Featured Attractions

Friday, February 28, 2014

Hometown Candies

Marceline's Confectionery, located at the Downtown Disney District outside DISNEYLAND Park is modeled after a candy shop from the small town where Walt Disney grew up- Marceline, Missouri. DISNEYLAND's Main Street was inspired by Walt Disney's time in Marceline.




Thursday, February 27, 2014

A Backwards Castle...


Early conceptual drawings of Sleeping Beauty Castle always look a bit- off. In fact, that's because the castle never looked quite right to Walt Disney, and he spent many hours staring at a model of the castle to determine what didn't seem right about it. Eventually he came to the conclusion that it looked backwards to him. He picked up the model, turned it around, and voila! The castle as we know it today looked exactly as Walt had always dreamed.



Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Blast to the Past at DISNEYLAND



In the late 1980's, DISNEYLAND hosted numerous off-season events to attract guests, one of which was Blast to the Past, which boasted a daily "sock hop", car show on Main Street and various musical acts performing songs from the decade of the park's birth- the 1950's.


Tuesday, February 25, 2014

A Voice for Gideon


Gideon, the criminally inclined cat who helps guide Pinocchio off the straight and narrow path, doesn't speak in the final cut of Pinocchio, but he did originally have a voice. Provided by the legendary Mel Blanc, Gideon's voice was deemed too distracting, so all of his dialogue was cut. Mel Blanc is heard on the final soundtrack, however; he provided one of Gideon's hiccups.




Monday, February 24, 2014

DISNEYLAND's Wizard of Bras


For the first year of its existence, DISNEYLAND had its very own bra shop. The Intimate Apparel shop was located at what eventually became the "China Closet", a shop featuring collectible figurines. The shop, which featured an exhibit on bras through the ages, was never a favorite of Walt's and it lasted just one year. Apparently, buying intimate apparel was not on the top of anyone's list when visiting the Magic Kingdom.



Sunday, February 23, 2014

Disney Quote Weekends

"You've had your fun... Now pay for it!"

-Coachman from Pinocchio

Saturday, February 22, 2014

Disney Quote Weekends

“Don’t worry about it, just make it beautiful and you’ll appeal to the best side of people. They all have it; all you have to do is bring it out.”

-Walt Disney

Friday, February 21, 2014

Disney & McDonald's


Remember Tuesday's fact? When discussing Walt Disney's airplane, we mentioned that he would often seek out McDonald's restaurants for impromptu meals. His ties to McDonald's go back even further, however- to 1917. At the tailend of World War I, Walt Disney found himself driving Red Cross ambulances in France. One of the other drivers he worked with was none other than Ray Kroc, the visionary businessman who would take the McDonald's concept worldwide. From 1998 until 2008, McDonald's and Disney had a wide ranging deal that would put McDonald's food in Disney Theme Parks.




Thursday, February 20, 2014

Disney Divisions: Hollywood Pictures


Hollywood Pictures was another film division of The Walt Disney Studios that, like Touchstone Pictures, was created to release films for a more mature audience. Its first released film was 1989's Arachnophobia.




Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Walt Disney's Airplane


Walt Disney often found himself needing to fly around the country to conduct business and he typically used the airplane pictured below. Walt kept a map of McDonald's restaurants on the plane and would often have the pilot land near one for impromptu meals. Walt allegedly used the plane to scope out locations for his "Florida Project". The plane is currently on display at Disney's Hollywood Studios during the short tram tour.



Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Walt Disney's Real EPCOT

Want to see Walt Disney's EPCOT? Don't head to Epcot Center. Instead, hop on the Tomorrowland Transit Authority inside the Disney World Magic Kingdom park. Take a look to the left as your car turns into the first indoor section of the ride. The announcer refers to the model as Walt Disney's vision of the City of Tomorrow, but this model is actually how EPCOT would have looked if Walt had lived to build it.

Monday, February 17, 2014

Mickey Mouse Park


The original plans for what became DISNEYLAND called for a small place across the street from the Disney Studios in Burbank. Walt Disney's plans for "Mickey Mouse Park" as pictured below, quickly outgrew the available land in Burbank. He would need a bigger parcel of land to build his Magic Kingdom...


Sunday, February 16, 2014

Disney Quote Weekends


"Your attention please! The Santa Fe and DISNEYLAND passenger train- the E.P. Ripley- now loading on track number one for a trip around Walt Disney's Magic Kingdom. All aboard!"

Saturday, February 15, 2014

Disney Quote Weekends


"A man should never neglect his family for business."

-Walt Disney


Friday, February 14, 2014

The Launch of The Disney Channel


The Disney Channel launched as a premium channel in 1983. Early programming included Mousercise, Welcome to Pooh Corner, Dumbo's Circus and Mouseterpiece Theatre.



Thursday, February 13, 2014

Disney Divisions: Touchstone Pictures


Touchstone Pictures was created by Walt Disney's son in law Ron Miller in 1984 as a way for Disney to release more adult films. Its first release was the Tom Hanks film Splash.


Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Sorcerer Dopey?


Early plans for Fantasia cast lovable Dopey as the Sorcerer's Apprentice. Of course, the role eventually went to Mickey Mouse.




Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Rest in Peace, Shirley Temple


Shirley Temple had huge ties to The Walt Disney Company. In addition to presenting Walt with the honorary Oscar for "Snow White", she also helped open Sleeping Beauty Castle & sat on the Disney Board of directors in the 1970s.

Feature #3: Fantasia


The third feature released by Walt Disney Productions was the triumphant Fantasia. An experimental film in which orchestral music was played over vivid animated scenes, the movie was truly ahead of its time.




Monday, February 10, 2014

Win, Lose or Draw!


Win, Lose or Draw! was one of Buena Vista Television's early successes in the 1980's. Hosted by Bert Convey and produced by Burt Reynolds, the show was based on a game Burt used to play with his guests. On the TV show, two teams would compete against each other- men versus women. Each team consisted of two celebrities and one regular person who would win whatever prizes were awarded.

There were three versions of the show. The nighttime version was hosted by Bert Convey, the daytime version was hosted by Vicki Lawrence and the kids version, which aired on the Disney Channel, was hosted by Marc Price. A new version of the show is scheduled to air on the Disney Channel and will be geared towards children.




Sunday, February 9, 2014

Saturday, February 8, 2014

Friday, February 7, 2014

The Gummi Bears' Cavin


Every band of mythical cartoon creatures need a human kid to help them, right? The hero the Gummi Bears counted on was Cavin, who had many young actors provide his voice, including Bud Bundy himself- David Faustino.

Thursday, February 6, 2014

Donald Duck's Sister


If Donald Duck had three nephews, it stands to reason he must have had a sibling, right? He did! A sister named Dumbella "Della" Duck who graces her beloved brother with his three angelic nephews.

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

The Original Mickey Mouse Watch


The original Mickey Mouse watch was produced by the bankrupt Ingersoll Watch Company, which promptly exited bankruptcy and eventually became Timex. The price of an original Ingersoll Mickey Mouse in its original box is considerably more than the price listed in the picture below.

Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Bizarro DISNEYLAND?!?!?


In 1961 a Japanese businessman, excited by Walt Disney's Magic Kingdom in Anaheim, decided to make his own version- Nara Dreamland. The park had its own bargain basement castle and a Matterhorn that looked like it was made out of cardboard. Walt Disney was so upset that he stopped talks about building a Disneyland in Tokyo. (Tokyo Disneyland wouldn't open until 1983.) Nara Dreamland would eventually close in 2006.



Monday, February 3, 2014

Walt Disney & the Winter Olympics

The opening and closing ceremonies for the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, CA were produced by Walt Disney. He also had a hand in planning the event areas and venues as well. Many of his revolutionary ideas became Olympic traditions that are still undertaken today.

Sunday, February 2, 2014

Disney Quote Weekends


"Don't tell him Carlos! Don't be chicken!"

-Mayor's Wife in DISNEYLAND's Pirates of the Carribbean attraction

Saturday, February 1, 2014

Disney Quote Weekends


"I dream, I test my dreams against my beliefs, I dare to take risks and I execute my vision to make those dreams come true."

-Walt Disney