Walt Disney World Resort — and other Disney Parks around the globe — would not operate as seamlessly as they do without the efforts of their hard-working Cast Members each and every day.
Because Disney’s Animal Kingdom is home to the Harambe Wildlife Reserve, animals sometimes do very unexpected things, accidentally making exciting — and sometimes unwanted — memories for Park Guests.
One Cast Member shared a particularly interesting tale with People magazine — one that will be quite harrowing for those who suffer from Ophidiophobia!
The Cast Member said:
“I worked a ride in Animal Kingdom a long time ago. I saw a 10-foot-long snake emerge from an area with lots of plants and bushes. It slowly works its way through a line of about 200 people. It weaved its way through people’s legs, strollers, bags, etc… and then it just casually slipped back into another wooded area. No one noticed!”
While the CM did not share which Animal Kingdom ride this situation occurred at, it is quite likely that it was Kilimanjaro Safaris. There are, however, some animals that roam — and fly! — throughout the theme park, so the snake could have made its way through the queue at Expedition Everest, Kali River Rapids, or any number of other attractions.
One Disney Cast Member shared an extremely unique Guest story with People magazine — seemingly a Guest decided to channel Tarzan while waiting in line to meet Beast from Beauty and the Beast.
The Cast Member shared:
“A mother climbed a tree and swung down in the middle of another family’s meet and greet with Beast. She didn’t want to wait in line.”
Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland Resort, and other Disney theme parks globally have rules against line-cutting, so this Guest was clearly violating Park regulations. The Cast Member did not share what consequences the tree-swinging Guest faced after her escapade.
At this time, Disney World visitors can see Beast while dining at Be Our Guest Restaurant in Magic Kingdom Park. He also sometimes appears at special events, such as After Hours.
Princess Belle, however, is available for daily meet and greets with Guests in EPCOT’s France pavilion.
Some Disney Guests are sharing their frustrations as they found others are being more and more disrespectful during certain shows and rides at Walt Disney World. Not only have Guests noticed others talking during shows at the Parks, but they use their cell phones on dark rides, which ruins the experience for others.
In a more recent incident, Guests repeatedly broke the rules at Carousel of Progress, resulting in the Disney Cast Member to become extremely aggravated.
Walt Disney and WED Enterprises teamed up and created what is now the longest-running stage show in American theater history. Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress was originally created as the prime feature of the General Electric Pavilion for the 1964 New York World’s Fair and currently resides in Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort.
This attraction, created by Walt Disney himself, is a rotating theater audio-animatronic stage show attraction, currently located in Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World Resort. The official description listed on the Walt Disney World website reads:
Travel through the 20th century and marvel at the evolution of technology during this classic Audio-Animatronics show.
Follow an American family over 4 generations of progress and watch technology transform their lives.
During each era, learn how the technological marvels of the day made life more comfortable—and paved the way for unimaginable innovations.
Discover how gas lamps, the hand-cranked washing machine and gramophone made the pre-electric era a breeze.
Watch the advent of electricity give rise to modern conveniences like the electric iron, the radio—and the simple, revolutionary light bulb.
See how the automatic dishwasher and television set transformed the American household.
In a video posted to TikTok, you can hear a Cast Member come over the loud speaker and say, with extreme emotion, “Ladies and gentleman, once again, this is for your safety, please remain seated! If anyone stands up, the theater can not continue. If Guests continue to exit the theater, this attraction cannot continue. Please remain fully seated and the carousel will rotate as soon as possible, thank you.”
Within a few seconds of his first announcement, he had to come back on the loud speaker and state, once again, “Once again, everyone, please sit down. If you exit the theater this show can not continue. Once again, please remain fully seated or else the attraction cannot continue motion. If you are standing in the theater, please sit down.”
Then, once again, within a few seconds, another Cast Member comes on the loud speaker and repeats this in spanish.
For a fourth time, a Cast Member had to come on the loud speaker and ask Guests to remain seated. This prompted other Guests to end up exiting the theater as it was clear that the ride would not be starting any time soon since the Guests were not listening.
Disney has rules and regulations in place for the safety of both the Guests and Cast Members. One of these rules include remaining seated with hands, arms, feet, and legs inside the ride vehicles at all times. Although Carousel of Progress is a theater, it is a rotating theater and is considering a moving attraction, meaning Guests must remain fully seated in order for the attraction to operate.
Disney Cast Members tend to go above and beyond in order to ensure the Guest is happy and receives the best customer service there is around. By doing so, Disney Cast Members tend to meet people from all around the world and remember those people for the rest of their lives.
But sometimes, Cast Members tend to deal with rude and unusual Guests, making for fun stories to tell their friends and families. One time, a Disneyland Cast Member dealt with a certain Guest who had an odd fascination and obsession with her.
A former Disneyland Cast Member took to social media to share her story. When she was around the age of 19-20, she worked at the Disneyland Parks as a character host, meaning she worked at various locations. One day she was working at a Princess breakfast in Disneyland Park where she had an older Guest ask to take a picture with her. The Guest was a male around the age of 40, but the Cast Member didn’t think anything of it as this happened quite often since her costume made her look like a popper at the Castle.
She did mention the Guest was an Annual Passholder and was very kind and sweet and never thought anything of it at the time.
On a different day, the Cast Member ran into the same Guest again while she was working at the Cars location. And then, on another day, the Guest came back to visit the Cast Member… again.
On the third time the Guest came to visit the Cast Member at the Cars location, he waited for the Cast Member to come back from her lunch break to hand deliver her a letter, with a printed photo of the two of them from the Princess breakfast location, along with his phone number and email on the back.
The Cast Member explained that after this encounter, she did not work at the Cars location again.
You can hear the Cast Members story in her TikTok video below:
When visiting the Disney Parks around the world, there are thousands of Cast Members that Guests can interact with on a daily basis. While many of those Cast Members go unrecognized, there are some Cast Members who become legends. One of those people is Maynard Smith. Smith has worked at Disneyland Resort for almost 30 years and seems to be almost as famous as the Park itself.
While Maynard has worked at a number of Disneyland attractions over the years, he is most well-known for making Guests laugh and smile at Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room. His ‘evil twin’ is also seen working at the popular Haunted Mansion attraction. Having seen Maynard Smith in action myself, he is truly one of a kind. He gets so into the role that he is playing, and it is clear to everyone that he absolutely loves what he does. He makes each and every interaction a truly memorable experience.
Sadly, we are now learning that Maynard will be retiring from his work at Disneyland. Maynard shared the news that his last day at The Happiest Place on Earth will be April 1 — and no, it is not an April Fool’s Day Joke. A Facebook group dedicated to the amazing Cast Member shared a message that he sent to them. The message from Maynard read:
Howdy folks:
Once upon a time, I was a freelance artist (primarily cartooning, sculpting, character design and humorous illustration), and in April of 1993 I was hired to create a children’s television show for a new TV station in Northern Idaho. However, the owner quickly ran out of money so I returned to Southern California on a Greyhound bus.
Being a freelance artist had its ups and downs, and at that point it was time to take a break and do something else. So I started thinking about other types of work that might be enjoyable, and then something came to mind from years before when I attended high school. During breaks and lunches, I would wander around campus greeting students and teachers and attempt to cheer them up with silly stories, and other goofy activities. Then in my senior year, I was given the position of school mascot, otherwise referred to as ‘Spirit Leader’ , a role that uniquely described what I like to do.
But where could I find a job that would allow me the freedom to act goofy and cheer people up with silly stories? The best place that I could think of was the jungle ride in Anaheim. So, I applied for a job, and for the last 28+ years (starting date: November 14, 1993) my ‘twin brothers’ and I have enjoyed the blessings of creating happiness in different locations throughout the park for people around the world.
My ‘twin brothers’ and I are now looking forward to a new adventure. Our hope is that we will be able to fulfill a longtime dream of combining visual arts and humorous storytelling (illustrated children’s books, greeting cards, and short videos). We will also be considering other creative opportunities, like voice-over for family-friendly productions, commercials, etc. Additionally, the resources and time otherwise spent on communting to-and-from work will now be conserved, so theoretically there will also be more time available for painting abstracts and making other art for the gallery.
So as of April 1st (April Fools’ Day) 2022, my ‘twin brothers’ and I will be retiring from the park, and moving on to other creative activities. However, even though the course of this river is changing directions, please feel free to remain seated in your kayaks, because this ride may become interesting.
My thanks to the people I’ve met along the way, the creator of that wonderful place in Anaheim, and The Big Guy Upstairs who blesses us everday.
I’ll be in the park on and off through April 1st, so feel free to stop by and say “Howdy”.
– Maynard (and his ‘twin brothers’)
According to The Orange County Register, Maynard grew up in Garden Grove, CA — which is only about 5 miles from Disneyland. Maynard spent his youth visiting The Happiest Place on Earth, so it seems as though his work there was predestined. Maynard became such a hit at the Resort that Guests would frequently seek him out whenever they visited.
