The Disneyland Book of Secrets 2014: One Local's Unauthorized, Rapturous and Indispensable Guide to the Happiest Places on Earth (199 page)

Paradise Pier Gear and Grub

Gear:

Boardwalk Bazaar
(Formerly
Man, Hat n’ Beach
)

[
FastView:
 
Accessories, snacks, hats—and a funhouse mirror.
]

This little shop received a makeover in winter 2012, emerging as the
Boardwalk Bazaar
, with a tasteful sign in keeping with
DCA
’s classy new boardwalk.  But prior to the makeover, this was
Man, Hat n’ Beach
–a clever but strained pun referencing one of So Cal’s beach communities.

Man, Hat n’ Beach
… Manhattan Beach.  Savvy?  (As
Captain Jack
would ask.)  Sandwiched between the even smaller
Point Mugu
shop and the expansive
Sideshow Shirts
, the former
Man, Hat n’ Beach
’s cramped interior connected with both stores, making it easy for Guests to stroll from one shop to another while they browsed.

You c
ouldn’t miss
Man, Hat n’ Beach
, given its garish sign, composed of purple, green, and orange metallic letters above a buttercup-and-butterscotch-striped sunburst behind a chalk-faced jack-in-the-box clown with pink cheeks, bulbous red nose, pop-eyes, and a Joker-like grin.  He had dabbed two mustard-yellow stripes on each cheek, like war paint.  Rather than looking like a
Disney
character, he was disturbingly reminiscent of the clown adorning the façade of the long-gone “Foolish House” at Coney Island’s Dreamland.

It wa
s worth braving the clown sign, though, because the interior of
Man, Hat n’ Beach
was fun.  You found a wealth of
Disney
-themed peaked caps, hats, and visors, including
Mickey Groom
and
Minnie Bride Ear Hats
and the plush blue
Sorcerer Mickey
caps.  If you wanted to see what you looked like in the hat before you purchased it, you checked your reflection in one of the shop’s distorting funhouse mirrors.

If the temperatures we
re cool (and contrary to the endless summer portrayed in most films and TV shows, So Cal
does
get chilly in the winter;
Anaheim
temps can drop into the 30’s and 40’s in December and January), you were glad to find a selection of
Disney
gloves and scarves.  If it was summer and you forgot your beach towel, you could buy a
Disney
towel here.  Hungry? 
Man, Hat n’ Beach
sold a limited array of popcorn, pretzels, and snacks–all
Disney
-themed, of course.

So here’s the good news:  As part of
Paradise Pier
’s transformation into a gorgeous Victorian ocean park,
Man, Hat n’ Beach
’s grinning clown sign was removed. 
Man, Hat n’ Beach
was refurbished in a far less outlandish, far more respectable Victorian style once budget permitted, and was renamed
Boardwalk Bazaar
.  Elaborate new attractions like
World of Color
and
Ariel’s Undersea Adventure
had taken precedence, but the Midway shop finally received its face lift.  And here’s more good news:  Even with the changes, the shop still boasts
Disney
hats, scarves, accessories, and snacks galore–and you can still check your reflection in a funhouse mirror.
Did You Know?
  Does the
real
Manhattan Beach actually have a
Disney
connection?  Yes. 
Roy Elias Disney
,
Walt
’s nephew, built a studio complex in Manhattan Beach in the 1990’s. 
Manhattan Beach Studios
provided the soundstages for
ABC
TV programs like
Ally McBeal
and
Boston Legal
as well as non-
ABC
productions like “The O.C.”  DreamWorks and
Disney
used the soundstages to film scenes for hits like “Almost Famous” and
Pirates of the Caribbean
.  In 2004,
Roy Elias Disney
sold
Manhattan Beach Studios
to Oak Tree Capital Management Co.  On December 16, 2009, 43 years and one day after his uncle’s death,
Roy Elias Disney
passed away.

Dinosaur Jack’s Sunglass Shack
  (Demolished 2009)

[
FastView:
 
Defunct.  This entry has been retained because it’s of historical interest.
]

Sculpted in the shape of a 30-foot tall pink-purple dinosaur with yellow splotches,
Dinosaur Jack’s Sunglass Shack
recalled the many whimsical California and Route 66 buildings of the 20
th
century that were constructed by creative merchants, often architectural amateurs, to catch the attention of passing motorists. 
Dinosaur Jack’s
comfortably fit the original theme of this slice of
Paradise Bay
’s western shore, with the nearby
Mulholland Madness
coaster themed to wild driving, and the adjacent
Souvenir 66
stand.

However, as part of its extensive overhaul,
Paradise Pier
kicked the kitsch and evolved into a gracious Victorian seaside landscape.  Neither Route 66
tchotchkes
nor giant, sunglass-wearing dinosaurs fit into this new world, even though in 2006 the dino was painted a more subdued green.

Dinosaur Jack
’s was trippy on the outside and it was outrageous inside, with colorful, eclectic, clashing signs, and giant photos of sunglass-wearing humans suspended from the ceiling.  There were cheap mirrors of different shapes in which Guests could look at themselves to decide if a pair of sunglasses suited.  There was a bizarre, striking collage of hubcaps and toy cars and sunglasses and other shiny, road-related doodads large and small.  It was yummy from a folk-art perspective but would be pure poison if you tried to retain it in elegant Victorian surroundings.

Along with the
Corn Dog Castle
and
Souvenir 66
, in 2009
Dinosaur Jack’s Sunglass Shack
was cordoned off from Guests, blocked by the seemingly ubiquitous blue fences that enclosed the extensive construction site for
The Little Mermaid:  Ariel’s Undersea Adventure
attraction.

Dinosaur Jack’s
specialized in sunglasses, but also sold a wealth of
Disney pins
and other knick-knacks.  Those are now sold somewhere else, because
Dinosaur Jack
’s saurian shop has been torn down and has gone the way of … well, you know.  It’s now extinct.

But i
f you or your little ones are dinosaur fans, don’t despair.  You can see plenty of mechanical dinos at the
Disneyland Resort
.  When you ride the
Disneyland Railroad
from the
Tomorrowland Station
to the
Main Street Station
you pass through
Primeval World
, one of
Disneyland Park
’s best (and best-kept) secrets, a mini-kingdom where dinosaurs from the cute to the cutthroat still fly, crawl, and stomp across a steamy, lava-washed primordial landscape to the dramatic strains of a soundtrack by legendary composer
Bernard Herrmann
. 
Did You Know?
  Dinosaurs have always been popular roadside attractions in the U.S.  From Kentucky to Indiana to California, there are still plenty of dinos–from the cute to the disturbing realistic–towering along the roadside.  When visiting California, swing by the Cabazon Dinosaurs at 50800 Seminole Drive, Cabazon, CA  92230, and say “Hi” to Dinny and Mr. Rex, the prehistoric brain-children of Claude Bell, formerly a sculptor at Knott’s Berry Farm.

Midway Mercantile

[
FastView:
  Toy Story
merchandise of every description in a charming little midway shop.
]

Guests exiting
Toy Story Midway Mania!
are routed into this lovely octagonal shop with its high cupola.  Like
Toy Story Midway Mania!
the shop is designed in the elegant Victorian style that transformed
Paradise Pier
.  The soft light streaming through the cupola windows and the gentle blues, pinks, and creams of the store’s palette give it the feel of a Victorian nursery, as do the shelves overflowing with toys and hangers heavy with kid’s clothes.

Midway Mercantile
opened in early summer of 2008, just before
Toy Story Midway Mania!
debuted and, naturally enough, it’s themed to the
Toy Story
movies.  If you or your little ones are fans of the
Toy Story
films and characters, be sure to add this shop to your itinerary.

It’s here that you’ll find
Toy Story
merchandise that you won’t necessarily find in other
DCA
or
Disneyland
stores.  Want a big bucketful of the
Green Army Men
?  A red cowgirl hat that looks like
Jesse
’s?  A
Rex
doll? 
Wheezy
plush doll? 
Mr. Potato Head
figure?  A
Woody
paratrooper?  A vintage
Slinky Dog
?

How about a T-shirt bearing the image of
Mr. Potato Head
, or those adorable, three-eyed
Little Green Men
?  A
Buzz Lightyear
blaster, glove, or full uniform?  A miniature
Etch-a-Sketch
keychain that really works?  All these and so much more are sold at the
Midway Mercantile
.

The
nursery-like environment is soothing and pleasant, making this one of the nicest and best-themed stores in
DCA
.  Even if you’re just browsing, take a moment before or after your
Toy Story Midway Mania!
spin to pop into the
Midway Mercantile
. 
Did You Know?
  At carnivals, fairs, and fun parks, a midway is the site’s main, usually central avenue, often lined with games of chance and unusual shows or exhibits.  At the famous 1893 Chicago World’s Fair which
Walt
’s father helped to build (known more formally as the World’s Columbian Exhibition of 1893), there was an extensive Midway that showcased “villages” from around the globe (including Austrian, Dutch, German, Indian, and Turkish settlements), curiosities like an Ice Railway and an animal show, and, dominating the entire boulevard, the world’s first Ferris Wheel.  Designed by George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr., the Ferris Wheel spun 36 huge gondolas, each capable of carrying up to 60 people. 
Walt
’s father
Elias Disney
was one of the many construction workers who built the fair’s multitude of classic and impressive structures and facades.  The gorgeous, fanciful, and largely illusory fairgrounds often were–and still are–referred to as “the White City”.  Visitors to the 1893 World’s Fair and its exotic Midway were inspired by it; L. Frank Baum, for example, wove elements and flavors from the White City into his numerous
Oz
tales.  And
Elias Disney
’s stories about the fair sowed some of the seeds that led to youngest son
Walt
’s creation of
Disneyland
and his original design of
EPCOT
.

Point Mugu
Tattoo

[
FastView:
 
Route 66 merchandise—postcards, keychains, prints, and clothes.
]

A tiny shop on
Paradise Pier
’s
Boardwalk
,
Point Mugu
is wedged between the
Games of the Boardwalk
to the east and other
Paradise Pier
stores (
Boardwalk Bazaar
,
Sideshow Shirts
) to the west.  A mere hole-in-the-wall,
Point Mugu
might be invisible to Guests were it not for its large, impossible-to-miss sign adorned by a heavily-tattooed bald man with luxurious black mustaches.  Inside, vintage photos of actual tattooed ladies adorn the upper reaches of one wall.