Disneyland
has only closed a few times in its history, often due to disasters or
nationwide tragedies. These include the assassination of John F. Kennedy in
1963, and the 9/11 attacks in 2001. The second major incident where the park
had to close wasn’t much of a disaster or tragedy, but more of a headscratcher.
On August 6th, 1970, Disneyland closed five hours early and 30,000
guests had their dreams of the Happiest Place On Earth ruined. Why? Because the
Yippies came for a visit.
The term
“Yippie” is associated with the Youth International Party, an American
political movement founded by Jerry Rubin and Annie Hoffman in 1967. Both
turned from regular jobs to politicial activism, Rubin having once run for
mayor in Berkeley on a radical left platform, whilst Hoffman was a member of
the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). Their movement was just
about “anti” everything – anti-war, anti-capitalism, anti-establishment. These
Yippies were infamous for putting on theatrical demonstrations in the name of
their movement.
The group
invaded the New York Stock Exchange, marched into the visitors’ gallery, and
chucked dollar bills onto the trading floor. On another occasion, in 1968, they
nominated a 145-pound pig named Pigasus to run for US President. Well, there
are worse choices…
It was then
that the Yippies decided to take their unusual political movement to Disneyland
and put on a show. Back in 1969, Disneyland was still a stickler on certain
rules. Male employees were forbidden from having long hair, beards, or
moustaches – ironic, considering Walt Disney, who had merely died three years
ago, sported a fine moustache. Luckily for the Yippies, the park was more
lenient to guests who had such facial features.
The Yippies
chose August 6th, 1970 to launch their invasion of the park, marking
the 25th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima. They planned to
protest the Vietnam War, and targeted Disneyland for being sponsored by the
Bank of America – which they viewed as practically the personification of
capitalism, and thus a sponsor of the war. The Yippies promoted their planned
occupation of Disneyland through mass flyers, promising an insane schedule of
radical events – a “Black Panther Hot Breakfast” over in Frontierland, plans to
“liberate” Minnie Mouse, the barbecuing of Porky Pig (who is a Warner Bros.
character), and the occupation of Tom Sawyer Island in the name of their
liberal movement.
The police
soon caught wind of the Yippies’ plans, and acted against them. The media
freaked out, believing that 20,000 angry hooligans would invade the park, and
the police reacted in kind, preparing for a mass invasion of many drugged up
Yippies. Armed cops would wait outside the park on standby, whilst
normal-dressed officers, park employees, and even managers would patrol
Disneyland to apprehend any troublemakers. However, when the day of reckoning
arrived, the turnout wasn’t as horrendous as the police had expected.
The turnout
of the feared Yippies was much smaller than imagined, likely a disappointment
to the organizers, the cops, and the press. The police turned up in their
helmets and riot armour in case things gone rowdy. I would assume they expected
the Yippies to burn Sleeping Beauty Castle to the ground. A few hundred or so
Yippies arrived at the park, several gathering at Aunt Jemima’s Pancake House
to throw their Black Panther breakfast, but beyond a few clenched fist power
salutes, nothing bad happened.
It was
quiet for a while, but soon things started getting a little wild. When the
Disneyland Band came marching down Main Street, a group of Yippies started
singing their own rendition of “Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah”, whilst running in-between
the musicians to throw them off. The band retreated backstage. The park’s
managers and company executives, including Dick Nunis, mingled with the Yippies
to try and keep the peace. Not every cast member could hide well in the crowds,
and were exposed by the amused protestors. The Yippies soon started getting
rowdy, swearing, chanting, spitting, and harassing the guests.
Many tales
have been spun about the event, and what weird things the Yippies got up to
during the day, but we’ll cover a few here. Most of the attractions that had
sponsors became vocal points for the Yippies, who sung parodies of the Mickey
Mouse Club’s theme song. Apparently, Adventures Thru Inner Space became a hazy,
smoky drug den. I wonder if Coke Corner’s name took on a new meaning as well,
aside from being a target for the anti-capitalism Yippies. Outside, some
protestors cried fowl against Disneyland being private property, whilst shouting
for the release of known cultist and murderer Charles Manson. Some protestors,
who had their hands stamped for re-entry, tried passing on their markings to
others to sneak them into Disneyland.
Whilst Dick
Nunis was confident that any embarrassment or disaster had been averted by
mid-afternoon, things were about to kick off. The disgruntled Yippies met in
the Main Street Cinema on what to do next, before forming a large human chain
up and down the street, singing about “marching to Cambodia”. They then marched
their way to the rafts to Tom Sawyer Island, and proceeded to occupy the island
as they planned to. There, they raised their Viet Cong flag, and chanted for
the release of Charles Manson and the legalisation of marijuana, whilst getting
stoned. The staff stopped sending rafts to the island, and now officers moved
in to arrest the rally.
The Yippies
tried going back down Main Street into the park, but found cast members and security
cards blocking their path, refusing to let them back in unless they stopped
their demonstrations. The Yippies started fighting the blockade. Cue the riot
police charging into Disneyland. Around three hundred cops raced into the park
from several entrances to round up the Yippies, pushing them back towards the
entrance. They succeeded, and Disneyland closed for the second time in its
history. 30,000 guests were kicked out of the park, though with the offer of
refunds.
As for the
Yippies, the angry mob screamed for the park to be burnt down. Guess the cops
had right to worry after all. The Yippies set trash cans on fire, setting off
firecrackers. They threw light bulbs and uprooted plants at the police and
exiting guests. The police forced the Yippies back into the car park, where
they vandalised several cars. Some broke away and dashed to the Disneyland
Hotel, but were intercepted by police cars. Outmatched, the Yippies scattered
in all directions as the police gave chase. Disneyland’s sprinklers were turned
on at night to flush out any hiding Yippies.
In the end,
twenty-three Yippies were arrested for assault, disturbing the peace, inciting
a riot, and causing mischief. Though Disney hoped the incident would be
forgotten, the media were all over it, but did praise the cast members for
their patience. Security at the park was ramped up for several months, and
long-haired male guests were banned due to the invasion. Over time, the
security guards dwindled, and long-haired guests were welcomed back into the
park.
This
wouldn’t be the only time Disneyland would deal with similar incidents. A rock
concert by Grand Funk Railroad was oversold at the Anaheim Convention Centre,
leading to many angry fans, unable to attend, to riot, though four-hundred
police officers were on hand to stop them. Many charged for Disneyland, but
police, cast members, ticket officers, and security guards met them at the
entrance in a human wall to quell the mayhem.
In the
1990s, a white supremacist group who worshipped Nazis plotted to gather
Neo-Nazis and skinheads alike in Disneyland to celebrate a “White Workers Day”,
and a free case of beer would be handed out to whoever could raise the Third
Reich flag over Fort Wilderness on Tom Sawyer Island. Disneyland were lenient
with the Yippies, but not with Nazis. Anyone sporting the Nazi swastika or
being a skinhead were turned away, and the rally never materialised. Gang
violence has also occurred at Disneyland, resulting in gunfights, and a couple
of deaths as well.
The park has
closed a total of five times in its history – after the assassination of JFK,
the Yippie invasion, during a 1987 winter storm, in 1994 for an inspection
after the Northridge earthquake, and after 9/11.
