Disney's Afternoon Avenue

In 1985, The Times published an article about Disney’s official announcement that they were moving toward syndicated television. This meant that Disney’s library of movies and television series would be able to be broadcast on other TV networks and stations, for an even wider audience to enjoy. This would increase their visibility and revenue along other platforms, as the 1980s weren’t their most successful decade. Not all movies were going to be available for syndication though, like some of the sacred classics like Snow White.

“It’s a revenue stream that was in the past nonexistent, and it’s an extremely important facet of the full-service motion picture and television company we intend to become.”
— Jeffrey Katzenberg

Disney Cartoons in the 1980s

The very first syndicated Disney television show was DuckTales in 1987. It was a highly successful children’s cartoon that ran for a total of 100 episodes, and even receiving a revival of the series 30 years later in 2017. Other cartoons that Disney produced around that time was The Wuzzles (1985) and the Adventures of the Gummi Bears (1985). The Wuzzles only had 1 season that included 13 episodes, but reruns were shown for the year after. Adventures of the Gummi Bears enjoyed much more success than The Wuzzles, running for 6 seasons and becoming syndicated in 1990. The story of these anthropomorphic bears marked an important point in animation history, kickstarting the phenomenon of animated television series.

Some of the other celebrated animated television shows that became syndicated during the 1980s and 1990s were Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers (1989), TaleSpin (1990), Darkwing Duck (1991), Goof Troop (1992), Bonkers (1993) and Gargoyles (1994).

Adventures of the Gummi Bears. Image from: https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/239605642649369867/

Disneyland in the 1980s

Disney during the 1980s and 1990s was in a highly transformative state, wanting to keep up with the trends while also celebrating the work they’ve done on past projects. Some of the Disneyland attractions were evolving and many were being added to the park around this time, to keep guests interested in coming. Thrill rides and space age themes were of high demand, so they were delivered. Disneyland opened Videopolis and Captain EO in 1985. Videopolis stayed open for 10 years until it was renamed Fantasyland Theater. It served as a teen club where music, dancing, and snacking ensued. George Lucas agreed to direct a new film to be shown in the park, Captain EO, featuring Michael Jackson. These two attractions tied over Disneyland while EPCOT was gaining traction, and helping the company make back the money they had lost. Attractions like Indiana Jones Adventure and Splash Mountain would be worked on around this time as well.

Disney’s Afternoon Avenue

Another addition to Disneyland was the long and forgotten Disney’s Afternoon Avenue, or The Disney Afternoon Live!. This “land” lived between the Storybook Canal Boats and Videopolis, right where the entrance to Mickey’s Toontown is now. This new area of the park, opened in March 1991, would become a place to celebrate those Disney cartoons mentioned above. Children could meet their favourite characters from the shows and ride existing attractions that would be decorated in different themes.

At the entrance of the area, you could get a map that would have circles where each of the interactive elements were, and you could get a stamp in each circle to make sure you’ve experienced it all. You could hear a mix put together of the different theme songs of the shows that were featured: TaleSpin, DuckTales, Chip ‘n Dale Rescue Rangers, and Adventures of the Gummi Bears. Many of the storefronts along this area were named after Duckburg.

The Afternoon Avenue stamp map. Image from: http://www.sullivanet.com/pirateisland/loot/stampmap.jpg

TaleSpin Attractions

Unlike the other characters who strolled along to meet guests and participate in the cavalcade, the star of TaleSpin, Baloo, could be found in his dressing room at the end of the Afternoon Avenue, right where the entrance of Toontown is now. Baloo would sit at his vanity with a light-up mirror, greeting everyone as they came in and ready for a photo opportunity.

Entrance to Baloo’s dressing room. Image from: https://dapsmagic.com/2021/04/plane-crazy-on-stage-at-disney-afternoon-live/

DuckTales Attractions

Aside from the fact that many of the surrounding areas were Duckburg themed, and the stamps to collect mostly had to do with DuckTales, the only other DuckTales themed thing to do was to meet the characters who walked around. You could go collect stamps at Scrooge’s vault and Duckburg City Hall. Then, you would run into characters like the Beagle Boys, Launchpad McQuack, and Scrooge McDuck.

Chip ‘n Dale Rescue Rangers Attractions

There was no shortage of Chip and Dale along the strip, with them walking around and greeting people to them riding in a car during the cavalcade. You could do just the same as them, ride in cars on the “all-new” Chip ‘n Dale Rescue Rangers Raceway. Instead of building a new attraction for the land, the Fantasyland Autopia ride (formerly known as Junior Autopia) was rethemed to fit the cartoon, with a new entrance sign and cutouts of Chip and Dale along the racetrack.

Chip n Dale’s Rescue Rangers Raceway. Image from: https://duchessofdisneyland.com/park-history/rescue-rangers-raceway/

Adventures of the Gummi Bears Attractions

Being that this cartoon was one of the most popular at the time and was very significant, it only made sense to transform another pre-existing ride to fit the theme as well. Disneyland’s Motor Boat Cruise, which was originally called the Tomorrowland Boats on opening day, became the Motor Boat Cruise to Gummi Glen. The essence of the ride stayed the same, but a new entrance look and some more 2D cutouts of the Gummi bears from the show were added along the track path. Reflecting back on this decision, it was quite a lazy addition for Disney, but it would’ve have been more work and taken more time to revamp the entire ride. You could also get a frozen Gummi Bear juice at the edge of the land to cool off during the afternoon.

Other Attractions on Disney’s Afternoon Avenue

In 1955, one of the stops of the Disneyland Railroad was the Fantasyland Depot. This train stop disappeared in 1966, and went on hiatus for 20 years. It reappeared again in 1985 as the Videopolis station when Videopolis opened, giving guests a direct introduction to the new addition. This version only lasted a few years before Disney’s Afternoon Avenue opened, and the train station was renamed The Disney Afternoon Train Depot. Once Afternoon Avenue closed, it became Mickey’s Toontown Train Depot, which it still is today.

And finally, the last experience to have in this land was the Plane Crazy Live Show, which coincidentally was a plane on words of the very first Mickey Mouse cartoon, but had nothing to do with it. It instead featured Don Karnage of TaleSpin and Fat Cat of Chip ‘n Dale Rescue Rangers with their plot to take over the X-22 spy plane. This exciting and engaging stage show was featured on the Videopolis stage through 1991.

Disney’s Afternoon Avenue stage show. Image from: https://d23.com/this-day/disney-afternoon-opens-at-disneyland/

The Closure of Disney’s Afternoon Avenue

This overlay of a land only lasted 8 months before closing on November 10, 1991. The land was always meant to be temporary, just to act as another promotional platform for the growing cartoons. The reception of the land was that it was fairly well-liked, with many family-friendly activities and opportunities for small children to enjoy the park without the daunting thrill rides. One downfall of it though was that the temporary overlays of some of the rides, like Fantasyland Autopia and the Motor Boat Cruise, were not gaining much traction anymore. The land closed when it needed to and when it had served it’s purpose, but traces of it were not left behind in the park. The walkway was turned back into what it was before, just another walking area in Fantasyland.

“The world of Disney cartoon television stars came alive at Disney park... “Hands on” activities for youngsters gave them a chance to interact with familiar stars and scenes from their favorite shows... Afternoon Avenue, the main focus of the activities, was staged in Fantasyland in front of “It’s a Small World”.”
— Disneyland 40th anniversary collectors card
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HealthKyle Balldisney, disneyland, disneylandhistory, history, disneyhistory, baloo, junglebook, ducktales, donaldduck4 Comments