Huck's opinion of DLP is less than glowing - it is poorly maintained, with peeling paint, lights missing, and could use a good scrubbing - but he must have been somewhat charmed by the French version of Storybook Land, or "Le Pays des Contes de Fėes" ("The Land of Fairy Tales") and "Le Petit Train du Cirque" (you guys can figure that one out!).
This sign appears to be massive, or else it's just a trick of perspective. It has a circusy look to it, and a version of "purple and pink", my least favorite color combination. Nice gold leaf though!
I'm so unfamiliar with DLP that I don't have a lot to add to the photos - I'm as much of an interested spectator as you are! I assume that's a CM in the red shirt, somewhat evocative of Timothy Mouse's circus uniform. Notice the teargas canister on his hip! ;-)
If there's one thing I know about the French, it's that they like big books. BIG, I tells ya! While I like the giant props, it seems strange; as if WE have been shrunk to the size of mice. And yet, all of the tableaus seen along the way are miniatures. Mice miniatures! Brain... melting... need... candy...
This is a pretty scene, I like the canal boats and the green water, and the bridges and grass and lamps. But I don't like the wrought iron! Just kidding, I like it just fine. As you can see, the canal boats in France do not require a living, breathing host or hostess to narrate your journey through the various fairy tale scenes, which is kind of a bummer.
There's that big book again!
Since I am a dork, I recognized the scene on the right-hand page as being from the "Happy Valley" sequence (also known as "Mickey and the Beanstalk") from the 1947 package film, "Fun and Fancy Free".
The miniature buildings, tiny plants, and convincing rock work all show a nice attention to detail. I question the necessity of the little storybook sign "Blanche Neige et les Sept Nains"; can't folks figure out that this is a scene from "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"? Unlike the Anaheim version of this ride, guests will see characters in some scenes. If you look closely, you can see a tiny Dopey at the entrance to the mine (above the book).
One interesting aspect of the French version of Storybook Land is that they included different scenes such as Rapunzel from "Tangled" (see her long golden tresses hanging from the tower in the upper left), and Hansel and Gretel - they appeared in the 1932 Silly Symphony, "Babes In The Woods".
And lastly for today, here's a very nice scene from "La Petit Sirene". I love the miniature sailing ship. Was Prince Eric's kingdom ever named in "The Little Mermaid"? Maybe it was Freedonia.
There's LOTS more photos from DLP to come! Many thanks to Huck Caton for his generosity!
Major-
ReplyDeleteI've never visited DLP, but I had heard when it opened, this park had great attention to detail bestowed throughout the property. How discouraging to hear it has fallen on 'hard times'.
Thanks to Huck for sharing these images.
I did enjoy the French version of this attraction, when I visited DLP. I was there before "Tangled" was released, so obviously, Disney has been adding to the attraction, just as they have done here in the U.S. I believe DLP has more room to add, so hopefully other scenes haven't had to be sacrificed, like they did here for such things as the addition of "Arendelle."
ReplyDeleteI wonder if DLP goes back and forth through stages of "disrepair" and "repair"? Before my visit, I had seen all the pics online, of peeling paint and rotting wood in the park, so I was expecting the worse, but everything was nice and shiny and freshly painted when I visited. However, I have since heard that things have fallen into disrepair again. Sad!
Thanks Huck and Major! Looking forward to more DLP pics!
I forgot to mention that Eric can be seen on the lower balcony of the castle, just next to the wooden boat dock. He is supposed to be looking out at that spot in the lagoon, where the water is bubbling. Could it be Ariel? Nah, probably not.
ReplyDeleteNice pics today, thanks Major and Huck! Every time I've been to DLP it's been very well-maintained but it's been about six years since my last visit so I guess they've let it go a bit. Unlike the US parks, DLP is subject to proper winter weather (it snowed during my last visit) so I can imagine that that takes a real toll on the park. Annoyingly DLP's Story Book Land has never been opened on any of my visits (I tend to go in the off months when the park is less crowded) so these photos are very welcome indeed. Good catch on the Happy Valley reference, Major!
ReplyDeleteThe canal boats don't require a living, breathing host or hostess to narrate your journey - pretty shrewd HR decision on DLP's part since EU labor laws don't require the undead to be paid on the same scale. Granted, a few guests get eaten now and again, but that just adds to the labor pool.
ReplyDeleteDisappointed that we didn't get to ride this on our one DLP visit in '97. We missed quite a few things we wanted to see because we were stuck for more than three hours eating dinner at the restaurant inside Pirates of the Caribbean.
Since we were in a theme park, which we assumed would respect the guests' desire to maximize their time experiencing the attractions, we did not anticipate a traditional French restaurant meal, which typically runs three to four hours. It took us more than 45 minutes to get the check, and the waiter was visibly offended that we asked for it. Lesson learned about cultural differences and assumptions.
I think the storybook signs for each tableau were added due to the lack of a human boat guide as well as a lack of a common language amongst the guests.
Speaking of a lack of common language...generally speaking, attraction signage is based on the culture the attraction comes from. In Frontierland and Main Street, U.S.A., the signs on the buildings are in in English as was the original soundtrack for the Phantom Manor (voiced by Vincent Price, no less). In Fantasyland, Peter Pan's and Alice's Labyrinth are signed in English, while Sleeping Beauty's Castle is signed in French. In Tomorrowland, the Jules Verne attractions were signed in French.
We spoke to an English cast member at Town Hall who further explained to us that the French required all announcements to be first in French, and then in English. He also mischievously noted that on Star Tours, WDI had played a fast one on the French by making the first language for all announcements Bocce.
Yes, Chuck, the dining at DLP always presents a dilemma. A nice, leisurely three-course meal with plenty of wine is not neccessarily conducive to maximizing your time in the park! Once, staying at a DLP hotel, my sister and I got the reasonably-priced meal plan which meant we could have one meal per day at one of the nicer restaurants in the parks. By the second of these meals we were already skipping desert and asking for the bill as soon as our mains arrived! At least the food was all very good unlike, surprisingly, at Hong Kong Disneyland, but that's another story...
ReplyDeleteAh, Tony Baxter's magnum opus! The park that no one wanted! The park that akmost sank the rest! Eisner's folly!
ReplyDeleteDon't get me wrong, Tony had some good ideas here, but there was SO MUCH against it succeeding. I have mixed feelings about if I want to visit. It seems nice enough, but there isn't much "magic" there for me, I'm afraid.
I know that this might be obvious, but the Canal Boats use an Omnimover system with a revolving load platform.
ReplyDeleteThat's interesting how DLP seems to go through "phases" of being well/poorly maintained. From what I've seen, they do seem to be trying to fix things up a bit. For example, I think that there have been recent refurbishments in Frontierland, especially on the Rivers of the Far West (although their Mark Twain is still in shambles - sad pictures).
Thanks, Huck, for sharing these pictures - some of the most recent on GDB!
The first real proposals for Disneyland Paris /Euro Disneyland was a study from 1978 called DISNEY WORLD IN EUROPE. The results of the study was that Europe could NOT support a resort like Disney complex but potentially could support a Disneyland type park. Of course this is why Euro Disneyland suffered such a giant financial blow: EISNER Insisted on building too many resort hotels - giant monstrosity sized hotels. No Europeans go to that part of Europe for vacation for the 1-2 week periods Eisner assumed people would stay for.
ReplyDeleteWhile the press focused on the overall resort failure, the press ignored the fact that the Disneyland Park was crowded - very crowded . WDI had to push a 10 year expansion program down to 5 .... to create more guest capacity as soon as possible. And basically that was it for the Euro Disneyland park ..... nothing substantial was ever added ( excluding the Disney Studios) the area that was set aside for a Jungle Cruise / Jungle Jeep attraction addition was left graded but unused - the studies for a Splash Mountain and later a Grizzly Rapids for Frontierland were cancelled. A Alien Encounter was also part of a addition for Discoveryland was also scrapped. There was also a mine shaft drop Ride ( nothing like the Disneyland Ca proposal) planned for Frontierland. In fact over time attractions have been removed like the River Rouge Keel Boats and the Old Mill Ride.
Because of the long winters and dreary fall weather WDI tends to shy away from out door water based attractions - that’s mainly why splash and grizzly rapids and the mine shaft geyser drops were never added. WDI planed a Jungle Cruise but wanted to wait - a revised version used jeeps removing the water problem ( that’s why the Indiana Jones was a excavation cart rather than a Indiana Jones Adventure attraction. The Jeep vehicle was gonna be used for a Jungle Cruise variation.
Ironically the studies for the best European location for a Disney park based on travel and spending patterns were Germany and England. The locations for the best weather were in countries with unstable governments and big labor problems and tended to be mostly poor : like Spain and Italy. Getting enough property for a Disney park in the south of France wasn’t feasible. And to impress their wives ( so they could shop in Paris on business trips) Eisner and his evil band of executives chose FRANCE - the European nation that was least receptive to any of the American aspects that makes a Disneyland type park Successful.
Many thanks to Huck for sharing these photos! It's interesting to read everyone's take on the state of DLP, (I remember when it was called Euro Disneyland). I've read over and over that it's a beautifully designed park, yet has had some maintenance issues. I was under the impression it was all being fixed-up again.
ReplyDeleteThe detailing looks to be very nicely done. I do like the giant book. It reminds me of the several Storybook garden type attractions scattered about the US. Hmm... there are some blocks with initials below it. MT?
Getting back to the park opening. I remember what a big deal it was since it was anticipated to be a huge culture shock. And yes, Mike, those resort hotels were HUGE, designed by various "Starchitects" of the time, including Frank Ghery taking on a very cutting edge approach to the Downtown Disney area.
Lovely photos. About as close as I'm going to get to DLP. The miniatures are really quite nice. Very colorful all around.
ReplyDeleteI spent a month in Udine, Italy visiting my cousin about 10 years ago. It took me a good week to get used to the completely different dining arrangement. No more eating a quick dinner and running off. There was a cafeteria called Becks that was nice because you could eat at your own pace and leave whenever. The best thing was the food itself.
Thanks Major, and Huck for sharing.
Thank you, Huck!
ReplyDeleteI don't plan on visiting DLP, so this is as close as I will get.
It's good to see that the canal boats have an alter ego. I'm not sure about the addition of the little figures. One of the charms, for me at least, of the original version is that the scenes are empty, allowing us spectators to imagine the occupants for ourselves. Having a little statuette in view just brings home the fact that it is all fake. I guess I'm just grumpy. The big books are a nice innovation though.
Thanks everyone for the backstory commentary. All I know of this era was from the program on Disney Plus, which was not very in-depth, although it was somewhat critical of the management of the time, which I did not expect.
Thanks Major, for hosting.
JG
As always, I learn as much from the comments as from the (spectacular) photos and commentary.
ReplyDeleteOf course, my twinspotting eyes were immediately drawn to the two young ladies in Picture #2 with the matching chapeaux aux oreilles de souris, similar hair color and style, and bright sneakers. Sisters or just friends with similar taste? The world will never know.
I kind of get the psychology of the giant props at the entrance to the miniature scenes. Once they’ve shrunk you down in your own mind, the small scenes look like something you could go into.
Looking at pictures of the non-US parks, the thing I am always struck by is the lack of children climbing on the fences.
I remember reading that they chose the name “Phantom Manor” because “phantom” and “manor” are cognates in more languages than “haunted” and “mansion,” so the name would be clearer to more international guests. I’m the biggest Vincent Price fan I know, and while I treasure the recordings of his narration, the first thing I thought when I heard it was, why, oh why couldn’t this have come along just a few years earlier, before the emphysema affected his voice?
Nanook, yes, for years I heard, “It’s smaller than other parks, but it’s probably the most beautiful of them all”. Such a bummer that the public has never really embraced DLP.
ReplyDeleteTokyoMagic!, I’m sure you’ve mentioned it before, but I had forgotten that you’d been to the French park. I’m surprised that you say that “DLP has more room to add”, I guess I was under the impression that they did NOT have a lot of room, since the original park is relatively small. Why don’t they add a Medfield College scene? I don’t follow the ups and downs of DLP to be honest, it’s so far away. I’m interested in it to a degree, but don’t know if I’ll ever go.
TokyoMagic!, oh, good eye, I didn’t see Prince Eric there!
Pegleg Pete, “Every time I’ve been to DLP…”, well la-di-da! ;-) My general impression is that DLP is always struggling for money and attendance. Does it ever get crowded, like during the summer months? France has a lot of amusement parks, so there is plenty of competition. I’ve seen photos of the park under a blanket of snow, which is so strange and cool, but it does make me wonder if choosing France was such a bright idea.
Chuck, luckily Europe is full of the undead, who tend to migrate from the mountains from the east. They prefer to work evenings. Oh my gosh, I am absolutely stunned by your story of your three hour meal!! If the park was open for 10 hours (say, 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM), that is a big chunk of your day! I understand that a leisurely meal is a cultural thing in France, but I would have been tearing my hair out as the minutes and hours ticked by! It’s good to know that even at DLP the waiters are snooty, ha ha. And of course, using signs due to the lack of human hosts makes sense. I wasn’t sure if they played any sort of pre-recorded spiel, but even if they did, many folks might not understand it. Interesting fact about how they use different languages depending on the area, kind of surprising to me actually. The French are so defensive of their language and culture (I’m sure you’ve heard the “cultural Chernobyl” remark by some fun person). Is Bocce the language for the “Kuchana kuchana…” announcement?
Pegleg Pete, as I said to Chuck, I would have been losing my mind. Even at the Anaheim park I rarely stopped for a long sit-down meal. It would be “grab a burger, fries, and a drink, and then get going again”. I suppose that makes me some sort of barbarian to French sensibilities! Wow, you’ve been to Hong Kong too?
stu29573, it really does seem like nobody wanted DLP. It’s a shame, of course I’d love it if it turned out to be a big hit, and they had the money to maintain the park and keep it beautiful, and keep all the rides and effects running. My friend Mr. X has been to DLP, and when I expressed an interest in going, he said, “Don’t bother!”.
ReplyDeleteAndrew, is it really considered to be an Omnimover system? The Peoplemover used a revolving platform too. Oh my gosh, those photos of the Mark Twain are incredible. HOW?? By the way, RIP Alain Littaye. Also, what’s with the “Times Roman Bold” font on the prow of the Mark Twain? It looks so out of place.
Mike Cozart, thank you for all of the great information (as always!). The whole project seems so ill-advised and poorly researched. How could they sink that much money and work into a place and somehow not realize that the very people who were supposed to support the park were either not interested, or would leave the area during what would have been “peak” times? I’m sure the thinking was that France was kind of in the middle of Europe, and that the people from Spain, Germany, Italy, Austria, and so on, would all flock to the new park. I’m surprised that they built the Disney Studio park in France, when the first park was such a dud. I didn’t know that they didn’t have a Splash Mountain. I don’t think a Jungle ride with jeeps sounds nearly as nice as a “Jungle Cruise”, but they probably wanted to use a version of the Indiana Jones ride system. Or not! I was wondering why they didn’t choose warmer Spain or Italy, but did not consider the instability, relative poor economies, and labor issues. The whole thing was such a mess!
Omnispace, I bought a map of “Euro Disneyland” (drawn by Sam McKim himself, I believe) at a Disneyana show when the park first opened, I think it’s still in its plastic wrap. Every few years I would read about how some Sheik would bail out DLP, but I believe he has been repaid and that Disney is no longer beholden to him. Still, it would be nice if they would make the place nice. It’s one of those “Catch-22” situations; people aren’t swarming to the park, so they let it get rundown, and then even fewer people go to the park. I’m guessing that the “MT” on the blocks doesn’t mean anything, but then again, those Disney Imagineers like to have their little jokes. I’ve seen photos of the main Disneyland Hotel in France, and think it is very ugly, but that’s just me.
DrGoat, yeah, I doubt I will ever see DLP in person. I’d be more interested in going to the parks in Japan if I was going to any of the non-U.S. parks! A month in Italy, you lucky duck. I once spent six weeks in France (during my student days), and it really was a culture shock. We took a side trip to Spain, and discovered that folks didn’t eat dinner until at least 10:00 at night. Because I was poor, I couldn’t afford to eat at nice French establishments, so we only had good meals at Chinese restaurants, Italian restaurants, and crepe places.
ReplyDeleteJG, I agree, I’m pretty cool on the addition of the little figures. I’m sure there was much debate at Imagineering, but the presence of Dopey, or Prince Eric, or Peter and the Wolf makes such a difference. As you said, it is more fun to use one’s imagination. Sort of like the old Swiss Family Treehouse, where you could tell yourself that the family had just stepped out (maybe to harvest some bountiful crops) for an hour or two. I still need to watch more of the Imagineering show on Disney Plus, I’m curious to see the spin they put on that beautiful park that is such a disappointment. My friend Mr. X says they should just shut it down!
Melissa, boy, you really do have an eye for twins! Or “near twins” anyway. I guess my brain isn’t as elastic as yours, I still have an issue with the giant props at the beginning of the ride. I never thought about why they changed the name of their Haunted Mansion to “Phantom Manor”, but it makes total sense. I love Vincent Price too - got to see him at the L.A. County Museum when “The Great Mouse Detective” came out and they did a presentation with the animators, director, and Vincent himself. As a “horror kid” I was thrilled! I’ll have go go back and listen to the tracks of Vincent’s narration, I don’t recall noticing his emphysema being an issue, but I probably just wasn’t paying attention.
Thank you, Huck, Major and everyone - fun pictures and interesting info, today!
ReplyDeleteMike, DLP sure ended-up missing out on some great attractions!
I've never been to DLP, but worked with a gal from Paris for about 1 year in 1993 (she was temporarily in America to learn to speak our language and also worked in our office for her "job training"). She was a lot of fun and I spent a lot of time with her - but 2 things stick out in my mind. First, she clearly expressed that French people HATE Americans because we keep trying to Americanize them (and she WAS referring to EuroDisney, at the time); and secondly, that all American women are FAT! She was also looking at me - and I was maybe 10 pounds overweight, at the time. Geeesh!
I'm in London, Major – so DLP is only an hour and a half away by train. It's a really beautiful park and it's pretty large but it doesn't quite have the magic of the US parks. Still, it's much preferable to Disenyland Hong Kong (I haven't made it to Shanghai or Tokyo yet). DLP has my preferred castle (with the Eyvind Earle stylings and the dragon in the dungeon beneath) and some attractions are great: Phantom Manor, Space Mountain and Big Thunder are all arguably better than their US equivalents. It's true that the park seems much more popular with British and German tourists but I have met French people who are as obsessive about their Disneyland as US fans are of the CA and FL parks.
ReplyDeleteMajor, that's the language. From the script for Star Wars (Andrew, you'll know this as A New Hope...and I'm sorry):
ReplyDeleteOWEN: What I really need is a droid that understands the binary language of moisture vaporators.
THREEPIO: Vaporators! Sir -- My first job was programming binary load lifters... very similar to your vaporators. You could say...
OWEN: Do you speak Bocce?
THREEPIO: Of course I can, sir. It's like a second language for me... I'm as fluent in Bocce...
OWEN: All right shut up! I'll take this one.
THREEPIO: Shutting up, sir.
And I just realized that I forgot to thank Huck! Thanks for both the photos and the awesome work you do making some of our favorite movies and TV shows sound so good.
"I'm fluent in over 3 million forms of communications..."
ReplyDeleteChuck, you and I are the same kind of weird, because I immediately knew that reference.
It makes me wonder what Threepio did in those intervening years to gain all that experience.
I'm off to program some binary load lifters, before my motivator goes bad.
JG
Lou and Sue, I’m still weirdly intrigued by DLP, even with its problems. And I’ve heard it’s a lot cheaper to go there compared to most Disney parks. If I ever happened to be in that part of the world, it sure would be fun to devote a day to experience it. Sounds like your French acquaintance was a real charmer. “Here’s why we hate you and everyone in your country!”. Gosh, thanks.
ReplyDeletePegleg Pete, well that would explain it! Gosh, for you a trip to DLP is about the equivalent of my drive time. I like the castle, though my heart will always love Disneyland’s - yes it’s small and humble compared to the others, but it was the first, and that was before they felt that the castle needed to be the most eye-popping centerpiece of a park. If you know what I mean. I almost feel like it serves a different function that other castles. I really do think the dragon in the dungeon is cool, whoever thought of that should get a gold star next to their name. Doesn’t Discovery Mountain have a loop? I kind of wished that Space Mountain would get one when the entire track was rebuilt, but I still love that ride.
Chuck, ha ha, funny how the change of titles (re: “A New Hope”) seem so lame. Kind of like how “Raiders of the Lost Ark” is now “Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark”. In case you didn’t know who the main character was in the obscure, little-seen movie. I assume “Bocce” is one of those instances where they used some African language, to the delight of the citizens who lived there?
JG, I’m no Star Wars ultra-fan, but even I would have gotten that reference!
(I also got the Bocce reference. But I’m just a scruffy-looking nerf herder.)
ReplyDeleteMelissa, That's a fascinating take on the psychology of the ride! Then Steve Martin pops into my mind and says "Wanna get small?"
ReplyDeleteMajor, One of my prized possessions as a kid was my Disneyland wall map - so much so that I eagerly annotated it with whatever crayon or pencil I had at the moment. If I could go pack in time and punish myself for that it would be doing both my sisters' chores for six months.
I was also just putting out a tease on the initials to see if anyone picked up on it. My guess is the T and the M are for Tom Morris.
Lou & Sue, having had the wonderful experience of hosting several French students back in the day, I discovered they actually LOVE American culture. They just don't want it in France, (well at least that's what they say). I also discovered we can't properly pronounce "squirrel" in each other's languages... "écureuil"?
Most of the Star Wars language displayed in Galaxy’s Edge is ABURESH - a more widely used language from the the Star Wars universe.
ReplyDeleteOmnispace, it sounds like you had fun with comparing the two languages - just as I did with my French friend. I helped her to learn English, and we had a LOT of laughs. We discovered that if words were mispronounced - on either side - you could say some awful, dirty or funny things. My friend and I cried when we had to part, after her time was up, so she must've enjoyed herself in the USA, after all. :)
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Paris, did you notice the famous 'Parisian' who is celebrating a BIG birthday today? Olivia de Havilland is 104! Happy Birthday, Olivia!
(Aurebesh is the writing system for Galactic Basic. But I’m just a karking moof-milker.)
ReplyDeleteDLP Looks like such a lovely park. It's evident that the designers wanted to go above and beyond what a standard Disney park can be. Too bad the park itself didn't go over well. It's by far the most beautiful.
ReplyDelete