Splash Mountain’s Secret Second Life: How Disney’s Most Famous Animatronics Are Powering the Future

Splash Mountain’s Secret Second Life: How Disney’s Most Famous Animatronics Are Powering the Future

The date was January 23, 2023, at Walt Disney World, and May 31, 2023, at Disneyland. For most, these were just standard days on the calendar. But for a specific, passionate subset of the Disney community, they were days of mourning. When the final logs splashed down into the briar patch, a thirty-four-year chapter of theme park history came to a close. Splash Mountain was gone, set to be reimagined into Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. Credit: Disney T…

Disney’s Hidden Tribute: How Splash Mountain’s Retired Cast Saved Pixar’s ‘Hoppers’ and Found a Secret Second Life

For the Disney faithful, January 23, 2023, and May 31, 2023, are dates that will live in Frontierland infamy. These were the days when the logs stopped splashing, the vultures stopped taunting, and the “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” finally faded into the Florida and California air. The closure of Splash Mountain to make way for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure was more than just a typical ride refurbishment; it was a cultural earthquake that left a massive segment…