Pirates and Haunted Mansion - Confirmed and rumored changes....

WARNING - SPOILERS - if you don't want to know about these changes, please don't read

OK, I know these aren't coasters, but we're all park fans and I know there are some Disney fans here. I've been visiting some Disney sites lately as I've been finalizing my honeymoon there later this year. Gives me something to do between classes (how scary is this...I'm all done with grad schools, etc, and now I'm teaching....call me Professor Peabody now, Dr. Peabody, whatever ;) )

Some interesting news - first the confirmed stuff. Disney has reported in press releases that they are going to be enhancing some classic rides. The first is already completed, thought not open yet from it's post Xmas rehab - DL's Haunted Mansion. The crystal ball with Madam Leota's head floats about the room, hovering, while the samed projection is used. I think that's pretty cool. The Disney freaks out there (which I probably am one, just not as extreme as many folks on the net) seem to welcome this enhancement. I think it will be cool.

Next, WDW's Pirates is on the books to soon (within a year or so) to go down for a 6-12 month rehab (much like Small World is now). A new final show scene will be added, the load unload changed, etc. But get this....and this part is not a rumor....they are going to add an animatronic Jack Sparrow in the final scene. It seems tons of visitors are complaing about the lack of him in the ride (even though the ride came out 30+ years before the movie) and they are going to add him. I think this is cool. Some folks are outraged, some thing it's cool. For details, check here: (as reported other places as well)

Now for the really crazy stuff - DL's Pirates. FOr a crazy, out there proposal from WDI's Imagineering, read this

So what do you guys think?

*** Edited 1/19/2005 8:28:08 PM UTC by Peabody***

I think it's a cool idea. I've only ever ridden Pirates once, I'm about as far from a Disney fan as you can get, but I think the concept of any ride that's (literally, not just in enthusiasts' opinions) completely different between night and day is a great one! I think other parks could significantly benefit from this. It's low cost, compared to an entirely new ride, yet it would give older rides that are still mildly popular, but not "star attractions" a generous boost of attendance and something to advertise.

I'm not sure if there are many parks out there besides Disney that this would work though. There's certainly nothing at say a Cedar Point or a Great Adventure, but maybe at some of the smaller parks that still have dark rides, are you listening Kennywood? Gold Rusher? Hmm? Hmm?

Simply adding Jack Sparrow in the ride would be lame...they should put him in the queue, introducing people to the ride, like he's telling them an old pirate story (which would be the ride then).

The Disneyland idea sounds very good, a cursed version after 7pm. Only dark scenes, much scarier music, only skeletons, etc.

I'm all for it!

I LOVE the idea of a new flume for night. That would be great. I really like the idea of veering off to the left after the bombardment. Very cool. I hope they do it!

As for other parks? How about running trains backwards at night? ;)

I hope they would do the change @ Disneyland, just not before I get to ride in March;).

As for Jack Sparrow in WDW's version, either way dosen't matter to me, I just hope it isn't down for re-hab when I go next year. I'd like to ride both before and after.

I'd love to see the changes at WDW, but not so much at DLR. The Disneyland version is longer while the WDW version got hacked shorter I believe due to budget restraints.

Having some more substance to the much-inferrior WDW version would be great... but I think the Disneyland version is perfection.

While I only rode the (identical minus the restaraunt) DL and TokyoDL versions, I agree...they are MUCH better than the cut up version Florida got, with it's less cohesive story, etc.

I just learned that Pirates was never supposed to be in Florida. The "Greatest Disney ride never built" was slated in it's place "The Western River Expedition" A much larger, more advanced, and more expensive dark ride

For anyone who likes Dark Rides, Disney, etc. I HIGHLY reccomend you read this multi part article on the Western River ride

Here's another article, with some more artwork

It sounds like they're going to use the "transfer" that runs behind the city scenes to do this. Very cool idea!

While I hope they make the ride more intense and surprising, this is Disney. They will probably make a bunch of changes to the queue to make it brighter and less likely to frighten small kids. (I've seen too many Disney guides that warn parents that the queue area frightens more kids than the ride itself.)

Interesting stuff.

They should also do more of a Geoffery Rush (sp?) look on the Barbossa that's on the ship, attacking the village then if they do add Jack Sparrow. ;)

I'm always in favor of making things better and new upgrades. It will be interesting to see if there is complete support of the changes to these "classic/vintage" rides among Disney buffs. In comparison, there was a universal outcry when Kennywood remodeled a vintage ride (i.e. the Old Mill). I think I was one of the few people that appreciated the changes KW made with Garfield's Nightmare.

Thanks Peabody! What a great story. I love this kind of background stuff. But DANG! WRE might go nice in DCA perhaps as Old California River Expedition. Might go real nice where the adventure trail is across from Grizzly Peak. :)

Isn't that a good article? SOunds like an AMAZING idea. I really enjored reading about that and glad you did too.

And YES....that would go well in DCA. Word is they are looking for a big E-ticket due to Tower not doing what they hoped. Latest rumor points towards more Pixar themed rides...in this case an Incredibles E Ticket (not to mention the greenlighted Monster's Inc makeover of the Limo ride and the "semi-greenlighted not out of comitte yet" Nemo rehab of the old subs.)

Just out of curiosity in anyones opinion who have either been to DW or DL or even both. Who has the better Haunted Mansion ?

Now I've been to DL back when I was 6 I really don't remember to much but, however I remember the overwhelming presence of the Mansion from the outside it is the one ride i remember most. Luckly my parents were able to drag me on as I tryed numerous times to escape them while waiting in the que. Actually one try I got far enough to were my dad actually had to chase me down ;). Anyways i really don't remember to much of the ride on the inside.

More recently a few years back my family made avacation to WDW. And I remember their Haunted Mansion pretty well from the start to finish. Most obvious is that the 2 attractions are widley different from the outside point of view. But in your opinion is one better from the other?. I wish i could truly give a upright answer but I really can't, seeing how is i don't remember much of the ride experience at DL.

Funny thing truth be told is i never did like the haunted attractions while I was younger but now I find myself a 6 year veteran working at local haunted house's here in the buffalo NY area, in Sept & October. So I would like to think that those traumatizing experience of getting forced on to haunted rides turned me into the halloween fanatic that I am today :p, not dissing my liking for coasters though.

Peabody, I think that it would be an pretty easy to modify the theme and base it on the Woody's Roundup characters if DCA wants another Pixar attraction.

In the scene where the lightning starts a fire, they can have Stinky Pete running around doing his "My biscuits are burnin'" routine.

POssibly, but if you read the story of the Western River Expedition it's pretty involved and different than any Woody story.

Sadly the WRE had about 3 or 4 chances at life and it never happened. It's also a shame about the public and private bad blood between the late Marc Davis and Tony Baxter.

SFDLDAN: I've been on the WDW, DL and TDL Mansions, and outside appearance aside, they are almost the exact same. The ride is 98% the same with the differences being VERY minor. No important scenes, animatronics, part, etc are different. When they fabricated everything for the DL version they made 2 of everything because WDW was already under construction, just opening 2 or 3 years later.

The difference in the DL version is that the stretching room is actually an elevator taking you down, and then you have to walk under the train tracks to the show building. So the portion between the stretchign room and the ride load is longer, there are "changing portraits", etc.

WDW has the library, and DL doesn't, but it is a very short portion of the total attraction.

DLP's Phantom Manor, however, is *very* different, and *very* cool. It's my favorite of the three (DL, WDW, DLP) that I've seen.

For Father's Day last year I got a copy of the Haunted Mansion CD. Very cool for any Mansion (and Manor) fans on your list.

"...(not to mention the greenlighted Monster's Inc makeover of the Limo ride..."

Don't get too excited about the Monsters Inc ride. From all the articles I've read its going to be done on-the-cheap, much like DL's version of Pooh. We're talking lifeless characters and flat sets.