Changing Times at Magic Kingdom

Is there any magic left at the Magic Kingdom?

No, there is not.

As I was driving by Disneyland the other night, my gaze turned up toward the once-familiar marquee at 1313 Harbor Blvd., the sign that is known throughout the world, giving visitors their very first taste of this exciting and happy land. To me, the sign was a chilling sight--a symbol signifying that what was once Walt Disney’s dream is now dead.

Disneyland is no longer “The Happiest Place on Earth.” It is now “Everyone Wins--Every Day!” How tacky. Maybe “The Best Has Just Begun” should have been “The Worst Is Yet to Come.”

Just how far will Michael Eisner and Frank Wells go to make a buck? Eisner and Wells, it seems, are doing everything they can to destroy Disney’s dream. It is absolutely scandalous. They are in the business of making money. What ever happened to making people happy ? They missed their callings. They should have found jobs at a fair or a circus.

Drive into the parking lot of Disneyland one day (after paying a $2 fee), and you’re greeted by a colorful assortment of cars. These cars don’t belong to paying guests. No, one lucky guest will win one of these cars. Whoopee!

Why not start giving away free groceries? Lottery tickets? Money?

As if there isn’t enough commercialism and competitiveness in the outside world, instead of escaping from the “real” world for a few hours, as one used to be able to in this “magic” land of fantasy, one is kept smack dab in the middle of it all.

People no longer go to Disneyland to see Donald Duck or Pirates of the Caribbean. They go to win a Firebird, or stuffed animals. These guests are unhappy, not because they “won only a pin or an orange juice bar.” Disneyland is now nothing more than a glorified carnival.

Overall attendance was on a downhill trip from 1982 through 1984, and maybe I didn’t visit as often as I used to. But I liked Disneyland a lot more when it wasn’t a car lot and was still “The Happiest Place on Earth.” Walt Disney may be dead, but it doesn’t mean his dream must die, too.

K. BOURNE

Santa Ana