Goth Day at Disneyland

OK, so I went to Disneyland on Sunday with my wife to ride Space Mountain, and it was Goth Day. Hundreds of pale people in black carrying umbrellas & wearing funny shoes were all over the park, this isn't the first time I've blundered into the middle of this and I have some questions for those who might be in the know: Is it the Sunday before Labor Day Weekend every year? Is there a new subset of Pirate Goths dressing like extras from the Pirates of the Carabean, or was it just a coincidence that I saw so many Pirate-y dressed Goths (or Gothishly dressed pirates)? How many Goths car pool to Disneyland, and who has to ride in the back of the hearse? Does anyone else consider hearses to be "Goth Minivans?" Are there standard accepted Goth colors to coordinate with your black clothes (i.e., I saw alot of Blood Red, Veinous blue & Royal Purple, but I also saw Acid Yellow & Flourescent Green, various shades of dark blue, and gold accents)? Why, when Goth is so often about death & it's accoutriments, is Goth such a young kids' game? Is there anything more pathetic than a middle-aged Goth with a combover & a bad dye job (this probably answers my previous question)? Do Goths consider themselves to be an "Alternative Lifestyle," and does anyone else consider them one when they seem mostly to be about accessorizing a black wardrobe with ripped stockings, straight dyed black hair, and crepe-soled boots with lots of buckles (kind of like a down-on-their-luck Michael Jackson impersonator)?

Rev. Dr. Frederick J. Freelance, Ph.D., D.F.S

[ Edited by: freddiefreelance 2005-08-29 16:01 ]

a friend of mine who is goth I know is really into the nightmare before christmas aspects of disneyland, but they only do that portion of haunted mansion part of the year (thank goodness!)

This reminds me of the time in the early 80s when they had "punk day" at Disneyland (unofficially of course). The Ventures, the Sir Douglas Quintet, and some other great old bands played so the word spread and Disneyland was invaded by punks! I guess there weren't that many - maybe a hundred or so. Me and my mod friends got up and danced in the isles when the Ventures played so security made us return to our seats. The Sir Douglas Quintet played in a smaller area by the Tomorrowland cafe but they only let couples in to dance so we had to wait outside and ask strangers if they wanted to dance. It took a while but I found a girl who obliged.

Flipside magazine put some pictures of "punk day" at Disneyland in the next issue, including one of me and my friends, but it's a tiny picture of bad quality and hard to see much of anything.

were the lines to The Haunted Mansion incredibly long?

i googled, and you were in the middle the Fifth Annual Bats Day

lucky you.

I would have loved to have attended Bats Day! I didn't know it existed. I lucked out in 2003 and caught the Haunted House in Nightmare Before Christmas mode on its very last weekend. I'm a huge NMBC fan and was down there for the Rose Bowl game and later we went to Disneyland. I was super happy with my luck on that one!

I had a bunch of photos of the Haunted Mansion uploaded at one time but can't find them. Only found this cheesy one of me with a NMBC Santa Jack cheesecake dessert. Yes, I ate it.

I have nothing valuable to add, but... I (not being goth by any stretch) would find it just as weird to see a bunch of Hawaiian shirt wearing Tiki Room freaks cruising Disneyland. Just a thought;)

Is there a discount for us senior citizen Goths?

Goth day at the happiest place on earth? what is going on here??

This isn't on the subject of Goth but once we went to a Six Flags Park and I swear it was Amish Day. Their style of dress was a cross between Little House on the Prairie and Mary Poppins. It was an odd thing to see. I always pictured them at a barn raising not going on the Scream Machine.

My girls sister is a goth. The thing i like about goths is the higher proportion that are likely to wear corsets. Cool.

But jeez, they gotta lighten up a little!

I always laugh at the "I'm making a personal statement by dressing as an individual" when they dress IDENTICAL to everyone in their close peer group. Yeh, real individual.

I have some handy links to help you further your knowledge of goth subculture and better prepare you to fit in with your new friends at the next Bats Day, Freddie. (For optimum effect you should download and listen to Rob D.'s "Clubbed to Death [Kurayamino Mix]" and read two or three poems from Baudelaire's "Les Fleurs du Mal.")

First, let's loosen up by doing some goth dancing. Many try goth dancing, but few do it well. This page will get you started (and seem very evocative to anyone who's ever been to a goth club): How To Dance Gothic

Okay, nice and limber? Now you're ready for How to be goth in 7 easy steps

Starting to fade a bit? Nothing perks up the motivation like seeing a really hot goth girl. This is best done at a goth club, of course, but in the meantime, here's one I spotted at the Catwalk here in Seattle a while back:

You can find a list of goth clubs in the San Diego area here, or head up to see the very pretty goths in the LA clubs like Bar Sinister, Dungeon or Perversion. (Warning: Goth club photographers tend to focus on the more, uh, photogenic scenes, and these links are not "work safe.")

Now, with renewed energy, you're ready to hit the books. Two fairly decent ones are Paul Hodkinson's Goth: Identify, Style and Subculture and Gavin Baddeley's Goth Chic: A Connoisseur's Guide to Dark Culture.

Finally, you can look for answers to your other questions in the Encylopedia Gothica

Have a fun time being goth Freddie (but don't forget to always look morose while doing it).

[ Edited by: monkeyskull 2005-08-29 23:34 ]

[ Edited by: monkeyskull 2005-08-30 00:09 ]

I'm with Exoticat..Bring out the bats! Or how about the "Birds"?

These were taken on my first trip ever to Disneyland and it was the happiest place on Earth for me, because that's where my hubby proposed to me. It was also a creepy place, which had its charms. This scene was captured our last day there. It looked like a scene out of Hitchcock's "The Birds"...they swooped right down into the park! It was wild!

The delicious dichotomy of good and evil is the stuff really good bedtime stories and sermons are made of. Also, it makes for a fantastic light and water show (ala Fantasia!)

Anyone still think it's strange to see goths walking around Disneyland?

STEP ONE: PICKING A GOTH NAME

*1) Names from the animal kingdom. The spookier the animal the better! (Bat, Rat, Raven, Cat, Spider, you get the idea.)

2. Your arcane, mysterious, sexual, ancestral vampire past?*

Yes, that's it!

I'm feeling pretty smug...(in this thread only) i've already got a Goth name for next year's Bats Day without even trying, and I already have a Vampire identity!

On 2005-08-30 00:42, Exoticat wrote:
STEP ONE: PICKING A GOTH NAME . . .

or you can get your goth name here.

... tattooed goth chicks rule...

We used to call goth dancing "Gothic Tai Chi".

Goths who were more than a little heavier than should be wearing spandex were called "Black Planets". Sisters of Mercy did a song by that title. You have to say it the way Andrew Eldrich sang it.

Oh best day ever at an amusement park was when the Lords of the New Church played Magic Mountain back in the 80's. ten tourists, everyone else was punk or goth. And boy did those ten people from Oklahoma looked REALLLLLY confused.

[ Edited by: TikiGardener 2005-08-30 08:14 ]

On 2005-08-30 08:12, TikiGardener wrote:
Oh best day ever at an amusement park was when the Lords of the New Church played Magic Mountain back in the 80's. ten tourists, everyone else was punk or goth. [ Edited by: TikiGardener 2005-08-30 08:14 ]

How dare you besmirch Stryper's 1984 appearance at Magic Mountain!
Now that was a day to remember....

On 2005-08-30 09:03, Tangaroa wrote:

On 2005-08-30 08:12, TikiGardener wrote:
Oh best day ever at an amusement park was when the Lords of the New Church played Magic Mountain back in the 80's. ten tourists, everyone else was punk or goth. [ Edited by: TikiGardener 2005-08-30 08:14 ]

How dare you besmirch Stryper's 1984 appearance at Magic Mountain!
Now that was a day to remember....

I think your comments belittle the momentous 1983 SPARKS concert at Magic Mountain.

:music: When You Wish Upon a Scar :music:

On 2005-08-30 10:39, Sabu The Coconut Boy wrote:
I think your comments belittle the momentous 1983 SPARKS concert at Magic Mountain.

Don't forget Spinal Tap's experimental jazz-metal performance there!

"I told them a hundred times: put Spinal Tap first and puppet show last!"

On 2005-08-29 17:20, Exoticat wrote:
I would have loved to have attended Bats Day! I didn't know it existed. I lucked out in 2003 and caught the Haunted House in Nightmare Before Christmas mode on its very last weekend. I'm a huge NMBC fan and was down there for the Rose Bowl game and later we went to Disneyland. I was super happy with my luck on that one!

Laney has seen this - but back in my WDI days, I pitched a Nightmare Before Christmas dark ride for Fantasyland, only to be told, "Ahhhhhh - that film didn't do so well - besides, it doesn't really have any fans..."

Then in 2001, Entertainment Art did their first "Haunted Mansion Holiday" overlay - it was a huge success! C'est La Vie....

Anyway - here are some of my renderings from that pitch...

Tang - did you ever go onto one of the Nightmare Before Christmas fan/chat sites and post pictures of your work. I think they'd probably treat you like godhead.

But then again, they'd probably eventually get used to you and take you for granted like we do poor Sven.

Sabu

P.S. I've been looking all through your picture and still haven't found the hidden tiki. Where'd you hide it?

[ Edited by: Sabu The Coconut Boy 2005-08-30 16:08 ]

On 2005-08-30 16:06, Sabu The Coconut Boy wrote:

P.S. I've been looking all through your picture and still haven't found the hidden tiki. Where'd you hide it?

I wasn't as addicted then as I am now....

On 2005-08-29 15:46, freddiefreelance wrote:
Is there anything more pathetic than a middle-aged Goth with a combover & a bad dye job Do Goths consider themselves to be an "Alternative Lifestyle," and does anyone else consider them one when they seem mostly to be about accessorizing a black wardrobe with ripped stockings, straight dyed black hair, and crepe-soled boots with lots of buckles (kind of like a down-on-their-luck Michael Jackson impersonator)?

---

Rev. Dr. Frederick J. Freelance, Ph.D., D.F.S

[ Edited by: freddiefreelance 2005-08-29 16:01 ]

He who lives in tiki hut should not throw tiki torches!!!!!

Fluorescent colored Hawaiian shirts, tiki-idol necklaces, plastic flower leis, rubber flip-flop sandals, straw hats, Don Ho wannabes---you tell me what's more pathetic?!?

Seems Bats Day has had better attendance then any tiki-event that I've attended.

Different strokes for different folks. Or as Walt Disney would be singing "It's a Small world After all"

Thanks! I just wish they would have taken my pitch seriously... It could have been a great ride!

We've been crating a lot of stuff for WD in the last few weeks.

A Disney rep is always nearby.

I pitched an idea that I told them would probably make them a major figure in Disney if they pitched it right.

And I only want 1 tenth of one percent of profits.

Disney should make a park that has nothing but the old attractions of Disneyland and Disney World. People would take their kids there first and show them all the rides they loved as a kid, and then go to Disneyland and enjoy the new rides. Heck that acreage at California Adventure would do nicely.

I'm glad that I have not one, but TWO photos of myself in this thread in the silly BILGE section. That way when the flyer at the Post Office is hung listing major Bilge Offenders it'll be easier for the world to know what one really looks like.

If Rodeotiki were able to be in here he could take my photo and put a title over my head and make that dream come true. But sadly he's been shut out. RIP non-Grand Members and former Bilge posters. I, for one, miss you all (but you'll never know it).

On 2005-08-30 15:57, Tangaroa wrote:
I pitched a Nightmare Before Christmas dark ride for Fantasyland, only to be told, "Ahhhhhh - that film didn't do so well - besides, it doesn't really have any fans..."

About six months after NBC came ou i went to my local Disney store and asked the staff when the video would be comming out, i was led to the manager who informed me that it would never be released.

Those must have been Menonites....I don't think the Amish will even put a zipper in their pants yet...damn buggy drivers.

Matty

On 2005-08-29 22:15, codelisa wrote:
This isn't on the subject of Goth but once we went to a Six Flags Park and I swear it was Amish Day. Their style of dress was a cross between Little House on the Prairie and Mary Poppins. It was an odd thing to see. I always pictured them at a barn raising not going on the Scream Machine.

Goth cousin of Crazy Al?

On 2005-08-29 15:46, freddiefreelance wrote:
OK, so I went to Disneyland on Sunday with my wife to ride Space Mountain, and it was Goth Day. Hundreds of pale people in black carrying umbrellas & wearing funny shoes were all over the park...

Hey freddiefreelance, Maria and I were at the Goth-iest place on earth last Sunday as well! Kind of an imprompteau get-away trip, to meet my best friend who was working at the Anaheim Convention Center for a few days.

We talked to a few goths to find out what was going on. There was also some kind of online group there as well, called "Rebells" or something like that. All people who consider themselves living an alternative lifestyle were welcomed on "Bat Day". Therefore, there were also a fair amount of Punkers, Greasers, etc. (And of course me representin' by wearing tiki garb).

You forgot to mention how blisteringly hot it was last Sunday. What was it, around 110 or 112 degrees? Those goths definitely weren't real vampires, because they weren't killed by the exposure to direct sunlight. But we were amused at seeing them all frying in the sun while wearing their victorian garb mixed with leather, coats, capes, top hats, etc.

Did you see the one 10 year old goth girl dressed like a goth tinkerbell? Green outfit, white makeup with black accents, and black crinkled wings? She was great! And she had the total goth attitude, like Cristina Ricci in The Addams' Family.

I actually snapped off some great Goth photos, especially down in the Main Street Photo Shop - they had some Goth group photos taken in front of the Haunted Mansion on display. But sadly, I lost my digital camera on Monday evening while riding the Haunted Mansion! I was itching to post some of the goth photos here - maybe I can if my camera ever turns up. Until then, enjoy pictures of Azrael Abyss and Circe Nightshade -your hosts from Goth Talk, and their friends Baron Nocturna, who works at Dunkin' Donuts, and The Beholder, who showers in gym class with his underwear on. Oh and Azrael's brother Glenn.

Jab, I remember going to Disneyland in '84 & they didn't want to let me in 'cause of my Mohawk, do you think it was a holdover from that day?

Elicia, yeah, I was able to do the search later & found Bats Day myself. This wasn't the first time I've run into it, it was just the first time I thought to ask someone on the 'net what it was.

Monkeyskull, I've known Goths for 20 years & never knew how do dance Goth. :) That Goth Girl who's picture you showed & the ones from those nightclubs' sites look more like "Lingere Goths" (if there is such a thing?) than TikiGardener's "Black Planets," and most of the Goths at Disneyland that day were in the latter category.

TikiGardener, Lords of the New Church came by KROQ either before or after that show & I thought they looked pretty funny, and I was Combat Boots, torn jeans, a t-shirt that said "Eat the Rich" or "Stare into the Face of Death," a ripped flannel shirt (probably around my waist), 12 feet of ball chain on one wrist & spikes on the other, a mohawk and was smoking either Galoises or inhaling on a cheap cigar. But guys in straps & codpieces with teased hair is funny.

John Doe Tiki, was that you in the black-died combover? I was the guy in the flourescent orange Hawaiian shirt & kukui nut lei, and I still think that combover was funnier than me. Combovers are funny on anyone.

Mai Tai, I asked someone what was going on when I saw Bats Day several years ago but I couldn't remember anything that they said about it. I didn't see the Goth Tinkerbelle, but I did see some cool Goth Pirates (a'la PotC), and one woman dressed as a Goth Minnie Mouse. There were a few Punks, Greasers/Hot Rodders, Tattoo fans & Bondage-types, but mostly it was really, Really they-show-their-individuality-by-dressing-alike Goths. I'm sure even more showed up as the sun set, but we left a little after noon when it started getting really hot and went to the San Diego Zoo's Nighttime Zoo (now that would be an interesting place for a Goth Night!).

I guess they set the date for Bats Night before the "Haunted Mansion Holiday" overlay came out, the opening night for "Haunted Mansion Holiday" would seem a natural for something like this...

Rev. Dr. Frederick J. Freelance, Ph.D., D.F.S

[ Edited by: freddiefreelance 2005-09-06 13:10 ]

... tall, tattooed goth chicks with red, blonde, black or blue hair rule...

... must have a high gpa...

... and enjoy current events, reading & salt water...

... How many Goth kids does it take to change a lightbulb?..

... None, they just sit and cry in the dark...