At Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif., the “Mad Tea Party ride with 18 giant spinning teacups was recently modified in the name of safety to make it harder for people to spin. The move has prompted fans of the ride to march to City Hall on Disneyland’s Main Street in protest and post hundreds of messages on Internet discussion boards under headings such as ‘Save the Teacups.’ … Purists acknowledge that Disneyland also faces criticism for not paying enough attention to safety, but they see the ride’s modification as part of a pattern. They believe the fear of lawsuits is taking some of the fun out of the Magic Kingdom. ‘It’s like all the good times are over,’ said annual pass-holder Isaac Martin, 24. ‘It feels so depressing.’ … Park officials said they made the change after a disabled rider lost his balance last month and slipped from a teacup. The rider did not require medical treatment.” Disney officials insist the ride, which takes its theme from an Alice in Wonderland scene, remains entertaining. (“Disneyland purists decry tame teacups in Fantasyland”, AP/Sacramento Bee, Feb. 29)(via onel7). More: MickeyNews, MiceAge. Yet more: Jun. 22, 2005.
Posts Tagged ‘Disney’
Being beastly to bulldozers
Caterpillar Inc., the maker of earthmoving machinery, has sued Disney and Buena Vista Pictures in federal court “hoping to block the Oct. 21 release of the direct-to-DVD movie ‘George of the Jungle 2.'” The movie’s plot, evidently a marvel of originality, pits a hero and his animal sidekicks against evil “industrialists seeking to ravage and destroy the jungle”. As the Peoria paper reports, it seems “the final battle pits George and the animals against an army of Caterpillar Wheel Loaders. It didn’t help, the suit goes on to state, that the movie’s narrator calls the machines ‘maniacal’, ‘deleterious dozers’ and “bulldozing bullies.” How better to dispel an image of bullyhood than by heading to court to demand that speech critical of one’s enterprise be silenced? (Andy Kravetz, “Cat doesn’t dig ‘bulldozing bullies'”, Peoria Journal-Star, Oct. 15; “George of the Jungle, Watch Out for That Lawsuit!”, Reuters/Washington Post, Oct. 15) More: Eugene Volokh comments (Oct. 17).