Pirates of the Caribbean (Disneyland)

"As it turns out, some family members don't want the dearly departed to depart the park in the afterlife, and have scattered cremated ashes on the grounds. Back in 2007, Disneyland cast members were reportedly alerted that a woman was seen sprinkling a powdery substance into the water at the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction. The ride was shut down again that same year when a group of people left a pile of ashes in the Captain's Quarters section of the ride. These aren't isolated incidents; apparently the Haunted Mansion is another popular final resting place."

A little known legend states that the pirate skeletons were originally *real* human cadavers back in the 60's and the 70's, as Imagineers were unhappy with how fake the replicas looked. Eventually, the skeletons were swapped out.. all but one very real set skull and crossbones that still adorn the ride to this day. If you know where to look, you can still them affixed to the headboard of a skeleton in bed.

Pirates of the Caribbean is a log flume dark ride at Disneyland, the Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Park in Paris. The original version at Disneyland, which opened in 1967, was the last attraction whose construction was overseen by Walt Disney himself; he died three months before it opened. The ride, which originally told the story of a band of pirates including their troubles and their exploits, was replicated at the Magic Kingdom in 1973, at Tokyo Disneyland in 1983, and at Disneyland Paris in 1992. Each version of the ride has a different façade, but has a similar ride experience. The ride is known for giving rise to the song "Yo Ho (A Pirate's Life for Me)" written by George Bruns and Xavier Atencio. It also became the basis for the Pirates of the Caribbean film series, which debuted in 2003. Since 2006, Disney has incrementally incorporated characters from the film series into the Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, and Tokyo Disneyland versions of the rides.

The Disneyland version was the last attraction which Walt Disney himself participated in designing; it opened three months after his death, in the spring of 1967. It was originally envisioned to be a walk-through wax museum attraction. It is located within the New Orleans Square portion of Disneyland, its facade evoking antebellum era New Orleans, topped by a 31-star United States flag (which would indicate the 1850s). The ornate initials of Walt Disney and Roy Disney (W.D. and R.D.) can be seen entwined in the wrought iron railings above the attraction's entrance at Disneyland. An overhead sign at the boat dock names it for the famous pirate Jean Lafitte (although his name is spelled Laffite as the pirate himself originally spelled it, rather than with the English spelling which has now become standard), who fought alongside the U.S. Army at the Battle of New Orleans in the War of 1812. The second floor of the facade was originally designed to be a private Disney family apartment. Instead it later opened as an art-related retail/museum space called the Disney Gallery until late 2007 when it was replaced by the Disneyland Dream Suite.

The original installation at Disneyland was manufactured by Arrow Development. The attraction's passenger carrying boats are very similar to those in a patent assigned to Walt Disney Productions, but filed by Edgar A. Morgan, one of the founders of Arrow Development. Arrow participated in the design and development of many attractions at Disneyland from 1953.