Cover Art for DOING DISNEY finalized!

I don't really have anything to say here other than that my talented friend Rich Siegle has completed the cover art for DOING DISNEY:  HOW TO SPEND A WEEK IN DISNEY'S FLORIDA RESORT.  I'll post the final art shortly here for all to see.

I am in the process of making my final pass, copyediting and adding a few bits here and there.  I expect to have it published by the end of November, 2013.  It will be available as a Kindle e-book through Amazon, and I am looking at potentially doing a paper version of both that book and my (currently available) short story collection, 14 DARK WINDOWS.  I may also publish both of them through the Nook store at Barnes and Noble.  But that is a project for later...

I noticed that The View on the Disney-owned ABC channel was filmed at Disneyland, and they did a focus on Carsland.  It does look really cool.  They had an interview with John Lasseter, they talked with Tim Allen (voice of Buzz Lightyear), and had a performance by Disney star Demi Lovato.

Any other Disney news?  Just a reminder that Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry has the special exhibit, "The Treasures of Walt Disney" with lots of cool stuff from the vault.  The exhibit is sponsored by D23.  If you want to check it out, go here.

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If you get a chance, please take a look at my latest offering, 14 Dark Windows, on Amazon for Kindle.  It's a collection of short stories, some horror, some milder with supernatural or horrific elements, some just nice stories, available in ebook form for $2.99!  Thank you!

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The Treasures of Disney exhibit - Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry

The Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago has a special exhibit going on right now:  D23 Presents:  Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives.

We had the chance to see this exhibit yesterday, and it was one of the better exhibits we've experienced at the Museum (and we've been members for several years now).  That might be because we enjoy Disney, and I love the Disney history material.  But we all found it to be quite fun, right up to the "Animation Academy" style class at the end of the exhibit.  They had costumes from Enchanted, Mary Poppins, Pirates of the Caribbean, Alice In Wonderland, and a handful of other films.  They had some interesting props, a bunch of macaques (is that the right word?) of various animation subjects, and other interesting things like the Nautilus model used in the filming of 20000 Leagues Under The Sea.    The theme parks were covered as well.

It presented Walt as a forward-thinking genius who was one step ahead of the curve in the entertainment industry.

I'd actually like to go see it again.  Check out the Museum of Science and Industry's info on the exhibit on their site.

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D23 Magazine here

On Tuesday, before the great blizzard of 2011 hit the midwest, the mailperson brought me my D23 magazine! She delivered it right to the door, because it was a pretty big box instead of the usual Fed Ex-style envelope. That's because it contained a couple of nice member gifts: A D23 watch, and a D23 luggage tag.

Okay, the luggage tag isn't that great...but for me it's useful because one of our old Disney luggage tags sort of got ruined on our last trip to Florida. So this one will serve nicely as a replacement. But the watch is okay. I'm sure it's not an expensive thing, but it's nicer than your average gift.

I haven't gotten into the magazine yet. Tuesday night was too busy, with kids coming home from school early and then the blizzard hitting. Wednesday was occupied with digging out, and again, not a lot of time for the magazine. (Plus I was reading one of my son's books, something called The Mysterious Benedict Society, a pretty good young adult book.) So I hope to get to it this weekend perhaps. Or perhaps not. There's a little bit of stuff happening this weekend, too.

Let you know when I finally get to it and if there's anything that provokes a blog entry.

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D23 Magazine and Epcot Patch

The latest issue of D23 is an entertaining and informative one, even if there isn't much that I'm particularly interested in blogging about. The main feature is a reminiscense about the development and opening of Epcot, through the eyes of Marty Sklar and SF author Ray Bradbury, both of whom had a lot to do with the way it looked on opening day, October 1, 1982.

The article has some concept art and several photos from the development and construction of the park, most of which we've seen before. One interesting quote from the article itself:

What had been two disparate concepts began feeling more and more like a uniform whole as Epcot took on the hourglass shape so familiar to today's visitors. Future World anchored the north side, with World Showcase laid out around a large lake on the south. Conceptually, they're radically different, but together, they contain an important underlying thread: The notion of progress, of working together to achieve a better tomorrow. One part of Epcot shows us what is possible, the other shows us who will make it happen: We will. By understanding and celebrating our differences, we can create a better future.

Mr. Bradbury accepts this premise about the concept of Epcot as it existed on opening day, and today:

"The whole of Epcot teaches us how miraculous we are," Ray says "We are very special people. We are part of something that began millions of years ago. So, all the time, on every side, Epcot points to you and says, 'You are individual. You are creative. I hand you the future; step into it. Believe and go forth.'"

Other marjor articles include one about Jungle Cruise skippers, a feature on the upcoming animated offering Tangled, one titled "Journey Into Imagineering", and a salute to Fess Parker. They're all pretty interesting.

The gift that came with it was an Epcot patch specially made for D23 members. This one is the symbol of "The Living Seas" pavilion. I wonder if it will be possible to acquire the other eight patches at some point.

Here's the picture of the patch: (apologies for my poor photography skills)



Have a great day!

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D23 magazine

The new magazine is here! The cover features the main characters from the upcoming film Tangled, which I thought (for some reason) was going to be hand-drawn animation, but looks to be computer generated by the quality of the image on the cover.

The "gift" that comes with the magazine is a custom made Epcot patch. Apparently there are 9 designs, and each member gets one. Mine is for "The Living Seas". A nice design featuring white waves on a green background.

I haven't had the time to look at the magazine in any depth but am looking forward to the article mentioned on the cover: "An Exclusive Tour of Walt Disney Imagineering". On the back cover they have an ad for next year's D23 Expo, which I had hoped to attend. Unfortunately, it will be held August 19-21, 2011, and I will likely not be able to go in August - busy month with birthdays and back to school rush at both home and work. Darn.

Looking forward to reading the contents in more depth than a quick flip-through.

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Bits and Pieces...

Our doorbell isn't working, so the small package we found when we opened the front door, a Fed Ex delivery that they just left behind a planter, was only a bit of a surprise. And it contained my gift for renewing my D23 membership: a Charter Member pin. I'd include a photo of it, but I just didn't take one yet. Maybe tomorrow. Anyway, it's a nice big pin, and since we've become pin collectors of sorts, it will make a nice addition to the binder we keep the nicer ones in.

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We had some friends over yesterday, and got to talking about Disney with the young (well, younger than WE are) couple. They have an 18 month old and a 4 year old. My wife was telling her friend that they should start thinking about going to Disney, maybe not this year, but next. It got me to thinking: What's too young? I mean, an 18 month old isn't going to get a whole lot out of a trip to Disney. If anything, she may put a cramp in the rest of the family's enjoyment, since she would need nap time and need to eat at times that everyone else might not. On the other hand, she'll probably just sleep through a bunch of it anyway.

I remember that, on our first visit to Disney in Florida, my younger son (now 7) was just turned two a couple months earlier. He didn't get much out of it, and in fact he was sort of scared of many of the rides like Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean. He did seem to like 'it's a small world', the train ride, Dumbo, and the Pooh ride, and I do think that he had some good memories of the trip, as on our next trip (about two years later), he said he remembered some rides. (He was 4 then.) I don't know if he did, but HE thought he did. Still thinks he does, because we've gone more often since that second trip, and he brings stuff up about the first time he rode this ride or that ride.

So maybe next year is a good time for them to go. Even if there aren't specific memories, there is the memory of the fun that you all have as a family.

If anyone has any thoughts on the subject, I'm all ears (so to speak...).

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D23 magazine and cold weather parks

My 3rd issue (well, 2nd for me - I bought the first at the Disney store) of D23 came a couple of days ago and I finished a fairly thorough read of it last night. Some good articles, including a nice on on the Blue Bayou and its genesis, and one on the Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco's Presidio.

I really enjoyed the cover story on the Haunted Mansion, which told bunches of interesting stories gathered from interviews from Imagineers involved in the building of it. One of the neat tales was about Wally Boag (the star of the review in Frontierland) suggesting that they put a phone booth out front, have it ring periodically, and when someone answered it, have the "caller" make a scary phone call from "inside" the Mansion, which hadn't opened yet.

Another tidbit, almost sort of buried in the article except for the fact that there was an illustration of the blueprint of a portion of the project, was that a Haunted Mansion would have been the "weenie" of the imagined indoor theme park in St. Louis. Of course, this park never got past the imagineering stages as the "Florida Project" became Walt's and the company's focus, and we all know what happened there.

I was interested in the details: the park would have been a totally enclosed, one city block structure, 4 stories high, and would have contained representations of New Orleans and St. Louis Squares. It was not detailed much further than this, and on the map that they pictured, there was an allusion to a "basement attraction" but no others besides the Haunted Mansion were discussed. It was also to have a Blue Bayou-type ceiling.

Far as I know, there is STILL nothing like this in the world. But perhaps there should be.

D23 Magazines and gifts

I thought my membership gift for D23 was the cute little fan they sent with my membership card, which I thought was a nice thing to have but sort of cheap... But today, the real membership gift came - a very nice lithograph of Mickey Mouse, suitable for framing, if one does that sort of thing. (And we might do just that, because my kids love the Mouse...)

Because I was a late joiner, they started me with the summer issue, with Donald Duck on the cover. So I hurried over to my Disney Store, where I was able to obtain a copy of the first issue. I gladly forked over the 16+ dollars for the magazine.

And I read them both. I have to say, I really enjoyed them. Both magazines were packed with details, well written stories, and nice photos. I don't remember the specifics at this time, but perhaps I'll blog about the content in another future entry. (Or the way things have been going lately, maybe I won't...)

D23 membership stuff arrives...

I got my D23 magazine and my "special perk" today in the mail. It's the summer magazine; I'm going to run to the Disney Store tonight and see if they have any of the first issue left. I haven't had a chance to look at it in depth, but it looks nice on the flip through.

My special gift is a fan. It says it's a "souvenir of Disneyland", copyrighted by Walt Disney Productions, 1955. It suggests that I'm in for "acres of fun"! That's good, I guess. Among the attractions pictured on the fold-out blades of the fan are the Sleeping Beauty Castle, the Tropical River Ride (looks sorta like Jungle Cruise?), the Casey, Jr. Ride, the Pirate Ship, the Clock of the World (and Rocket to the Moon), the Mark Twain River Boat Ride, Astrojet (Fly-It-Yourself), the Skyway Ride, the Stage Coach Ride, and the Canal Boat Ride (Storybookland Boats).

I was hoping for something a little more ... collectible ... but this is kind of cool. We'll see whether this membership is worth the price. Only one way to find out.