Starling Travel

Club 33 is the exclusive private club in Disneyland. It is the only location in Disneyland that serves alcohol. It was named Club 33 after the original 33 sponsors of Disneyland. Now, membership seems to be steeped in rumor with waiting lists that are said to be over three years long and membership fees ranging from $2000 to $10,000 a year.

When Groucho Marx said that he would never want to join a club that would have him as a member, I wonder if he ever knew about Club 33. The rumors about this club make me think of the intelligentsia of Walt Disney’s intimates. I used to imagine that Club 33 was filled with Imagineers and the elite of Walt Disney’s friends. Imagine how excited I was to know that there were pictures of the club on the Internet. They hadn’t been pulled by Disney and they showed things like the menu and the bill.

• Photoblog – Club 33 – 10-13-04

• Photoblog – Club 33 – 12-12-04

There is no narrative to this photoblog, unfortunately. He leaves us no clues about how he got into the club or why he was able to go twice. He doesn’t say if he is a member or a guest of one. He leaves hardly a trace of himself on his website: a few “rants” and a rambling introduction. All we have are these pictures, really.

Somehow, seeing these Club 33 pictures makes me think less of Disney intelligentsia and more of Disney obsessed fans. It’s actually a little disappointing.