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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2002 California Screamin’ entrance |
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“Imagine a roller coaster modeled after the traditional wooden coasters of the 1920s. Now add a launch that takes you from 0 to 55 miles per hour in under five seconds, a loop-de-loop around a glimmering silhouette of Mickey Mouse’s head, over a mile of track reaching heights of 120 feet, and a 108-foot drop at 50 degrees—and you’ve got California Screamin’, the adrenaline rush of the century!” — Official website of Disney’s California Adventure, 2001 |
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It’s a fun thrill ride. It even looks like a wooden roller coaster, at least from a distance. But the 1920s? Not so much. If Walt Disney had visited one of Southern California’s amusement piers after he arrived from Kansas City in 1923, he would have seen many architectural styles and construction materials, but nothing like California Screamin’. The style of its queue and load area can best be described as “late-20th-century cost-effective.” Its neon sign suggests the 1940s or 1950s. But don’t worry about that. Just enjoy the ride! |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2001 California Screamin’ entrance |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2001 FASTPASS distribution |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2001 Unthemed queue |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2002 “Smile when you scream!” |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2001 Load building |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2003 Loading on both sides of the platform |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2002 Shoulder harnesses in place, and ready to go! |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2002 A salute to stucco? |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2002 From water level to the highest hills |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2001 Ready to launch, front seat view |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2001 Ocean waves, just as at a real amusement pier |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2001 Heading up the first tube |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2001 A tube with a view of the Timon parking lot |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2001 The looping track in front of the Mickey Mouse head |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2001 The loop! |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2002 Above the games |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2001 Above the food counters |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2002 Across the street from the Convention Center |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2001 California ScreamCam photos |
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Photo by Tony “WiseBearAZ” Moore, 2001 At night |
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You’ve finished screamin’ on California Screamin’. What are you going to do next? The old song says, “I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream.” So go next door to Catch a Flave Ice Cream for some California ice cream. |
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California Screamin’ was an opening day attraction at Disney’s California Adventure. (The photos above are all from 2001, 2002, and 2003.) Located in the park’s Paradise Pier section, it was one of the bright spots at a park that was short on “hit” attractions. Monica Zurowski, reviewing the new park for the Calgary Herald and other Canadian newspapers on February 10, 2001, identified the ride as one of the park’s three “don’t miss” attractions (along with Soarin’ Over California and Jim Henson’s Muppet Vision 3-D): “California Screamin’ salutes the favourite thrill ride of the amusement park—the roller-coaster. But this is no ordinary roller-coaster. The ride takes off from zero and goes to almost 100 km/h in four seconds flat, before heading through a series of turns, twists, drops and loops that can make even the most brave of heart let loose with a few screams.” When Paradise Pier opened, it was supposed to put guests into the “heyday of the great seaside amusement park piers.” With a hodgepodge of styles, it was unclear when that “heyday” was supposed to be. Over the years, Disney added Queen Anne-style (late Victorian) structures around the shore of Paradise Bay, including Toy Story Midway Mania. This established the early 20th century as the time period of the pier. But California Screamin’ did not change much from 2001 to 2018. It never received an early-20th-century makeover. A few things did change. The biggest change involved the decoration behind the loop. In 2009, a painted sun whose colors echoed Toy Story Midway Mania! replaced the silhouette of Mickey Mouse’s head, along with a Paradise Pier sign where Mickey’s ears had been. In 2010, recorded announcements by Neil Patrick Harris replaced the original ones. The waves that once crashed near the coaster trains seldom worked. The view from the ride changed considerably, including such major changes as the Timon parking lot becoming Cars Land and Maliboomer disappearing. As the park’s collection of attractions and themed areas improved significantly, California Screamin’ continued to be one of its most popular and repeatable attractions—not because of great theming or storytelling, but because many people like roller coasters. |
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© Disney-Pixar – Artist Concept Only Artist concept for Pixar Pier, bird’s-eye view |
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California Screamin’ closed permanently January 8, 2018. That meant the end of the name. And it meant the end of the theme—or, more accurately, the end of the lack of a theme (beyond “steel pretending to be wood” or, perhaps, “Disney pretending to be Six Flags”). |
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© Disney-Pixar – Artist Concept Only Artist concept for Incredicoaster |
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It didn’t mean the end of the roller coaster itself. Paradise Pier would become Pixar Pier, featuring four Pixar “neighborhoods.” The roller coaster would continue to be the anchor attraction of the re-imagined “pier”—retaining the thrills, but adding a story. A Disney press release in December 2017 provided details: The first neighborhood is inspired by Disney·Pixar’s The Incredibles and will open in summer 2018 with the Incredicoaster. Permanently transformed from the attraction that is now California Screamin’, Incredicoaster will invite guests into a mid-century-modern-style loading area inspired by the Parr family home. A super combination of character figures, lighting and special effects will bring the action to life as the Parr family races alongside guests in an attempt to catch baby Jack-Jack. The new character moments, scenes, special effects and exciting musical score will connect the attraction’s story to Pixar’s Incredibles 2, which opens in theaters June 14, 2018. In other words, Disney abandoned its efforts to establish a consistent early-20th-century style for the entire shore of Paradise Bay. At the same time, Incredicoaster, with a theme and story, is an improvement. Its mid-century-modern style is consistent with the setting of The Incredibles. The only people who have lost out in the process are those who love The Incredibles and have longed for a ride based on the movie—but who can’t or won’t ride roller coasters. |
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Photo by Chris Bales, 2022 No longer California Screamin’ |
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Photo by Chris Bales, 2020 No longer blank stucco in the load area |
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Photo by Chris Bales, 2020 Incredibles story elements on Incredicoaster |
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That leaves the question, is Pixar even a legitimate theme for a land? After all, Pixar is not a genre, a location, a particular period of time, or a single IP. It’s an animation studio that has made a wide variety of very good movies, each with its own setting, characters, and style. |
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© 2023 Werner Weiss — Disclaimers, Copyright, and Trademarks Updated October 27, 2023 |
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