Walt Disney Imagineering has sprinkled a heavy dose of comedic puns, Hidden Mickeys and Easter Eggs throughout the attraction queue for Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway at Disneyland that offers riders a career retrospective of the Mouse that started it all.
Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway debuts on Friday, Jan. 27 after a series of employee and media previews this week.
The new ride that will serve as the centerpiece of the reimagined Mickey’s Toontown at Disneyland is virtually identical to the version of the attraction that debuted in 2020 at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
The big difference: The Florida ride is set inside a recreation of Hollywood’s Chinese Theater while the Anaheim ride is set inside El Capitoon Theater — a cartoon world homage to Hollywood’s El Capitan Theatre.
The varying facades mean the Florida and California attractions have different opening acts. While the East Coast version of the ride continues the Chinese Theater motif through the attraction lobby, the West Coast version features cartoon props from Mickey Mouse’s animated film and TV career after riders enter under Toontown’s El Capitoon Theater marquee.
The backstory behind the Runaway Railway attraction queue at Disneyland finds Minnie Mouse teaming up with the Toontown Hysterical Society to create the “Mickey Through the Ears” exhibit.
Disneyland’s Runaway Railway queue is broken into six areas: Theater Lobby, Early Ears, Golden Ears, Modern Eara, El Capitoon concession stand and the attraction preshow.
Let’s take a closer look at each of the areas in the Runaway Railway queue at Disneyland.
Theater Lobby
A movie standee poster announces that “Perfect Picnic” is playing today at El Capitoon Theater.
The lobby sets up the backstory for the queue with posters advertising the “Mickey Through the Ears” exhibit.
A banner hanging over the entrance to the Toontown Hysterical Society exhibition reads “It was all started by a mouse.”
A museum case on the wall recounts the history of the Toontown theater with artifacts like the first ticket ever sold and the giant scissors used to cut the red ribbon on opening day.
Early Ears
The Early Ears section stretches from the 1928 “Steamboat Willie” to the 1940 “Fantasia.”
A sorcerer’s hat from “Fantasia” magically comes to life and levitates above the head of a Mickey Mouse mannequin.
Ghosts magically appear in the dresser mirror from the “Lonesome Ghosts.” A ship’s helm recreates the famous scene of Mickey at the wheel in “Steamboat Willie.”
A propeller plane from “Plane Crazy” hangs from the ceiling. The Sorcerer’s Throne from “Fantasia” towers above the exhibit.
Movie posters fill the walls from “Fiddling Around,” “The Musical Farmer,” “Orphan’s Benefit” and “Society Dog Show.”
Golden Ears
The Golden Ears section traces Mickey’s timeline through the 1940s, ‘50s and ‘60s.
A beanstalk from “Fun and Fancy Free” busts through the ceiling. Exhibit displays also feature a cake from “Mickey’s Birthday Party.”
Movie posters include playbills for “A Gentleman’s Gentleman,” “Mickey Down Under” and “Pluto’s Christmas Tree.”
Modern Eara
The Modern Eara goes from the 1970s to Mickey’s latest cartoon shorts.
A Disco Mickey dances on a rainbow checkerboard dance floor. The exhibit also includes costumes from “The Prince and the Pauper” and Scrooge McDuck’s accounting ledger from “Mickey’s Christmas Carol.”
The Rube Goldberg-inspired Mousekedoer contraption from the “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse” series is one of the key pieces in the Modern Eara exhibit.
Larger-than-life versions of the Abe Lincoln-inspired President Spud from “Potatoland,” a gramophone from “Our Homespun Melody,” a birdhouse from “Feed the Birds” and a 10-foot-tall beer stein from “Yodelberg” dot the exhibit.
El Capitoon Concession Stand
The concession stand is filled with sweets and treats that make reference to Mickey Mouse cartoon shorts, TV shows and movies.
Candy cases are filled with Golly Pops, Mallard Cups, Powerlimes, Chocolate Cows, WitchHazel Nut Candy and Chocolate Chip n’ Dale cookies.
Condiments on the counter include both Ketchup and Catsup as well as Your Cheese and Nacho Cheese. A sign near the cash register promises “free candy” on the sixth Tuesday of every month.
Posters on the walls of the concession stand advertise “Yodelberg,” “Croissant de Triomphe” and “Potatoland.”
Attraction Preshow
A cartoon short called “Perfect Picnic” screening in the Runaway Railway preshow room sets up the backstory for the upcoming dark ride attraction.
The pre-show short ends with a blast that lets riders enter a barn through a surprise entrance that suddenly appears in the film screen amid a cloud of smoke. Look away for a brief moment and you’ll miss the eye-popping special effect.
