"As a matter of pure fact, Walt was the originator of attraction closers ... from the day Disneyland opened. Some attractions did not work (Phantom Ride in Tomorrowland - gone after the first summer); others were only stopgaps in the early days (Crane's "Bathroom of Tomorrow," Kaiser's aluminum exhibit, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea sets, Satellite View of America , etc.). Some made way for other attractions (The Viewliner Train , replaced by the Monorail System); Midget Autopia shuttered as a "mistake" (Walt did not want attractions that only children could go on, because after all, Disneyland started as a place where parents and children could have fun - together!)
It is only speculation, of course, about what Walt Disney would have done with "aging assets," including those that have lost their populary with the public. My own speculation, having worked with and written for Walt for ten years, is that he would have been changing out many of these shows, too...
So my own summary is, change is the greatest dynamic in all our lives. Like it or not, not all the things we loved as children and young adults live on. Technology keeps offering us new potentials for storytelling and a large segment of the guests who come back over and over again to our parks want something new.
As Walt taught many of us, we do try to respond to our audience. As we go up to bat with new attractions and "take a chance," it's because that's wthe way many of us were trained by the master cheft himself.
Thanks for caring, too.
Sincerely,
Martin A. Sklar"
Disneyland's Fantasyland has no plans to close Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.