Effort Underway to Restore and Reopen Historic Griffith Park Carousel by 2028 Olympics

An effort to restore and reopen the historic Griffith Park carousel in Los Angeles - the one that inspired Walt Disney to create Disneyland - is reportedly underway.

What's Happening:

• A full restoration of the historic Griffith Park carousel is reportedly underway according to ABC7, bringing the landmark back to its former glory when it inspired Walt Disney himself to create Disneyland.
• Built 100 years ago and featuring 66 majestic horses, the carousel is considered a "not-so-hidden gem" within Griffith Park. It has not operated since the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Until recently, the carousel had been privately owned by several families, only coming into the hands of the Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks in July. It was acquired by the department, out of fears "that a private collector might buy it and take it out of the park."
• The estimated cost of the restoration is $5 million, with the department needing to raise public funds to get the restoration done.
• The city has an ambitious goal of having the carousel fully restored and reopened by the LA28 Olympics. If you would like to be a part of this restoration, you can donate to the FriendsofGriffithPark.org.

You Know The Story:

• The Griffith Park Carousel is THEE carousel that has been referred to by Walt Disney himself when telling the story of how he was inspired to create Disneyland.
• It's the same "merry-go-round" referred to in the popular story that Walt regaled audiences with in an interview with Canadian journalist Fletcher Markle, for the show Telescope.
• There, he said the famous words, "Well, it came about when my daughters were very young and Saturday was always daddy's day with the two daughters... I’d sit while they rode the merry-go-round... sit on a bench, you know, eating peanuts — I felt that there should be something built, some kind of amusement enterprise built, where the parents and the children could have fun together."

• Along with serving as the inspiration for "The Happiest Place on Earth", the carousel is historic because it calls back to a different era of the city - one that some residents are trying to get back to celebrating the nostalgia and old glam of Hollywood. The carousel also features four horses abreast, something that is not featured in more modern carousels and merry-go-rounds.
• As for the exact bench he was sitting on - fans can find that at Disneyland itself inside the lobby of the Main Street Opera House. It might just be the only bench in the park that guests are not allowed to sit on, as it's behind velvet ropes for preservation reasons.

What They're Saying:

• Tracy James, Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks: "It really is a jewel box in the middle of the city. This actual carousel is where Walt Disney sat on a bench while he was watching his young daughters take spins around on a Saturday and thought of Disneyland, dreamt of a place where adults could enjoy the good times with their children...This past July the Department of Recreation and Parks acquired it, and we did so because the sellers were looking to possibly sell it, and we feared that a private collector might buy it and take it out of the park...It's going to need a complete restoration and that restoration is going to be extremely costly, and we're going to need to raise public funds to be able to get this done. There's no way to do it without it. With so much changing around us and the city seeming somewhat unrecognizable to people who have grown up here; there's some things that should always remain the same and appreciated, and I would just love to see this running again."