Disneyland was closed to the general public on the 4th in order to allow the company's public relations (PR) machine unfettered access to the park. Thanks to David who won tickets from KTLA's Morning News Show (we need to tip our golden ears to him here), I was able to be a part of the small audience for a live broadcast yesterday from the hub. This allowed for a 6:30 AM entry to Disneyland, the chance to watch the KTLA folks at work, and then afterwards we got to spend some very relaxed time in the park. (Basically it was just Annual Passholders who won tickets, and pleasantly surprised Disney Hotel guests who found an invite and ducats slipped under their doors that morning.) It was a chance to see the PR and media machine at work, and it gave Disney enough visitors to serve as a backdrop for the parade and many of the other staged events and video shoots happening throughout the park. In this very clever way they avoided putting off any paying customers so they could close down areas as needed to get things done, and visitors in return got a very un-crowded park to enjoy. It was a "Win-Win" situation for everyone involved. In today's special update I'll give you a photo quick peek into my day along with my brief impressions, and in a follow-up (hopefully tomorrow if she can get it done) fellow MiceAge columnist Sue Kruse will continue with part two of the story, this time told from the side of the invited press. Sue has been attending the many media events so she will fill you in on the announcements made, as well as giving you a peek into the many presentations that were closed to the public. Got your cheese Danish in hand? Have that espresso made for you just right? Let's get started then! Launching the 50th It's 6 AM in Anaheim and on any other day I would still be fast asleep. But duty calls on this overcast morning and I find myself on a cold and sparsely occupied tram on the way to Disneyland's esplanade. The first things I noticed on the way to check myself in were the new bag search tents (inset below). There were also changes made to the ticket booths. (They had begun working on them late Monday night.) Besides adding the 50th icons, the ride closure boards have been replaced with lightboxes pushing the parkhopper tickets, and the hoppers have also been emphasized on the price boards over the ticket windows. After checking in (and being given a nice KTLA tote with a bottle of water and an autographed photo) we were led into the park and down Main Street. Everywhere there were cars parked and media crews working away, over at the Opera House they were rehearsing the presentation they would do later on that day.
As we approached the hub we could see several shoots all going on at once, each positioned so they had a clear view of a park icon. The lead parade float was even out to be used as a video backdrop. THERE ARE FOUR PAGES TODAY - CLICK HERE FOR PAGE TWO
Sleeping Beauty Castle decorated for the celebration
The American theme park Disneyland celebrated its golden anniversary on Thursday, in Anaheim, California.

The theme park, created and opened by Walt Disney in 1955, hosted a special gala opening at 1pm in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle, the world-famous icon of Disneyland.

CEO of the Walt Disney Company Michael Eisner, COO Bob Iger, honorary Disneyland Ambassador Julie Andrews and a host of stars opened the celebration, which is scheduled to run for eighteen months.

Singers Christina Aguilera and LeAnn Rimes sang Disney classics, while actors Tim Allen and Steve Martin opened new attractions. Martin had worked at Disneyland as a teenager, and Aguilera was part of the Mickey Mouse Club in the 1980s.

Within California, Disney is calling it the ''Happiest Homecoming on Earth'', and worldwide it is known as the ''Happiest Celebration on Earth''. Several attractions have been swapped between parks, and the four main Disney theme parks (the Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland, Disneyland Paris and Hong Kong Disneyland) gave a salute to Disneyland via live satellite feed.

The ceremony was hit with deep purple stormclouds but no rain. 

The park celebrates its actual birthday on July 17, 2005. There are no clear details on how Disney will mark the occasion.