ANAHEIM, Calif. — Disneyland turns 50 this year and a new parade, a new fireworks show and new attractions are part of its long party that was to begin Thursday. .

To get the most bucks for the bang, the celebration — called "The Happiest Homecoming on Earth" — will continue for 18 months at Disneyland and its sister parks, including Disney World in Orlando and parks in Paris and Tokyo — and at the new Disneyland in Hong Kong (which opens Sept. 12).

Disneyland (ENLARGE)
The 'Block Party Bash' is one of several events, stretching over 18 months, to mark Disneyland's 50th birthday this year.
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Disneyland opened on July 17, 1955, to an invited audience. But eager gate-crashers and those with counterfeit tickets swelled the 6,000 invited guests to 28,000.

On opening day, there were hours-long traffic jams. Inside, overloaded rides broke down; restaurants ran out of food and drinks; and women's high heels stuck in the freshly-poured asphalt of Main Street USA.

Since then, Disney theme parks have become expert in managing crowds — and more than 500 million visitors have come to Disneyland alone. Disneyland opened with 18 major attractions; it now has more than 60 adventures/attractions spread over 85 acres, with many more in the adjoining California Adventure theme park.

If you want to join the party in Anaheim for the actual 50th anniversary July 17, be ready for really big crowds.

Here's some of what's planned throughout the 18-month period:

• A new nightly fireworks show, called "Remember . . . Dreams Come True" was to begin Thursday, with new pyrotechnics, music and special lighting effects. Disneyland calls it "the most elaborate fireworks display in the history of the park."

• A new parade, "Walt Disney's Parade of Dreams," has rolling stages, acrobats, Disney characters and music. Scenes from favorite Disney movies will be re-enacted in the daily parade (twice a day at peak times) on Main Street.

• Sleeping Beauty's Castle has a new look, festooned with banners, trimmed with gold paint and illuminated nightly with a kaleidoscope of colors and images.

• Space Mountain reopens July 15 after a major renovation. The indoor roller coaster will have new special effects and a new, on-board soundtrack.

• The exhibit "Disneyland: The First 50 Years" in the Main Street Opera House shows vintage films and displays artwork.

• "Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters," billed as part of the 50th anniversary celebrations, opened in April. Inspired by the popular "Toy Story 2" film, riders command a space mission, fighting invaders with laser cannons.

• Disney Cruise Line will sail out of Los Angeles this summer, the first time a Disney ship has been based on the West Coast. Seven-night sailings go from L.A. to Mexican ports, including Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas.

If Disney World is more likely your destination, the Orlando theme park is celebrating with these new attractions:

• At Magic Kingdom, "Cinderellabration" is a live stage musical from Tokyo Disneyland performed beneath the spires of Cinderella Castle.

• At Epcot, a new hang-gliding journey called Soarin' takes you over the landscapes of California. Also, guests can visit the Hong Kong Disneyland Preview Center in the China pavilion to see plans for Disney's 11th theme park.

• At Disney-MGM Studios, the "Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show" premieres.

• At Disney's Animal Kingdom, the audio-animatronics creation, Lucky the Dinosaur, will be roaming.

• Later in the 18-month celebration, the theme park will open a new thrill ride, Expedition Everest, in the Asia area of Disney's Animal Kingdom. It's described in press materials as "a dramatic high-speed train adventure that combines coaster-style thrills with the excitement of a close encounter with the abominable snowman among the icy peaks of the world's highest mountain."