The fans were demanding free Disney apparel and unlimited Fastpasses in exchange for their costumes, insisting that they should be entitled to the same deal as 15-year-old April Spielman and her family received from Disney last weekend.
"I saw on TV that some girl got to skip the lines because she broke a rule, so I want to do that, too," said 12-year-old Dwayne Garcia of Winter Park. Garcia was dressed as Mowgli from Disney's Jungle Book, wearing only a loincloth while waiting in line to enter Disney's Animal Kingdom, the park where Spielman and her family had been detained.
Garcia said that if the costume he was wearing did not earn him the free front-of-the-line passes, he would try not keeping his hands and arms inside a ride vehicle at all times instead.
Other visitors targeted different Disney admission rules.
Susan Fox and Mandy Rice of Celebration said that they'd been drinking since 4am, trying to become so intoxicated that Disney would reward them with a free Disney Dining plan to sober them up.
"To hell with a free T-shirt, I want a free steak at Le Cellier," Rice said, just before passing out at the Epcot turnstiles.
The gathering attracted the attention not only of local television stations and law enforcement, but representatives of rival theme parks, as well. Undercover Universal Orlando lawyers infiltrated the crowd, with Tasers in hand, ready to subdue any visitors dressed as Marvel characters before they could be seen inside a Disney theme park.
"A deal's a deal," said one Universal lawyer who refused to give his name, before sprinting through the Hollywood Studios parking lot after a visitor dressed as Iron Man.
Local television camera crews ultimately had call police for help in escaping Disney property, as thousands of angry Disney visitors blocked their retreat, demanding that the stations air sympathetic stories about them, too.
"Put me on TV!" the crowd chanted, as Florida Highway Patrol officers attempted to clear a path through the Magic Kingdom parking lot.
Walt Disney World officials could not be reached for comment, as they'd all split town for the Cars Land press event at Disney California Adventure in Anaheim next week.
(*Note: If you haven't figured it out already, this story is a spoof. But the incident that inspired it was very real.)
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But that said, surely there was a more "Disney" way of doing this - it shouldnt have taken 3.5hrs, take em somewhere nice, say we appreciate the effort, but we're worried you'll get mixed up with staff and we can't have that, can we offer you a ride to a hotel to change, or an gift shop outfit (as ended up happening), etc. All in all a solution should have been decided and agreed in minutes.
Hate to see a girl cry, but have to agree with Disney on this one.
Brilliant, Mr. Niles!
As for the Tink wannabe who was "the victim", goodness she can turn on the water works, eh? You'd think she just lost her best friend in an elevator accident on Tower of Terror. Honestly, if this "incident" is the worst thing that ever happens to her, she will have lived a life of bliss. Come join the rest of us in the real world, sweets, where heartbreak is just another event in an otherwise average week.
I knew it was fake when Le Celliler reservation was demanded. Anybody who knows its that good knows they need a reservation.
I will say that I thought Disney was very accommodating. Free clothes from Disney? Wow!
Having said that, watching the girl's interview was painful, she's either a bad actress, or she needs to seriously reorder her life priorities!
Haha, I love funny stories with a lesson. And the lesson is... dressing like a Disney character at Disney can get you caught, but dressing like an undercover USO lawyer won't.
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