ORLANDO, Fla. — Walt Disney World threw itself a party Friday, and lots of people showed up for the 50th anniversary of the day that Magic Kingdom opened.
The atmosphere leaned toward celebratory despite occasional surges at the entrances and long lines — both virtual and visible — to buy souvenir merchandise and collectibles.
“We waited 30 minutes in this line” to buy two golden popcorn containers shaped like Mickey Mouse head balloons, said Alston Causey, a travel agent who lives near Atlanta. “I have a bit of a fetish for popcorn containers,” he said, although he wasn’t willing to stand in more lines to nab the other three colors of balloonish containers.