Disney's The Lion King At Burger King, McDonald's And KFC

Simba became the King Of Fast Food with the release of The Lion King in June of 1994.

When The Lion King hit it big in theaters, so did the Fast Food toys at Burger King.

The Lion King toys sold out very quickly. I was not able to get them all, even though I really tried.

The first one I got was Nala, right before the movie debuted. The second one I got was Simba.

Value Book 2 was included in the polybag with Simba. It included coupons for Payless Shoe Source, Cheerios, Mattel toys and other Lion King Promotional Partners.

Simba in this set is a cool wind up toy. He moves forward and rolls over.

After I got Simba, it quickly got tougher to find more of the toys.

I did find one Burger King that had all the toys, but you could only get one per visit, and you had to buy food. At that restaurant, I chose Timon and Pumbaa.

With relatives searching, I was also able to get Scar. The last toy I found was Rafiki. After I found him, the stores started putting signs up letting people know that the toys were sold out.

In addition to the toys, Burger King sold Lion King plastic cups.

These were a bit easier to get.

In December of 1994, Burger King re-released the toys in time for The Lion King's return to theaters.

I don't think Burger King ever re-released any other Disney Fast Food Toys.

Extreme Collectors should note that the toys issued in June included a Value Book, and the ones in December did not.

This bag is from December 1994. It was very easy to get all the toys at this time. I got the complete set on one visit, and did not have to buy any food.

Burger King sold acrylic Walt Disney Classics Glasses (including The Lion King) in December of 1994, too.

The artwork on the glasses is the same as the covers of the VHS tapes sold at this time.

In Europe and in many other parts of the world, McDonald's promoted The Lion King.

The Lion King 1994 McDonald's Happy Meal toys are my favorite Lion King Fast Food set.

I especially like the Zazu toy.

For some reason, Burger King never used Zazu in their promotions.

The four different McDonald's Lion King Happy Meal Toys each had their own gimmick.

Timon spins on Pumbaa's back, Simba pounces, the wind-up Zazu hops, and the wind-up Scar walks.

In Australia, fast food chain Hungry Jack's (Australia's version of Burger King) promoted The Lion King.

These rubbery PVC figures are pull-back toys.

In the United States, The Lion King returned to Burger King for the Home Video Release of the film.

This promotion featured finger puppets in boxes.

The characters have PVC heads and fabric "bodies" and are attached to the boxes.

The lid on the box can be closed.

I wasn't impressed with this set. Did kids think these particular toys were fun?

In all fairness, I was way past the target age when these were sold.

Burger King Kids Club Meals did not have colorful boxes with games, but the Burger King Adventures Newsletter stuffed in the Meal bag did.

Burger King had some talented artists creating their games.

Disney did not have an exclusive deal with Burger King. Simba made his first U.S. appearance at McDonald's in the Disneyland Adventures Happy Meal in 1995.

The Lion King Celebration Parade debuted at Disneyland in 1994. Components of the parade later found a home at Walt Disney World in Florida when Disney's Animal Kingdom opened in 1998 (as Festival of The Lion King). The show was also added to Hong Kong Disneyland in 2005.

McDonald's also featured adult Simba as part of their Walt Disney Masterpiece Collection Happy Meal.

This Home Video promotion used a VHS Clamshell-style box that contained a Disney figure.

Timon and Pumbaa got their own animated TV series in 1995.

"The Lion King's Timon and Pumbaa" aired on CBS Saturday Mornings and on The Disney Afternoon.

Burger King released a set of Timon and Pumbaa toys in 1996.

The show followed Pumbaa and Timon in their adventures around the world. Other segments in the series starred the Hyenas and Rafiki. Simba and Zazu also made cameo appearances.

I love finding hidden gems like "The Great Earthworm Race!" The artist responsible for this Burger King Kids Club Adventures 1996 game is uncredited, unfortunately. I think these are the most appealing cartoon bugs I've seen.

I guess I have a thing for cartoon insects. It's probably because they are so close to being real-life "monsters."

The creepy-crawlies that Timon and Pumbaa love to eat "taste like chicken" so it was only fitting for Timon and Pumbaa to appear at a chicken restaurant chain.

The World of Bugs took Timon and Pumbaa to uncharted territory for Disney: KFC!

These fun toys are a bit smaller than the premiums found at McDonald's or Burger King.

I only knew about this set because I remember reading about it on the Internet at the time (1996).

In 1998, McDonald's had a plush toy Happy Meal promoting The Lion King II: Simba's Pride, the illogical direct to video sequel to The Lion King. I will say that the toys are pretty nice.

Watching this movie made my brain hurt.

I will say that the film's animation, produced by Walt Disney Animation Australia, looked really good. I just thought the story was awkward, and seemed to operate on the thinking that "It's just a cartoon. Nobody will care if it doesn't make sense."


Zira's relationship with Scar in Simba's Pride is vague, though cut sequences of the movie (which can be found, in pieces, online) indicate that Zira was originally written to be Scar's mate for the sequel. Scar with Zira? I would not have bought that.

In this film, Zazu wasn't voiced by Rowan Atkinson. He was voiced by Edward Hibbert (Gil on TV's Frasier).

Because this was a direct to video project, the lions were de-clawed and neutered.

In the original ending (which you can find online) Zira struggles on a cliff. Rather than accept help from Kiara, Zira chooses to plunge to her death. Of course, this was cut. At least we know that the writers tried to do something daring with the sequel.

For the Disney 100 Years of Magic Celebration at Walt Disney World in 2002, McDonald's had a special Happy Meal featuring 100 different toys.

Three of those toys were Lion King characters.

In 2004, Disney released the third Lion King movie, the direct to DVD "The Lion King 1 1/2."

Though the film has an odd title, I think it is pretty funny. This takes place during the first movie, and parodies the original film. New characters include Timon's Mom (Julie Kavner, the voice of Marge Simpson) and Jerry Stiller as Timon's Uncle Max. The best part about this DVD is the Virtual Safari, which lampoons Disney dark rides, including Pirates of the Caribbean, the Matterhorn, and the Haunted Mansion.

The McDonald's Happy Meal toys for The Lion King 1 1/2 are inadvertently hysterical to me. My mind is in the gutter here. Must. Refrain. From. Making. Inappropriate. Jokes.

The diagram is especially funny. What is it that this toy does, exactly? Something that creates happiness.

In 2005, Simba was back for a Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Happiest Celebration on Earth Happy Meal. This set of toys featured different Disney theme park lenticular cards to collect.

Here Simba can be seen with Hong Kong Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle.

Hong Kong Disneyland opened in 2005. In 2008, the park got a new version of It's A Small World. This was the first version of the ride to feature Disney characters.

Simba, Timon, Pumbaa, and Mufasa can be found in the Africa section of the famous boat ride.

I would love to see Lion King rides in the Africa section of Disney's Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Florida. The characters wouldn't have to look like characters seen in the movie.

I would suggest that Disney could use the stylized character designs created by artist Addis Zaryan, originally developed for Disney Store merchandise years ago (including this totem statue).

I imagine a great musical dark ride could entertain visitors to the Africa section of the park hours after the Kilimanjaro Safaris attraction closes for the night.

How about a Circle of Life Spinner ride? It could look like this mirror.

There could also be a Splash Battle Watering Hole Lion King ride at Disney's Animal Kingdom, themed to the Just Can't Wait To Be King sequence. It could be populated with characters that look like these Nesting Doll figures.


Addis Zaryan's designs are fun, and look like Disney and Africa and something totally new, too. With the continued success of The Lion King, I think it is time for a Lion King Pridelands section of Africa at Walt Disney World's Animal Kingdom in Florida!

Disney's Haunted Mansion: Watch For Hitchhiking Ghosts!

Disney's Haunted Mansion is one of my favorite theme park attractions. The Mansion's famous "Hitchhiking Ghosts" have quite a few followers, and many are eager to have these spirited characters represented in their home. The image above is from a Haunted Mansion record and book set from 1970.





I bought this Disneyland Haunted Mansion key chain far from Disneyland in California. This is from a temporary Disney theme park liquidation store in Louisville, Kentucky that I visited in 2000 (I think). Most of the merchandise for sale was from California. I also got a glow-in-the-dark Haunted Mansion shirt here.


In 2008, I got some unique pins at Walt Disney Imagineering in California.




I'm surprised these character designs haven't shown up more often. They are great!


Remember the bean bag craze? All sorts of characters were turned into beanies, including the Hitchhiking Ghosts. I think I got these in 1999, and they were from Disneyland. They were also sold at Walt Disney World, The Disney Catalog, and online.




From left to right, this is "Happy Haunt #998, Happy Haunt #997, and Happy Haunt #999." These ghosts now are known by individual names. They are (from left to right) Ezra, Gus and Phineas. These toys feature glow-in-the-dark eyes.


In November 2009, I found these great bobblehead figures at Walt Disney World.





These were only available at The Magic Kingdom. I bought these at a gift cart near the Haunted Mansion, and I also saw them for sale at the Emporium on Main Street. Yes, these glow in the dark!

On this same trip, I got this Disney Racers Haunted Mansion Ghost.




I love this collection. On that trip, the toughest character to find was Kermit the Frog. Kermit was apparently exclusive to Disney's Hollywood Studios.

In 2005, the Disney Catalog had some really nice Haunted Mansion collectibles.



This stunning pewter set closely follows the original Marc Davis character designs. Note the use of color on the characters and the fact that Ezra used to be a ghost (also seen in the Haunted Mansion book and record image). This set also features the mysterious Hatbox Ghost that vanished from the Mansion before the ride opened to the public.

Here's some more limited edition Mansion memorabilia.





One of the most memorable parts of the Haunted Mansion is the Stretch Room. Here we encounter some creepy gargoyles.




Of course, we also witness the room and the paintings within stretching!



Spoiler alert: At Disneyland, the stretching gallery is actually an elevator. The misguided souls running Disneyland's website years ago actually described this feature as the "haunted elevator." At Disneyland and Disneyland Paris, the stretch room elevator takes visitors down so they can go through a tunnel under the parks' railroad tracks.

At Walt Disney World and Tokyo Disneyland, it is NOT an elevator at all. The ceiling rises.

Here is one of the stretching portraits made into a lamp. This is strictly for collectors. Don't give this to any random grandmother, please (unless she's a Haunted Mansion fan).




Ooh, I like the bat detail at the top of the lamp.

Have you ever experienced the Lion King version of the Haunted Mansion? Notice the stretching portraits of Timon and Pumbaa and the hyena versions of the gargoyles.



This was part of Timon & Pumbaa's Virtual Safari 1.5 on the DVD of "The Lion King 1 1/2." I'm not crazy about sequels in general, but this was a funny movie and the Safari was a hilarious trip through Timon and Pumbaa's "new ride." This included spoofs of Pirates of the Caribbean and the Matterhorn's Abominable Snowman.

In 1998, Disney and Golden Books released a fantastic Haunted Mansion coloring book. This featured illustrations by Len Smith and Arkadia (the cover illustration was done by Scott Tilley and Thomas Phong). The story followed Mickey and the gang working as a cleaning crew in the Haunted Mansion.



This book features some very animated drawings!

The character designs of the Hitchhiking Ghosts seen in the coloring book have been seen elsewhere, too! I got these Halloween pins on my October 2008 trip to Disneyland in California.





Here are the dueling ghosts (from the Great Hall scene) and the Bride from the Attic.



Ironically, the Hitchhiking Ghosts and the Bride cannot be found at Disneyland on Halloween! Why? Because the Mansion becomes "Haunted Mansion Holiday" for Halloween and Christmas at Disneyland in California (and Tokyo Disneyland in Japan). As much as I love the Haunted Mansion, I have to say that "Haunted Mansion Holiday" was easily one of the best parts of my Disneyland visit.