When you think of Disney, what comes to mind? The castle? The resorts? Space Mountain? The princesses? The list could go on and on… There are so many icons, but do you really know the story behind them?
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We recently put a poll up on our Instagram stories and asked you if you knew the story behind one of Disneyland’s famous park icons, and 60% of you didn’t! So, let’s dive into the secret behind Snow White Grotto in Disneyland!
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was the film that really paved the way for the future of Disney films, as it was the first full-length animated feature film — it was a groundbreaking moment for the company. Rightfully so, it deserved a spot in Walt Disney’s debut park — Disneyland Park in California. Snow White Grotto is located on the hillside near Sleeping Beauty Castle in Disneyland, and we’re here to talk about the story of this iconic spot.
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In 1961 — six years after Disneyland opened — Walt Disney received a gift from an anonymous fan sent from Italy with no return address. The gift arrived at the Disney Studios in eight wooden crates, and inside were beautifully detailed statues of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, all carved out of pure-white Carrara marble.
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The only problem with these figures was that Snow White was the same size as the dwarfs! Nonetheless, Walt Disney still wanted to display them somewhere in Disneyland, so he assigned the project to one of his most trusted and respected designers, John Hench. Hench knew there would be a design problem since all of the figures were the same size, but Walt simply told him to “figure it out.”
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Hench went into some brainstorming, and he figured out that if he could stage the statues vertically and arrange them on a slope with Snow White on top, then he could solve the scale problem by using forced perspective, and that’s exactly what he did. The next step? Finding a place to put it. He found a landscaped hillside right next to Sleeping Beauty Castle that would work. He would place Snow White and an undersized deer sculpture at the top of the hill and put the dwarfs more toward the bottom.
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Hench designed a waterfall that began at Snow White’s feet to be small at the top and grow wider as it descended the hill. He explained that the water increased the volume of flow the way down to create that forced-perspective effect. Overall, Walt loved this idea with the exception of one thing: People would be inclined to throw money into the waterfall. The solution? Build a wishing well next to the attraction!
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Proceeds from the wishing well are donated to local children’s charities, like Make-A-Wish and Give Kids The World. The spot remains a popular photo spot, especially great for proposals, family photos, graduation pictures, and more!
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The Snow White Grotto has been replicated at Tokyo Disneyland and Hong Kong Disneyland, so if you want to see it somewhere other than Disneyland Park, you can also visit one of the international parks. Stay tuned to DFB for more Disney park deep dives!
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Did you know the history of Snow White Grotto? Let us know in the comments below!