It’s been 50 years since Pirate of the Caribbean opened at Disneyland! Pirates have been around in pop culture long before that attraction opened but the anniversary makes a great excuse to highlight how many pirates are part of the Disney family. From Long John Silver in Treasure Island to Jake and the Neverland Pirates there are more scoundrels and scallywags out there than Jack Sparrow.
Every D23 Expo the Disney Archives and D23 put together a stellar exhibition of artifacts, artwork, and rarities. This year it was all pirates. As a former Pirates of the Caribbean Cast Member I was drawn, nay obligated to partake of the rich history of Disney pirates.
Entrance to the exhibit is controlled so that it doesn’t get too crowded. We waited about 20 minutes before we went in. They are also pretty vigilant about food, drinks, and flash photography since the exhibit items are open to the environment and lighting is arranged strategically in some areas.The Grim Reaper carving from the Flying Dutchman. Pretty impressive up close.Will Turner’s (Orlando Bloom) costume from At World’s End and Dead Men Tell No Tales (minus the marine life).Props from the Flying Dutchman. I love how the books are in Dutch (someone paid attention to the legend and the name of the ship).I know you guys! A pig and the famous jail dog from Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean attraction. Yes there are duplicates of animatronics but these two had been retired. For those in the know the jail dog is in a location we Cast Members call Utility 3. Best way to remember it is that three pirates are trying to grab the keys from the dog.Ship’s wheel and scale model of the Flying Dutchman. Mood lighting was prevalent throughout the exhibit except in instances where white light was necessary for clear viewing.A ride vehicle from Peter Pan’s Flight in Disneyland. By the way, it was totally coincidental the two guests I photographed through the hole into the other side of the exhibit. VIPs get guided tours of the exhibit. In the white baseball cap is Disney Legend Richard Sherman!Davy Jones’s chest and heart (looks like the poor guys suffers from cardiac hypertrophy…) and Jack Sparrow’s Jar of Dirt (“I’ve got a jar of dirt! I’ve got a jar of dirt!”)Davy Jones’s pipe organ. You can also see a replica of this on the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction in Shanghai Disneyland, where an animatronic Davy Jones will actually play it.More props from the Flying Dutchman. I’m guessing the props team really knows how to sculpt barnacles by now.Elizabeth Swann’s (Keira Knightley) dress from Curse of the Black Pearl.Captain Barbossa’s (Geoffrey Rush) costume from Curse of the Black Pearl.Jack Sparrow’s (Johnny Depp) costume from Dead Man’s Chest. A few elements of the costume are different from the one worn in Curse of the Black Pearl due to being unable to replicate certain elements (they didn’t think there would be a need for another costume since they hadn’t planned on a sequel).Jack’s throne from Cannibal Island in Dead Man’s Chest. You can see a replica of one of the island’s bone cages on Tom Sawyer’s Island in Disneyland.Costumes for Jack the Monkey. So tiny!Pintel’s (Lee Arenberg) costume from Dead Man’s Chest. He’s the short angry one. If you’ve seen Once Upon a Time on ABC you’ll recognize Lee Arenberg as Grumpy.Pintel’s (Mackenzie Crook) costume from Dead Man’s Chest. He’s the tall, nervous one with the prosthetic eye.
Cotton’s (David Bailie) costume from Dead Man’s Chest. Missing a certain blue and yellow parrot…Scale model of the Tortuga set.Model of the HMS Endeavor used for battle scenes.Model ship scene dressing props from inside Cutler Beckett’s office.Cutler Beckett’s (Tom Hollander) costume from Dead Man’s Chest. To the left is a portrait also seen in the film. Governor Weatherby Swann’s (Jonathan Price) costume from Dead Man’s Chest.Barbossa’s Royal Navy Uniform from On Stranger Tides.Commodore/Admiral James Norrington’s (Jack Davenport) costume from At World’s End. Elizabeth’s wedding dress and Will’s wedding suit from Dead Man’s Chest. The rotating map from At World’s End. The rings appear to be functional. Can you spot the Hidden Mickey on the map? Hint: Look in the upper left quadrant.The Pirate Lords’ globe with impaled swords from At World’s End.Sao Feng’s (Chow Yun Fat) and Elizabeth Swann’s costumes from At World’s End.The Pirata Codex (aka the Pirate’s Code) from At World’s End. Wonder if it really is like our Operating Guidelines from the attraction. Fun trivia: Barbossa’s line about the pirate code being “really just guidelines” is a reference to the attraction operating guidelines.Model of the Empress from At World’s End.The chalices for the Fountain of Youth from On Stranger Tides.Philip Swift’s (Sam Claflin) costume from On Stranger Tides. He swam off with his mermaid love and when he emerged from the water he had transformed into Finnick Odair from The Hunger Games…Angelica’s (Penelope Cruz) costume from On Stranger Tides.Blackbeard’s (Ian McShane) costume from On Stranger Tides.Blackbeard’s collection of miniaturized ships. Glad to know Edward Teach like tiny things just like little girls collecting Shopkins…Close up of the miniature ships. They are incredibly detailed from something that is only seen onscreen for maybe a minute.Captain Salazar’s (Javier Barden) costume from Dead Men Tell No Tales.Carina Smythe’s (Kaya Scodelario) costume from Dead Men Tell No Tales.Henry Turner’s (Brenton Thwaites) costume from Dead Men Tell No Tales.Former skeleton prop from the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction.Model of the Hai Peng from At World’s End.Iconic masthead from the Black Pearl.Scale model of the Black Pearl.Rough drafts of promotional art for Muppet Treasure Island.Character sketches and concept art for Treasure Planet. It gets a bad rap but it isn’t a bad movie. I will admit the Goo Goo Dolls song is very 1990s though.A closer look at the Treasure Planet art. For those unfamiliar with the film’s characters, to the left is Long John Silver and to the right is Jim Hawkins with his little friend Morph.Stop-Motion models of the pirates from James and the Giant Peach.Kakamora figurines from the Moana Hollywood Premiere. I would buy these if they’d made them into toys.Costume rendering and storyboard segments from the pirate scenes for Swiss Family Robinson.Concept design for a beach location for Swiss Family Robinson.Portrait of Blackbeard from the film Blackbeard’s Ghost. The actor who played Blackbeard was Peter Ustinov, known to many as Hercule Poirot but to Disney fans as the voice of Prince John from Robin Hood.Inked and colored cels from Peter Pan. To the right you can see some concept art for Tinker Bell turning the ship to gold, a storyboard segment with Captain Hook and Mr. Smee, and some figures of Captain Hook.Captain Hook animatronic from the Main Street U.S.A. shop windows in Disneyland.Close up of the storyboard segments from Peter Pan.For those who prefer their Captain Hook to be younger and hotter, here’s the costume worn by Colin O’Donoghue on Once Upon a Time.Uma’s (China Anne McClain) costume from Descendants 2. Uma is the daughter of Ursula, for those unfamiliar with Descendants.Harry’s (Thomas Doherty) costume from Descendants 2. Harry is the son of Captain Hook. Jake and the Neverland Pirate puppets from Disney Junior Live Onstage at Disney California Adventure.Costume renderings for the pirate costumes used in Fantasmic! in Disneyland.In the display of pirate-themed souvenir items I came across this Well Scene in a Bottle. I wish they still made this! It’s adorable! The copper growler displayed behind it was on sale at the Disney Dream Store just a few steps from the exhibit.
This was an amazing slice of Disney history and I feel honored to have been a part of it in my own way. I can’t wait to see what D23 and the Archives will put together for D23 2019!
Busy Disney 