Skyfest in Anaheim

Skyfest: One Million Balloons Rise To The Occasion

The Anaheim sky came alive with a flurry of rainbows on Thursday afternoon, December 5, when one million balloons were released on Katella Avenue adjacent to Disneyland. The event was “Skyfest,” the city of Anaheim’s celebration honoring the 84th anniversary of Walt Disney’s birth and commemorating Disneyland’s 30th year. The balloon release also placed Anaheim in the Guinness Book of World Records for the largest such event in the world.

To achieve that record, more than 3,000 volunteers filled the million balloons with 550,000 cubic feet of helium. At the same time that the city of Anaheim’s balloons were filling the sky, Disneyland released 90,000 balloons from the Park. Schools and fire stations in the area participated by releasing lesser numbers of balloons.

Collectors and souvenir hunters were not forgotten by the city of Anaheim. The “Skyfest” logo, which features a group of muItì­colored balloons and Mickey Mouse riding in a hot air balloon, has been reproduced on T­shirts, visors, pin-back buttons and flashlights. A special commemorative lithograph has also been produced for the event from an original painting by Disney artist Charles Boyer. Disneyana Collector, Winter 1985-86

Somehow, I don’t think that Disney’s Environmentality Program would approve of Skyfest today…

Did you get to be part of Skyfest?