One report claims that its parts were recycled into one of the Eagle Sam audio-animatronics used in the America Sings attraction which opened at Disneyland in 1974, but this appears unlikely due to the simplicity of the design and construction of the Hatbox Ghost figure. While a definite record of what became of the Hatbox Ghost figure has not been published, there are speculations as to its fate. And on the DVD, " Disneyland Resort: Imagineering the Magic," Senior Vice President of Creative Development at Walt Disney Imagineering Tony Baxter displays an attraction maintenance slip that lists the original Hatbox Ghost. A photo of the figure in situ is featured on the website. Attempts were made to remedy technical problems, but the effect was not convincing enough, and the ghost was decommissioned after a few months. Almost immediately, it became apparent that the effect had failed, as ambient light in the attraction's attic scene prevented the specter's face from disappearing fully, despite its designated spotlight going dark. The Hatbox Ghost figure was installed inside The Haunted Mansion and in place for cast member (park employee) previews on the nights of August 7 and 8, 1969. A light inside the hatbox he held would rhythmically illuminate and hide the head in the hatbox, while, in tandem, the actual head on the ghost's shoulders would be hidden by extinguishing the black lighting." The ghost's head was illuminated by black lighting. According to Imagineer Chris Merritt in an interview with, the effect was never completely successful due to the illusion's close proximity to the ride vehicles: The idea behind the Hatbox Ghost figure was for its head to vanish from atop its shoulders and reappear alternately inside the hatbox, in time with an adjacent bride figure's beating heart. Located formerly in the ride's attic scene, the figure is described as "an elderly ghost in a cloak and top hat, leaning on a cane with a wavering hand and clutching a hatbox in the other." After decades, the character was readded to the attraction in 2015. The Hatbox Ghost is an animatronic character that appeared originally in the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland but was removed shortly after the attraction's debut in 1969. The 2015 installation of the Hatbox Ghost
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