On June 24, 2006, Johnny Depp walked down the red carpet at Disneyland for the premiere of PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN’S CHEST . . . and walked into movie history. DEAD MAN’S CHEST, featuring Johnny's return as Captain Jack Sparrow, would soon set all-time box office records for biggest opening day, opening weekend, and opening week ticket sales. Thousands of excited fans lined Disneyland’s Main Street on that sunny Saturday afternoon, hoping for a chance to snap a picture or get an autograph.

For Johnny Depp himself, premiere day began with the formal launch of the revamped Pirates of the Caribbean ride, which now features three animatronic figures of Captain Jack Sparrow. Then came a lengthy lunch . . . not with the media or Hollywood executives, but several children sponsored by the Make-A-Wish Foundation “whose dream was to meet the actor,” reports the LA Times. Johnny appeared on the red carpet around 6:30 p.m. Despite the heat, Johnny then spent more than two hours patiently signing hundreds of autographs for waiting fans. As night fell, he was whisked along to the screening of DEAD MAN’S CHEST with castmates Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley.

This gallery shows the many moods of Johnny on premiere day—embracing friends, waving to fans, signing autographs, posing for pictures, responding to TV journalists, clowning around with the animatronic Captain Jack. The Zone thanks bonnie, AnaMaria, In-too-Depp and Deeppswooner for contributing photos.

--Part-Time Poet

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