It was a very special day at Disneyland Park last Wednesday, December 5. Upon arriving at the park after a rough morning of college final exams, I walked through the busy gates and into Town Square at Disneyland Park…only to discover long lines of eager Disney Fans waiting to purchase commemorative pins and other special birthday merchandise at Disneyana on Main Street. The lines reportedly reached up to two and a half hours long, and wove from the tiny shop's entrance all the way down Main Street and around the plaza in Town Square. While certainly shorter than two hours, the lines for birthday cake and complimentary pins at Baker's Field Bakery were far from short!
Making my way through the quickly growing crowds gathered at the hub, I was fortunate to have a great spot saved for me by fellow Intercotees drock3800, krockls1, and Bleen. There were many familiar faces in the audience, including Richard Sherman, John Hench, and Alice Davis. As Kevin (krockls1) was in the front row, he was kindly took photos for Intercot West, so all compliments on the nearly 30 excellent shots of the festivities should be directed to him.
Many familiar faces were present in the crowd at the ceremony.
The festivities began with a warm welcome and introduction by Disneyland Ambassador Doina Roman-Osborne. The ambassador started things of by telling of some of Walt's greatest achievements, including 32 Academy Awards and over 950 honors and citations from around the world. Ambassador Roman-Osbourne introduced Cynthia Harriss, the President of the Disneyland Resort.
Ambassador Doina Roman-Osbourne welcomes the crowd to the festivities.
Cynthia's speech to the audience was warm and genuine as it always is. She said some admiring words about Walt, and pointed out that his 100th birthday celebration was certainly graced with Walt's weather. Cynthia discussed some of the ongoing celebration that will continue throughout the next year the Resort to honor Walt and his magic, including the film Walt: One Man's Dream in the Animation Screening Room at DCA. The Resort will also be serving some of Walt's favorite foods, including Walt's Chili, at restaurants throughout the parks. It was time for Cynthia to introduce a very special guest and close friend of Walt Disney who needed no introduction: Mr. Richard Sherman.
Cynthia speaks fondly of Walt Disney, the Man who started the Magic.
All Disney lovers are familiar with the magnificent work of the Sherman brothers and their contribution to the Disney magic, not only in the animated films but also in Disneyland Park itself. It was an extreme honor for me to see one of them seated right in front of me discussing one of my personal heroes. Mr. Sherman gave some incredibly powerful and emotional words about his dear friend Walt Disney, describing him as "the greatest giant of them all" to work with. He told humorous stories about Walt's ability to inspire people, and the meaning of the highest compliment one could receive, "that'll work." Mr. Sherman ended with a special story about Walt's favorite song from the classic Mary Poppins, "Feed the Birds." Each Friday afternoon, after asking the Sherman brothers how things were going and what they were working on, Walt would ask them to "Play It." Thus, Richard Sherman ended with a special performance of "Feed the Birds" that he said was just for Walt. I don't think there was a dry eye in the audience. After the heartfelt performance, Sherman turned to the Walt statue and choking back tears said, "Happy Birthday Walt" and blew a kiss.
The legendary Richard Sherman sings a heartfelt rendition of "Feed the Birds" for Walt.
Cynthia returned to the podium and introduced the next special guest of the ceremony, John Hench, senior vice-president of Walt Disney Imagineering. Mr. Hench is known for his remarkable work as a project director on attractions including the original Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, Tomorrowland, Carousel of Progress, and "it's a small world." Mr. Hench also gave a lovely speech about what it meant to be part of such an amazing team, and said Disneyland itself said a lot about Walt. "He was a caring man. He cared about people which explains why this is still a happy place and it will be a happy place for years and years and years to come."
John Hench says some kind words about an old friend.
It was time for the third and final guest to make his appearance. Cynthia Harriss introduced the honorable Mickey Mouse, the one who was a partner of Walt's through it all from Day One. After the Mouse merrily made his way to the stage, Richard Sherman and John Hench joined him and Cynthia for the official dedication of the Partners statue in honor of Walt's 100th birthday. The inscription on the dedication plaque reads:
In celebration of the 100th anniversary of his birth, the statue "Partners" is dedicated as a tribute to the Dreams, Creativity and Vision of WALT DISNEY whose legacy reaches into a new century around the world here, "where the magic began". December 5, 2001. The Disneyland Resort Cast.
Richard Sherman, Cynthia, Mickey Mouse, and John Hench dedicate the Partners Statue in honor of Walt's 100th birthday.
The ceremony ended with a beautiful rendition of "When You Wish Upon A Star," featuring Mickey and a gang of some of the most memorable Disney characters. At the end of the song, a flock of doves flew into the sky.
Mickey Mouse and the gang do a special performance of "When You Wish Upon A Star" for a special finale.
In all my years as a Disneyland fanatic and Webmaster, I had never been able to attend one of these special presentation ceremonies. This was a special one that I will certainly never forget.
Once again, many thanks to Kevin (krockls1) for taking the great photos, which will be up in the Intercot West gallery within the next couple of days. Please feel free to email me at
goofystatue@intercotwest.com if you have any questions or comments.
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