Randy Morris played ragtime piano on Main Street, U.S.A. when Magic Kingdom opened on Oct. 1, 1971. He came back to play the same corner for the park’s 50th birthday.
Randy Morris, the ragtime pianist who played on Main Street, U.S.A. the day Magic Kingdom opened in 1971, has died.
WDW News Today reported that Morris died Sunday, Oct. 25. MickeyBlog also reported his death. Neither outlet gave a cause of death or his age, and Disney had not posted a tribute on its parks blog as of Tuesday morning.
For a lot of Disney World fans, Morris was part of the park’s very first soundtrack. He was 19 years old when he sat down at the piano on opening day.
Who was Randy Morris?
Morris was born and raised in Los Angeles. He played traditional jazz in the San Fernando Valley and loved the banjo from the time he was a teenager, according to the American Banjo Museum.
He got his first taste of Disney in the summer of 1970, playing at Disneyland. The next year, he headed to Florida for the opening of Walt Disney World, where opening day performers signed three-month contracts.
On Oct. 1, 1971, he played at the corner spot at the end of Main Street, U.S.A. that’s now Casey’s Corner. In a 2021 Facebook post, Morris said he was “playing at the same location, then called Coke Corner,” on opening day.
What else did Randy Morris do at Disney World?
Plenty. Over the years, Morris played with the Banjo Kings and in the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue, the long-running dinner show at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort.
He also performed with the Riverboat Rascals aboard the Empress Lilly, the paddle-wheel riverboat restaurant at what’s now Disney Springs. The boat later became Fulton’s Crab House and is now Paddlefish.
Outside Disney, he led the band at Rosie O’Grady’s in Orlando. He also collected and saved hundreds of historic banjo recordings.
The American Banjo Museum inducted him into its Hall of Fame in 2022, in the Promotion category.
When did Randy Morris return to Casey’s Corner?
On Oct. 1, 2021, Magic Kingdom’s 50th anniversary, exactly 50 years after he first played there.
Morris took the first set at Casey’s Corner that morning at 11:10 a.m. He played “Maple Leaf Rag,” “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” and “The Magic Is Calling,” the theme song for Walt Disney World’s 50th celebration. He shared the day’s sets with pianist Grayson Smith.
Disney Parks marked the moment on social media, noting that the ragtime piano player had returned to Casey’s Corner with a special appearance by an opening day cast member.
Is there still a piano player at Casey’s Corner?
Yes. Ragtime piano is still part of the Casey’s Corner experience, right next to the hot dogs and the baseball theme borrowed from the poem “Casey at the Bat.”
Carol Stein, the longtime EPCOT pianist, started playing at Casey’s Corner on Sept. 16, 2026. She called it “such a joyful, high-energy place” when she joined.
Morris’ opening day contract was only supposed to last three months. Fifty years later, he was back on the same corner.
Article compiled and written by Kambrea Pratt (editor-in-chief), Derek Gibbs (beat editor) and the Pirates & Princesses newsroom. Pirates & Princesses is part of WebReef Media.
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Hat Tips:
WDW News Today (Oct. 25, 2026), Morris’ death; (2021), his 50th anniversary return
MickeyBlog (Oct. 25, 2026), his death
American Banjo Museum (Jan. 2022), his background, Disney work and Hall of Fame induction
Laughing Place (Oct. 2021), his opening day contract and 50th anniversary set
WDWMagic (Oct. 2021), the 50th anniversary performance; (Sept. 16, 2026), Carol Stein at Casey’s Corner
Disney Parks on X (Oct. 16, 2021), the 50th anniversary post
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