Disney Facts: Disneyland's Twilight Zone Tower of Terror

Legend has it that 74 years ago this Halloween something strange happened at the Hollywood Tower Hotel at Disney's California Adventure.

Disney publicity photo.

A storm descended upon the hotel and lightening struck the elevator shaft causing the elevator to plunge 13 stories. But before reaching the bottom of the shaft, the elevator and its five passengers disappeared.

Here are some quick facts about the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror attraction, according to Disney:

At 183 feet tall, the Hollywood Tower Hotel is the tallest building in Anaheim.

The architectural style of the hotel is known as Pueblo Deco. Pueblo Deco was popular in the 1920s and is characterized by the clean, geometric shapes common to the Art Deco style while borrowing elements from southwestern Native American art.

The landscaping is designed to reflect what was typical of an upscale hotel in 1930s Southern California with  Chinese flame trees, magnolias, and various palm trees accent the building.

Music heard in the area includes jazz and popular tunes from the 1930s, such as “I Can’t Get Started With You” by Bunny Berigan, “We’ll Meet Again” by Vera Lynn, and “Mood Indigo” by Duke Ellington.

One of the artifacts filling the hotel lobby is a vintage 1930s edition of L. Frank Baum’s “The Wizard of Oz.” 

There are numerous references to “The Twilight Zone” television series, which ran or 156 episodes from 1959 to 1964. They include:

• A pair of broken spectacles representing “Time Enough at Last.” 
• A miniature spaceman from “The Invaders.” 
• A devil-headed fortune-telling machine from “Nick of Time.” 
• The signature on the Elevator Inspection Certificate in the Tower of Terror ride vehicles is  Cadwallader, the name the devil uses in “The Twilight Zone” episode “Escape Clause.”
• The storefront for “Willoughby Travel” at the attraction’s exit references the television episode “A Stop at Willoughby.”