Special Events and Gatherings
In 1999, Disneyland's Special Merchandise Events division hosted a special evening event in honor of the Haunted Mansion's 30th anniversary. Although an event held at Walt Disney World a few months prior had used the Haunted Mansion as a theme, the 30th anniversary event marked the date that the Haunted Mansion became worthy of a no-holds-barred offical fan event. (The park had hosted a small ceremony on the patio of the Mansion itself for the 1994 25th anniversary, but the Merchandise department hoped to up the ante for the 30th event.) Hoping to draw a crowd large enough to fill the "Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln" theater, Disneyland partnered with DoomBuggies.com for help marketing the event, allowing the first 200 guests to register via DoomBuggies to get a free special bonus lithograph at the event.
The fans' response was overwhelming, causing Disneyland to quickly rethink the event and move the main gathering from the relatively small theater to the huge amphitheater in Fantasyland. In the end, well over 1,000 fans attended the sold-out event - and ever since, Disney has been courting fans of the Haunted Mansion with various merchandise events, gatherings, and get-togethers. This page will present reports from some of these events.
To date, there have been many different public and semi-private Haunted Mansion events held between Disneyland and Walt Disney World, and DoomBuggies.com also held a private special event in honor of the Haunted Mansion movie. Click here for a list of many of the events hosted over the years.
Additionally, there have been various signings and art releases related to the Haunted Mansion through the years (such as the Marc Davis signing in Oct. 1997 pictured above), and both Disneyland and Walt Disney World have held private events and open houses that have involved either backstage tours or dining opportunities inside the Haunted Mansion attractions.
Haunted Mansion 25th Anniversary, 1994 (Disneyland)
On Tuesday, August 9, 1994, Disneyland celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Haunted Mansion with a small gathering outside the gates of the attraction. The Mansion had been spruced up a bit for the occasion, with fall leaves scattered on the ground, shrouds draped over the locked gates, and make-believe spider webs lending the place an eerie, unlived-in look. Large oval signs with a special 25th anniversary logo were placed around the Mansion grounds.
Popular Disneyland entertainers "The Make Believe Brass," a brass quintet that would often dress in Viking hats and offbeat costumes, played up the occasion by performing mournful dirges dressed in Haunted Mansion butler costumes. Special guests at the event were Imagineers that had actually worked on the attraction, including X Atencio, John Hench, Bill Justice, and Sam McKim, and Imagineers that were with WDI at the time of the event, including Russell Brower and Dave Mumford, and studio archivist Dave Smith.
The afternoon was hosted by a gentleman dressed as an undertaker, who led off the ceremony with some spooky words in honor of the Mansion. Assisted by two Haunted Mansion hostesses, Atencio was introduced, and he spoke about the years he spent at WED designing the Mansion. After his presentation, Mickey Mouse appeared in a tuxedo, and together with the undertaker, unlocked the gates and invited all present to take a special trip through the Mansion.
If you were at this event or have more information about it, please contact DoomBuggies.com.
Walt Disney Art Classics Celebration, 1999 (Walt Disney World)
On Friday - Sunday, March 19 - 21, 1999, Walt Disney Art Classics held their first official convention at Walt Disney World in Florida. Although the convention celebrated all aspects of Disney art and collectibles, the theme of the event was the Haunted Mansion.
On the first evening of the convention, guests were invited to a private welcome party hosted by "999 Happy Haunts" in the Magic Kingdom, which included a special evening of entertainment, trivia contests, and a special trip through the Haunted Mansion in which guests were greeted by Marc Davis and his wife, Alice. The evening culminated with a private showing of Spectromagic and the Fantasy in the Sky Fireworks show, and a midnight visit by the Headless Horseman.
The centerpiece event of the convention was "A Celebration of Hot & Cold Running Chills: 30 Years of the Haunted Mansion," the featured "Behind the Magic" seminar held on Saturday afternoon. The seminar consisted of an hour of shared memories about creating the Mansion with Disney Legend Marc Davis, which was hosted by Tim O'Day, who was the communications and synergy director for WDAC at the time. Davis shared some of his concept art from the creation of the attraction, and talked about working with Walt Disney.
The event logo was a stylized cartoon of the Haunted Mansion's three Hitchhiking Ghosts, and special merchandise released only at the show included a limited edition sericel with Mickey & Minnie riding a Doom Buggy pursued by the Hitchhiking Ghosts, a limited edition watch with a "13-hour" face designed to look like the grandfather clock in the Mansion, and a limited edition WDAC sculpture set of the three Hitchhikers. Also available were prints of the Walt Disney World Haunted Mansion attraction poster that could be signed by Marc Davis at designated signing times.
Souvenirs also included a logo button and a logo dangle pin, both of which have become widely sought-after Haunted Mansion collectibles in the years since the convention.
If you were at this event or have more information about it, please contact DoomBuggies.com.
Haunted Mansion 30th Anniversary, 1999 (Disneyland)
On June 26 & 27, 1999, Disneyland hosted a 30th Anniversary event titled "The Art of the Haunted Mansion," which sold well over 1,000 tickets, which was a larger crowd than the Special Merchandising Events planners had originally hoped for. A ticket to the event offered participants admission to Disneyland for the evening, entrance to a special beverage reception and panel discussion held in the Fantasyland Theater, the opportunity to purchase special limited-edition merchandise throughout the day, and admission to a special midnight ride through the Mansion which promised special enhancements to make the trip like no other.
The ticket also offered participants a "death certificate" (which doubled as an itinerary), and a limited-edition "Dead End" cloisonne pin. The first 200 registrants to purchase tickets with a code offered via DoomBuggies.com also received a limited-edition lithograph with their package. During the afternoon, participants were free to purchase limited-edition Haunted Mansion merchandise that was offered for sale in both the Main Street Disneyana Store and the New Orleans Square Disney Gallery, and many fans spent three to four hours in line to purchase items. One favorite item was a limited edition Haunted Mansion CD, with an insert autographed by both X Atencio and Buddy Baker. All 999 copies sold out within 2 hours. Other goods offered at the event included pins, t-shirts, lenticular ("changing") portraits, and artists' limited editions. On June 27, Imagineer Eric Robison and artist Terri Hardin released more limited edition pieces, and Robison even painted one of his works during the day in front of the Mansion (pictured below).
Throughout the day on June 26, Haunted Mansion fans spent time waiting in lines to purchase limited edition merchandise, then found other Haunted Mansion fans to whom they could show off their new treasures. The collectible with the highest profile in the event was a special collection of giclee images made from Marc Davis concept art, offered in a special wooden case that came with white gloves to handle the prints, offered in a limited edition of 10 for $2,500.
At 7:30 p.m., conventioneers started gathering in the Fantasyland Theater to share beverages and tell stories. The panel discussion began at 8:30, and featured a who's-who of Haunted Mansion personalities: Disney Legends Marc Davis, X Atencio, Buddy Baker, Sam McKim, and Rolly Crump. (Mansion conceptual artist Collin Campbell was also slated to attend, but had to send his regrets.) Introduced to a fog-shrouded stage by Disneyland Resort President Cynthia Harriss and an odd whole-bodied Madame Leota (who seemed to glide above the stage), each special guest was escorted onto the stage by a Haunted Mansion maid or butler and seated in a large, overstuffed chair to thunderous applause from the crowd.
Some unexpected guests interrupt the 30th Anniversary panel discussion.
Just as the discussion was about to get started, the event was "interrupted" by the Caretaker, out in search of his dog. Various characters from the Mansion made appearances to try to help, culminating in an appearance by the Hitchhiking Ghosts, who broke into a live version of Buddy Baker's "Grim Grinning Ghosts." Finally, panel moderator Tim O'Day came onstage to emcee the evening. "I am your host," he quipped, and without missing a beat, the crowd answered in unison, "Your Ghost Host!"
During the discussion, each participant shared memories and bits of trivia with the crowd. Marc Davis recalled being "depressed" at seeing the gravestones that were created to honored each contributor to the attraction, so he ordered his be removed from his office. "I worked on the graveyard... and was just delighted that I wasn't in it!" he continued. Sam McKim recalled creating a sketch of the dilapidated Mansion for Davis to present to Walt. "It was effective," McKim remembered Davis reporting, in the sense that it proved to Walt what he didn't want the Mansion to look like, since Walt then decided he wanted the place to be neat and clean... on the outside.
Next, X Atencio recalled that co-Imagineer Yale Gracey came up with the name "Doom Buggy" for the ride vehicles. Rolly Crump also shared recollections of working with Gracey, and spoke of the day that he was present when Gracey came up with the idea of a talking head inside of a crystal ball. Atencio spoke a bit more about the decision-making process that evolved when the Imagineers weren't sure whether to make the Mansion scary or silly. Finally, Buddy Baker spoke about the few months he spent creating the hundreds of audio tracks for the attraction, and the process of narrowing them down to the final mix used in the Mansion today.
After the panel discussion, guests were free to roam the park for a few hours - a special viewing area was set apart for registrants to watch Fantasmic, so that they wouldn't have to battle the usual summer Disneyland crowds - and finally around 10 p.m., the Mansion was closed early to prepare for a special midnight ride for the 30th Anniversary attendees. Upon opening at the stroke of 12, guests were treated to a trip through the Mansion with special twists. In the changing portrait gallery, guests were greeted by X Atencio, Buddy Baker, and Sam McKim, to whom they could offer thanks or say a few words. Once seated in the Doom Buggies, the Mansion came to life with various costumed humans enhancing the experience - including a knight, ghostly bridesmaids, phantoms, vampires, and a few other assorted ghoulies. For the lucky guests that made it through the line for the first hour of the Mansion rides, Marc and Alice Davis waved from the dining table in the grand ballroom (pictured, above left). The final guests didn't emerge from the Mansion until the wee hours of the morning - but the event offered a celebration of the Mansion that is, as of yet, unmatched.
To read an exclusive report about this event from DoomBuggies.com fan Mike Kallay, click here.
If you were at this event or have more information about it, please contact DoomBuggies.com.
Haunted Mansion Exclusive Dinner Event, 2000 (Disneyland)
On October 25, 2005, thirty uber-fans of the Haunted Mansion were treated to the meal of a lifetime: A midnight dinner inside of Disneyland's Haunted Mansion. For $2000 a head, these lucky guests were given Disney's famous white-glove treatment and an evening to remember. In addition to the Mansion meal, attendees were invited to a private lunch at Disneyland's Club 33 and were given tickets to a "Disney Divas" event the following evening.
The night of the Mansion dinner, guests were picked up from their hotel by zombie chauffers and carried in stretch limousines through the back alleys of Disneyland Park until they ended up at the fog-shrouded gates of the Haunted Mansion. Greeted by a number of guest ambassadors, the diners wind their way through the deserted Mansion queue, noticing that each of them had a personalized tombstone emerging from the fog. Jack Skellington himself was the emcee for the evening, and the diners found themselves eating alongside surpise guests Imagineer Rolly Crump, who shared stories of the Mansion's creation, and Alice Davis, widow of Imagineer Marc Davis (and Disney legend in her own right.) Throughout the evening, Jack's beau Sally played classic rock tunes on a harp, and other characters provided ghoulish entertainment throughout the evening. At the end of the meal, diners were presented with their own death certificates: "Death by Chocolate."
After dinner, the guests were taken through the Haunted Mansion - first in Doom Buggies as usual, and next by foot, with the lights on, in a rare backstage tour. Finally, another trip was offered in the Doom Buggies - although this time, costumed entertainers hid amongst the shadows to provide unexpected scares. After a relaxed trip back to the hotel, each guest arrived in their room to find their customized tombstone waiting on the bed - along with a personalized charger created by Elisabete Gomes (pictured, right).
To read an exclusive report about this event from DoomBuggies.com staff member Scott Bruffey, click here.
If you were at this event or have more information about it, please contact DoomBuggies.com.
IAHA Haunted Mansion Backstage Tour, 2001
(Walt Disney World)
In 2001, the International Association of Haunted Attractions hosted a special evening at the Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom that featured a walk-through tour of the Haunted Mansion, followed by a scrumptious dinner in the Diamond Horseshoe.
Walt Disney World provided great entertainment for the evening. Popular character actors "Madame Carlotta" and "Broom" provided suitable eerie atmosphere, and a delicious prime rib dinner with an open bar, pianist and card magician topped off the evening. But of course, the participants were really there to experience the intriguing "Lights-On Tour" of the Haunted Mansion.
On this particular evening, guests were taken down into the load area with the lights on to begin their walking tour. Walking through the Portrait Hall, the guests stopped in the Library, where they were allowed to inspect the props and even touch the sets. They then walked past the music room, up the ramp that passes for a staircase in the dark, and were allowed to walk into the Endless Hallway.
Then, after walking past the Conservatory and through the Corridor of Doors, guests ended up in the Seance Room, with Leota still operating. Several participants are said to have made "shadow puppets" on her projected face. After this bit of fun, the tour wrapped up with a stop on the floor of the Grand Ballroom, which participants were allowed to roam freely, inspecting place settings at the dining table and pressing keys on the organ.
Though some guests were disappointed at not being taken through the Graveyard set, most were thrilled with the rare opportunity to walk through the scenes, and though the event was open to the public, it was only advertised to professional "haunters," so Disney allowed the participants to get a little closer to the action than they might otherwise have done.
To read an exclusive report about this event from DoomBuggies.com staff member Nate, click here.
If you were at this event or have more information about it, please contact DoomBuggies.com.
Haunted Mansion Holiday "Nightmare Before Christmas Enchanted
Evening" Special Preview Events, 2001-2004 (Disneyland)
In 2001, Disneyland hosted the first of four consecutive special merchandise events in honor of the new holiday overlay installed into the Disneyland Haunted Mansion called "Haunted Mansion Holiday." The first year, registrants received the following message from Disneyland President Cynthia Harriss welcoming them to the event:
We hope that your night is filled with spooktacular fun and nightmarish fright! As a guest of this chilling evening, you are among the very first to experience our new Haunted Mansion Holiday attraction. For your added enjoyment, we have also arranged a panel discussion featuring some of the incredibly talented creators of Tim Burton's film, "Nightmare Before Christmas." Our 999 Happy Haunts join me in wishing you a dreafully wonderful evening and magical holiday season!
The list of guests appearing at the panel discussion included animator Mike Belzer, Steve Davison from Disneyland Resort entertainment show development, Film consultant Rick Heinrichs, animation supervisor Eric Leighton, Chris Sarandon - voice of Jack Skellington, Henry Selick - director, Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas, Glenn Shadix - voice of the Halloweentown mayor, and Frank Thompson - panel discussion moderator and author of "The Art of Nightmare Before Christmas."
Also originally scheduled to appear were Tim Burton and Danny Elfman, who canceled not long before the event was to be held, dampening the spirits of many attendees. Many rumors about Burton and Elfman's disapproval of the Mansion's holiday overlay were fueled by this situation, which remains a topic of speculation to date. The second year of the overlay, the entire overlay score (originally written by Gordon Goodwin) was rehashed except for a few bits here and there, and Elfman's music written for the film was added to the soundtrack to give the overlay a stronger tie to the movie.
As a merchandise event, there were many collectibles offered in limited numbers to attendees, such as the "Jack, Sally and Zero in Doom Buggy" pictured here. (The events of 9/11, being less than a month past, also were subtly evident: The aforementioned Doom Buggy sculpture had to be delivered to its purchasers by mail at a later date, as the manufacturing was interrupted by "world events.") The take-away gift to all attendees was a deck of make-believe tarot cards, which contained reproductions from a deck of cards that appears floating inside of Leota's seance circle in the Haunted Mansion Holiday overlay.
Despite Burton and Elfman being no-shows (though they did appear in a brief video that may or may not have been created specifically for the event), general satisfaction was high, primarily due to the very effective attraction overlay, which received consistently high ratings from the attendees. The event prompted three more similar events for the following three years, all of which offered more rare Nightmare Before Christmas and Haunted Mansion collectibles to attendees.
To read an in-depth review of the first Haunted Mansion Holiday event (via ColdDeadFish.net), click here.
To read an in-depth review of the 2002 Haunted Mansion Holiday event (via ColdDeadFish.net), click here.
To read an in-depth review of the 2003 Haunted Mansion Holiday event (via ColdDeadFish.net), click here.
To read an in-depth review of the 2004 Haunted Mansion Holiday event (via ColdDeadFish.net), click here.
If you were at any of these events or have more information about them, please contact DoomBuggies.com.
"Ultimate Day of Magic" Haunted Mansion Experience, 2002
(Walt Disney World)
In May 2002, Disney hosted an eBay auction for an "Ultimate Day of Magic," which was to be a trip to the Magic Kingdom during which Disney would pull out all the stops to create a one-of-a-kind white-glove-treatment experience. The winning bid was cast by Daryn Coleman, who reports that the experience was "by far, the trip of a lifetime."
"We started the tour standing near the exit while Cast Member Nicole and Laura told us the story of Master Gracey of the Mansion," Coleman recalled. "It was a really cool story about how Master Gracey - the hanging figure in the stretching room - hung himself in the foyer after he was told his wife-to-be was missing. Of course when the bride-to-be found out (she had been hiding in the attic, waiting for him) - in her despair, she threw her wedding ring out of the window, and we were shown where it landed - there is a small ring imbedded in the cement right where the exit gates are..."
The backstage tour continued with a walk through the sets of the Mansion, including a trek down the Portrait Hall, and stop in the Conservatory to "pet the raven for luck," which Coleman was told is a daily tradition of the Haunted Mansion Cast Members. The tour continued through the seance room, and past the ballroom from above along the Doom Buggy track, into the attic. Passing through the attic, the tour ended up in front of the Graveyard, where the Coleman party was allowed to pat the Caretaker's dog before winding back down into the floor of the Ballroom.
"It really is elegant in its simplicity," Coleman reported about the Ballroom. "The guests are basically looking at a reflection of mannequins in a window. So, of course, when you actually walk into the ballroom it is a big room that has no figures whatsoever - the figures are carefully positioned to align with the furniture and props that are in the ballroom - so that the final effect is ghosts coming and going and interacting with the physical realm. Very cool."
The complete tour that the Colemans were offered took an hour and a half to complete. But there was much more to their "Ultimate" day - including VIP treatment that allowed them the opportunity to "open the park," and generally be treated like royalty for the day.
To read Daryn Coleman's detailed report about the Mansion tour and the rest of the day, click here.
Disney Dining Experience: Dinner at the Haunted Mansion, 2002
(Walt Disney World)
On September 25, 2002, Walt Disney World hosted a dinner in the Haunted Mansion as one of the "Disney Dining Experience" offerings, which was available to members of the "Disney Dining Experience" club. The event was open to just 70 guests, and featured an exquisite menu and five wine pairings. The evening's menu had a ghoulish theme, consisting of dishes such as "Roasted Squab on a Confit of Leeks and Asparagus," with the pigeon lying with a still-attached claw sticking straight up off of the plate - or "Creamy Seafood Soup with Squid Ink." The evening's sorbet was even served in a glowing red ice skull.
The wines were from suitably eerie wineries (as they were described on the menus distributed to the guests): A selection from the Guenoc Winery, which is supposedly haunted by the ghost of the actress that originally owned the land the winery now stands on; a wine from Valley of the Moon, which is supposed to be haunted by the ghosts of the Native Americans that once roamed the land the winery now occupies; and wine from Jack London Vineyards, home to many unexplained occurrences.
The evening consisted of great character entertainment, ghoulish zombie servers, and lots of flowing wine. A standard ride through the Mansion was included, though the main draw of this evening was the menu.
To read "GeekyDweeb's" detailed report about the dinner, click here.
If you were at this event or have more information about it, please contact DoomBuggies.com.
999 Happy Haunts Ball/Events, 2002, 2003 & 2004
(Walt Disney World)
In October 2002, 2003 and 2004, Walt Disney World hosted special merchandise events named in honor of the Haunted Mansion's "999 Happy Haunts." The 2002 event, ostensibly centered around a "Happy Haunts Ball," has garnered terrific reviews from the fans who clamored for more, hoping the ball would become an annual tradition. The featured seminar of the event was titled "The Haunted Mansion: From the Magic Kingdom to the Movies," and it featured Imagineer Jason Surrell as guest speaker, giving a preview of his upcoming book by the same title, which was released in 2003.
Meanwhile, in Liberty Square, the Headless Horseman made an appearance on his steed, and other ghoulish characters prowled around the grounds of the Haunted Mansion, which was nicely decorated with special exterior lighting in deep primary colors for the event. Fortune Tellers and Palm Readers were stationed throughout the area, and a special photo booth with a Doom Buggy was set up near the Mansion, offering photo ops to anyone who wished to have a souvenir picture.
Another primary reason for guests to attend the event was the opportunity to purchase limited-edition merchandise that was created specifically for the Happy Haunts Ball. In addition, an auction of original artwork related to the Haunted Mansion was held, offering serious collectors the chance to have a one-of-a-kind addition to their collections.
In 2003, the "ball" was converted to a more general event, and three registration tiers were added, allowing guests to opt for a more exclusive experience (which included a dinner inside the Mansion), or to choose a mid-range or basic admission ticket. Reviews this year were generally mixed; while most guests still loved the seminars that provided an insider's look at the Mansion attraction, the guest service and registration gifts (most notoriously, a red plastic cup with a screen printed logo, which could only be compared to the fine illuminated resin sculpture given the year before) were generally panned, as Disney seemed to still be on a learning curve for some aspects of operating multi-tiered events.
In October 2004, the event was offered again in three tiers. Many attendees lauded the memorabilia selection at this event, as the ability to purchase limited edition Haunted Mansion collectibles was the cornerstone of each of the events. As with the 2003 event, the top level tier registration included an exclusive dinner inside the Mansion. A special breakfast offered early-rising attendees a limited-edition pin. Another auction for rare and one-of-a-kind art was held, and the registration gift was another illuminated resin sculpture, proving that there were lessons learned from the 2003 event. (In fact, one special giveaway at the '04 event was a pin of the infamous "red plastic cup," turning a dubious collectible into an in-joke for those in the know.)
More basic seminars were offered, with the featured guest at this event being Disney Legend Harriet Burns, who worked as a figure designer and set decorator for WED Enterprises during the creation of some of Disneyland and Walt Disney World's most loved attractions, including the Haunted Mansion. Another seminar featured a Q&A panel discussion with some current Imagineers who oversee the Mansion today, including Jason Surrell, Patrick Brennan, Alex Caruthers, and Tom Rodowski.
Evening festivities again included ghoulish atmospheric entertainment in Liberty Square as attendees prepared to ride the Haunted Mansion, which was again suitably dressed up for the occasion. A photo booth was again available to any who wished a photographic souvenir, and the evening culminated in a sighting of the Headless Horseman.
Click here to read a review of the 2003 999 Happy Haunts Event by DoomBuggies staff member Jennifer Figler.
Click here to read MouseTreasures' thorough review of the 2002 event, or click here to read MouseTreasures' review of the 2004 event, including a video of the Headless Horseman's appearance.
If you were at this event or have more information about it, please contact DoomBuggies.com.
ScareLA: 45 Years of Chills and Thrills
On August 9, 2014, ScareLA, a Halloween convention held in Downtown Los Angeles, hosted a special panel discussion in honor of the Haunted Mansion's 45th anniversary, hosted by DoomBuggies.com proprietor Jeff Baham with special guests and Disney Legends Bob Gurr and Alice Davis. The standing-room-only event had numerous highlights, one of which was a cornucopia of rarely- or never-seen conceptual artwork for the Haunted Mansion by Disney Legend Marc Davis.
Click here to view a video of the entire presentation.
