The Disappearance (and Reappearance) of Disney’s Orange Bird

If you’ve visited Walt Disney World recently, you’re probably familiar with the character of Orange Bird - he’s featured at the Sunshine Tree Terrace, he’s the mascot of Epcot’s Flower & Garden Festival, and he often can be found on merch throughout the parks. But just 13 years ago, Orange Bird couldn’t be found anywhere at all - because despite being part of an opening day attraction, an anti-LGBTQ crusade caused Orange Bird to be completely removed from the Disney parks in the 1980s, and he didn’t reappear for almost 30 years. Today, we’re diving into the full history of Orange Bird, from his unique initial creation for a corporate sponsor to the controversy that caused his removal to his reintroduction in the 2000s. Join us each week for "Mouselets Monday” as we deep dive into some of the most fascinating and unknown Disney facts! 00:00 - Introduction 00:41 - Chapter 1: The Florida Citrus Commission 02:05 - Chapter 2: Creating Orange Bird 03:08 - Chapter 3: The Sunshine Pavillion 05:32 - Chapter 4: Anita Bryant 08:27 - Chapter 5: The Disappearance 09:53 - Chapter 6: The Reappearance (Part 1) 11:00 - Chapter 7: The Reappearance (Part 2) 12:02 - Chapter 8: The Swap 13:04 - Conclusion