Carrousel Rededication

Disneyland's King Arthur Carrousel officially reopened yesterday during a private cast member breakfast reception in Fantasyland. Although the Carrousel unofficially returned this past Valentine's Day after more than a year of refurbishment, yesterday's event allowed the team that worked on the restoration to meet their fellow cast members, and explain what had been done to the ride during the long downtime.

King Arthur Carrousel is ready to greet visitors to the rededication ceremony.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Disneyland Resort president Cynthia Harriss takes a spin on the Carrousel.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

When the Carrousel closed in January of last year, the plan was simply to rebuild the canopy. Once work began, the task became much more complicated. The Carrousel was suffering from years of neglect, with its peeling paint on the canopy just one outward sign of the ride's condition. Employees frequently complained about rotting wood, faulty motors, and recurring electrical problems.

By Fall 2001, the King Arthur Carrousel looks significantly faded.
MousePlanet file photo.

A close-up of the canopy before the rehab shows faded and peeling paint.
MousePlanet file photo.

At the rededication, Imagineer T Irby explained to the audience that once engineers began to examine the ride, they realized the gears and motor needed to be replaced. Before long, they were looking at everything from the canopy to the turntable, and decided the ride needed to be rebuilt from the ground up.

The trim gold looks worn and faded before the rehab.
MousePlanet file photo.

After the rehab, the Carrousel has bright new trim and a shade canopy.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Fortunately, a complete rebuild allowed Imagineers to make greater changes and improvements that would have been impossible in a shorter rehab. Imagineers wanted to make the ride wheelchair-accessible, but there were concerns that the old turntable would not be able to handle the added weight of motorized wheelchairs. Some cast members speculated that the aging motor was not up to the strain of stopping the ride at the same place every time, a necessity if a wheelchair ramp were to be installed. By replacing the old turntable, Imagineers were able to address these concerns, and make the ride fully wheelchair-accessible.

By February 2002, the Carrousel platform had been stripped of horses and decorations.
Photo by David Lane.

A cast member demonstrates the new wheelchair ramp.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Imagineer Kim Irvine, who served as art director for the Carrousel rehab project, pointed out the panels that form the sides of the "chariot" benches. Disney purchased panels from a famous carrousel manufacturer, but discovered that they were not as sharply detailed as Disneyland's horses. The Imagineers discarded these, and designed new panels to match the rest of the attraction.

Burnt-out light bulbs, such as the one to the right of the jester, were a common sight on the Carrousel.
MousePlanet file photo, 2002.

These jesters are now covered in 24-karat gold leaf.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

During the rehab, the horses were removed and stored in the empty Rocket Rods queue building, where workers began the daunting task of repainting the 68 horses that would be replaced on the Carrousel. To keep the intricate detail of each creature from disappearing under layers of paint, each horse was stripped almost to the bare wood, and then repainted with fresh coats of automotive paint, which helps to protect them from wear and weather. According to Disney, it takes 150 labor hours to restore each horse. The 17 horses that did not return to the Carrousel will be restored, and swapped out when repairs are necessary to the main herd.

Even after five months into the rehab, very little had changed in the appearance of the Carrousel.
MousePlanet file photo.

Workers replace the trim around the top of the canopy.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Work continued on the Carrousel all through the spring of 2002, but it was hard to see any real progress. Piece by piece, the signs, banner and trim were removed from the ride. Then the canopy was removed in June, leaving only a bare pole sticking up in the air. Disney quickly decorated the construction walls with signs explaining that the Carrousel was being restored, not removed.

The Carrousel post blends into the Fantasyland skyline.
MousePlanet file photo.

This optimistic sign states that the Carrousel would return in Fall 2002.
MousePlanet file photo.

A colorful wall was installed in front of the demolished Carrousel to give the Sword in the Stone ceremony a better backdrop than an old, rusty pole. A craft area was created near the Dumbo ride, where kids could color paper horses, and see some of the wooden horses on display. It took a few months, but Disney was able to turn the extended rehab into a new mini-attraction.

New walls were erected in June to provide a backdrop for the Sword in the Stone ceremony.
Photo by Issac.

Children play in the Carrousel craft exhibit during the extended rehab period.
MousePlanet file photo.

The new construction was finally visible in the fall, but it was clear that they would not meet the optimistic opening deadline. The following photos show the progress over three months, as the Carrousel canopy very slowly began to take shape.

The first pieces of the canopy frame are finally installed in September 2002.
MousePlanet file photo.

By October 2002, most of the frame is present.
MousePlanet file photo.

The frame finally all comes together in November 2002.
MousePlanet file photo.

Once the new canopy was installed, construction entered the final stretch. Workers painted the canopy in an elaborate new pattern of bright blues, purples and pinks, accented with gold trim. As the work continued, the Carrousel's projected return date was pushed back several times, from early January to mid-February. The holiday overlay of "it's a small world" remained in place longer than originally planned, in the hope that the Carrousel or the Matterhorn Bobsleds could reopen before yet another Fantasyland ride closed for rehab.

Workers start with a blank canvas in late December 2002.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

The deep pink paint is a big contrast to the old, pale blue canopy.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

In the end, "it's a small world" was closed and reopened again before the Carrousel or the Matterhorn were ready. Despite the threat of rain, both rides soft-opened on Valentine's Day. With a new canopy, new wood flooring, new paint and new wheelchair ramp, the Carrousel looked like a brand new ride.

By early February 2003, the horses return to the Carrousel.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Freshly cleaned and painted horses wait for their first official riders.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Like all new rides, the Carrousel has a few bugs to work out. Cast members complain that the new motor, similar to the variable speed motor used on the Disneyland Monorail, is demonstrating the same troubling behaviors that plague the Monorail fleet. An electrical problem frequently prevents the exit gates from opening on command, so cast members are forced to unlock each one manually after each ride.

Ride operators seem to like the new console, and demonstrated the new features for us. A video screen displays the view from the three new cameras installed around the ride. The correct spiel for each stage of operation displays at the correct time, making it easier for cast members to give the proper safety instructions to riders.

The new purple shade canopy ](seen in the front of the Carrousel) makes the wait more comfortable.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

The new operator's console gives cast members greater control over the ride.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

After so many years of neglect, some cast members and regular visitors were certain that Disney would do a shoddy job in rebuilding the classic attraction. In a letter to David Koenig, one cast member wrote: "The park is in bad shape, with maintenance poor, and the company will not do a quality job. All they care about is how cheaply it can be done." While the ride has some definite bugs, the overall quality of the rehab is better than many hoped for.

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• Although some claim that the Disney Carrousel is over 100 years old, it was actually built in the 1920s by William Dentzel, a renowned carrousel manufacturer. The carrousel was purchased in Toronto, Canada, and moved to Disneyland in 1954.

• The Dentzel carrousel was a menagerie-style ride, with lions, tigers, horses and more. All but the horses were removed, and later used to decorate the Casey Jr. Circus Train attraction. The rest of the horses for the ride were purchased from parks in Coney Island and northern California, and date back to the late 1800s. No two are alike.

• When the Carrousel opened in 1955, the horses were black, brown, gray, and white. They were all painted white in 1975.

• The Carrousel was moved to its current location just behind Sleeping Beauty Castle when Fantasyland was remodeled in 1983.

• Less than 200 carrousels remain in the United States. Disneyland's horses alone are valued at over $10 million.

• One of the horses has a golden tooth. Some claim that this was the lead horse from the Dentzel carrousel; others say that this was Mrs. Disney's favorite horse.

• "Jingles" is said to be the lead horse of the Disneyland Carrousel.

• The Carrousel travels at 4.4 miles per hour.

• While the original Wurlitzer organ was left on the Carrousel after the rehab, the music for the attraction comes from a modern sound system.