March 18th, 1967: The Pirates of the Caribbean attraction and The Blue Bayou Restaurant opened in New Orleans Square!





^^^picked this pic for Churro ;)



Good mornin'! This day in Disney history,

photo credit: CobbPR

"Psst! Avast there! It be too late to alter course, mateys...and there be plundering pirates lurking in every cove, waitin' to board. Sit closer together, and keep your ruddy hands inboard. That be the best way to repel boarders. And mark well me words, mateys...dead men tell no tales!"





The Pirates of the Caribbean attractions' debut kicked off with great excitement! A swashbuckling band of buccaneers armed with pistols and cannons, led by Wally Boag, took over the Sailing Ship Columbia before bursting through the new attractions' doors with a battering ram!

(pictured below, in my terrible quality collage I made years ago from screen shots of a YouTube video....sorry, best I could do.)









I found a couple of fantastic videos with Walt himself talking about the development of the attraction and opening day happenings. I will warn you though, if you are watching with small children, the original Mickey Mouse costume looks a bit scary compared to todays version. If you want to fast forward to opening day footage, it starts at 7.26.







Audio-Animatronics technology had already brought to life the birds and flowers of the Enchanted Tiki Room and the children of It’s a Small World , but only one adult human figure had been attempted up to that point—President Abraham Lincoln for Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln . Just three years later, Pirates of the Caribbean introduced the world to no fewer than 64 buccaneers, brides, and villagers—and 55 animals!



Before the art of audio-animatronics could be perfected, and with Disneys' vision being decades ahead of the technology available; several ideas for a pirate adventure were originally drawn up, including a walk-through “Rogues Gallery” wax museum. But later, Walt decided on the boat system just like the one used successfully in It’s a Small World (Thank goodness).



::lifts both arms in the air::

WEEEEEEEE!







Photo credit: CobbPR





Photo credit: ElSuperRarton





Photo credit: ElSuperRaton



The attraction itself is housed within two large show buildings totaling 112,826 feet and featuring 750,000 gallons of water that flow through a 1,838-foot canal.



Photo credit: CobbPR

POTC is the largest audio-animatronic project to date and the last attraction Walt Disney himself worked on extensively before his death.





All of the technology was first envisioned by Walt Disney, then created by his team of Imagineers. All the figures in the attraction are designed by Imagineer Marc Davis , Costumes were done by Alice Davis. Blaine Gibson did many of the sculptures and the lavishly detailed sets are by artist and color stylist Claude Coats





I was able to find some rare Imagineering pictures which were reproduced in a hard to find Pirates of Caribbean brochure released in the 70's. Readers were treated with the opportunity to see Marc Davis at work...

















WDI sculptor Blaine Gibson sculpting POTC figures, with the pirates heads:







Alice Davis is taking care of the "red head". Isn't she a pretty lass?











Leota Toombs finishing the make-up on one of the pirates head...









Disney Legends Claude Coats and Fred Joerger









How cute! :)

I heard that the Walt Disney Family museum features a story about the building of the attraction. Apparently, Walt wanted to show his wife Lillian what he had been working on; but the ride was not complete and as it was a construction site, dirt was prevalent. Walt laid down floorboards to allow his wife to walk through and not get her dress dirty. A dreamer, a genius, and a gentleman.How cute! :)

A few facts about Pirates ye landlubbers might not know...

(From the Disney parks webstie)

-The fire effects in the Burning Town scene were so realistic that prior to the attraction’s grand opening, the Anaheim Fire Chief asked that the effects automatically shut off in the event of a real fire.

-It cost $15 million to build New Orleans Square ($8 million of which was spent on Pirates of the Caribbean). This is equal to the amount the United States paid for the real New Orleans in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803! ::gasps::



-The facade of the attraction was partly inspired by the Cabildo building in Jackson Square in New Orleans, which served as the seat of the Spanish colonial government in 1799. It is also noted for being the site where the Louisiana Purchase was signed in 1803.



Happy 48th Birthday POTC!





What do YOU think of the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction? Was it money well spent? Do you have a favorite part?







photo credit: ElSuperRaton





Photo credit: ElSuperRaton



Many thanks to a few of my favorite MW Photographers, ElSuperRaton and CobbPR! Thanks for sharing your work! Hope you MWers didn't mind that I added current photos with the vintage.... POTC is my absolute favorite attaction! I tend to get a little photo silly when it comes to this post every year.











If you haven't eaten there, I would reccomend you doing so, at least once. There is something quite magical about dining INSIDE an attraction. Surrounded by twinkling fireflies, ancient cypress, colorful paper lanterns, the soothing sounds of the bayou's crickets and bullfrogs really is quite fun! I can't end this post without at least mentioning the Blue Bayou since it also opened today in 1967. :)If you haven't eaten there, I would reccomend you doing so, at least once. There is something quite magical about dining INSIDE an attraction. Surrounded by twinkling fireflies, ancient cypress, colorful paper lanterns, the soothing sounds of the bayou's crickets and bullfrogs really is quite fun!











Have YOU eaten at the Bayou? What did you think? What's your favorite thing on the menu? The food is pretty good too, but a bit on the pricey side. You really are paying for the atmosphere. Here is a link to the menu, Blue Bayou Disneyland



photo credit: ElSuperRatonPhoto credit: ElSuperRaton

Thanks so much for reading and watching! Hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday! Oh, and p.s. I'd LOVE to see some LIVE POTC pics today, PLEASE?! I SO wish I could be there to take a "birthday boat ride!" “Drink up, me hearties, yo ho!”





Websites referenced:

thisdayindisneyhistory.com

disneydreamer.com

youtube.com

mousewait.com

secretfunspot.blogspot.com

passport2dreams.blogspot.com

flickr.com

disneyandmore.blogspot.com

disneyparks.disney.go.com

d23.com

disneyexaminer.com

