Aug 17, 2026
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Add us on GoogleDisney fans love owning a part of the company’s history. And a just-concluded auction underlines just how far they’re willing to go to add to their collection, even for an item that might have some people scratching their head.
At Disney’s just completed D23 fan event, the company held an auction of park memorabilia. And one fan shelled out $12,200 for a used trash can from the Wilderness Lodge hotel at Orlando’s Walt Disney World.
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The can, which was described as a “gleaming green resort-used” receptacle weighing 41 lbs. was one of two trash cans up for bids. The other, from Disneyland’s Tomorrowland area of the park, sold for $10,980.
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Demand for the cans could have been stoked by the company’s recent introduction of new trash cans that hold more refuse, are solar powered and automatically compact waste. The tops of the new cans are sloped, however, making it harder for guests to use them as makeshift dining tables when they can’t find a seat at a restaurant.
Big spenders. Unusual items.
The trash cans were hardly the top dollar items in the auction. That honor went to a Kermit the Frog statue that was perched atop the double doors leading into and out of the main theater in the now-shuttered Muppet*Vision 3D attraction. It sold for $115,900. (A 5.5-foot tall Miss Piggy statue from the show went for $73,200 too.)
A fan of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, meanwhile, paid $79,300 for a customized, park-used ride cart that had been repurposed into a sitting bench. A separate vehicle from the attraction, which hadn’t been repurposed, sold for $51,240.
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A collector’s item?
While the Wilderness Lodge trash can went for a higher price at the auction, the Tomorrowland one might, ultimately, be worth more to collectors.
At D23, Disney unveiled a number of plans for its parks, including a reimagining of Tomorrowland at Disneyland. The company did not announce a timeframe for the project and did not give many details, beyond saying it would have “new attractions” and “more open spaces.”
“We are entering Disneyland’s next great chapter where new generations will continue to relive fun memories of the past and savor the promises of the future — and it all begins in Tomorrowland,” said Thomas Mazloum chairman of Disney Experiences at the event.
Beyond the Tomorrowland update, Disney announced plans to update Spaceship Earth at Epcot, fix (or replace) the long-broken Yeti animatronic on Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom and gave new details about Avengers-themed rides at California Adventure and attractions themed around Indiana Jones, Cars, Monsters Inc. and Encanto at its Florida Parks.
The presentation also unveiled the first details for the forthcoming Villain’s Land in the Magic Kingdom, one of the most anticipated projects in Disney history. That area will have two major attractions, a coaster experience centered around Maleficent and a dark ride where the Magic Mirror from Snow White conjures several villains.
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Chris Morris is a veteran journalist with more than 35 years of experience at many of the internet's biggest news outlets. In addition to his activities as a writer, reporter and editor, Chris is also a frequent panel moderator and speaker at major conferences, including CES and South by Southwest.
