The Truth about These Absurd Disney Myths
No, Walt Disney’s frozen head isn’t lying in a jar somewhere under Pirates of the Caribbean.
Somehow, people believe rumors like this, even though a quick Snopes check would prove otherwise.
Sometimes, Disney fans would rather believe the unfathomable over the obvious.
Today, let’s examine the truth about some bizarre Disney myths.
The Myth: Aladdin Can Kill Disney Guests
I’ll start with this one so that you can understand how absurd many Disney rumors are.
Out of the topics I’ll discuss today, only one could pass the credibility laugh test. And it sure ain’t this one!
Some folks believe that Disney has empowered one and only one costumed cast member with an essential task.
These people maintain that Aladdin’s sword is real. By real, I mean that it could stab somebody or worse. Remember The Quickening?
Why would Aladdin be running around reenacting scenes from Highlander?
The argument is that Aladdin is secretly in charge of policing Disney theme parks.
If the Disney Prince recognizes that the greater good is in peril, he must spring into action and slay any evildoers!
The Truth: Disney doesn’t arm its cast members with weapons. It’s not that kind of place.
In fact, we’d witnessed several different theme park fights recently, each of which went viral on social media.
Do you remember Aladdin charging in as a crusader for justice in any of them? Of course not.
Aladdin is always a friend, never a foe.
As is the case with most of these rumors, someone posted something as satire that more nefarious sorts passed around as accurate.
Maybe Aladdin should use his sword on these liars.
The Myth: Disney Closed the Skyway after Someone Jumped
Okay, here’s the story I could see someone believing…and that’s primarily because it did happen from time to time.
Daredevils at Disneyland recognized that the foliage in the area could allow them to attempt some risky maneuvers.
When the Skyway to Fantasyland and Skyway to Tomorrowland operated, the occasional guest would talk big about jumping from the gondola to a tree.
Most of these conversations were just bluster. However, a few individuals did make the attempt over the years.
The Truth: The most infamous incident involved one such daredevil. He noticed the gap in the gondola allowed him to hop from his seat.
Reports conflict on his intent, but he later sued Disney for $25,000. The “victim” claimed that he’d fallen rather than jumped due to unsafe seating on the gondola.
Soon afterward, some video reportedly surfaced from the 1994 incident that had left him open to legal liability of his own.
The man dropped the lawsuit after it became clear he had no shot of winning.
Later that year, Disney would close the Skyway, but it had no correlation to the incident. In fact, Magic Kingdom shut down its Skyway less than five years later.
Even so, I don’t think it’s coincidental that the designers enclosed the modern gondolas on the Disney Skyliner. Nobody’s jumping out of them.
The Myth: Disney Won’t Move a Costumed Cast Member’s Dead Body
I…You…what?!
How is this real? Sadly, it is, though.
Some sources have suggested that should a Disney cast member die while wearing a costume, Disney will just leave them there until the shift ends.
The argument is that Disney doesn’t want guests to notice them dragging off a lifeless body in a Winnie the Pooh costume.
The Truth: I didn’t hammer the point home about Aladdin, but you cannot just attack somebody with a sword. Local, state, and federal laws apply.
That same statement applies to dead bodies. Park officials share legal and ethical requirements for treating a lifeless cast member with respect.
Also – and this really should go without saying – if you ever notice a dead body, you should contact the authorities. That’s what Disney does, too.
The Myth: Disneyland Is Moving to Texas
This one popped up during the pandemic, but that’s because few readers vetted the story.
A satirical site wrote a piece that Disneyland planned to move from California to Texas.
Then, someone suggested that Walt Disney World was going to Texas instead. At that point, all bets were off.
Readers ran with the information rather than pausing to consider the ludicrous nature of it.
The Truth: Disney would need to invest at least $5 billion, possibly even $10 billion, to build a new theme park.
The only way that the company could afford to do that is by leveraging revenue generated at the existing parks.
So, the idea that Disney would close one park to open another is ludicrous.
Somehow, that’s far from the first iteration of the story, though.
In the past, I’ve tracked similar rumors about places like Toronto Islands in Canada and Escanaba, Michigan.
Some people really want to believe that Disney will leave California and/or Florida for greener pastures.
If Disney ever does build another theme park, it’ll be to augment the others.
The Myth: Turkey Legs Aren’t Made from Turkeys
OH, COME ON!
Stop being so gullible, internet!
Yes, some folks have bought into a satirical story about the nature of turkey legs.
These beauties have evolved into the pride of Disney theme parks over the past few years. Now, they’re as iconic as Dole Whips and Mickey Mouse Ice Cream Bars.
However, some folks fixate on their size, wondering how Disney created turkey legs so large when turkeys…aren’t.
I totally understand why the spatial reasoning on this one might mess with your mind a bit.
Over the years, a whisper campaign has started about the emu and other creatures. These rumors suggest that Disney calls something turkey that isn’t.
The Truth: Few people realize that wild turkeys are generally smaller than those raised on farms. Also, male turkeys possess longer legs than females.
So, there’s no great mystery or shocking secret here. It’s not a soylent green situation.
Your mind may go to female wild turkeys, but Disney parks sell farmed male turkey legs.