes" every so often. This is an elusive apparition found in the attic of the Haunted Mansion, the Hatbox Ghost. This spirit appeared in the Haunted Mansion for only a limited time but it was enough to leave a lasting impression on its guests. One guest in particular was Tony Baxter. You can see Tony talk about it himself in this video and will also tell you about the Hatbox Ghost at length.

Now this rumor in particular is of a return of the Hatbox Ghost. This rumor has gained some steam lately. We begin with the display of the Hatbox Ghost audio animatronic (AA) figure at the D23 Expo 2013. This was made out of an old Lincoln AA figure and was at the Imagineering pavilion at the expo. Sadly, I was unable to attend but here is a great video of what the character looked like and did.

Some more evidence for this has come from a new bit of art that is featured at Disneyland's Disney Gallery. It shows some concept art for the aforementioned Hatbox Ghost and states "rematerializing August 2014." Of course this made fans go crazy. It seemed to be evidence of a return of the Ghostly resident but it seems not to be. As Inside the Magic states, a cast member (CM) stated this is for a cel to be released.

Upsetting, yes, but lets think of what could have been or may still be. I am a proponent of not wasting so it seems odd to me that Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI) would waste their time with repurposing an AA for no reason. I also believe in "plussing" when there is good reasoning. I think this would be perfect for plussing the Haunted Mansion for next year's 60th Anniversary of Disneyland and would be a great way to celebrate without doing much. It would be perfect to help promote the park for less. Of course, I know that they had issues with the effect but as evidenced in WDI's new video for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, this could be perfected with projection technology. Mind you, I do not prefer projections over physical figures but for this effect, it would be effective (cheesy!). So here's hoping we get this instead of a Johnny Depp or Eddie Murphy AA!

Also, doesn't Hatbox look an awful lot like the Skeleton or Ezra? It'd be cool if they were the same person, however, I know Hatbox has a gold tooth while Ezra does not. But if it was revealed they are the same ghost it might make for a good backstory. Just a thought....

But what do you think? If you have a Google account just leave a comment, you can tweet me, or email me at giodisney113@gmail.com.
-Josh

Hearsay and Rumors: Disneyland's Astro Orbiter

Hi there, this is a new post that I am introducing to cover the hearsay and rumors going on in the Disney-sphere of things and my thoughts. 

Me posing in front of the rocks and Astro Orbiter

I am sure you all know by now that the newest Disneyland rumor is that the Astro Orbiter that has cluttered the entrance to Disneyland's Tomorrowland would be moved. Where to you might ask, according to the ghosts of the Peoplemover, there are two locations depending on who you listen to. One is up on the Peoplemover track where it used to be and the other is up on the helipad area of the outside queue of Space Mountain. This would be part of the rumored Star Wars Tomorrowland retheming. Also the huge rocks will leave according to this rumor.

I am a little skeptical right now about this as you may have heard that the highly rumored Nemo Subs going away was dispelled by Bob Iger at the Shareholder's meeting. I am sure most people are now skeptical about Disneyland moving or removing anything for the time being, as am I. I also am a little on the fence because this would make the walkway into Tomorrowland even more messed with the construction walls and it would also force another attraction into the out of commission list. But I suppose this would have to start soon so as to be cleared in time for next year, Disneyland's 60th Anniversary.

Now let me furthermore add that I welcome this as I hate the bottleneck you get at the entrance to Tomorrowland. Any visitor to Disneyland knows that this area is a high traffic area even in the offseason. It is particularly bad because on the sides of the path you have the extended queues of Star Tours and Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters and smack in the middel is the Astro Orbiter and it's switchbacks. I have to admit though that I do think the rock work at the entrance gives it a kind of epic look but I don't mind those leaving either.

from Yesterland.com

Now to jump onto my soapbox, I would much rather have the Peoplemover/Rocket Rods track worked on and the Peoplemover returned to it's rightful place. I know they would have to spend money on the track but is it really that hard to replace? Also consider that it doesn't need a real queue as it is such a fast loading people eater that you can basically just install a moving ramp up to it, like at Walt Disney World. Personally, I loved the Peoplemover and every trip I've made to WDW, the Peoplemover is the attraction I ride the most. It's so easy going and you get a great sight of all of Tomorrowland. It would be perfect to return to Disneyland. Not to mention, Disney fans have been begging for it's return since it left. We might get lucky though since as announced at the Shareholders meeting, we are finally getting the one Pixar sequel we all wanted the Incredibles.

from Yesterland.com

Also when it comes to the Star Wars Tomorrowland retheming or even going as far back as the Avengers Tomorrowland retheming, I don't like the idea of retheming all of Tomorrowland as a franchise. I believe more so in Disneyland Paris and to a lesser extent WDW's "Tomorrowland That Never Was". It's true that it's hard to not date yourself with a land of tomorrow theming but it works so well to be the "tomorrow that never was." It would be easier too to explain having the Avengers, Buzz Lightyear, Star Wars, Tron, and even Captain EO all in the same place under this theme.

Let me also add that the proposed area that the Astro Orbiter would go would block out the sight of Space Mountain. This is such an iconic showbuilding. So personally I hope we just get a return to the old Astro Orbiter or Rocket Jets. Couple that with a return of the Peoplemover and you've got a little kinetic energy to the entrance sight line.

Also the Orbitron needs to go.

And for my brother, Hunter, let's add Alien Encounter somewhere.

from Endorexpress.net

So this will wrap it up for this first Hearsay and Rumors post, what did you think? 

Leave a comment, 

tweet me at twitter.com/giodisney 

or email me at giodisney113@gmail.com

Thanks for reading,

Josh