As a high school kid working at Disneyland I was disappointed to learn that not everyone had a passion for Disneyland like I had. Not every other frontline cast member was enthusiastic about their work environment. The kid I trained with was excited about his new job but quit shortly after to work at a movie theater where they would allow him to grow a goatee. (Good news, kid I trained with...

Let’s take a look at Figment and long-lost Dreamfinder at their original EPCOT Center home.

We’ve recreated the track layout of the original Journey Into Imagination and compared it to the layout of the current attraction. You’ll notice it was originally much longer. And wait... Is the current load are on top of what used to be that grand turn-table show scene?? Hmm. For an overview of the Journey Into Imagination ride visit our friends at LOST EPCOT.

Photos

The following photos were submitted to us as part of our recent Photo Hunt (unless stated otherwise).

The beautiful, shiny, (and clean) glass pyramids. Notice the wonderful plant life. It’s as if it’s spilling into the pavilion from The Land next door. This photo is from Ryan R.

Shapes! EPCOT Center Future World was a wonderland of interesting shapes. The upward flowing waterfall is so imaginative. The next two photos are from Brett of WDW Fan Boys.

Nice matching socks, guys.

Dreamfinder and Figment

They were such a big hit together. I’d love to have been a fly on the wall in the meetings where they decided to get rid of them. 

Karate Kid, is that you? Look at those shirts. A Future World t-shirt? Fantastic.

Figment topiary.

These next two photos were from a different photo hunt. In preparation for a certain Epcot celebration Cast Members submitted old photos. These are from Gregory. Has there ever been such a unique meet-and-greet? Didn’t the duo seem so lifelike?

Leap Frog Fountains

As a kid I was MESMERIZED by these. I couldn’t believe water could act in such a way. I believe this was second thing I told my friends in California after returning from my first EPCOT Center trip. The very first thing was "we got to ride the ride inside the big ball from the commercials".

The next four photos are from Shaun Ortolano.

I love the lamp posts in the next photo. And the coloring in the photo is super pretty. This is from David of Futureprobe.

Dreamcatcher

As a kid I never knew there were five of these vehicles. In fact there were five identical Dreamcatcher scenes altogether. Each set of ride vehicles attached itself to a large turn table with one fifth of the table and one of the five show scenes visible. This way riders could view the 2+ minute scene without backing up ride vehicles behind them. It was a brilliant thing.

While working at Epcot I would occasionally find my way to the backside of the old turn table. It was clear the thing was welded in place once it was no longer used (starting in 1998). It was pointed out to me that the table slowly “screwed itself into the ground over the years”. I wish I had photos. I imagine the whole mechanism would have to be completely thrown out if they ever wanted to resurrect this scene again.

Thank you Katherine A. for this great close-up shot of the Dreamcatcher.

And Shaun Ortolano for this one.

You can read my little story of how I obtained a piece of the Dreamcatcher blimp here.

Shaun also sent in this beauty. The use of white set work and colored lights in the original attraction was so fresh and fanciful.

Merchandise

Here Figment appears in a gift shop display in the great Centorium. Anyone else miss the Centorium?? As a kid that was the ultimate in theme park gift shops in my opinion. And figment had a great presence there. Photos from Shaun.

Related posts:

Surviving Pieces of Journey Into Imagination
EPCOT Construction from the Air
EPCOT Center Construction Photos: Future World
Disneyland Meets EPCOT Center
Walt's Wife Talks About EPCOT Center
HORIZONS the way you wish you knew it.
THEN AND NOW: Epcot Future World [Part 1]
Daredevil Circus Spectacular

We bring you photos of those good old iconic Mickey Mouse balloons.

I don't know the history of the Mickey-shaped balloons. I do know I loved picking one out as a little kid every time we went to Disneyland.

Spiffy old balloon vendor costumes...

This next photo is wonderful. It was sent to us by a fan of the blog, Jeffrey Lipack, as part of our Photo Hunt. Look at the grass hill!

These next two were sent in by Daniel Zuccarelli (@PerpetualGeek, PGMShow.net). I love Main Street morning shots like this. If you look closely you'll see a few kids have already gotten their balloon for the day.

Speaking of kids.... This kid is selling the balloons. Lucky guy. Look behind the balloons on the left. The artwork on the bag is fun. It features a very early Mickey and Minnie with that old Walt Disney World logo we all love. Click here for a clearer image.

On a date with a sailor. Great balloon and a fantastic pennant. Pennants were one of my favorite souvenirs after growing out of balloons. Where are all my pennants now?? Sadly I have no clue.

Lone balloons.

Characters with balloons.

Chip and Dale in Rescue Rangers garb.

Chip and Dale in the nude.

Roger Rabbit.

The "new school" version of the Mickey balloon. I actually love these balloons-in-balloons. It's a rare thing to take a classic product and improve on it without ruining any of its original qualities.

Related posts:

EYE CANDY: National Geographic Aug '63 [Part 1]
EYE CANDY: Not Having Fun at Disneyland
Vintage Disneyland Home Movies- Meeting Walt Disney Himself
Disneyland 1955 Model Close-ups
Magic Kingdom Map Found in a Main Street Wall
THEN AND NOW: Disneyland [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: MK Fantasyland [Part 1]
EYE CANDY: Behind the Scenes Muppeteering

We bring you a few photos submitted to our ImagineeringDisney.com Photo Hunt. Additionally we answer a few questions.

Any of these spark curiosity? Is there something you'd like to know more about? Let us know.

UPDATE:

We've had a GREAT turnout so far. A big thanks to all who have submitted. Many of you have "hunted" for and found some fantastic old photos. We've yet to see a single bad or uninteresting photo submitted. Every one has been wonderful. Many of the photos at first glance appear quite “normal”. But looking twice brings forth details that rarely if ever show up online.

How many photos were submitted??

Hundreds. Many more than we expected.

Where were most the photos taken?

We’ve been somewhat surprised to see that the majority of the photos submitted (maybe 85%) were taken at Walt Disney World. This is a surprise because for some reason it seems that old Disneyland photos (perhaps because of it's older age) surface more often. Either way, we are thrilled with all the photos from Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, EPCOT Center, Disney-MGM Studios, and various resorts. Any Animal Kingdom photos floating around out there? Specifically of things that no longer exist? Or even some California Adventure Superstar Limo pics? Or old shots of the overseas parks?

Would it be ok to send videos?

YES. We would LOVE old video footage of the parks. We prefer links to videos you’ve already uploaded online. You can upload to Vimeo or YouTube or any other video hosting site and send us the link. Most of these sites are free and offer privacy if you don’t want strangers finding your footage.

Will the “Hunt” continue?

Yes. Keep the photos and videos coming. There will be not end date to the Photo Hunt. We look forward to using these little gems in our post for a very long time.

For more info about the Photo Hunt, click here. 

Dig through your basement, search through Grandma's attic, it's time for the ImagineeringDisney.com Photo Hunt.

We are looking for old Disneyland and Walt Disney World photos.

Remember your mother making you and your siblings stand still for those obnoxious pictures? Or that uncle with the new camera slowing you down when you wanted to run to Adventure Thru Inner Space? Today the old photos they took are little treasures. We just need to dig them up and share them with the world.

What kinds of park photos?

Anything old. Like 1980s and earlier. Or even more recent things that don't exist anymore. Horizons photos perhaps. Or people in the lobby of Disneyland's Country Bear Jamboree. Or photos without people in them. Maybe a photo of a cast member selling balloons or people eating in an old restaurant. Or hotel. Anything that is not seen today! Or photos of things seen today that might look a little different. Your photos are faded and scratched? Not a problem. We love those kinds. Feel like they are not interesting enough? "Uninteresting" photos sometimes tell the best stories or include some rare thing in the background.

What will we do with them?

So many great things. We always need old photos when writing new posts and doing research. We would love to post some of these photos just for the fun of showing them to the world. There are so many mysteries that need to be solved and your photos might be the key. Of course we won't sell them or use them for any kind of monetary gain.

Want to share a story that goes with your photos??

Absolutely. That would thrill us.

How to send them?

Email them to imagineering.disney@gmail.com. Large numbers of photos might require multiple emails. That's ok. Have only one photo? That's perfectly fine too. Include a little info about the photos. Include dates if you know them. If you know nothing about the photos, send 'em anyway. If you wish to receive credit for the photos, include the name, alias, and/or link you'd like us to include in the photo credits. Other special instructions are welcome as well. We are flexible.

What else?

Pay? We can't pay for the photos but we can help you share them with fans like yourself. We guarentee these photos will further this fun and wholesome Disney history research.

This week I dug through countless boxes and albums looking for early shots of the parks. I had that little fantasy running through my head that Grandpa might have taken a photo of the Frito Kid or the Progress City Model when it was above Carousel of Progress or the Orange Bird animatronic. No luck. But the photos I did find were super fun to discover.

Here's one from the early 80s (above). My father was taking the photo. I remember this trip and that Fantasyland was finally open again. During the previous trip it was closed because they were building "New Fantasyland". My brother and I are wearing matching striped socks and short shorts. At least the whole family wasn't matching. In a later Walt Disney World trip I remember we all wore matching shirts. When we left the hotel (some cheap place on 192) my dad slipped back in the room and came out with a different color shirt and made sure my mother didn't notice. On the Monorail she figured it out and we kids thought it was hilarious.

Begin the hunt today! 

Let's look back at some popular posts of 2011.

Walt Disney's Carolwood Pacific and Other Backyard Railroads
We did lots of investigating in order to map out Walt Disney's very own backyard railroad and compare it to the current property.

EPCOT Center Construction Photos: Future World
We dug up some fantastic old construction photos. Many had never posted online before.

National Geographic Aug '63
This two part post was very popular. Filled with amazing Disneyland photos from the early 60s.

Ride Concept Competition
Our first-ever competition was a huge success. We asked for your ideas for new rides and received so many great ones. You can check out the winners here.

ABANDONED DISNEY: Haunted Mansion Hitchhiking Ghosts
An exclusive behind-the-scenes look at one of the greatest attraction special effects of all time.

Not Having Fun at Disneyland
Old Disneyland photos of kids not having fun at Disneyland. Fun for a laugh!

ABANDONED DISNEY: River Country [Part 4]
Our most popular post of all time is still our first River Country post. Subsequent River Country posts are also very popular. Take a look at Disney's only abandoned park.

Bin Laden Mansion Minutes From Walt Disney World
The day Osama bin Laden was captured and killed we discovered that his brother had a mansion minutes north of Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom. The home is now abandoned.

Walt Disney Studio Post Production Behind-the-Scenes
We found this fantastic video about Walt's studio. Lots of great footage.

Lake Buena Vista: The Other Prototype City with a Peoplemover
A Peoplemover and a Monorail at Downtown Disney?? It was supposed to happen.

EPCOT Center Graphics
Enjoy Mitch's custom graphics inspired by and featuring some of that wonderful Future World architecture.

Frito Kid Mysteries Continue
The very obscure and mysterious Frito Kid once lived at Disneyland. We pin-point his exact locations.

THEN AND NOW: Disneyland [Part 1]
Our "THEN AND NOW" series is one of our most popular. We've posted many comparisons from Walt Disney World in the past. This year we've added Disneyland.

Create Your Own Background Music
Quite possibly the most fun you'll ever have clicking around one of our posts. Easily create music with a click of a mouse. You might need this when scoring your own attraction.

Thanks for a great year. We are thrilled to welcome many new visitors. Keep coming back and feel free to join us on Twitter for daily tweets.

Here's a look at last year's Year in Review.

We bring you rare documentation of an old mural you might remember.

Recently my soul was hit with a sledge hammer when I read Kevin Kidney's post about a different mural literally being hit with a sledge hammer. Then I was informed by Michael Crawford that another equally obscure mural had the same fate. It's times like these I'm glad I documented the Bill Justice character mural in the old Walt Disney Story Theater.

Above for the first time online (we think) you can see the entire mural panned out this way. Forgive the distortions here and there. I photographed it in sections years ago with a digital camera that was sub-par. Nevertheless I'm happy I did it. Click image to enlarge or click here for extra larger version (6.6meg).

Bill Justice seen here working on other projects.

The mural was placed in the holding area of the Walt Disney Story attraction (1973-1992) in the Gulf Hospitality House on Main Street.

Guests would approach the mural on the curved wall, hear a cast member speil a few words, then proceed to one of two theaters. Doors would open on either the left or ride side of the mural depending on which theater was available at the moment. For a detailed history of this experience I refer you the great Widen Your World site.

Here you can see the doors to Theater 2 to the right of the mural.

Here you see where the doors to Theater 1 were removed when that theater was drastically changed to accommodate plywood photo ops (not pictured). Just behind those (temporary) curtains there used to be a Mr. Toad's Wild Ride car. Even better than the plywood in my opinion.

"But you hate when characters are mixed together" you say? Yes, normally I do. But I only really hate it when characters from different time periods/locations interact with each other. Like in the hideous Villains Tonight show on the Disney Cruise. A less-offensive-to-my-intelligence way of mixing characters is Mickey's PhilharMagic. Those characters do not interact with characters from films (Donald being the exception). The same is the case with this mural. The characters only look at the other characters from their own film (with a couple exceptions, like a Dalmatian puppy barking at the antics of The Three Caballeros).

Sleeping beauty was represented with a whopping 19 characters.

And Robin Hood with 14, including one of my favorites, Alan-a-Dale.

I know many fans of less-represented movies who loved the mural wide-spread representation of many films.

Black Cauldron fanatics (all thirty five of you), I'm sorry your only Black Cauldron reference is now gone.

I'm glad Elliott made it onto the mural. But I have a question... Isn't Pete's Dragon a live-action film with some animation mixed in? But so is Mary Poppins. And others. Song of the South made the cut. That makes sense because it's more of an animated film with live-action mixed in. Elliott was added years after the original mural was painted. I'm sure it was done to promote the latest film. And the film did have an animated title character. It makes sense.

The Three Little Pigs wasn't a full-length feature but they fit in nicely.

Charcters from new releases were added up until The Great Mouse Detective (1986).

When was this quote added? After the microphone and control box were no longer needed?

Added bonus.

Here are two control boxes from Theater 2. I love discovering remnants of things that no longer exist. Things like labels for "PRE SHOW PODIUM" or "PROJ ROOM" or "TURNSTILE". Even better, "MAPO", a label we don't see much anymore.

Theater 2 awaiting its fate.

Instead of posting my thoughts about what currently occupies this great Magic Kingdom building, I refer you Mr. Crawford's post about the Town Square Theater. I share his thoughts. And when you visit the Town Square Theater in person look closely for this little nod to the mural. Thanks @Crushinat0r for sending us the photo.

As it turns out, this particular mural has escaped the ill fate that other murals have not. The Disney Archives has kept the actual painting for preservation. And maybe to post it somewhere else??

UPDATE:

We are getting messages that the mural was NOT saved. Reports claim that the fine people of the Archives attempted to save it but the 40 year old paint crumbled as the canvas was removed from the wall. Let us know if you have further details.

UPDATE 2:

Thanks to a comment from "Wedway" we share this little tribute to the Plaza Pavilion mural that Kevin Kidney wrote about. This artwork can be found in what was the Plaza Pavilion, now called the Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe. It resembles the former mural but features song lyrics and imagery from Mary Poppins. Thank you Wedway, Kevin, and The Disney Food Blog.

To anyone who worked on the refurb who might have found my Mike Fink Keel Boats sign... GIVE IT BACK. It was given to me a few years back, then I hid it in the theater for a moment, and I never saw again. Another soul-crusher.

Related posts:

Illustrated Donald Duck
Magic Kingdom Map Found in a Main Street Wall
What Disney Characters Love
Disney Characters...Maybe We Should Rethink a Few Things
Walt Disney and the Santa Maria Railroad
HORIZONS MURAL, "The Prologue and the Promise"
ABANDONED DISNEY: MK Fantasyland Skyway Tower

Take a look at my latest little side project. I set out to make a maquette of one of my favorite martians from Disney's 1957 "Mars and Beyond". 

Years ago my pal Hoot Gibson gave me this DVD set and ever since I've been hooked. From that first viewing of "Mars and Beyond" I fantasized about a Tomorrowland ride based on this Ward Kimball treasure. The DVD also shares other films with a style that would lend to a wonderful Tomorrowland makeover. Speaking of Hoot Gibson... you may know that he is a master sculptor. His stuff makes me cry of jealousy.

Our great Twitter followers have been watching some of the step-by-step process over the last couple weeks. Here are some more process photos.

Behind the Scenes

Some Sculpey and Super Sculpey plus wire framing.

Form, bake, sand.

Assemble.

Paint and clean.

Related posts:

Our Friend the Atom
Little Box of Treasures
Magic Highway U.S.A... It doesn't get much better than this.
A Look at the Progress City Model- Then and Now
Swiss Family Treehouse Model
Recreating the Pirates Jail Scene in Miniature
THEN AND NOW: MK Tomorrowland [Part 1] 
The Fantasy of Space Colony Living

Last year we posted a look at the mysterious Frito Kid at Disneyland. Since then we have set out to answer a few questions about him– specifically “Where exactly was he located??” and “What still exists today?” Here's what we've found.

 
Location 1– 1955-1957

We knew his first location was next to Aunt Jemima's Pancake House (River Belle Terrace today) just inside the front door. But which door? We searched high and low for a

Recently a reader of the blog, David Blakeslee, sent us a set of questions and answers between himself and legend, Bob Gurr. Bob even addressed the very common question "How do I become an Imagineer?".

How Did you first hear of WED back in the day?

Bob Gurr: I never heard of them. I was asked to go to the Disney Studio, then was hired as a Studio employee, later transferred to WED after a one year stint with my office at Disneyland. But I learned all about WED in the first few weeks at the Studio.

What was that first studio week like, and what was your first experience with Walt like?

In late summer 1954, the Los Angeles Times ran a story about a new amusement park, complete with a beautiful painting of what was to come. Wow. Neat idea. Sure would like to design something there….Visiting Art Center College, my alma mater before going to Detroit…. I was asked if I did outside work in addition my regular Industrial Design job. I really didn’t, but I said yes. A few days later I was instructed to meet someone at the Walt Disney Productions Studio. Dick Irvine met me at the gate, then ushered me into the famous studio. They needed a car body designer…….bingo! The following Saturday I received a call at (ye gads)7:00AM. “Do you draft?” “Yes”. “Grab your tools and get over here”. Silence, dial tone. Roger Broggie was waiting for me… Nearby a little bare car slowly collected four guys with their feet on each tire, discussing what was to be done. One guy, slightly rumpled with a Roy Rogers wooden bullet belt, had his foot on one tire. I thought he was the father of one of the night guards. They called him “Walt”. You don’t suppose……? Yep, Walt Disney. No formal introduction, just get to work. Walt was collecting a lot of new folks on the Studio Lot. We were all gonna design Disneyland….Roger wanted me to draft up the little car’s mechanical parts so they could be produced in quantity, but he had lot’s of changes he needed. I was comfortable drawing up the body, but to production engineer a whole car? I was trained as a car stylist, not as a mechanical engineer. OK, I better learn fast. So, not only was I doing drawings at night during week, I spent Saturdays at the Studio drafting car parts, and learning just how much I didn’t know. So was everyone else. It was November 1954 and Walt said Disneyland would open in just eight months. Oh my gosh!

What’s your hope for the future of imagineering?

The current crop of Imagineers are the best I’ve seen, and their work on Shanghai will prove it.

Do you trust this next generation with WDI?

 Yes, [they’re] a combination of ones with passion and historic understanding, plus well educated.

Are you hopefull for new advances in technological availabilty or do you think we should get back to basics?

 Absolutely YES on technological advancements, the newest tools are the heart of their storytelling. Nothing is basic anymore… those simple days are gone, but good story [has] to be central to all attractions.

And finally, How does someone become an imagineer in your opinion? What degree, what type of school etc…

You might enjoy the following story from the upcoming book:

“How do I become an Imagineer? that’s the most popular question I’ve received over the years. I can certainly understand how Disney admirers have come to view this occupation as a dream job. I’ve worked with so many Imagineers that maybe I should attempt to describe the primary characteristics of these very creative folks for those who aspire to be one. For starts, you can’t just be one. You have to have an inherent internal drive within you that has always encompassed a range of characteristics that I think most successful Imagineers were born with. Characteristics that one might not be able to purchase in college.

There’s a big distinction between wanting to be an Imagineer and actually doing Imagineering work

The most important characteristic is to be permanently curious about everything, especially about stuff you don’t know, and stuff that does not seem relevant at the time. Walt Disney had this habit big time. If you are curiosity driven, you will absorb an untold wealth of information on the widest possible range of subjects…. The next big characteristic is fearless creativity. No idea is too stupid to articulate. No fear to show others a dumb idea. Maybe it will lead to something practical. If you are too timid to share ideas, then you’ll be the design wallflower in the room. I’ve seen two kinds of creativity; The great futurist, Syd Mead, spent hours going over ideas in his head, sorting out the path to the most successful creation before making the first sketch. Others send out a flow of ideas in a blizzard of words and pictures. The team now has a vast array to pick from. Same creativity, just different…. Another characteristic that you must have is communication skills. These can be taught, but the productive Imagineers have the ability to clearly express themselves in words and drawings. They can articulate new ideas in the clearest possible way.

Last bit of advice; College or not. Tough decision, especially economically. I went to Art Center to learn car styling. Art center does not teach car engineering. I engineered stuff. Everything I learned was on the job. I’ve seen bright kids start at a small shop as a gofer (go for, go get, etc), then work and learn their way up to professional project mangers. One fellow is president of a successful organization."

Bob Gurr designs:

A fantastic poster featuring Bob Gurr concept art. I purchased this at Disneyland a few years ago. The Disney Gallery (which was once above Pirates of the Caribbean's entrance-- now it's the Disneyland Dream Suite) hosted an Autopia show called "Autopia Yesteryear and Tomorrow" Presented by Chevron.

Bob's 1952 book, "How To Draw Cars of Tomorrow". Check out this must-read article about one of the earliest books on car design.

A young Bob Gurr at Art Center.

Thank you.

A big thanks to David and Bob. And check out Bob Gurr's new book.

Related articles:

1967 "New Tomorrowland" Broadcast
Disneyland in 1955
The Future Was Fantastic in '57
Magic Highway U.S.A... It doesn't get much better than this.
Disneyland 1955 Model Close-ups

The new Muppets movie "The Muppets" will be released in a few days. We thought we'd bring you some old behind the scenes photos of Muppet magic– mostly from Sesame Street.

Tomorrowland

New Orleans Square

Frontierland

Main Street, U.S.A.

I do love Disneyland. The Disneyland of today and the Disneyland of "then". All of us here at the blog frequented Disneyland as children more than any other park. I really feel that pretty much everything built at Disneyland up through the end of the 80s was fantastic. Things like this and this weren't added until the early 90s. Tomorrowland '67 was more or less still in tact. And even when they tinkered with the greatest Tomorrowland ever, the changes (like Americas Sings) and the additions (like Space Mountain) were great. Though there have been oh so many changes, there still can be found so much old architecture and other elements of the early years.

Related post:

Decades in Review [Part 2]
The Wonders of Nature's Wonderland [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: Epcot World Showcase [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: Epcot Future World [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: Liberty Square [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: MK Fantasyland [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: MK Tomorrowland [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: MK Adventureland [Part 1]
The Wonders of Nature's Wonderland [Part 1]

After a couple days at Disneyland we boarded the Disney Cruise Line’s second ship, The Wonder. We’ve been lucky to cruise three times in recent years for almost no cost (thank you, various perks). 

7 Day Mexican Riviera Cruise. After arriving and unpacking our bags in our windowless inside stateroom, Guest Services knocked on the door. “You have been reassigned to a different stateroom.” Whuuu? “Here are new room keys for you and the other couple in your party.” Ummm... this person/friend (you know who you are) made our week. We walked into the new “Deluxe Oceanview Staterooms with Veranduhs”. Boy do those private balconies make a difference. Especially when the upgrade was unexpected and free. Did I mention the guy at port check-in asked if we wanted veranduh room upgrades for $2,600?

Andreas Deja. The next highlight was the fact that animation great, Andreas Deja, was on board for the week. He gave two presentations while at sea. Both fantastic.

I’m a long-time fan of Andreas’ work. He is considered to be one of what some might call the “Nine New Men”. He was very influential in the “Second Golden Age of Animation”. His work includes many characters on Who Framed Roger Rabbit, King Triton in The Little Mermaid, Mickey Mouse (as both the Prince and the Pauper) in The Prince and the Pauper, Gaston in Beauty and the Beast, Jafar in Aladdin, Scar in The Lion King, Mickey Mouse in Runaway Brain, Adult Hercules in Hercules, Goofy in How to Hook Up Your Home Theater, Mama Odie and Juju in The Princess and the Frog, Tigger in Winnie the Pooh, and much more.

The first presentation was about “The Nine Old Men”. Part of Andreas’ animation credibility comes from having professional relationships with most of the the Old Men. He was wise enough to consult with them before they all passed away. He was more or less a student of these animation greats. And the stories he tells are first-rate.

On the last “sea day” Andreas shared stories from his own career. Aaaaannd he drew some stuff.

We saw some devolopment work for Belle.

And some of the evolution of Gaston. 

Fantastic animal studies.

Excellent marker sketches. Later Andreas gave away the sketches to audience members who answered trivia questions. 

I had a couple of great conversations with Andreas. We talked about the Little Mermaid ride. Since he had done so much on the film, I wanted his take on the new ride. He said he liked it but that it still needed work. It sounds like there will be upcoming improvement to the "going under the sea" effect as well as one or more of the Ariel figures. He said he wishes there were more scenes and that certain scenes were a little better represented. In a joking manner he said, "a little more Triton would be nice", seeing how he designed the animated character! Lasseter has given WDI many notes, many of which will be implemented in the Magic Kingdom version of the ride. Andreas also shared that he is reworking the Mickey on new Walt Disney Company logo along with the Sorcerer's Apprentice Mickey on the new Walt Disney Imagineering logo.

A Real Life Adventureland. After we anchoring at the first port we took an hour-long boat ride to this beautiful jungle beach south of Puerto Vallarta.

A trained parrot circled the boat several times as we approached to dock. Exotic native-looking women and men greeted us on shore. A number of small monkeys climbed on our shoulders. The head salesman offered us two of his heads for one of ours. 

Movie director from the 1940s-1960s, John Huston, owned the place until his death in the 1980s. After snorkeling (in very warm water), paddle boarding, coconut milk drinking, and kayaking everyone ate amazing ribs and Mexican food at Huston’s former house and surrounding buildings and patios. It reminded me of eating at Disneyland’s Tahitian Terrace. According to the posted memorabilia, Huston’s home was not entirely enclosed (same as today) which allowed for wild jungle animals to enter at will. He reported having jaguars enter the home at night while he slept.

Mickey Drawing Class. The guys decided to go to the character drawing class while our wives relaxed on the deck. I learned a few things about Walt Disney I had never heard before. Probably because they never actually happened. According to the instructor girl, Walt “forgot” to sign his first drawings of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit therefore “he lost all rights to this character he created”. Hmmm. Is that what happened?? “So sign your drawing of Mickey today so you don’t make the same mistake Walt Disney made”. I guess I own the rights to Mickey Mouse now. (My sketch on the right.)

Cabo San Lucas was beautiful. Puerto Vallarta is on mainland Mexico and is super tropical. Cabo is on the peninsula and is very much a desert. We went to Cabo twice because cruise lines don't go to Mazatlan anymore? For $8 we had a private boat tour of Arches. Sea lions were everywhere. The place was stunning.

The water was unbelievable. Not far offshore large rocks protrude out of the water. The water is as deep as 80 feet around the rocks. The snorkeling was outstanding– clear water, thousands of fish, colorful plants, and even dive-bombing pelicans. 

Winnie the Pooh movie. We loved watching this movie. (All movies are free of charge in the two theaters on the ship.) The classic style, the traditional animation, the simple and charming story. It was also a treat to watch an animated film in the same room as one of the supervising animators of that film. Andreas was there. I had asked him earlier in the week if he enjoys watching his own work. He said he didn’t. He said he loves watching the work of other animators but doesn’t revisit his own past animation much. But there he was. I also loved Pixar’s Bud Luckey as Eeyore. You might recognize his voice from his Pixar short Boundin’. The Ballad of Nessie short that preceded Winnie the Pooh was also fantastic. I loved the style that resembled old shorts like Johnny Appleseed and Pigs is Pigs– two childhood favs.

Our new former Jungle Cruise Skipper friends. Most passengers got all hyper-silly-giddy when they saw some “magical” thing happen. I would guess that very few of these passengers are deeper than surface-level Disney fans. I mean few really seek out the deeper geek side of Disney and its history. And that is just fine. But it’s always nice to know that there are fans out there that like some of the things I like. Fans of say, old EPCOT Center. One of these three guys was wearing a great vintage EPCOT t-shirt. Turns out they did the Walt Disney World College Program a few years back, skippering the Jungle Cruise. And they’ve kept in touch ever since. How cool is that.

Character meet-and-greets. You gotta meet Mickey and Minnie on the Disney Cruise. And the Flinstones.

All in all it was a fantastic week. The Mexican Riviera was surprisingly as great as the Caribbean. In some ways it was even better. Who knew? My once apathetic views of Disney's involvement in the cruise industry have definitely changed. The ships are classy (save for a few small areas). The itineraries are great. The live shows were grand, although the writing was quite terrible. I don't know much about pricing, but I imagine it's rather high, but perhaps worth it. We had only excellent service. Wish I could say that about Disneyland the week prior! 

Related posts:

Trip Report- Disneyland/Disney Cruise 10-2011 [Part 1]
Animation Studies
A Disney Artist's Designs for a Hanna Barbera Land
Original Visions of CalArts
Magic Highway U.S.A... It doesn't get much better than this.
Walt Disney Studios Post Production Behind-the-Scenes

We’ve never done a trip report before. But recently all of us have visited multiple properties and thought it would be fun to share a few things.

My wife and I enjoyed the Disney Cruise with another couple. Before boarding The Wonder out of Los Angeles we hung out at Disneyland for a couple days. My wife had just finished working and playing for a week at Walt Disney World. I was so proud of her ability to compare all six domestic parks so well. How attractive is that.

California Adventure was all-walls, as I mentioned in the previous post. Ok not all walls but there were plenty of walls, each adorned with those great attraction posters. What better way to enjoy a plywood maze than with great stylized artwork. Really, these posters are fantastic.

Both ladies in the group were/are pregnant (that’s right, my wife and I are expecting our first). The other guy and myself are artists/designers so the geeky art talk was great.

The Little Mermaid ride was a deeeelight. Really. We all agreed it was the highlight of the day. And the highlight of the ride for me was those dang cute animatronics. Especially the two Scuttle figures. I love the classic nature of the ride and feel it’s a win for everyone– perhaps especially for us fans of traditional disney rides. Later in the week I had a great conversation with a famous Little Mermaid animator who had some great comments about the ride. Look for that conversation in the next post.

Grizzly River Run. I realized how much I love the Grizzly River Run which I had not been on for over ten years. I do wish there were some fun animal animatronics though. Hint hint to Disney. Maybe some fun Nature’s Wonderland gags goin’ on around the rapids?

Cars Land. Of all park real estate this could have been built on, they chose the least offensive. They didn’t violate sacred ground. In other words, it didn’t go in Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, or Epcot. Although I’m sure management can picture its duplicate right on top of the Tomorrowland Grand Prix, Magic Kingdom. Quick grumble: Just because something is well crafted... doesn’t mean it is well designed. The rock work and other construction is very well crafted. But it seems they are not getting far enough away from that carnival-ish ride style that already plagues DCA...? We’ll see.

Buena Vista Street. I am digging this. See the previous post. ‘Twill be a wonderful little place. Just the charm this park entrance needs. Sorry to all those lovers of the “oversized postcard” look. That is long gone already. Side note: Complaints are floating around that the Monorail doesn’t fit the 1920s setting. True. But somehow I think it will all work out nicely. Remember, the track was there long before BVS. And remember, the futuristic Monorail has been passing by the turn-of-the-century main entrance of Disneyland for decades. Good enough reason? Anyway, just keep thinking of the charm of the Red Car Trolley.

Disneyland. Hooray for the usuals. Jungle Cruise, Tiki Room, Matterhorn, Splash Mountain, Storybook, etc. Pirates was closed and Mansion was holiday-ized. I do like that Jack Skellington animatronic, I must say.

The Colors of Mary Blair. I’m lovin’ the Mary Blair exhibit at the old Bank on Main Street. What a charming charming collection that is. No wonder Walt’s favorite artist was Mary Blair. Also, I’ve found in recent times that the Cast Members there and at the Opera House next door are quite helpful and knowledgeable. Hooray for that.

A bit of Epcot at Disneyland! This is a treat for anyone waiting to see Mr. Lincoln (who is also a treat). You might recognize these if you've visited The American Adventure at Epcot's World Showcase. These are miniature versions of the life-size statues on the East coast.

The moral of this part of the post: There are great things for us lovers of the old-school to enjoy and  to look forward to. Alllllthough at the same time we must continue to ignore some of the cluttery crap that has found a home in our beloved park.

Star Tours (not the cluttery crap I was referring to). Ok this enhancement is better than many fanboys might give it credit. According to this fanboy at least. Do I love the loose timelines and Jar Jars? No. But the place looks great. And how can a screen look so bright and crisp? I'm super happy that the ride pilot is a great C-3PO animtronic and not "ACE". And really, Star Tours 2.0 is the least of Tomorrowland’s problems. I didn’t see a single Rocket Rod go by the whole time I was there. Hee hee.

West Side. This is where the group decides to leave me for a couple hours. And why they don't want to watch me photograph the architectural remains of things that have been gone for forty years... your guess is as good as mine.

Spoiler alert for upcoming posts: I did some mystery solvin' for things like Frito Kid, the various extinct shooting arcades, and other former attractions and areas. Ahh the joys of finding things I have never before been able to find. Not to mention the joys of people cleaning tables telling me I'm wrong about the building I'm looking at. For the record... I was right about those buildings.

For fun. Walt in the driver seat of the old milk truck with some Boy Scouts and some girls.

More walls. Club 33 was not blocked but the exit of Pirates was. I found it interesting to see a temporary Club 33 sign on the temporary wall. For the record... Walls are not always a bad thing.

Spotted. Reese Witherspoon, her ex-husband Ryan Phillippe, their daughter, and another girl were climbing out of a Splash Mountain log as we were climbing in the same log. Shortly after we saw them buying their ride photo. Then we saw them buying bottled water. Oh those fancy Hollywood celebrities.

Trip Report Part 2 (Disney Cruise) coming next. 

Related posts:

The Era of Big and Tacky
Buena Vista Street Model
Disneyland Meets EPCOT Center
America Sings

This week, while visiting the walled city of California Adventure, I took the chance to study the Buena Vista Street model. The model shows us what we can expect from DCA's upcoming new "Main Street". It looks fantastic. And compared to what was there before, it looks like the greatest park improvement in Disney history.

This is a rare occurrence. Disney takes something they originally considered to be "hip" and "attractive to the young crowd" and they spend millions to convert it to be something far more "traditional Disney". And we traditional fans should rejoice.

The "Storytellers" statue maquette on display was also a sight to behold. This will be the counterpart to the "Partners" statue at Disneyland. You'll notice in the fourth photo a small Walt and Mickey statue close to the front of the park. The most recent Imagineering presentations confirm that the Storytellers will be located in the mini plaza in photo 13 of this post.

Hooray California Adventure for doin' these things. I tell you, that Little Mermaid ride is also something wonderful. I loved it to death. Here's to fixing life's little mistakes.

Related posts:

Swiss Family Treehouse Model
The Wonders of Nature's Wonderland [ PART 2 ]
Disneyland 1955 Model Close-ups
A Look at the Progress City Model- Then and Now
2 Fantastic Disneyland Scale Models
LEGO Disneyland