Iron Man actor recalls getting arrested on 1st Disneyland visit
I was brought to a surprisingly friendly processing center, given a strict warning, and returned to, if memory serves, one very disappointed group chaperone
California: Iron Man star Robert Downey Jr. was honoured with the Disney Legend award on Friday, but the actor’s first visit to Disneyland did not end well.
The 54-year-old actor, who received the honour at the Disney D23 Expo 2019 here, shared with his fans that he was arrested for smoking pot on gondola when he visited Disneyland for the first time.
“Here’s a bit of trivia for you. The very first time I went to Disneyland I was transported to another place — within moments of being arrested.
“I was brought to a surprisingly friendly processing center, given a strict warning, and returned to, if memory serves, one very disappointed group chaperone. I’ve been sitting on that shame for a while and I‘m just going to release it here tonight,” Downey Jr. said as he began his acceptance speech.
The actor, who helped launch the Marvel Studios
and the Avengers juggernaut, courtesy his iconic portrayal of comic superhero Iron Man aka Tony Stark, joked he would like to make “amends” to whoever had to detain him for “smoking pot in a gondola without a license”.
“And I don’t wanna further confuse the issue by insinuating that pot smoking licenses for the gondola are in any way obtainable,” he added.
Apart from Downey Jr, iconic voice actor James Earl Jones, singer Christina Aguilera, filmmaker Jon Favreau, Hocus Pocus star Bette Middler, celebrated composer Hans Zimmer, Wing T Chao, director Kenny Ortega, choreographer Barnette Ricci, journalists Robin Roberts and Diane Swayer and actor Ming Na-Wen were also inducted in the Disney Legends class of 2019.
The actor and 11 other talented artistes and celebrities were honoured with the Disney Legend Award at D23 Expo 2019 here on Friday.
“Playing Tony Stark for these many years, that thematic idea that technology can guide our species towards enlightenment or destruction has been really worthwhile. It is an ongoing meditation. And on of the greatest gifts. I want to thank fans who made this all possible,”