This past January, Disney announced the Jungle Cruise at Walt Disney World and Disneyland will be building on the original story of this beloved attraction by making a number of changes including updating the storyline.
“We’re adding more humor, wildlife and skipper heart to the classic attraction, and as part of a much larger effort, this updated experience will welcome new characters from around the world,” stated the Disney Parks Blog.
Disney is also adding more diversity while removing “all scenes that feature unsavory depictions of indigenous characters.” One of those scenes is the finale where Trader Sam, the “head” salesman, is making a special offer to visitors – “he’s offering a killer deal: two of his heads for one of yours! Any takers? C’mon, folks; any way you slice it, you come out a-head!”
Earlier this month, Trader Sam was removed from the attraction as the site was prepped for the installation of the new scene. Disney fans were speculating what Disney had planned for the finale and today the Disney Parks Blog revealed that it would be Trader Sam’s Gift Shop.
The shop was set up as a lost and found location, but Trader Sam has figured out a way to make money from the “passengers” lost possessions by turning it into a gift shop. “Ever wonder what happened to that gramophone you accidentally left behind on the boat during your last adventure? How about that beloved pith helmet that went missing?”
Explaining the origin of the gift shop, the Disney Parks Blog says, “Word on the stream is that Alberta Falls, proprietor of the Jungle Navigation Company Ltd., has entrusted her longtime friend, Trader Sam, to manage the new Lost & Found location. But, with Trader Sam being Trader Sam, there’s always an opportunity to make some extra money. After all, all the best rides end with a gift shop, right?”
Even though Trader Sam still has a presence in the attraction, as well as Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto and Tiki Bar at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort and the Disneyland Resort Hotel, guests will not physically seem him. Disney states that “while he’s out lost and finding some new inventory, it’s the animals that get the last laugh!”
Replying to the news on the Disney Parks Twitter account, Disney Imagineer Kevin Lively said, “When I worked Jungle at @Disneyland we had Tarzan’s Treehouse as part of our rotation. While getting my cardio, I would come up with ideas for stories, then type them out when I got some. One story was about Skippers that turned Lost & Found into a gift shop. Good ideas never die.”
Work on the Jungle Cruise attraction is ongoing, but Disney has not given a date when these updates will be completed.
