Happy Hallowishes, or Happy HalloWishes: A Grim Grinning Ghosts Spooktacular in the Sky, was a fireworks show at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. It ran exclusively during Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party from 2005 to 2018, until it was replaced by Disney’s Not So Spooky Spectacular in 2019.
Synopsis[]
Happy Hallowishes Fireworks Show 2018 - Walt Disney World
The residents of the Haunted Mansion have come together for a “spooktacular celebration” of Halloween. After being summoned by Madame Leota, they perform “Grim Grinning Ghosts”. The Ghost Host introduces them to the mortals in the audience, warning them that they’ll never know who might drop in. The ghosts perform “This is Halloween” from The Nightmare Before Christmas, to set the mood. This leads into “Scare-oke” medley of famous Disney songs - mostly Villain songs.
When they conclude, the Disney Villains begin to show up to the party. Ursula, Jafar, Oogie Boogie, and Maleficent add their own musical takes to the proceedings - typically their own songs, if they have one. The Ghost Host then leads the scream along with reprises of “This is Halloween” and “Grim Grinning Ghosts”. He thanks the mortals for coming, and gives one last “Happy Hallowishes”, leading into one last song. The show ends with Little Leota urging the mortals to “hurry back”.
Behind the Scenes[]
The show was developed and supervised by Steven Davison and Eric Tucker, who designed other nighttime spectaculars, such as Wishes at the Magic Kingdom and Illuminations: Reflections of Earth at Epcot. The music was arranged by Mark Hammond and David Hamilton, while the vocals were arranged by Tim Davis.
Cast[]
- Ghost Host - Kevin Michael Richardson
- Ursula - Pat Carroll
- Jafar - Jonathan Freeman
- Oogie Boogie - Ken Page
- Maleficent - Susanne Blakeslee
- Madame Leota - Eleanor Audley (Archive Recording)
- Little Leota - Leota Toombs (Archive Recording)
Songs Featured:[]
Full Show's Audio
- “Grim Grinning Ghosts” from The Haunted Mansion - Buddy Baker and X. Atencio
- “This is Halloween” from The Nightmare Before Christmas - Danny Elfman
- “Poor Unfortunate Souls” from The Little Mermaid - Alan Menken and Howard Ashman
- “Cruella De Vil” from 101 Dalmatians - Mel Leven
- “Never Smile at a Crocodile” from Peter Pan - Frank Churchill and Jack Lawrence*
- “The Elegant Captain Hook” from Peter Pan - Sammy Fain and Sammy Cahn*
- “The Skeleton Dance” from The Skeleton Dance - Carl Stalling*
- “Trust in Me” from The Jungle Book - Richard and Robert Sherman
- “AEIOU” from Alice in Wonderland - Sammy Fain and Bob Hilliard
- “Heffalumps and Woozles” from The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh - Richard and Robert Sherman
- “Pink Elephants on Parade” from Dumbo - Oliver Wallace and Ned Washington
- “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?” from The Three Little Pigs - Frank Churchill and Ann Ronell
- “Poor Unfortunate Souls” Reprise
- “Be Prepared” from The Lion King - Elton John and Tim Rice
- “The Court of Miracles” from The Hunchback of Notre Dame - Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz
- “Arabian Nights” from Aladdin - Alan Menken and Howard Ashman
- “Oogie Boogie’s Song” from The Nightmare Before Christmas - Danny Elfman
- “A Night on Bald Mountain” from Fantasia - Modest Mussorgsky*
- “Hellfire” from The Hunchback of Notre Dame - Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz*
- "This is Halloween"/"Grim Grinning Ghosts" Reprise
- “I Put a Spell on You” from Hocus Pocus - Screamin’ Jay Hawkins
* - Cut after 2008
Trivia[]
- Parts of Kevin Michael Richardson’s performance as the Ghost Host were recycled for Mickey’s Halloween Cavalcade at Disneyland Paris, spoken by the Phantom.
- As Little Leota speaks at the end, Oogie chimes in with his own “hurry back”. This is similar to what he did at Haunted Mansion Holiday, with Sally’s goodbyes at the ride's exit.
- Maleficent’s segment was cut from the show after 2008.