Mortimer Mouse!

Some people may know that Walt originally chose the name "Mortimer" for his character Mickey Mouse. (Thank Lillian Disney for changing his mind on that one.) But did you know that they actually did create a character named Mortimer? Mortimer Mouse was a rival for Minnie's attentions and was everything Lillian Disney associated with the name Mortimer- conceited, snide and rude.

He's not in the book...

The gopher from Winnie the Pooh proudly announces that he's not in the book, which has a double meaning; in the movie, he's referring to not being in the phone book. However, he's also not in the AA Milne Winnie the Pooh books either. The joke was allegedly inserted by Walt Disney himself, who found it quite amusing.

"Hotel Disneyland?!?"

Guests arriving at Disneyland in 1962 could cap an exciting day at Walt Disney's Magic Kingdom by taking a relaxing monorail ride to the world famous....... Hotel Disneyland?!?

Yes, the picture below is a real photo taken shortly after the Sierra Tower was first built. The tower was built to be expandable and as a result the elevator was placed off center. Which meant that this was the only way to display the entire name of the hotel. 

In 1966, the tower was expanded to its current size and the sign was correctly aligned.

After the resort upgrades, the Disneyland Hotel signage was removed altogether.

Hidden Binfords?

In Disney's Toy Story, when Woody gets captured by Andy's next door neighbor Spike, we see the horrors that exist within Spike's workshop. Hidden among Spike's many tools is this Binford Toolbox, a brand made famous by another Disney production- Home Improvement, which starred Tim Allen, the voice of Buzz Lightyear.

Never Give Up!

It took Dan Povenmire and Jeff "Swampy" Marsh 16 years to sell their idea for Phineas and Ferb. Practically every studio (including Disney, initially) rejected the show when it was first presented to them. Now, Phineas and Ferb is one of the top shows on cable TV, spawning merchandise, theme park shows, live productions and video games. It's a perfect example of why it's never a good idea to give up.

Disney Quote Weekends

"Got out my old camp T-Shirt! Still fits, kinda!"

-Henry from the Country Bear Vacation Hoedown

Disney Quote Weekends

"Anything is possible at DISNEYLAND!"

-Walt Disney

Feature #2- Pinocchio

The second feature film from Walt Disney Productions was truly a masterpiece- Pinocchio. Beautiful, funny and full of heart, the tale of a little wooden boy whose dream comes true is a personal favorite of ours. Who can resist kindly Geppetto's Little Wooden Head?

 

Walt Disney's EPCOT

Walt Disney had big plans for his Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, yet like many of his biggest dreams, there were many in the company who doubted it would be a success, including his own brother. It would be nice to point to Walt Disney World's EPCOT and say that it was living proof of the success of Walt's dream, but that EPCOT was never built. After Walt's passing, his brother Roy quickly canceled all of Walt's plans for the Florida project. The resort as built reflects the vision of Roy Disney, not that of its namesake. Only DISNEYLAND park in Anaheim stands as a fully realized vision of one of Walt's dreams.

So where did the current EPCOT come from? It seems that people never forgot how Walt spoke about EPCOT on his television show and flooded guest relations at Florida's Magic Kingdom Theme Park with complaints about not getting to visit EPCOT during their visit. All design work on other potential theme parks was halted as the company concentrated on solving the EPCOT problem. They found the answer right on front of their faces; two of the many competing theme park ideas they were considering before it was decreed that "EPCOT" would be the 2nd Florida park were "Future World" and "World Showcase". They were not seen as compelling ideas on their own, but smash them together and they could become something bigger. So that's exactly what they did. Two dissimilar ideas thrown together became EPCOT Center.

Slue Foot Sue's Golden Horseshoe

Just around the bend in Frontierland is a lively little place that has hosted legends, villains, clowns & gorgeous dancers alike- the fabulous Golden Horseshoe. As the glamorous Slue Foot Sue sings in the place's theme song, she won the place when her "boss man drew a nine" and has entertained millions in her little saloon since that fateful day.

An inspiration to millions, the show even inspired a young Steve Martin to begin a career in showbiz. Amazingly, three future Disney Legends performed regularly on the stage in front of millions of appreciative DISNEYLAND guests- Miss Betty Taylor, Mr. Wally Boag and Mr. Fulton Burley. Never before and possibly never again, would theme park guests see such talent in a live show performed several times a day.

As the song goes, the welcome mat was always out at The Golden Horseshoe and millions have enjoyed the magical show within that famous building.