More than a decade after her mother, Emma Harris, passed away, Whoopi Goldberg opened up about scattering her ashes on a classic Disney ride.
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During her Late Night With Seth Meyers appearance last week, the longtime The View moderator revealed her mother’s remains were scattered on It’s a Small World at Disneyland.
“No one should do this,” Whoopi Goldberg advised. “Don’t do it.”
Whoopi Goldberg stated that her mother was a huge fan of the Disney theme park. Her favorite ride was It’s a Small World. “When I was a kid, the World’s Fair was [in New York],” the actress recalled. “And it was the introduction of Small World.”
While detailing how she managed to place the ashes on the ride, Whoopi Goldberg stated she would periodically “scoop some of her” remains. She did this by faking a giant squeeze. The gesture would spread the ashes around the ride.
Goldberg said she would “play off” the squeeze by faking an illness. “And I’d say, ‘My god, this cold is getting worse and worse.’”
Whoopi Goldberg said she placed some ashes on the flower beds near the theme park’s entrance.
Whoopi Goldberg Eventually Admitted to What She Did At The Disney Theme Park To Executives
After detailing how she placed her mother’s ashes at various spots at Disneyland, Whoopi Goldberg said she eventually came clean to the Disney executives about what she did.
“I told them I did it,” she explained. “I wanted to make sure, actually, that I hadn’t done something that was dangerous, ‘cause it hadn’t occurred to me. But there’s a reason they don’t want ashes just floatin’ around.”
Disney has struggled with people secretly (or openly) spreading ashes at its theme parks over the years. While speaking to the Wall Street Journal, a custodian cast member revealed they clean up ashes about once a month.
“The Haunted Mansion probably has so much human ashes in it,” the cast member said. “That it’s not even funny.”
Cast members are told to use a specific “Code Grandma” when discovering ashes on the park’s property. It’s also called a “HEPA cleanup.”
Anaheim Police Department spokesman Sgt. Daron Wyatt also stated officers “have responded on calls for service regarding ashes” at Disneyland.
According to SFGate, Disneyland’s Rise of the Resistance was forced to shut down earlier this year after a park guest decided to spread ashes on the ride.
The Southern California Defense Blog also stated in a 2018 blog that spreading ashes on the Disney California property without permission is a misdemeanor. It also comes with a hefty fine.
“Not only would you be facing criminal charges, but your loved one’s ashes will end up in the trash,” the blog post reads. “Instead of living eternally in the Haunted Mansion or Pirates of the Caribbean.”