Disneyland Revealed – The Mysterious Barker Bird of the Enchanted Tiki Room

The Tiki Room would simply not be the Tiki Room without the four “emcee” macaws of the show: Jose, Michael, Pierre, and Fritz. But there was once another wisecracking parrot that ruled the roost.

When the show opened in 1963, Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room was the first Disney theme park attraction to use Audio-Animatronics, the robotics animation technology that’s now used in Disney Parks all over the world from Pirates of the Caribbean to Radiator Springs Racers. The concept was originally for the attraction to be a dinner theater restaurant with a Chinese theme. But ultimately, Walt Disney and his Imagineers were concerned that guests would linger too long with all the animatronic entertainment. So, the restaurant was scrapped in favor of a sit-down show instead. 

When Hawaii became the 50th state in the Union in 1959 during the development of the attraction, all things Polynesian became extremely popular. Disney’s Imagineers decided to use that trend to retheme the show from Confucius into the Tropical Hideaway it is today.

Since the idea of wisecracking parrots, talking tiki totem poles, and singing flowers were beyond comprehension for people at the time, Imagineers needed something to bring park guests to the Tiki Room. Even cast members explaining the concept had a hard time getting guests to understand it because it was so revolutionary for its time.

Enter the Barker Bird of Disneyland’s Tiki Room

Much in the style of a carnival barker, the Barker Bird would talk up the Tiki Room from a perch high above the entrance of the attraction. The hope was that as they walked by, guests would stop and then come in to check out the show. 

The Barker Bird’s real name was Juan, the cousin of Jose, one of the four main parrot hosts inside the show. Soon, Juan became the main attraction himself and was so popular that people would gather just to watch him speak. This created a large crowd of people outside the Tiki Room and disrupted traffic flow in the area. Because of this, Juan eventually flew the coop for the greater good of improved guest traffic. After his retirement, he spent some time on display in the lobby of the Opera House on Main Street. 

These days, a replica of the Barker Bird named “Pepe del Presidio” can be found at the Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco. He was gifted to the museum in 2014 by Garner Holt Productions, the company that makes animatronics for the theme park industry. Though not an original Barker Bird, Pepe has become a popular interactive exhibit at the museum. He gives visitors the ability to learn more about the wonders of Audio-Animatronics, as well as provide a glimpse of Disneyland’s fascinating past. 

---

Sharing is caring!