Disneyland's Grand Canyon Diorama Turns 55

The Disneyland Railroad Pass Through The Grand Canyon Diorama
A Disney Parks Blog Photo

Happy Easter everyone. As mentioned in Disney Parks Blog (link) today, March 31st, marks the 55th anniversary of the opening of the Grand Canyon Diorama display as part of the "grand circle tour" of the Disneyland Railroad. Fans of the railroad and diorama celebrate. Mrs. DisneylandTraveler does not. As I hear on each and every trip when we pass through the dioramas - "I hate this thing. It's so.....old". I can't say has a blame her too much. When we go to Disneyland (like we are 2 weeks from today), we take the train....a lot. It's not just a ride, it's much welcomed transportation for those of us not as young as we used to be. So Mrs. DLT has probably passed through the Grand Canyon Diorama and the adjacent Primeval World Diorama (which came a few years later) a hundred times or more over the course of her life. Yes, the diorama is old but it is part of Disneyland history and tradition and something Walt was quite proud of.

Disney Parks Blog also published a series of photos of Walt Disney at the opening of the Grand Canyon Diorama (link) in 1958. One is tacked on to the bottom of this post but I will include the rest with my Photos of Walt Disney section of this blog. Every time you see a photo of Walt in Disneyland, the man is absolutely brimming with pride. He should be. The man with Walt is Fred Gurley who has a train named after him that runs around Disneyland to this day. Fred was chairman of the Santa Fe Railroad and a friend of Walt's and a Disneyland sponsor.

Walt Disney With Fred Gurley

Marvel In Disneyland - It Was Never 'If' But 'When'

Marvel's Iron Man Display

So Disney Parks Blog has now put all the rumors and speculation to rest. In a post today (link), the land of Mickey, and Dumbo, and the Princesses, now gives way to Marvel's Iron Man. Beginning April 13, a display of Iron Man suits (versions I-VII) takes center stage inside Innoventions presented by Stark Industries. Also included is a virtual Iron Man suit where guests can simuate suiting up in the Iron Man get up. Trust me. The highly under utilized Innoventions will have lines out the wazoo to check this out.

 

Disneyland traditionalists have been dreading this day but it was always bound to happen. Disney invested over 4 billion dollars in purchasing Marvel and its an investment already paying huge dividends with last years "The Avengers". If they can get a few more people through the turnstiles by featuring Marvel displays (and an eventual Marvel E-Ticket attraction) they are going to run with it.

 

By contractual arrangement, a Marvel presence is not permitted in WDW (since Universal holds the Marvel character license for Islands of Adventure). Yep, a Marvel presence in a Disney Park in the U.S. is restricted to the west coast. Get ready Disneyland fans, there's an Iron Man in you midst. Everyone needs to just get along and share.

Hungry Bear's Fried Green Tomato Sandwich

Fried Green Tomato Sandwich
Hungry Bear Restaurant - Disneyland
A Disney Parks Blog Photo

Disney Parks Blog is a marketing vehicle used to promote (and sell) everything Disney under the sun. Funny that they have used their blog to promote something as simple as a sandwich in consecutive weeks. A couple of weeks ago, the blog featured a post of Disney chefs giving some of their favorite resort sandwiches (link). On Monday, Disney Parks Blog gave a rundown of some vegetarian dining options available around the parks (link). In both posts, Disneyland's Hungry Bear Restaurant found in Critter Country just down from Splash Mountain had their Fried Green Tomato Sandwich featured.

Now I have tried Hungry Bear's Fried Green Tomato sandwich. It's good but there is a qualifier - the proverbial - but..... The sandwich is pretty long on the mango-jicama slaw feature and a bit skimpy on the corn breaded fried green tomatoes. You mostly taste the slaw and the accompanying sauce. Besides not hardly tasting the tomatoes much you can barely taste the Havarti cheese which I frequently put on my sandwiches when I make one here at home (it's kind of like a swiss cheese - milder and creamier). But all that being said, it is a different option from regular park food, and it kind of works from a taste standpoint. Just wish there was more fried green tomato in Hungry Bear's Fried Green Tomato sandwich. Comes with sweet potato fries, also different.

Now when I head to Disneyland in a few weeks, getting the Fried Green Tomato Sandwich is going to be pretty far down my dining list. There are too many things on that list I'd rather try (or standards that I always go back to). But if the time and circumstances were just right, I could give another try at the Fried Green Tomato Sandwich. Maybe this time, I'll actually taste a fried green tomato.

PS - as for time and circumstance - if you go to the Hungry Bear Restaurant a little off peak dining hours, it is a very nice place to relax out on the dining patios (upper and lower) right next to the Rivers of America. It also features one of the Disneyland's largest and best restroom facilities. 

The Final Starbuck's Plan For Disneyland's Main St.

Interior of The Market House Coffee Shop
A Disney Parks Blog Photo

Well last week, Disney Parks Blog posted the final plan for Starbuck's rolling into Main St. USA (link). As expected, Starbuck's will set up shop inside the current Market House and also take the space of the neighboring Disneyana store which features collectible items and Disney artwork but in recent years has been taking in more of the cheap souvenir type stuff Disney likes to push (vinylmation). The good news is it looks like Market House gets to keep its name along with some of its fixtures and charm (the pot bellied stove, checkerboard, old time telephones, etc.) even with the expected busy Starbucks activity. The revamped facility will also offer assorted pastries and treats to go along with your favorite delicious Starbuck's beverage something the Market House came up short on with only a very small offering of pastry items.

The real news is Disneyana will now be rolled in with the Disney Gallery in the bank building next to the Opera House to create more retail space for some of the better Disney items and downsize some of the exhibit space which doesn't get a lot of visitors. There already was some overlap between Disneyana and the Disney Gallery because both featured the best selections of Disney artwork in the park. While I'm not a fan of replacing things of interest with the Gallery's exhibits and replacing them with retail items, hopefully the new store will be sophisticated enough to show some of the best of what Disney has to offer its fans the not the cheap stuff that is plentiful in many (many) other locations around the park. The new store will also carry the Disneyana name.

If things are done right, it could be a win-win situation for Disney with both places getting considerably more foot traffic (and business) than they currently do. If MiceChat's Dateline Disneyland has it's facts right, the last day of Market House as we currently know it will be April 14. The Starbuck's Market House opens sometime in the fall.

Looks Like The Disneyland Light Is On

Things can change in a week. Things can change in a day. Heck, things can change in a moment of time. Last week, thinking about the impending arrival of my father-in-law and his need for care, I wasn't sure about when my next trip to Disneyland might be. It has already been far too long since my last visit. I thought about maybe I could tag along with my sister and her husband when they go down in May but that would be leaving Mrs. DisneylandTraveler behind to attend to her father while I was enjoying myself in our favorite place. That didn't seem right, didn't seem fair (though she encouraged me to go).

I was still asleep yesterday morning about 6:30 a.m. when she hopped on the side of the bed and said "I have an idea." 

"Huh? What?" I replied as I groggily tried to come to my senses.

"What if we tried to go to Disneyland before my dad gets here?"

Being the kind of person I am I immediately began to try and think of the reasons why a trip on such short notice would not be a good idea when all of our focus has been on her father's arrival. We got the house to get ready. We need to prepare him a room. There's spring cleaning to do. It's not a real good time at work with others already having time off scheduled. I've already discussed dates in May with my sister. The reasons and excuses went on and on in my head.

So over the course of the morning we began to talk our way through the timing and logistical obstacles trying to pave way for a time when Mrs. DLT could go to our favorite place together. And now, I think we can do it - driving down on the 14th of April and returning on the 20th.

We've already booked our room at the Candy Cane Inn. We've discussed how we our going to finance this Disneyland adventure that gets increasingly more expensive. We've discussed what we are going to do with the dog. We've discussed the things that we need to concentrate on regarding preparation for her dad coming to live with us both before leaving for a week and when we return. I just need to get things cleared at work tomorrow which is no easy task and may require some amount of pleading and calling out favors.

But yes, as of today, it looks like the Disneyland light is On when last week I was wondering if it just might be permanently Off. Things change. 

Robert Redford Jumps On The Marvel Bandwaggon

Grizzled Hollywood veteran actor Tommy Lee Jones made a fine contribution to the great Marvel movie effort Captain America - The First Avenger. Now, according to TheWrap.com, another one time pretty boy but now grizzled Hollywood veteran, Robert Redford, is in serious negotiations to appear in Captain America's next installment The Winter Soldier. Redford's character is reported to be a senior member in S.H.I.E.L.D's leadership.

Now this does an old heart like mine good. Enjoyment of the Marvel Universe along with the characters and movies keep me looking at the young side of things. Having an actor like Robert Redford that I have admired for many years enter that world allows me to age gracefully. 

Redford starred in some of my favorite movies ever - Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Three Days of the Condor, and The Natural among them. Having him come on board for the next Captain America is most welcomed and eagerly anticipated - at least by me.

The Disneyland Time Factor

Yesterday, I was trudging down the hallway at work, coffee in hand, heading towards the cubicle I call home for about 10 or 11 hours a day (but only 4 days a week!) when I ran into a co-worker who stopped me and said she had just returned from a trip to Disneyland last week. This happens to me a lot. Everyone at work knows I'm a Disneyland kind of guy. They all give me reports on their trips. Sometimes they ask for advice (though I have never claimed to be an expert). Many are readers of this blog (Hi!). Anyway, Stephanie told me what a great time she had with her two kids and her parents (leaving her husband at home who I guess just isn't a Disneyland kind of guy).

It was her first trip to Cars Land so naturally told me how great it was and how amazing it was to see Radiator Springs in real life and that RS Racers was an amazing ride experience though the wait between getting a fast pass and actually getting on the ride was about a 2 hour investment of time - but well worth it. She is another who has said what is now a common practice - from now on, they are just going to use the single rider line now that they have done it as a family.

I asked her how long her trip was and from there it was a lament that I hear all too often from the occasional Disneyland visitors - "It just wasn't enough time". She said they were there for two days. She said on the first day she pretty much spent in Disneyland, pushing and driving her kids to get on as many rides as they possibly could while seeing the exhaustion in their eyes. She said the next day she pretty much did the same thing only over at DCA. And she told me that she could easily see why people like me usually spend 4, 5, or 6 days there, especially if you have younger kids. She said naps for everybody would have been a very nice thing but the brutal schedule of trying to cram as much as you can in two days just didn't allow it.

I didn't ask her but from the trip she was describing I could see her trip was mostly about getting her and her kids on as many rides as possible. That's the way kids are. That's the way I certainly was. "I wanna go on this!" "I wanna go on that!" and on and on until you just want to go to sleep in corner somewhere. But by cramming all the rides you can into a day or two, you really do miss out on so much else the Disneyland experience has to offer. I remember talking to someone else and every time I brought up something that was more of an attraction rather than a ride the response was "Didn't see it - didn't have time". Trust me, not everything has to move in order to provide first rate entertainment.

Here's the deal - if you don't take the time to see World of Color or Fantasmic, you are missing out on something special. If you don't time to actually see the fireworks from somewhere on Main Street where you can actually hear the soundtrack, then you are missing out. If you don't take the time to see the Enchanted Tiki Room, Mr. Lincoln, or a show by Billy Hill and the Hillbillies then you are missing out on some Disneyland treasures. If you don't take the time to see the 3D shows like It's Tough to Be A Bug and The Muppets (when Disney doesn't run them out of their own theater to promote something else) at least a once, then you are missing out on some fun. If you don't' stop in to see Innoventions or Captain EO, then you haven't missed anything (I had to throw that in). Aladdin, Turtle Talk with Crush, Disney Jr. Playhouse, entertainment for everyone. It's just not all about rides, or characters, or parades.

My final comment is this. I hear so many times that "I wish we had more time". "I wish we had another day or two". Take the time, do it. It will make it easier and more enjoyable for yourself and the good folks at Disney will love you for dropping the extra dollars in their pockets. You know - I've made several trips to Disneyland where when I got to end, I was good and ready to go home and couldn't get in the car or on a plane fast enough. I spent so much time there having fun that I pretty much "funned" myself out. It's a better feeling than thinking about everything you might have missed out on.

Aladdin's Carpet Soars Again

Easily (and I mean easily) the highlight of Disney California Adventure's stage spectacle Aladdin at the Hyperion Theater was the sequence that saw Aladdin and Jasmine fly through the air on a magic carpet ride while performing A Whole New World. Well that sequence has been grounded for about a year and half after a technical mishap had the carpet with its strapped-in performers dangling upside-down waiting for rescue. Since that time (Sept. 2011), the flying carpet has been removed from the show and the song performed from the stage rather than soaring from the rafters.

Without the flying carpet, many fans of the show, myself included, have said that well...maybe...it might be time for another show. After all, Aladdin is about 10 years old and is a bit long in the tooth (but still plays before packed crowds). Well, good news. The flying carpet / A Whole New World sequence has returned to performances as of last weekend. And now fans of the show who have seen it multiple times, can return to saying that Aladdin is clearly one of the best things Disney California Adventure has to offer.

Welcome back carpet....

A Personal Note From The Disneyland Traveler

My apologies to all the readers of this blog - my Disneyland Traveler output has been a bit sporadic during this month of March 2013. Truth be told, over the last week or so I have been trying to decide whether I want to continue writing this blog at all.

Writing about Disney is a joyful pastime for me. But sometimes true life intersects with a Disney world and the realities of life will always win out in the end. My father-in-law is recovering from major surgery in a nursing facility in Los Angeles. He's due to be released in about a month or so. He no longer will be able to return to his home in Torrance but instead must be attended to 24x7 by someone, anyone who is able to watch over him. He has the onset of dementia, most likely Alzheimer's Disease. After going over the options, Mrs DisneylandTraveler and myself have decided the best option for now is for him to come stay with us here in Northern California.

Needless to say, with someone needing so much attention and care, planned trips to Disneyland have fallen by the wayside. So I thought about "killing off" the Disneyland Traveler is how I put it to Mrs. DLT. She said don't. 

I thought about writing a different blog, maybe something about movies or sports or gardening, but I'm failing in generating any enthusiasm toward those topics. It's Disney that keeps my mind looking at the world through the eyes of a child. I don't know what will happen with the Disneyland Traveler as we take this unexpected twist. Mrs. DLT said I should sneak off for a day or two just to take new pictures of the place that has meant so much to us.

As for trips for the two of us, at least for the foreseeable future, those may have come to an end.

Disneyland's New Age Checking Policy

Let me see if I have this right. 

Beginning March 23, Disney's new policy regarding unaccompanied minors in all Disney parks is - kids under the age of 14 must be in a the presence of a parent or adult guardian. Kids who aren't can be asked by a cast member where their parents are. That's all well and good. I get it. 

At the ticket booth, any child over 10 years of age must pay the adult admission price. That's where the head scratching begins. 

Ralph and Paperman

I picked up a blu-ray copy of Disney's Wreck-It-Ralph at the local Wal-Mart a week or so ago. I wanted to see it in the theaters when it came out last November but never got around to it (often, the story of my life). Anyway, most everyone gave the movie high marks and enjoyed it. When I saw the 3D trailers last year, it looked like a fantastic idea for a movie where various characters from some classic vintage (and modern) video games come together for laughs, fun, and adventure. And certainly Wreck-It-Ralph is entertaining enough. The problem is the movie just quite didn't live up to some lofty expectations I had for it. 

The movie is fun, told a good story, but really didn't stick me with me in any memorable way. And while Disney Animation did a fine job with rendering the film in CGI, it doesn't quite equal Disney's own Pixar Animation Studios quality. You can see that Pixar, given their pedigree, puts a little more color and polish (and money) into their animated films.

Liked Ralph, didn't love it. Should have rented it.

Disney's short animated film Paperman, which brought Disney its first Academy Award for an animated short film in decades this year, is included with the Wreck-It-Ralph blu-ray package. Paperman is worth the price of a Ralph purchase even if it is only about 5 minutes long or so. Disney as a company started with Walt animating short cartoons. It is where the company began and Paperman would make someone like Walt Disney proud. Paperman isn't a kids cartoon like Mickey, or Donald, or Goofy. Paperman is adult elegance in animation, telling its simple love story through drawing rather than words. Add a terrific music score and it is easy to see why Paperman got its Oscar. Let's just hope Disney continues to fund these efforts in animation and recaptures some its glorious past.

Pirates of the Caribbean & The Blue Bayou: An Anniversary

Today is the anniversary of the opening of Pirates of the Caribbean and the Blue Bayou Restaurant in Disneyland's New Orleans Square. The official opening was March 18, 1967, about 4 months after the death of Walt Disney who worked tirelessly to bring this treasured attraction to life. Earlier today, the Disneyland Twitter feed posed the simple question "What's you favorite meal at the Blue Bayou?" More on that later.

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know that Pirates of the Caribbean is my favorite ride in the park. Heck, it's my favorite ride ever, anywhere. To this day I still remember my first ride as a young boy (and probably not too long after the ride opened), sitting next to my parents and my sister and taking that first scintillating plunge in the darkness, followed by another, then finally the rollicking world of mostly drunken pirates. Thrills.....Joy.....Pirates had it all and I was lucky enough to share it with my parents and my baby sister. Thank you Walt for a memory I will never, ever forget. I share this gratitude with many.

Fast forward to 2002. My parents by this time had long passed away. A group of family members decided to make a group trip to Disneyland. Going all out, we had four rooms booked at the recently opened Grand Californian. Leading the rag-tag brigade was my older sister. She was ten years older than I was a was so my memories of her when I was a child were fleeting. But she became the matriarch of the family after my mother's passing. This was my only trip to Disneyland with her. I still remember so much from that trip, so many memories to treasure. You see, my sister passed away in 2006 under sad and tragic circumstances. For those who take life for granted - don't - it's just that simple. 

Anyway, my sister wanted to take the gang to the Blue Bayou for a grand lunch. Grand it was because there must have been about 15 or 16 of us. A table that big could not get right by the water for the greatest view of the boats passing by but we got close enough. Lovely, memorable, enchanting, there are countless words that can be expressed about that joyful afternoon but it comes down to the love my sister had for her family. My favorite meal. I really don't know what I had that day but the crab cakes come to mind. On that day in the Blue Bayou, it was all about my wonderful sister and her love for her family and her families love for her. 

I miss her dearly and each and every trip to Disneyland I think about the memories we shared together even if they were a one time deal. You can think about your favorite meal at the Blue Bayou but the better thing to do is to think about the person or people you are sharing that table with in Disneyland's most intimate of settings. 

Disney Movie Releases for 2013

I seemed to have spent a lot of time writing in this blog about why I am not standing in line today to to see Disney's Oz The Great and Powerful. I have no interest in seeing it. When it comes to home video - maybe, and that's only a maybe. But there are Disney (or Disney owned) movies I am looking forward to seeing in 2013.

Must See Disney (or Pixar, or Marvel) Movies:

Iron Man 3 (May)

Monsters University (June)

Thor: The Dark World (November)

Saving Mr. Banks (December)

Disney Movies I Have Little or No Interest in Seeing:

Oz The Great and Powerful (March) - I'm just not an Oz fan

The Lone Ranger (July) - The trailers seem very unappealing 

Planes (August) - This was supposed to go direct to video but someone saw $$$

Undecided:

Frozen (November) - Once known as The Snow Queen

Hmmm.....Interesting...... Of the 4 movies I really want to see only 1 (Saving Mr. Banks) is made by Disney Studios; 2 are made by Disney owned Marvel Studios and 1 is from Pixar Animation Studios.

Of the the 4 movies I have no interest in seeing (or in the case of Frozen, I just don't know yet), all are made by Disney. Which kind of leads to the thought that the movies that are most highly anticipated (by me anyway) are mostly made by film studios Disney has purchases rather their own productions. That looks like  trend that needs to change.

The New Oz Movie? Disneyland's Fantasy Fair? Getting Excited?

Featured Stars of Oz: The Great and Powerful
A Disney Photo

We're just a couple of days away from Disney's first big budget release of 2013 - Oz: The Great and Powerful.

Rapunzel at Disneyland's Fantasy Faire
A Disney Parks Blog Photo

We're about 6 days away from the official public opening of Disneyland's elaborate new Princess Meet and Greet - Fantasy Faire Village. Annual Passholders will get their own first crack at taking a look at the place this weekend before the public. Disney Parks Blog (link) gave us a sneak peak at Rapunzel and Cinderella checking out their new homes this past week.

Cinderella inside her Fantasy Faire home
A Disney Parks Blog Photo

Oz? Fantasy Faire? Two big Disney events coming up within the next week. Am I getting excited? Eh.....sorry......no. Hope you have better luck generating some enthusiasm than I do. Please note that I freely admit the movie and the new Fantasy Faire area could be absolutely spectacular and huge hits. I'm usually wrong about 5 things before I ever roll out of bed in the morning.

Disneyland's Own Little "Animal Kingdom" - Disney Dose

In my latest post to the Disney Dose website, I take another look at animal life at Disneyland. Sorry, there no lions, or tigers, or zebras in Disneyland, not real ones anyway, but they do have their share of animal charmers who just give you more reasons to smile. Hope you enjoy the post and all the Disney information Dsney Dose shares.

Here is a direct link to the post -

Disneyland's Own Little Animal Kingdom - A Disney Dose Post

The Disneyland Annual Pass Conundrum - Price vs. Value

Where Dreams Come True - At a Steep Price

As I've mentioned before, Mrs. DisneylandTraveler and I have a Disneyland trip on the horizon, hopefully in the late April - early May time frame. We have been Disneyland annual passholders on and off for the last 10 years or so. Our system has worked something like this. For our next trip, we each would get park hoppers ranging from 3 to 5 days. Once we got down to Disneyland and began enjoying ourselves immensely, we'd start talking about our finances, schedules, and calendars as to how soon we could come back and maybe even how many times we could possibly come back in the next 12 months. If all looks good, we'd take our parkhopper tickets and convert them into annual passes and the sweet Disney freedom to just walk in and out of the park would be ours. The decision was an easy one a few years ago but that was when the Annual Passes were cheaper, much cheaper.

I think our first annual pass might have been somewhere around $239 each. We would always get our annual passes in the Deluxe category as the Saturday and holiday blackout dates were not big deal for us. Since we already had park hopper tickets we were converting to annual passes, the cost of the conversion usually amounted to the cost of a real nice dinner at the Blue Bayou or something. Skip the dinner, get the passes. It was a no-brainer. 

But that's all changed. That Deluxe Annual Pass that used to be in the mid-$200 range is now $469 (each!). A Premium Annual Pass runs $649. (Thank you Cars Land) You have to look long and hard at where the value line is located. We would have to absolutely make two extended multi-day stays during our pass period to justify the cost of the passes. Three trips would be better. 

Then there is the pressure factor. If we just stuck to multi-day park-hoppers, there is no pressure to get back to Disneyland. We'll get back when we are good and ready. With annual passes in hand, the pressure is already on to make the next trip whether you have the funds budgeted or not. 

But there is a huge advantage in having an annual pass, especially for Mrs. DLT and I living about 450 miles away. After 6 or 7 hours of driving, with annual passes in hand, we could go over to park for a few hours once we checked into our hotel. With park hoppers, you are always on the clock so to speak. You would never waste a park hopper admission day for a "few hours" of park time like you would with an annual pass. If you are Disney cheap like me, you would also have a tendency to never, ever, leave the park from the time it opened until the time they told you had to get out to maximize Disney day.

What to do....what to do? It really depends on if we can make those two extended trips in a 12 month period. I think we can, I hope we can. Disney used to make this decision pretty easy. Now? Not so much.

Captain EO's Limited Run Is Now 3 Years Old

Shortly after pop star Michael Jackson passed away in 2009, Disney executives began to debate among themselves whether to bring back Captain EO, the Michael Jackson 3D short film produced by George Lucas and directed by Francis Ford Coppola for exclusive showings in Disney Parks. Disneyland's Captain EO had closed in 1997 from Tomorrowland's Magic Eye Theater after about a 10 year run. By the time EO closed in 1997, it was dated and silly and few people bothered to fill up the large theater.

When the Disney executives settled the debate (the debate was basically Disney profiting from Jackson's tragic death at age 50) it was decided to bring back a Michael Jackson Captain EO "Tribute" for a limited engagement in 2010. That "limited engagement" is now 3 years old, a forgotten fact that was brought up by the Orange Counter Register this past week. The dollar signs won out once again. For the first month or two, people once again began flock Disneyland for the chance to see the self proclaimed "king of pop" dance and sing and try to act with the return of Captain EO. Oh yes, we can't forget about the whole new line of EO merchandise that was brought out to sell. But as anticipated as the return of Captain EO was at the time, one viewing of the film had even Michael Jackson fans (my sister for one) racing for the exit by the time the 17 minute film ended. In the end, in the second decade of the the 21st century, Captain EO is dated and silly and now plays to small crowds in the large theater.

Why doesn't Disney end the "limited run"? They have now gone on record to say there are no immediate plans to do so. It comes down to, "we got nothing else to put in there right now so Captain EO serves a purpose". A couple of thousand people a day wander in to see it even if they do leave the attraction shaking their heads. Eventually, Disney will replace the film with something else but when it comes to the priority list of things to do, it just isn't really high up there right now. Unfortunately. I've seen Captain EO twice since its return. I have no intention to see it again.