Alumni Rekindle Disney Magic

“You can take the man out of Disneyland; but you can’t take Disneyland out of the man!” That’s the reason Van France founded the Disneyland Alumni Club in 1983, he said.

The dapper and smiling France, for 35 years an employee of the Magic Kingdom, was among a few hundred Disneyland alums celebrating the theme park’s 35th anniversary on Tuesday at the Disneyland Hotel.

“Disneyland is a magical, fun place,” said France, whose first job at the park was training employees. “A fantasy land! To quote Walt Disney, ‘Disneyland is the star; the employees are supporting members of the cast.’

“Our job is to create happiness for others. I’ve told our cast members, ‘Emphasize the magic mirror of your smile. Use smiling phrases. Say please and thank you. We have guests, not customers!’ ”

That kind of training gives Disneyland employees a solid scoop of self-esteem, explained Franny Ray, who organized the bash with Andrea Manes, alum president. And it makes working at the park an affirming experience--even after employees have gone on to other things. “When I tell people I used to work at Disneyland, they always want me to sit down and tell them more,” Ray said.

“How many corporations can you think of where employees who have left want to come back just to get together?” Manes asked. “In our club, it doesn’t matter whether you’ve worked one summer or 35 years. We just want to get back together and have fun!”

And have fun they did. First up: a cocktail reception where they posed for souvenir Polaroids with Roger Rabbit and Goofy, had their caricatures drawn, and perused a gallery of pictorial blowups featuring park visitors such as President Richard M. Nixon with his daughter Tricia; President John F. Kennedy; and President Bush and Barbara Bush.

Then it was into the colorful ballroom, transformed into its own sort of magic kingdom with columns of cotton-candy-pink balloons, trailing orchid centerpieces and a bigger-than-life birthday cake sitting on stage. A perfect touch: a glittering silver disco ball with Mickey Mouse ears!

After helping themselves to fare at four buffet stations, guests settled back to watch a performance by original Golden Horseshoe Revue stars Wally Boag, Fulton Burley and Betty Taylor.