Disneyland Board Games, Merch History, and Hidden Cameos

Zombies 4 and Merch Drought

• 🧟 Zombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires has been released, introducing new characters like Victoria (a vampire) and Nova (a day walker).
• 🛍️ Despite the new movie, there's a surprisingly small amount of merchandise available, with only three dolls currently on the Disney Store.
• 🎶 The film features nine new songs and a closing number called "Show the World," promoting a message of unity.

Haunted Mansion's Massive Merch Drop

• 👻 A new, extensive 52-item Haunted Mansion merchandise line has been released, themed around the Ghost Host.
• 👕 Highlights include baseball jerseys and a Spirit Jersey featuring the iconic wallpaper pattern or the worker costume design.
• 🏠 Some items are park-exclusive, so checking disneystore.com and in-park locations is recommended.

Dinosaur Ride Farewell Merch

• 🦕 Animal Kingdom is releasing a commemorative merchandise collection for the Dinosaur ride before its closure at the end of 2025.
• 👕 The collection includes a t-shirt with the tagline "It's fast. It's a blast. It's in the past. The future truly is in the past," a water bottle, magnet, and pin.
• 😔 The design is noted as generic, with a comparison made to Walmart or generic Jurassic Park merchandise.

Walt's Early Merchandise Strategy

• 💡 Walt Disney was a genius marketer, focusing on merchandise that people would display at home to showcase their park visit.
• 🥄 Early items included baby bibs, crayon aprons, pennants, sterling silver spoons, compacts, pill boxes, and jewelry featuring park attractions.
• 📺 Walt also strategically used items like tumblers, trays, ashtrays, salt and pepper shakers, and collector plates to extend the Disney brand into homes.
• 📚 Temporary tattoos and even replicas of the Jungle Cruise boat were sold, alongside items like the Disneyland souvenir map and guidebooks, which were intentionally sold at a loss to drive future park visits.

The Mystery of Bugs Bunny in a Disneyland Game

• 🎲 In the mid-1950s, Disneyland released themed board games, including a Fantasy Land game from 1955.
• 🐰 This game featured numerous Disney characters, but notably included a rabbit that resembles Bugs Bunny alongside characters from Alice in Wonderland.
• 🧐 Disney officially states the rabbit is Max Hare from the Silly Symphony short "The Tortoise and the Hare," but the visual evidence strongly suggests it is indeed Bugs Bunny, a Warner Bros. character, a subtle and humorous inclusion.