THE WEDDING
Here we are, a little bit better to see us. We are standing in front of the Tower of Terror Hotel at Disney World.
This is us taking the plunge! A few Disney characters came along as well as the wedding party. If you have good eyes you can see the camera guy on the right bottom corner. The guy in the white shirt is Kevin, I don't know who he is holding hands with. I do know that this is not his wife.
This is Kevin's wife, Dawn, and their kid, "The Drewster". That's my house in the back. Only kidding!
Did you think I was fooling about the international broadcast? Well, I wasn't! I was only fooling about our house in the back.
HERE IS THE WHOLE STORY IF YOU REALLY WANT TO KNOW ABOUT OUR WEDDING.
We planned to elope in Disney World, a place we both have come to enjoy throughout the Ears. Disney has a very well staffed Fairy Tale Wedding department, and they arrange everything from the intimate to the extreme. We, of course, chose the intimate type of wedding. We invited four friends as witnesses, and to share in the festivities. Kevin, Dawn and Andrew were the only ones able to make the long journey. We had to ensure that the others kept our secret while we were off to Florida.
A few days before we left, Nichole from the wedding department called to ask us if we wouldn't mind helping Disney Promotions with a feature on Valentine's Day Weddings. She didn't have all the details, but thought it may be for a magazine like "People." After discussion, we decided that it would be a fun idea.
Just before we left, Nichole called again and asked us if we wouldn't mind getting married at the Tower of Terror. The Tower of Terror at that time was a newer Disney attraction in the MGM studio park. Passengers board a freight elevator in the building and drop thirteen stories to ground level. We told her that we would consider it, only if it could be done in good taste.
On Sunday, we toured the Tower of Terror with Nichole and TOT staff. She took us to the Tower of Terror's, "Hollywood Tower Hotel" Courtyard where the wedding would be performed. The hotel was made up to look like it sat undisturbed, in ruin, for over 50 years. Because of this, the plants and trees were dead, and the area was quite gloomy. We could see from Nichole's expression that she was not impressed either. We were escorted through the back of the ride, and got on our own private elevator car. We rode this ride back in September, and now they just got finished with additional programming to make it more exciting. We were able to tell the difference. We suggested to Nichole that we wouldn't mind recreating part of our wedding at the Tower, but would still like to have the ceremony at the Yacht and Beach Club as originally planned.
We went for our marriage license on Tuesday. After a grueling hour drive in downtown Kissimmee traffic, we pulled our rental car behind the courthouse. There were two buildings, an annex and the courthouse. We stood in front of the directory located between the buildings in confusion. There was no listing for Marriage Licenses, or anything related to marriage -- except Divorce Court. As we stood at the sign, a man walked out of the courthouse from the second floor level and yelled down to us, "If you are looking for a marriage license, it is next door, second floor." We wondered how he knew, we didn't think we were that obvious - -maybe it was because I was shaking so much.
There were quite a few people in line for licenses that day. One of the requirements for a license was proper photo identification, and $87.50 CASH ONLY! I brought my driver's license, and Jeanette, who drove the rental car to the courthouse, forgot her driver's license. Searching through her purse she found the only thing that had her name and photograph on -- her annual pass for Disney World. The clerk accepted it as valid identification and we got our license!
Tuesday was the wedding day. A single rose and an announcement of the wedding was delivered to our immediate families early that morning. Jeanette sent a cake and a few bottles of champagne to her office. We learned later that the champagne was consumed very quickly. We arrived at Disney's Yacht and Beach Club Resort at 8:00 am. The wedding was held in the Gazebo which overlooks the lake and the EPCOT Center. Joy, the Justice of the Peace, officiated at our wedding. She is a lovely person, and kept in constant touch with us during our planning stages. Joy has performed over 7,000 weddings in the past and our ceremony was just beautiful. We chose a religious type of ceremony, adding some poems and words of wisdom. Joy recited everything from memory. Also, during the ceremony, we had a solo Violinist play a selection of our favorite romantic songs, many of which were Disney tunes.
Cake, champagne, and non-alcoholic champagne were served beside the gazebo. Kevin's and Dawn's son, Andrew, imbibed on a bit too much of the sparkling apple juice. The video camera caught him practically polishing off the whole bottle. A three-year old filled to the brim with cider requires quite a few trips to the restroom. After we drained Andrew, we were escorted over to the back lot area of the Tower of Terror. A photographer and film crew were waiting our arrival. Representatives from Disney's Promotions Department, MGM Studios, and an east coast television station were also there to greet us.
Mickey and Minnie Mouse posed for some still photos in front of the Tower of Terror sign. The photos were used in several newspapers, including the Denver Rocky Mountain News. We were videotaped, and interviewed at the Tower of Terror in front of a very curious crowd. Once they shut the ride down, "Due to Technical Difficulties," we were escorted to our own elevator, complete with a camera man. On the ride we were also joined by our friend Kevin, Nichole and Gary from the wedding department, Joy McFarland, Al E. Vader the elevator attendant, an actress from the MGM Studios, and members of the promotions department. We were filmed `taking the plunge', as we descended a fast thirteen stories, saying, "I Doooo....." We made it in two takes!
Our next stop was the Magic Kingdom for the television interviews. We were recorded on the local Denver Channel 9 News, and went live on Channel 4's Colorado Today Show in Denver. We watched the footage being sent via satellite to any station who wanted to pick it up. We have reports of us being seen in the following cities; Tokyo, Albany, Houston, Philadelphia, Orlando, Montreal, Toronto, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles. After the interviews, we were treated to a feast at King Stefan's Banquet Hall in the Magic Kingdom. We plan on living happily ever after!
If you have something nice to
say!!
