Gitchee Gitchee Goo

One of the signature features of Phineas and Ferb is the catchy music that's played in every episode. It's almost like it was always supposed to be that way. Except it wasn't.

The producers never actually intended for there to be a song in every episode. The only episode that was supposed to have a song in it was Flop Starz in which Phineas would write, record and perform the catchy song "Gitchee Gitchee Goo", become a one hit wonder, then retire.

Disney Channel executives saw an early cut of the episode and absolutely loved the song. They requested that each episode, even the ones already produced, have a song in them. And the creators obliged. Music became a huge part of the show, inspiring theme park shows and soundtrack albums. But it all started with the greatest song of all- Gitchee Gitchee Goo.

"A Kiss Goodnight"

One of the first DISNEYLAND traditions was the nightly fireworks display. In the early days of the park, funds were hard to come by. DISNEYLAND's managers felt that they could save money by eliminating the fireworks since it was believed that park guests weren't necessarily coming to the park just to see them; nor would they stop coming if the fireworks ended.

Walt Disney, however, vetoed the idea. In his mind, the fireworks were a gift from him to his guests. They had chosen to come from around the world to visit his Magic Kingdom and he wanted to send them off with what he called a "Kiss goodnight"- a way of showing his appreciation to his beloved guests. This tradition remains to this very day.

Disney Quote Weekends

"A day without looking at me Money Bin is like a day without sunshine!"

Disney Quote Weekends

"I'm Mickey Mouse. I hope you've heard of me. I hope."

"May the Fourth" Week: Vintage Star Wars Costumes

"May the Fourth" Week concludes today with the final Star Wars article. The Story of DISNEYLAND will return next Friday.

With the recent explosion of Halloween spending, costumes for children have become more elaborate. In the 1970's and 1980's, costumes were simple affairs. Scary plastic masks and smocks that rarely resembled the character they were supposed to look like. The Star Wars costumes were no exception.

Chances are, tons of doors were opened to reveal this costume during many Halloweens in the late 70's, early 80's:

Practically every character was featured in a costume- even Boba Fett and Yoda.

Apparently Farrah Fawcett masks were repurposed as Luke Skywalker:

It could be worse, however. Imagine if your parents bought your costume at the last minute? And they were out of Star Wars costumes?

"They didn't have any more costumes from the space film! Don't you like that Kotter show with the stinkpigs or whatever?"

"May the Fourth" Week: The Cartoons of Star Wars

In the 1980's, George Lucas sought to expand his empire. The huge profits coming in from films and merchandising gave him unparalleled opportunities. ABC eagerly took advantage of the opportunity to greenlight two series based on the world of Star Wars. Star Wars: Droids and Star Wars: Ewoks.

Star Wars: Droids took place in the timeframe before Star Wars: A New Hope. R2D2 and C3PO were still just floating around, unowned and moving from master to master. The show featured their hijinks as they tried to stay functional and help their new masters.

Star Wars: Ewoks featured the lovable Ewoks in the years before Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. Unlike the Ewoks in the film, these Ewoks spoke regular English and were less prone to the violence depicted in Return of the Jedi. 

The shows were never given stable time slots, which contributed to their low ratings. Lucasfilm insisted on high quality animation, which meant that the shows were more expensive than others. ABC decided to cancel the Droids after just one season and the Ewoks after two.

"May the Fourth" Week: The Forgotten Star Wars Holiday Special

We've featured the Star Wars Holiday Special here at RetlawYensid.com before. It was the regrettable variety show produced by CBS without the assistance of George Lucas. George had signed an agreement with CBS prior  to the production in exchange for extra cash he used for special effects shots. When the movie was successful, CBS chose to exercise its option, getting minimal support from Lucasfilm and none from George Lucas. The broadcast was a notorious disaster, getting high ratings, but critical scorn. It never aired again and has never been released on home video.

However, how does the company treat the characters introduced in the special? Despite ignoring the special itself, the official Lucasfilm Star Wars "Bible", used internally, acknowledges the characters and situations from the special. The most embraced segment of the special was the Boba Fett cartoon.

This cartoon is the only part of the special that has been seen in official presentations. Its storyline has also been referred to in other official publications. 

Other characters, while never seen outside bootlegged copies of the special, are referred to internally as official characters, like Chewbacca's son Lumpy:

And Mos Eisley Cantina's spunky barmaid Ackmena, played by the legendary Beatrice Arthur:

The central holiday being celebrated by Chewbacca's family- "Life Day", has been humorously referenced by the official website StarWars.Com and is starting to be celebrated every November 17th by fans of the movies. Could this thawing of the special's icy reception mean that a home video release of the only major Star Wars production to never see the light of day on any home format might be in the offing?

One "Life Day" tradition- the wearing of a red robe- had a practical reason for its existence. CBS and Lucasfilm's agreement stated that the network would have to pay to use any costumes or props from Lucasfilm. This is why they introduced new characters into the show. CBS wanted to cut costs, so for some scenes featuring Chewbacca, they only rented the head. Using the cheap robe saved thousands of dollars.

"May the Fourth" Week: Star Wars and Atari

Lucasfilm Ltd. was always a tech oriented company. Even though many of the early special effects in the Star Wars films were relatively low-tech, the company was always eager to utilize the latest technology and in the late 1970's/early 1980's, the latest technology was the Atari. Not willing to just release low quality games, Lucasfilm insisted that games based on the movies weren't just thrown together. It could have authorized more games of lesser quality. Instead it only released four titles- 

Star Wars: Jedi Arena

Star Wars: The Arcade Game

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

Return of the Jedi: Death Star Battle

A fifth title based on the Ewoks was created, but not released due to the collapse of Atari. While these cartridges were released by Parker Brothers, the company eventually brought video game production in house through LucasArts Software, which produced a variety of titles, many based on original concepts.

#wdis4u: Disneyland Dream

One of the questions I'm frequently asked is what turned me into a Disney Super Fan. I have always loved Disney; if given a choice as a toddler, I would always gravitate to anything Disney, especially Mickey Mouse. Disney has always been a part of my life, but the turning point was my first trip to a very special place.

I can still remember it vividly. My parents were taking my sister and me to a magical place where all our Disney friends lived, designed by a very special man. I recall seeing it from afar as we walked through the parking lot that magical day. I could hardly believe we were there- at DISNEYLAND!

Upon entering the park, we walked through the right-side tunnel. I stared up in wonder- I had never seen anything so magical in my young life. By the time we left Town Square and started making our way down the street, my eyes caught the most amazing and beautiful building I had ever seen- Sleeping Beauty Castle. That cinched it. I loved this place, the characters and the amazing attractions. I decided then and there that I would try to learn as much as I could about this magical place and the man behind it. From then on I was hooked.

When I started reading everything I could about Walt Disney, I discovered an amazing coincidence- he was born on December 5th. I was born on December 5th! I couldn't believe that I shared my birthday with one of my heroes!

I still love visiting DISNEYLAND and I still get that wonderful feeling of magic when I walk inside the park today. I have always considered DISNEYLAND to be like a second home to me. When I walk into DISNEYLAND, I'm just like a kid again, if only for the day.

"May the Fourth" Week: A Young Boy Dreams of DISNEYLAND

Little George Lucas was just like every other red blooded American kid who faithfully watched the DISNEYLAND TV show- he dreamed of visiting the park as soon as it opened to see the magical things it doubtless contained.

As soon as Walt Disney announced that the park would open on July 17, 1955, little George began begging his father to take the family down to Anaheim (the family lived in Modesto, a six hour drive away) but it was a tough sell. Mr. Lucas felt it would be too expensive, too crowded. The family wouldn't go anywhere near this tourist trap.

Like just about everyone in the U.S. who had a television, the Lucas family watched the opening of DISNEYLAND on ABC. As the special progressed, Mr. Lucas became more and more excited about the park, perhaps even moreso than little George. By the end of the 90 minute telecast, Mr. Lucas was so excited he decided right then and there to make the six hour trek to Anaheim the very next morning.

The Lucas family was there to experience the wonders of the Magic Kingdom on July, 18, 1955. Could little George have possibly imagined that he would be in DISNEYLAND 37 years later, proudly unveiling Star Tours, an attraction based on one of his creations?

It must have been an amazing day for big George to realize one of little George's wildest dreams- to add a special attraction to a special place.

May the Fourth Be With You!