SwayBlog

50 Years of Happy Haunts

Our family adores the Haunted Mansion. It’s been my wife’s favorite Disney attraction for as long as she can remember. She has to ride it more times than any other Attraction at the park each visit. Our kids love it. My sister and parents love it. The Haunted Mansion is a multi-generation obsession. We’ve got a book telling the history of the attraction. We’ve got a Haunted Mansion picture book, own all of the books from the Tales from the Haunted Mansion series, and the graphic novel by Marvel. We even enjoy the Haunted Mansion movie starring Eddie Murphy. I’ve even developed a convoluted plan that would allow us to secretly move into the Haunted Mansion. So, Friday, August 9 was essentially a holiday for us. It was the Haunted Mansion’s 50th birthday.

Ironically, this love affair started off on a rather sour note. My first tour of the Haunted Mansion did not go well. I was only two or three. I made it as far as the Ghost Host saying, “Of course, there’s always my way…” The lighting crashed, the body dangled above my head and I promptly decided that I wanted to be elsewhere. The Cast Members were kind enough to allow my speedy exit.

I don’t remember how old I was when I finally decided to brave the Haunted Mansion from beginning to end, but I know I’ve ridden it countless times since that day. I can recite the narration and know every word to the song Grim Grinning Ghosts. Gracey Manor may be home to 999 happy haunts, but it’s also home to countless happy memories: listening to my son expound on his theories about the Mansion’s residents, my daughter’s outrage when one of the hitchhiking ghosts switched heads with her at the end of the ride, listening to Carlotta (one of the Mansion’s residents) tell stories at Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, racing through the park to get one last Haunted Mansion ride in before the park closes, the list goes on and on.

So, with fifty years of spooks, thrills and chills and countless Guests having traversed the gloomy grounds, I’m curious: what’s your favorite Haunted Mansion memory?

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Artie Phelan