...Disneyland unveiled its 60th Anniversary logo yesterday in a birthday ceremony at the park. The park's Diamond Celebration will begin in Spring 2015. (And let's hope the MousePlanet rumor that Magic Bands might come to Disneyland for the 60th anniversary never, ever comes to pass!)
...Sure wish I could attend the presentation at the Walt Disney Museum in San Francisco tomorrow on Walt Disney and the 1964 World's Fair. Disney Legends Marty Sklar and Bob Gurr will be there in person, with video appearances by other Imagineering talents.
...Loved the new Disney art by Shag, seen here -- it features two fondly remembered attractions from Disneyland's past, the Pirate Ship Restaurant and the Skyway. I picked up the mug at the WonderGround Gallery on a recent visit.
...A Disney book from last December which I just recently learned about: DISNEY'S GRAND TOUR: WALT AND ROY'S EUROPEAN VACATION, SUMMER 1935. It's by Didier Ghez, author of the exquisite coffee table book on DISNEYLAND PARIS.
...The history of Disneyland tickets.
...Dateline Disneyland has photos of the exterior changes to Club 33 and the former Court des Anges area in New Orleans Square, and they're not pretty. The closure of the beautiful Court des Anges to the general public is a very sad thing. And have they really changed the famous French lift in Club 33 into a booth? That's ghastly.
...More on the Club 33 changes from the L.A. Times and the Orange County Register....In Orlando, the Polynesian Resort is returning to its original 1971 name, the Polynesian Village Resort.
...Here's the Wall Street Journal on the ongoing success of the FROZEN soundtrack. Speaking of which, I covet the beautiful blue LP special edition...I love they released it on vinyl!
...Leonard Maltin recently wrote about the Walt Disney Family Museum's Mary Blair exhibit, which runs through September 7th, and he also discusses animation historian John Canemaker's two books on Blair. I've owned Canemaker's THE ART AND FLAIR OF MARY BLAIR for years and just recently purchased his companion book for the exhibit, MAGIC COLOR FLAIR: THE WORLD OF MARY BLAIR.
...The teaser trailer for next year's live-action CINDERELLA (2015) movie is pretty but that's all there is to it:
CINDERELLA is directed by Kenneth Branagh, with Lily James as Cinderella, Cate Blanchett as the Wicked Stepmother, Helena Bonham Carter as the Fairy Godmother, Richard Madden as Prince Charming, and Derek Jacobi as the King.
...On August 12th Disney releases a "double feature" Blu-ray/DVD combo with THE ADVENTURES OF ICHABOD AND MR. TOAD (1949) and FUN AND FANCY FREE (1947). Although I have ICHABOD on DVD, I only have FUN AND FANCY FREE on VHS so it might be time for an upgrade....SLEEPING BEAUTY (1959) comes out in a Blu-ray/DVD combo Diamond Edition on October 7, 2014. It's said to feature previously unseen deleted scenes.
...The D23 site lists some top Disney sports movies. Speaking of Disney sports movies, Kevin Costner has completed McFARLAND (2014), about a small-town track coach, due out this fall. A 2012 article at First Showing provides more information on the plot.
...Some of my favorite things on California Adventure's Buena Vista Street...and check out recent Disney Parks blog entries in their Windows on Main Street series.
...Coming in early August: THE ART OF DISNEY: THE GOLDEN AGE 1928-1961, a box of postcards....I didn't know that the Apollo 11 moon landing was shown live in Tomorrowland on July 20, 1969.
...Visit A Pinch of Pixie Dust for Miss Emma's delightful coverage of a recent visit to Disneyland, including Cupcakes of Disneyland, The Motorama Girls of Carsland, Jolly Holiday Bakery, and Fireworks from the Tea Cups: Disneyland Epicosity. Emma has wonderful photos and a charming narrative voice. Disneyland fans will enjoy the visit!
...Actress Amy Adams, the star of Disney's ENCHANTED (2007) and THE MUPPETS (2011), recently gave her first class airplane seat to a soldier. Loved hearing that.
...Actor Dick Jones, who as child actor Dickie Jones was the voice of PINOCCHIO (1940), has passed on at the age of 87. Leonard Maltin shares a remembrance.
...Attention Southern Californians: The next "Throwback Thursday" screening at Disney's El Capitan Theatre will be HERCULES (1987) on August 21, 2014. The discounted general admission tickets include popcorn and soda along with the movie. I've not yet seen HERCULES and hope to attend!...Earlier this month the Los Angeles Times wrote about the success of the El Capitan Throwback Thursday screenings, which are often sellouts.
...The El Capitan will also be hosting FROZEN Sing-a-Longs from August 22nd through September 7th.
For more Disney links, please visit the Disney News posts for April and February.
Wow - so much great Disney news! I, too, wish I could attend the presentation today about Disney and the 1964 NY World's Fair. My family went to the fair and although I was a little (!) girl I remember being amazed by all the Disney attractions, especially "It's a Small World." Growing up in the midwest I never dreamed I would eventually live near Disneyland and have many opportunities to enjoy "Small World" with my own little girls. Best, Jane
ReplyDeleteJane, what a fantastic thing that you went to the NY World's Fair and remember It's a Small World there! That's absolutely wonderful.
ReplyDeleteDisney is sponsoring a two-day Destination D event later this year which will focus in part on the World's Fair. Unfortunately for the first time it's being held in Orlando rather than Anaheim. When it was originally scheduled for this summer I toyed with the idea of trying to attend, but it's now scheduled for the weekend before Thanksgiving so I gave up on the idea.
Best wishes,
Laura