Product Details

• Actors: Art Linkletter, Robert Cummings, Ronald Reagan, Fess Parker, Buddy Ebsen
• Directors: Hamilton Luske, John Rich, Stu Phelps, Wilfred Jackson, William Beaudine
• Writers: Larry Clemmons, Milton Raison
• Producers: Sherman Marks
• Format: Animated, Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Live, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rating: Unrated
• Studio: Walt Disney Video
• DVD Release Date: December 4, 2001
• Run Time: 228 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (57 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00005KARE
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #25,658 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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  #3 in	Movies & TV > Music Video & Concerts > Artists > Rich, Buddy
  #25 in	Movies & TV > Kids & Family > Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment > Walt Disney Treasures
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• For more information about "Walt Disney Treasures - Disneyland USA" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

• This item is part of The Walt Disney Treasures Series.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

To finance Disneyland he wanted to build, Walt Disney turned to the new medium of television. As host Leonard Maltin notes on this two- disc set of televised specials for the amusement park, Disney used the series to promote it, "and no one seemed to mind." ABC agreed to invest in return for a weekly one-hour program. The "Disneyland" TV show premiered on October 27, 1954: "Disneyland Story" introduced the park and its various lands, which would be the subject of future programs. The opening-day special, "Dateline Disneyland" (July 17, 1955), attracted an estimated audience of 90 million--virtually every television household in America. Hosted by Art Linkletter, Robert Cummings, and Ronald Reagan, the live broadcast includes such unplanned moments as Linkletter searching frantically for a microphone in Fantasyland. The Tenth Anniversary show (January 3, 1965) features cameos of Mary Blair and Marc Davis, two celebrated animation artists. Home movie footage of Walt pacing off distances at the barren site in Anaheim is intercut with peeks at forthcoming attractions. "Disneyland After Dark" (April 15, 1962) offers performances by Annette Funicello, Bobby Burgess, Bobby Rydell, Louis Armstrong, and a prepubescent quartet of Osmond Brothers. A must-have set for Disneyland buffs, Disney collectors, and nostalgic baby boomers. --Charles Solomon

Product Description

A special presentation of four Disneyland television specials - The Disneyland Story, Dateline Disneyland, Operation Disneyland, Disneyland After Dark - plus The Disneyland 10th Anniversary Show, all originally broadcast between 1955 and 1970, and hosted by Walt Disney himself. Also includes additional archival footage of Disneyland's opening day and other rare materials. Introduction by Leonard Maltin.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars For Die-Hard Disney Fans Only, February 6, 2002

By	Mark Baker (Santa Clarita, CA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Walt Disney was a visionary when it came to entertainment. This 2 DVD collection showcases one such example, his theme park Disneyland, as it was portrayed on TV during his lifetime.

This set contains four programs. The first is the first ever episode of the TV show Disneyland. It introduces the park and future episodes of the show. At the end, it includes several Mickey Mouse cartoons, including "Sorcerer's Apprentice" and "Lonesome Ghosts."

The second program is the opening day live broadcast. I enjoyed finally getting to see it. Technical problems aside, it's quite fun.

The second disc contains "Disneyland after Dark," an episode of the TV show that includes some great shots of the place at night, but is mainly a show of people performing at various places in the park.

The last program is the 10th Anniversary show. This one was most interesting because it featured the planning stages of "Pirates of the Caribbean" and the "Haunted Mansion," as well as a look at how the park had changed over its initial 10 years.

This is a collection a Disney die-hard, like me, will enjoy. It's got some great behind the scenes info and Disney history to keep us satisfied. However, the average consumer will probably not enjoy it as much. Frankly, I probably won't watch it as much as some others from this series. Still, for its historic significance and fun for the Disney fan, I rate it 4 stars.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars The star (Disneyland) deserves more screen time, September 28, 2004

By	buckbooks (Hillsboro, Oregon USA) - See all my reviews

This is perhaps the most disappointing entry in the otherwise strong Walt Disney Treasures series, mainly because there's so little about Disneyland itself in it. The two discs feature four episodes from the Disney TV series, plus a companion feature so brief (under 9 minutes!) that it's hardly worth inclusion:

"The Disneyland Story" from 1954 shows how the TV series was essentially created to help bankroll construction of the theme park, but the episode features virtually no footage of the park or its construction (which was completed, remarkably, in less than a year). Instead, we see only models, padded with a rare glimpse of "Song of the South" but only in black-and-white. (Elsewhere in the Treasures series, footage originally filmed in color but broadcast in black-and-white is shown on the DVDs in color, but not this time, probably because the Disney Company has long been embarrassed by SOS's racial content--it's never been released in the U.S. on DVD.)

"Dateline Disneyland" features almost 90 minutes of live television coverage from opening day in 1955. It's heavily padded, however, with celebrity sightings, boring dedication speeches, marching bands and staged street performances that do little to highlight the attractions of the park. (How many times does the announcer have to say, "And here's Danny Thomas with his family!" before we get the point? I found myself fast-forwarding through two-thirds of this show.)

With the exception of some priceless color footage of jazz great Louis Armstrong performing on board the Mark Twain, "Disneyland After Dark" features mostly unremarkable stage acts interspersed with precious few scenes of the park lit up at night. All Walt Disney's scenes are filmed with actors on a sound stage--and they look it.

"Disneyland 10th Anniversary" from 1965 is the only segment that truly lives up to this set's billing as a showcase for Disneyland. Disney himself gives viewers a tour around the "imagineering" department, showing off early conceptual sketches and models for such classic attractions as the Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean, neither of which opened until after Disney's death in 1966. We meet such ground-breaking imagineers as Mary Blair and Marc Davis. Finally, we see color footage, narrated by Disney, of attractions that have long since been retired, like the Flying Saucers and Submarine Voyage. It takes a film like this to remind us what a boneyard Tomorrowland has become since Disney's death, but this episode alone is not enough to recommend the whole package.

31 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Sentimental and fun, but not an exceptional DVD, January 1, 2002

By	Seano "seanob" (Quincy, Massachusetts USA) - See all my reviews

Im a unique Disney fan. I can enjoy everything I read and view, but I can also be critical of the quality and content. It seems some of the Disney fans cannot do that. So here goes.

The presentation is awesome. A fine case and a cleverly packaged set. Probably a big reason I bought the set.

Like other reviewers, I was disappointed with the lack of chapter access and the generally poor quality of the "historic" clips. I understand the package is supposed to be archival but I have seen better clips on the Disney Channel.

There is plenty to enjoy...and on the second disc the sections on the imagineers is awesome. However, the "Magic Kingdom" piece on the second disc is choppy and contains footage from the other sections of the disc. Its called Magic Kingdom but it is about Disneyland. Hmmmm.

When Walt isnt in some corny staged scene...and he is allowed to just speak the moments shine with sentimentality and creativity. What a remarkable American!

The people watching is fun too. The Shah of Iran, Frank Sinatra (Sr. and Jr.!) Nehru...holy cow. Satchmo sings and plays the horn and you just wish you were there way back when.

So, what can I say? For a Disney addict, watch it and enjoy it (flaws and all). For others, Im not too sure this is worth buying.

Hope this was helpful.