38 Years of Disney's Main Street Electrical Parade

It was 38 years ago this month that Disneyland debuted the Disneyland Main Street Electrical Parade, the famous summertime classic featuring floats and performers covered in "thousands of sparkling lights." The parade is also known for its infectious song, which is nearly impossible to get out of your head after hearing it.


Disney's Electrical Parade. (04/17/2010)

Doing a little research, I discovered that the parade did not have a constant presence at the park. It disappeared after the 1974 season only to be brought back again in 1977. The parade also disappeared after the 1982 season, only to be brought back in 1985.


Alice in Wonderland in Disney's Electrical Parade. (04/17/2010)

In 1996 it was announced that after a 24-year run, the parade would leave Disneyland forever and move to the Florida park. Its last Disneyland season drew crowds like it never had before. Disneyland even extended the final season a month to meet the demand to see it. At the end of the run Disneyland sold all the individual light bulbs that were used on the floats. I still have one.


Big Ben in Disney's Electrical Parade. (04/17/2010)

The claim that the parade would leave Disneyland forever turned out to be almost true. To boost attendance at Disneyland's sister park, the fledgling Disney's California Adventure, Disney brought it back in 2001. Only this time, since it wasn't on Main Street in Disneyland, they renamed it Disney's Electrical Parade.


Pinocchio float in Disney's Electrical Parade. (04/17/2010)

But it didn't matter that the Disney corporation used a loophole in their 1996 claim that the parade was leaving the park forever. People were just glad to have it back. It kept going until just this year, when Disneyland announced it would leave Disney's California Adventure to make room for the epic World of Color show that started earlier this month.


Pete's Dragon in Disney's Electrical Parade. (04/17/2010)

I can't tell you the first time I saw the parade, but I can tell you the last. It was just over two months ago, and I was fortunate enough to be able to see it on its final weekend. Disneyland claims it won't return, but they've said that before, so you never know for sure.

40 Years of Disney Archivist Dave Smith

Last Friday, I read in the L.A. Times that Dave Smith, the legendary Disney archivist, announced his retirement. It was exactly 40 years and 1 day from the day he first started working for the company.


James and Disney lead archivist Dave Smith. (03/10/2010)

Smith began working for the company in 1970, just four years after Walt Disney passed away. His first assignment: Archiving the items in Walt's office, which had been off limits to anyone for four years.

This project led to a 40-year career archiving the storied history of the company. One of his most incredible finds was a small item found in the top drawer of the desk of Walt's brother. It was the very first ticket sold at Disneyland, which Roy Disney purchased for $1 in 1955. It was even marked with the number 001.

I was fortunate to have met Dave Smith recently at a D23 party. Our meeting wasn't a long one, and I'm sure it would not be very memorable to him. But it was memorable for me because I have an incredible amount of respect for this man, who I believe is doing God's work.

Best of luck to you in retirement Dave!

One Year Without Farrah

Just over a year ago we lost one of Hollywood's brightest stars, and an icon of my youth, the late great Farrah Fawcett. I always felt a little bad about the news coverage of Farrah's passing (or lack thereof) being that she died the same day as Michael Jackson, whose death clearly stole the headlines.


James with his childhood Farrah Fawcett poster. (06/25/2010)

But when I read it was the one-year anniversary of Farrah's passing, I thought I would pay my small tribute. I'm not going to try to summarize her life. Many others have done that better than I ever could. Mostly I just want to share some of my Farrah memories.


Close-up of my childhood Farrah Fawcett poster. (06/25/2010)

Like any boy who grew up in the 1970s, I was fascinated by Farrah. Charlie's Angels was a cultural phenomenon. My favorite t-shirt at the time had a picture of all three of the original angels. My mom often spoke of the time at some cub scout awards event, I went up on stage and proudly showed off my Charlie's Angels shirt to the audience.


Farrah's signature on the iconic poster. (06/25/2010)

And like every other boy of that period, I too had "The Poster," the iconic 1976 poster of Farrah. Believe it or not, 34 years later, I still have it. It was in the garage. So I dug it out on the anniversary to pay a small homage.


I visited Farrah at Westwood Memorial Park. (04/27/2010)

Recently I went to the Westwood Memorial Park, where Farrah was layed to rest. It was sad to see her name written on her headstone. But one thing that made me happy was thinking back to how bright her star shone back in the day. Rest in peace our dear Farrah.

Truman's New Hood: Huntington Dog Beach

It's funny. Tim has been in Southern California since the 1980s. I've been here since 1992. And despite our proximity to the ocean, I bet you can count on five fingers the number of times per year we go to the beach. But that's no longer the case now that we've discovered the Huntington Dog Beach.


James & Truman at Huntington Dog Beach. (04/03/2010)

I don't know why we don't go very often. Maybe it's the crowds, the traffic or the parking. It seems we only go to the beach when we have visitors from out of town. But now that we have Truman, we're always seeking dog-friendly places. And Huntington Dog Beach seemed a natural answer.


Truman's first day at Huntington Dog Beach. (03/27/2010)

Actually we've found that the parking at Huntington Dog Beach isn't too bad. The whole dog-friendly portion of the strip is metered for short-term, so if you don't find parking on your first pass, you'll surely find it on your second. And we've found that if you come from Golden West side, you avoid all the traffic surrounding the touristy part of Huntington Beach.


Shelley from Calgary, Tim & Sergio at Huntington Dog Beach. (05/22/2010)

And Truman simply loves it. He loves walking up and down the dog section. He goes around sniffing all the other dogs, playing with some, ignoring others. Of course we always keep a few treats in our pocket so he comes back when we call him.


Tim & Truman get splashed on Truman's first time at the dog beach. (03/27/2010)

But there is one thing Truman doesn't love: The water. He got splashed by a wave once, and that was it for him. Now he's always on the lookout for those waves. But there is one body of water he can't avoid: The bath we give him when we return home. Oh well Truman, you can't win 'em all!

Hearst Castle: Home Away From Home

One of the best things about camping in San Simeon is that the campsite is literally five minutes away from the iconic Hearst Castle. I know, we've been there probably a half dozen times before, and we even wrote a blog post about it in 2006. And yet, each time we're in the area, I can't resist taking another tour.


Tim in front of Hearst Castle. (06/06/2010)

There are five tours in all, each covering a different section. I'm pretty sure we've been on all of them by now. So this time we started over with Tour 1. Plus, our pal Sergio had never been there before, so it was a good excuse.


James inside one of the guest houses. (06/06/2010)

I think one of the main reasons I'm drawn to Hearst Castle was that it was so exclusive for so many years. In its heyday in the 1930s and 1940s, the only way to set foot on the grounds was to be invited by William Randolph Hearst himself. It's like getting invited to the 3rd floor of the White House, or Camp David, or Neverland Ranch. The only difference is now anybody can go for $24.


Sergio in the Hearst Castle billiards room. (06/06/2010)

The other reason I'm drawn to Hearst Castle is — let's face it — I was meant to live that lifestyle. Champagne taste and beer bottle pockets. Story of my life. But until I can build my own mountain-top compound, I'll just have to keep paying a visit to my home away from home every few years.

Four Years Later, SoCal and NoCal Meet Again

I can't believe it's been nearly four years since our last big family camping trip. Looking back, our last big family camping trip was in the fall of 2006. That's about as much time as it takes to complete high school.


The NoCal / SoCal Camping Group. (06/07/2010)

Like our 2006 event, we selected coastal San Simeon as the middle ground, being approximately equidistant between us in Orange County, and my relatives from San Francisco. Plus it has the added benefit of being only five miles away from Hearst Castle, which I consider my home away from home.


James, Truman, Sergio and Tim with our new tent. (06/05/2010)

This year's group consisted of Tim and I, our pal Sergio, our pup Truman, my cousin Michele, her partner Lisa, their daughter Liele, my cousin Ralphie, his dog Dozer, our friends Lynne and Anna and their daughter Colby, and friends Bridgett and Bob, who brought along their kids Phoebe and Tristan.


Tim was like Dr. Doolittle for the ground squirrels. (06/06/2010)

We had the usual camping fun, with a few new twists, like the surprise trip to Target in Paso Robles to buy a new tent (apparently we didn't pack all the parts of our old one). I was also attacked by wildlife: A single bite from a ground squirrel. The little guy was trying to eat a nut from my fingers and got a little overzealous.


Who says Tim doesn't like kids? (06/06/2010)

I haven't started foaming at the mouth yet, so I think I'm okay. As always, we had a grand old time. Hopefully we won't wait another four years to do it again, a'ight?