1955: Opening day1 bqDHLoB\1
An aerial view of Disneyland in 1956. The entire route of the W+0VrH
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Disneyland Railroad is clearly visible as it encircles the SlZ>N$E
park.Disneyland Park was opened to the public on Monday, 【July 18, ~y(-j[
1955】. However, a special "International Press Preview" event was ^L1#
held on Sunday, July 17, 1955, which was only open to invited guests ;9hi2_luV
and the media. The Special Sunday events, including the dedication, -a[]#v9
were televised nationwide and anchored by three of Walt Disney's WwF4`kxT
friends from Hollywood: Art Linkletter, Bob Cummings, and Ronald ?][2J
Reagan. ABC broadcast the event live on its network; at the time, it 6*<=(SQI
was one of the largest and most complex live broadcasts ever.The event |[VtYV _{
did not go smoothly. The park was overcrowded as the by-invitation- .hxcx>%
only affair was plagued with counterfeit tickets. All major roads }bVWV0Aeim
nearby were empty. The temperature was an unusually high 101 °F (38 Z;{3RWV
°C), and a plumbers' strike left many of the park's 【drinking #D$vH
fountains dry】. Disney was given a choice of having working fountains })R8VJ&C/
or running toilets and he chose the latter. This, however, generated ec4jiE
negative publicity since Pepsi sponsored the park's opening; enraged lr[a~ca\
guests believed the inoperable fountains were a cynical way to sell #
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soda. The asphalt that had been poured just that morning was so soft PL#8~e;'
that ladies' high-heeled shoes sank in. Vendors ran out of food. A gas D %`64R
leak in Fantasyland caused Adventureland,Frontierland, and Fantasyland pH%cbBm
to close for the afternoon. Parents were throwing their children over oOhm`7iy
the shoulders of crowds to get them onto rides such as the King Arthur U3+{!}gn
Carrousel Hb3+$vJ^
The park got such bad press for the event day that Walt Disney invited 6ZBg/_m
members of the press back for a private "second day" to experience the U/2g N
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true Disneyland, after which Walt held a party in the Disneyland Hotel g<