13 Nights of Happy Haunts: Grim Grinning Ghosts

Night 13: Grim Grinning Ghosts (1990)
Starring: Danielle
Co-starring: Danielle’s husband, Donald Duck, Captain Hook, The Evil Queen, Maleficent and The Big Bad Wolf
Setting: The Haunted Mansion, Disneyland
Plot: Danielle and her husband are standing at the wrought-iron gate of Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion when she suffers a horrifying, three-minute-long seizure where she imagines an elaborate scenario of what happens on the Mansion’s front lawn at night.    

Click here to view the music video

Tricks and/or Treats:
This song is a part of the Disneyland Fun episode from Disney’s WILDLY popular series of Sing-Along-Songs VHS tapes.

The scene where the villains tippy-toed from one column of the Mansion’s porch to the next, seemingly to appear and disappear right out of thin air, is among some of the most complex and awe-inducing special effects we have ever seen.

In a When-the-Jetsons-Met-the-Flintstones-worlds-collide kind of larger-than-life moment, Captain Hook takes Maleficient’s hand and leads her in a romantic waltz that still gives me chills and is even more thrilling every time I see it.
The Big Bad Wolf dancing with the Wicked Queen was less impressive and left me feeling coooooold.

I am a little disappointed in Donald Duck that he would associate himself with such villainy, skullduggery and malfeasance.
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RIP:      
In my humble opinion, this is among the finest work that the Walt Disney Company has ever produced.  Danielle’s performance is as brave as her husband’s is generous but it was Maleficient’s sweaty face that stole the show.  This final offering in our Halloween series definitely proved to be more “Treat” than “Trick” and well worth the wait and anticipation.