Holiday was a popular magazine published from 1946-1977. Last week, a blog archiving the articles of the old periodical published a 1956 article from prolific science-fiction author, Ray Bradbury. In his article, The Machine-Tooled Happyland, he summarizes--quite emphatically, poetically, and philosophically--how great and influential Disneyland is.
It is definitely worth the read.
Check it out here.
Showing posts with label Disneyland. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Disneyland. Show all posts
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Ray Bradbury on Disneyland
Friday, October 21, 2011
Mary Blair's 100th Birthday
Google's doodle today, seen above, is a tribute to the late and great Mary Blair. The incredibly talented artist behind It's a Small World, with contributions to classics like Cinderella, Peter Pan, and Alice in Wonderland, was born 100 years ago today.
She has been deemed a Disney legend in more ways than one, massively shaping the style many Disney films and theme park attractions have taken. Her unique touch is hard to miss, and is nothing short of spectacular. Just get your hands on a copy of this or this or this, and be astounded by the manner in which she treats shape and color and contrast and artistic minimalism. It is unlike any artist before her or since.
Today we remember Mary, her wonderful film contributions, her gorgeous murals (now lost to less successful renovations), and the creative spirit she brought to the Disney we all know and love.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Iger says Disney wants to acquire more characters, states the obvious
The Disney Blog and Blue Sky, among some other blogs, have been posting on a recent quote by Iger, in which he expresses that Disney wants to acquire more characters.
Pixar and Marvel was its first step. Disney's purchase of Pixar gives it access to dozens of popular characters that it can do whatever it wants with--make spin-off films, theme park rides, product lines . . . The possibilities of wealth to be had in such high profile characters are almost endless. Similarly, Marvel's 4,000+ character bank opens up Disney's empire into a whole new dimension.
But don't be disheartened that Disney isn't creating tons of their own characters. After all, as many seem to forget, Walt based his features on fairytales, classic literature, legends, and the like, and those stories turned out great.
So my question is, why wouldn't Disney want to acquire more characters? Sure, it'd probably be better if they created their own characters from the ground up, like Pixar does, but they don't necessarily have to. Bolt was an original story and that was wonderful, but so was Tangled, which, as you know, is based on the fairytale of Rapunzel. Disney's theme parks are filled with Indiana Jones and Star Wars, and people love it. You don't need original content for a good story. In fact, the majority of people are more likely to see and connect with a film based around a character they're already familiar with than a completely foreign one.
I think, as with everything it seems, a good balance is key. Some original content, some based on established franchises and existing characters. And that is what Disney seems to be doing now. Its Pixar branch is creating original content, its Marvel branch is breathing new life into characters we already know, and its animation division just released the well-known Winnie-the-Pooh and is developing Mort, a film based on a Terry Pratchett novel, while also working on King of the Elves and The Snow Queen, both of which are loosely based on existing stories, but will act as if they were original since those stories are rather obscure.
And it's good that Disney wants to stretch its horizons. After all, it is an entertainment company, so it wants to get its hand on anything entertaining. Even if they buy up something like Shrek (which would never happen), they could always just stick it on a shelf indefinitely so that no other studio could have access to something so great. Disney is, first and foremost, in the business of making money. I hate to admit it, since they should be in the business of telling good stories, but it's true.
However, good stories make money. At least that's how it should work. So is it bad that Disney wants to acquire more characters? No, since it will keep the slate of Disney films (as well as the theme parks) interesting and new--a good story can come from anywhere. (And, as you may know, Disney has a rather fat wallet, so it can afford a character from anywhere.) Is it bad that Disney plans to keep creating original content, too? Of course not; original content is where we get some of the most beloved characters we know and love.
Is it bloody obvious that Disney longs to get more characters under its banner?
Yes. Yes it is.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
A Brief Note
Hello, all of you lovely readers, you.
I know you've missed me, and I've missed you. I have been in California on vacation for a while, and haven't been able to post anything. (Although, I've been keeping up with the news on my phone and things and haven't seen much that's worthy of a post.)
Anywho, one of the things I've done out here in The Golden State is gotten a private tour of Pixar Animation Studios!! It was exhilarating. I didn't take a ton of pictures, but have some remarks I'll share with you once I have the time to construct a nice little post about it. Look for that by the end of this month.
Also, I'll be heading over to Disneyland next week, so keep an eye out for some talkback about all the new changes at DCA.
I'll try and keep you updated with the latest news, especially with SIGGRAPH and D23 coming up soon, but I'm not promising anything.
Sorry, my beloved readers, for the recent hiatus in posts. At least you have some fun stuff to look forward to, right!?
Talk to you soon . . .
Monday, May 23, 2011
Star Tours 2.0 Video and Reviews
Star Tours 2.0, the reboot of everyone's Star Wars-inspired, 1980s attraction at Disneyland and Disney World, has officially opened at Walt Disney World's Hollywood Studios and is just a few weeks away from its June 3rd opening at Disneyland in California.
The above promotional video, released by Disney for the Florida attraction, should get you excited for the sure-to-be awesome attraction.
The reboot includes high-definition digital imagery in 3D, 54 possible adventures (so the ride's different almost every time), better motion simulation, and an updated queue.
According [<--SPOILER ALERT!] to LA Times' staff writer Brady MacDonald, the ride is "light-years better than the 1987 original," and is a "fantastic update to a venerable classic."
If you don't want the ride to be spoiled, check out this spoiler-free review from Inside the Magic. It mentions that, thankfully, "George Lucas and the Walt Disney Imagineers that have improved this attraction have found a perfect balance between the original beloved Star Wars trilogy and the good, but less-enjoyed prequels," and that the ride is "an update to a classic attraction that keeps the same fun spirit it has had for more than 20 years but enhances it with new technology and more stories, characters, and excitement to be had." It also includes a nice, spoiler-free video review of the attraction.
For other SPOILER-ific reviews, look at this one from Star Tours Live, this one at Behind the Thrills, and this one from Inside the Magic.
If you want a taste of the ride before going out to see it for yourself, check out this Star Tours 2.0 blog. They have a collection of YouTube videos taken in the actual ride. Obviously, these videos include major SPOILERS, since they are, uh, video of the ride.
The attraction is open in WDW and will be opening in a few weeks on June 3 at California's Disneyland.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Star Tours 2.0 Grand Opening
Briefly: StitchKingdom has a wonderful article filled to the brim with photos and video taken at yesterday's grand opening for Star Tours 2.0 at Walt Disney World. George Lucas and Disney CEO Bob Iger both came out for the event.
I'll be taking the intergalactic journey at Disneyland this August, and will certainly give you folks my thoughts on the attraction's update.
Monday, April 11, 2011
DCA's 'Little Mermaid' gets some music
Watch the above video. It's a very interesting look at the process behind the score for California Adventure's upcoming attraction Ariel's Undersea Adventure. It includes some never-before-seen looks at the attraction, which is currently in the final stages of construction.
This ride is gonna be awesome. (Although I don't know about that creepy King Triton animatronic . . . )
It is, of course, apart of Disney's total revamp and renovation of the sorry little stepbrother to Disneyland in California. I'll be heading down to LA later this summer, excited to see more of the changes! . . .
Lookin' good, Imagineers. Lookin' real good . . .
Friday, January 7, 2011
UPDATED: So long, C-A-L-I-F-O-R-N-I-A
I hope you took lotsa pictures, folks, because, the large "C-A-L-I-F-O-R-N-I-A" letters that used to grace the entrance to Disney's California Adventure are officially closed from the 
public starting today (Tuesday, January 4). They are being removed, along with the rest of the "Sunshine Plaza," which includes the entrance turnstiles, those godawful bathroom tiles, shops like you'd find at your local mall, and all of the other generic and un-Disney things wrong with that area.
In their stead will be a bustling Buena Vista Street from the 1920s when Walt first ventured to the 
big city in pursuit of his dreams, complete with Red Trolley cars and a Carthay Circle Theater. Alternate entrances will be used and will be a huge pain for everyone, but it's all for a good cause--the park will finally be where it should have started all along . . . and all it took was more power to the creatives taken from the cold-hearted and soul-less suited minions of one Michael Eisner...
UPDATE: Below you will find a photo of the construction barriers placed in front of the park. This would hardly be worth an update, were it not for the presence of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit's (and other previously-unknown characters') pronounced positions on the construction wall. Very cool. Let's hope they can integrate the wonderful character of Oswald into the revamped park itself... See more pictures of the construction wall here.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
What Makes it Timeless: An Introduction
I have recently been reflecting and thinking a lot about Disney, etc. I like the articles that I write, but there simply aren't enough of them. And not only that, but they are all about news. While news is very important and I will continue posting on it, I want to do more to share my passion for all things Disney, Pixar, movies, and everything in-between.
That is why I am starting a new feature on Disney, etc. entitled What Makes it Timeless. I was inspired by the NPR series, What Makes it Great, which is a segment of their radio program in which Rob Kapilow, a renowned composer and conductor, discusses what makes our favorite songs so great. He goes into vivid detail regarding melody and the smallest things within the music that you'd never think to listen to--all in order to tell us what makes the song so great. I highly encourage you give the show a listen, especially when he discusses what makes Over the Rainbow so great--that one is my favorite.
Instead of music, I'm going to be writing about Disney movies, Pixar movies, shorts, scores, Disney songs, theme park attractions, theme park songs, studios in general, directors, producers, other Hollywood films, and even voice actors--I will delve into every facet of Disney, Pixar, and movies in general to describe just what it is that makes that specific thing timeless to us. Much like Rob Kapilow, I will be going beyond face value in order to discover why a certain film or song or ride makes our brain believe it to be so amazing and special. I'll combine each aspect, no matter how mundane or obvious, of the given film or song or studio in order to help describe why we like it so much.
This is very experimental and still in development, but, nevertheless, I am very excited to start sharing more of my opinions and ideas about animation, movies, Disney, Pixar, and everything in-between with all of you, my beloved readers.
Expect to see the first edition of What Makes it Timeless within the next few days. But I won't tell you what the topic is yet--that's a surprise.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Giacchino to Score Star Tours 2.0
Once again, John Williams has declined to score a theme park attraction for Disney. So, for Star Tours 2.0, they have turned to music extraordinaire Michael Giacchino--the Oscar-winning genius behind the scores of Ratatouille, The Incredibles, Up, Partly Cloudy, Day & Night, Mission Impossible: III, and Star Trek, among others.
This is great. Ever since The Incredibles, Giacchino has been my favorite contemporary composer. But then he wrote that glorious score for Up, which moved him up to possibly being my favorite composer of all time (he's definitely in the top three).
Hearing how he utilizes the original Star Wars and Star Tours themes to compose his own score is going to be very, very cool. My favorite composer combined with one of the most recognizable film themes ever written? Yes, please.
We'll get to hear his brand new, intergalactic score next year when Star Tours 2.0 makes its debut.
Source: LaughingPlace
Monday, May 10, 2010
Star Wars Weekends Advertisements
Radiator Springs Racers Sneak Peek
Briefly: In 2012, a brand new land at Disney's California Adventure will open: Cars Land. Based on the classic Pixar film Cars, the land is a part of a massive renovation going on at the park that has been in the works for several years.
Above you can see a "sneak peek" at one of the vehicles for the Radiator Springs Racers, an Autopia-type attraction that is being billed as the E-ticket ride for the new land.
Those cars look like they are going to be very cool. This is getting exciting.
Source: Disney Parks Blog
Monday, March 8, 2010
Pixar in The Wonderful World of Color
Above you will find a very interesting video about Pixar's contributions and involvement with the upcoming light and fountain show, The Wonderful World of Color, coming to Disney's California Adventure this summer. There are some very interesting interviews, as well as very cool clips from the testing done at the actual site of the show.
For some construction pictures of this show and all of Disneyland and DCA, look no further than MiceChat.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Another Link Roundup: Dumbo, Toys, and Neil Patrick Harris is Seeing Blue
There's usually a manageable amount of Disney news to report on, but today there was simply an avalanche of great things in the world of Disney. This post will point you in the right direction so you can read all about it.
The Official Disney Parks Blog has released the above video to tell us all about their upcoming attraction, the Silly Symphony Swings.
Last year, The Magic of Disney Animation at Disney's Hollywood Studios showcased tons of great stuff from Up. This year, they are showcasing Toy Story 3 props, artwork, etc. Read about it over at The Pixar Blog.
The New York Post is reporting that the next Disney film that will be ported to the glittering lights of Broadway is Dumbo. This is pretty surprising, and I don't know if I quite buy it. A stage production of the classic Disney film would be just too weird.
Above you will find the newest Toy Story 3 character, Twitch. Read more here.
Stitch Kingdom has a great roundup about Disney's recent domain name purchases. They allude to possible new productions, including Cars Toons, Ant Man, and more.
This final piece of news is, frankly, the most exciting. Neil Patrick Harris, it has just been said, will star in the upcoming Smurfs film! Mr. Harris has to be one of my favorite actors with a great sense of humor and a lot of talent when it comes to singing (hopefully he'll have a musical number in the Smurfs film). The Smurfs movie will be about real people, like Harris, stumbling upon the world of little blue people.
That's all the Disney, etc. news there is for today, but keep checking back. You just never know what might happen when it comes to Disney, Pixar, Movies, and everything in-between.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Why I'm Not Renewing My D23 Membership
I was a D23 Charter Member and always will be. I have not renewed my membership, however. There are several reasons for this, but it mostly boils down to a simple lack of what's in it for me.
The best thing, by far, is the quarterly subscription to the D23 magazine that comes with a membership. The magazine is gorgeous and full of useful and interesting information, but it isn't something that I have to own. It's not the type of magazine I want to keep as a piece of memorabilia, and I can get all of the information out of it that I'll ever need by flipping through it at the bookstore. While it is a wonderful magazine, it really isn't worth purchasing.
Another huge feature of being a D23 member is having access to a ton of "special events" all about Disney. Well, these events might be nice, but, living in Golden, Colorado, I wouldn't know. I make it to California once a year for my annual trip to Disneyland, but that's it. If you don't live near Anaheim or New York, there are virtually no D23 events open to you, unless you are willing to pay 2 memberships' worth for a plane ticket.
Now, I will concede that the D23 Expo is a special special event, but it's still not worth the membership+plane tickets+a hotel room. The expo might be that great in 5-10 years, but they're still working out the kinks. The expo will constantly improve, and I'd be a fool to go this early (although there are some really great seminars and things...but it's just too much money).
The one thing that had me on the fence were the nice little pieces of Disney memorabilia that D23 sent out. Not because they had to, but because they wanted to. I loved getting them--the Matterhorn patch, the Christmas card reprint, etc. Those were great, but I figured I could pick one up on eBay if they sent out something really great. Nevertheless, it really was a nice touch that made being a part of D23 a bit more special and exclusive.
So, I am no longer a member of D23. If I move to California and become closer to these events they offer, or if they make the magazine twice as long, I'll consider rejoining the ranks of D23, but, for now, I'm staying out of it.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Walt Disney World Favoritism
In 1955, Walt Disney opened what is arguably the Happiest Place on Earth: Disneyland. It has brought joy to billions of people during its 55 years of operation, and is the original Disney Theme Park.
In 1971, Walt Disney World opened. It is, historically, the second Disney Resort and has four theme parks, two water parks, and 24 themed hotels (compared to Disneyland's two theme parks and three hotels). WDW has EPCOT and the Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios.
Disneyland is the second most visited park in world at 14.8 million visits in 2007. Walt Disney World is the first most visited park in the world at 17 million visits. One's on the west coast, and one's on the east coast. They are both Disney parks, but any Disney fanatic you ask will prefer one over the other.
Personally, I like Disneyland better. It is the original. It is more magical with more focus on what makes Disney uniquely Disney. There is a certain atmosphere at Disneyland that you lose at Walt Disney World. Disneyland is authentic. It feels like Disney World was created so that they could have a park on the East coast. I haven't quite been able to put my finger on the exact reason, but I feel that Disneyland is an all-around better park than Walt Disney World.
Many would disagree. In fact, an overwhelming majority would disagree, if my research means anything. While searching for stories and things for the site, I have found that there are many more Disney World fans than there are Disneyland fans.
The first place I looked was on Google. No, I wasn't looking for a website, but was simply looking at the amount of pages on the web that mention each park. Disneyland appears on 12,800,000 unique webpages compared to Disney World's 29,600,000. The Floridian theme park is on the internet more than twice as often as its Californian counterpart.
Next, I went to one of the most popular Disney forums around, DIS Boards. It didn't take long for me to notice the same recurring theme of Disney World favoritism: WDW had over 5,000,000 posts and Disneyland barely had 500,000. The theme park from California seemed like more of an afterthought, actually; the top of the page contains numerous links to different discussions about WDW (weddings, camping, different languages, individual parks within, etc.), then it moves on to discussions about the Disney Vacation Club, "Global Neighbors," and the Disney Cruise Line. Then, finally, it reaches a link to a discussion regarding Disneyland. But even then, there's only one link compared to WDW's 12. Yes, the Walt Disney World favoritism is living large at one of the most popular forums, DIS Boards.
But the madness doesn't end there. If you go to the Disney Parks homepage, every single list on the site (the lists composed of Disney destinations: Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, etc.), begins with Disney World and has Disneyland come second.
The drop down list for finding prices has Walt Disney World set as its default location. The "Give a Day, Get a Day" promotional site has the 
Heck, even Google Maps doesn't once mention California after a search for "Disney parks."
But why is this? Why must Disneyland always come second? It's not fair. Disney World shouldn't come first--Disneyland came into existence first. Without Disneyland, Disney World wouldn't even exist. It always has been, and always will be, the original. It is more magical and more historically important than its sister in Florida.
I am sure that Disney World steals the attention since it's bigger and more popular, but I still think that Disneyland takes the cake as the best Disney park.
Oh well, this was merely an observation. And, also, a sort of public service announcement; now you know that Disney World favoritism is out there and is apparent everywhere you look.
I love every single bit of every single Disney park. Don't get me wrong: I love both Disney parks. I just happen to like Disneyland a little bit better.
Long live Disneyland.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Video Re-cap of DCA's Future
Above you will find a video produced by Disney to show what the future holds for Disney's California Adventure. The video doesn't contain anything I didn't know or haven't seen yet, but it's still a good re-cap that gets me very excited for the next few years. I am so glad that Imagineering is finally fixing the mistake that was California Adventure. Only a few years until it's all over...
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Fascinating List of Never Built Disney Attractions, Lands, Resorts, and More
Wikipedia is a wonderful wealth of knowledge that can be utilized to both entertain and inform on almost any subject. And Disney Parks are no exception. Wikipedia has a page entitled "List of never built Disney attractions." It is a gigantic list, with details, names, and, occasionally, links, of Disney rides, lands, restaurants, etc. that were once in their planning phases but never made it to their final building stages. The list, of course, is nowhere near exhaustive since there are thousands upon thousands of projects that the public will never even know about. That doesn't mean that this list is meaningless, however, this list makes a great read and makes you wonder about the rides and attractions that could have been. It also makes you feel sorry for the hundreds of Imagineers who slaved away for countless hours on their visions to only have them tossed in the trash can. I recommend heading over to Wikipedia and reading everything from WestCOT to Dick Tracy's Crime Stoppers and Mythia to Beastly Kingdom. The above image is concept art for the never-realized Disney park Port Disney, an American version of the Tokyo DisneySea park to be located in Long Beach, California.
Source: Disney and More
Friday, December 4, 2009
"Toy Story The Musical" to Open in California Adventure [UPDATED]
Briefly: I never liked the
I don't know what to think. Woody and Buzz singing along together (especially the versions of them in the picture above) seems flat wrong. I doubt this play will live up to its movie, either. But, even if it is good, there just seems to be something wrong with sitting in a theater for an hour when there are rides to be had! Oh well, we'll see come 2011 when this play opens in Disney's California Adventure. Read more about it at the official D23 blog.
UPDATE: Disney and More has gotten their hands on plenty more information, as well as videos of the musical! Watch the videos, see more pictures, and read all about it over at Disney and More.
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