Next Disneyland MouseAdventure Announced

MousePlanet announced their next West Coast MouseAdventure today.

MouseAdventure Holiday: Trick or Treat will take place at Disneyland on October 17, 2010.

The cost is $70 per team. Each team may have two to four players.

We had a very good time at MouseAdventure's Day at the Park in early June. We're going to strongly consider participating again...although it's just three weeks after Disney's Scavenger Hunt, being held in late September!

Tonight's Movie: Diplomatic Courier (1952)

DIPLOMATIC COURIER, starring Tyrone Power in the title role, is an excellent Cold War chase movie filmed in European locations. I had never seen this film before, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Mike Kells (Power) is a State Department courier who finds himself caught up in the middle of a desperate espionage situation when his contact Sam (James Millican), an old war buddy, is killed before he can hand off a critical document to Kells.

U.S. Army Col. Mark Cagle (Stephen McNally) uses Kells as bait to try to unravel the plot and race against time to find the missing document. A gung-ho Army sergeant (Karl Malden) serves as Kells' informal bodyguard while Kells looks for a mysterious woman (Hildegard Neff) who knew Sam, and in turn Kells is pursued by a glamorous widow (Patricia Neal) he meets on a plane.

I found this film highly absorbing and suspenseful. The excitement begins very early in the film and builds to a satisfying conclusion. I always enjoy Tyrone Power, who's at the top of my favorite actors list, and Malden is a welcome screen presence as well. Neal and Neff are both excellent as women who have plenty of surprises in store for Mr. Power's character.

DIPLOMATIC COURIER reunited Tyrone Power with director Henry Hathaway, who previously worked with Power on JOHNNY APOLLO (1940), BRIGHAM YOUNG (1940), THE BLACK ROSE (1950), and RAWHIDE (1951).

As a side note, the sequence with a watch in a European pawn shop called to mind Hathaway's earlier spy film THE HOUSE ON 92ND STREET (1945). The opening minutes, which are "docu-noir" in style, are also reminiscent of the "procedural" aspects of 92ND STREET. I especially loved the demonstration of live teletyping between the U.S. and Europe, which looked very much like today's instant messaging.

Be on the lookout for Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson, and Michael Ansara in bit parts; Marvin is the easiest to spot in his two scenes as an MP in Trieste. Dabbs Greer (Rev. Alden from LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE) is seen early in the film as a clerk working for U.S. intelligence. Hugh Marlowe narrates.

This film runs 97 minutes. It was photographed in black and white by Lucien Ballard, whose career stretched for over 55 years.

DIPLOMATIC COURIER is not available on DVD or VHS. It is shown from time to time on Fox Movie Channel. The print I recorded from FMC was of very nice quality.

Perhaps someday we'll get a third Tyrone Power boxed DVD set with the relative few of his films which aren't yet on DVD, such as this title, LLOYD'S OF LONDON (1936), SUEZ (1938), KING OF THE KHYBER RIFLES (1953), and UNTAMED (1955).

2012 Update: DIPLOMATIC COURIER is now available on DVD-R via the Fox Cinema Archives.

Around the Blogosphere This Week

Miscellaneous bits of news and fun stuff from around the Internet...

...Here's an interesting upcoming book, courtesy of my Amazon recommendations: EARLY WARNER BROS. STUDIOS will be out on July 26th from Arcadia Publishing's Images of America series.

...Baskin-Robbins is retiring French Vanilla ice cream? How is that even possible?

...Dick Powell's CORNERED (1945) was recently reviewed by the Professor at Noir of the Week.

...CHAMPAGNE FOR CAESAR (1950), reviewed by toto2 at the Classic Film and TV Cafe, is a film I remember watching on TV as a teen...I haven't seen it since and would enjoy revisiting it. It stars Ronald Colman, Celeste Holm, and Vincent Price. It sounds as though the DVD available from Image Entertainment may not be of very good quality, unfortunately.

...The producers of the upcoming film TRON: LEGACY (2010), a sequel to Disney's TRON (1982), recently utilized advice from the folks at Pixar on how to improve the film.

...John DiLeo of Screen Savers wrote an interesting review of THREE HOURS TO KILL (1954) with Dana Andrews and Donna Reed. I taped this a few months ago and look forward to seeing it.

...Last week the Post Office released baseball-themed stamps paying tribute to the Negro Leagues.

...Here's a story on the town of Gilroy, California, which is famous for garlic. When we visited many years ago, you could actually smell garlic as you drove into the area!

...Lou Lumenick has information on upcoming Warner Archive releases, including Robert Taylor in Anthony Mann's DEVIL'S DOORWAY (1950). Lumenick's column also discusses recent film noir releases and the new Deanna Durbin set.

...Tom of Motion Picture Gems is taking a course on director Max Ophuls, and he published a detailed analysis of LETTER FROM AN UNKNOWN WOMAN (1948) with Joan Fontaine and Louis Jourdan.

...Kevin's Movie Corner recently took a look at James Stewart and June Allyson in THE STRATTON STORY (1949).

...Glenn Erickson, aka DVD Savant, reviewed the new release from Olive Films, APPOINTMENT WITH DANGER (1951) with Alan Ladd and Jack Webb.

...Attention Southern Californians: ArcLight Cinemas in Hollywood, Pasadena, and Sherman Oaks will be showing a variety of Disney movies in August. Hollywood will focus on Disney sci-fi, Pasadena will be showing animated classics, and Sherman Oaks will screen musicals. The schedule is at D23.

...Notable passing: Actor James Gammon, whose memorable roles include the manager in MAJOR LEAGUE (1989), has passed away at the age of 70.

Have a good week, everyone!

Tonight's Movie: Tennessee's Partner (1955)

Tennessee (John Payne) is a professional gambler currently plying his trade at a California establishment owned by the Duchess (Rhonda Fleming). When a disgruntled loser tries to kill Tennessee, Cowpoke (Ronald Reagan), a stranger in town, saves Tennessee's life and becomes TENNESSEE'S PARTNER.

Tennessee tries return the favor by saving Cowpoke from marrying an untrustworthy golddigger (Coleen Gray), and the broken-hearted Cowpoke wants to kill Tennessee. Then Tennessee is charged with murder...

The screenplay, from a Bret Harte story, is nothing particularly special, but TENNESSEE'S PARTNER is a fun, colorful Western with an amiable cast and solid production values. Payne and Reagan make a good team, with Payne as the slick tough guy who's been around and Reagan as the sunny-natured, more innocent Cowpoke. The flame-haired Fleming brightens the screen both literally and figuratively in an energetic performance as a woman who thinks Tennessee is marriage material. The only weak link in this was Gray, who is unfortunately rather colorless in a thankless role.

The supporting cast includes a bunch of familiar faces from '50s Westerns. Leo Gordon, a favorite of mine, has plenty of screen time as the sheriff, while Chubby Johnson plays an old prospector, Morris Ankrum is a judge, and Anthony Caruso is the dastardly villain. Myron Healey is also in the cast.

If you look closely at the "ladies" working for the Duchess, you'll spot Angie Dickinson. A couple of the other actresses looked familiar, but the credits at IMDb are unfortunately incomplete in that regard.

This 87-minute film was directed by Allan Dwan.

The attractive color photography is by John Alton, who won the Oscar for shooting the ballet in AN AMERICAN IN PARIS (1951). Alton was also known for his striking black and white photography of film noir titles like T-MEN (1947), RAW DEAL (1948), and HE WALKED BY NIGHT (1948).

TENNESSEE'S PARTNER is available on DVD in a fine print from VCI.

It's also been released on VHS.

Today at Disney's California Adventure: World of Color Review

I thought I'd share thoughts on Disney's new World of Color show in a separate review. (Parts 1 and 2 of today's visit are here and here). Warning, there are mild plot spoilers ahead.

We watched the World of Color show from the very left of the Red Zone. Although we weren't in a "wet zone," it still "rained" enough I didn't use my camera for more than a couple of shots.

We enjoyed World of Color very much, and there are some wonderful moments, but I didn't feel it quite reached the pinnacle of memorable Disney entertainment, for several reasons:

1) The lack of a cohesive theme or storyline. For example, the Remember fireworks show was about Disneyland history and nostalgia. Fantasmic! is about Mickey Mouse's nightmares and his valiant battle against evil. World of Color is just sort of a montage which skips from thing to thing and doesn't build to any sort of climax.

2) Not enough nostalgia. For instance, I was expecting they would do something like recreate the kaleidoscope effect from the opening credits of the old Disney TV show.

And "classic" Disney was seen in relatively short clips such as a "greatest couples" montage. When the show ended, I wondered where Alice in Wonderland had been, since she's been part of the advertising for the show since it was still in the creative stages. My daughter said she'd seen a quick glimpse of Alice, but the mystery was solved for us by this review: the Alice in Wonderland sequence was almost entirely cut from the show!

Someone forgot to tell the merchandise department Alice didn't make the final cut:

3) The mix of music and dialogue simply wasn't emotionally powerful enough in many spots, and there were missed opportunities. (For a perfect mix of music and dialogue, one needs only to think of the unforgettable Remember fireworks show, which might just be the best thing Disneyland has ever produced.) Extended dialogue from FINDING NEMO was pointless. The moment of the Beast turning into the prince, which should have dazzled, dwindled away.

4) Too many "down" sequences. We've already got Mickey battling the bad guys in the amazing Fantasmic! show. World of Color should have focused more on wonder (hey, maybe they could have kept in Alice in Wonderland...!) and less on the fright factor. The heat from the flames was just a little too much...I can't imagine how it felt from the front row! The LION KING herd thundering toward the audience was impressive, but did they have to include the downer dialogue of Simba calling for his father?

5) Although it's certainly doable, it's a long time to stand without moving much, when you factor in standing in line for an hour before the show starts and then -- after a short walk to break up the standing -- standing in the viewing area. Fantasmic!, of course, allows for comfortable seating along the shores of the Rivers of America, and you can sit while waiting for fireworks shows to start, even if they ask you to stand before the lights dim. We also spent several hours walking yesterday, and by the time the show ended around 11:40 my feet were getting a bit uncomfortable from standing in one position for so long.

Enough of the show's drawbacks...there is much to like. The color fountains are very impressive, as are many of the effects. I particularly appreciated the "surprise" mini-fountains amidst the viewing areas. The lights on Mickey's Fun Wheel were used creatively as part of the show.

The best sequences? "Under the Sea" (the bubbles made me think of Florida's Voyage of the Little Mermaid, for which I confess affection), "Friend Like Me," a swirling storm featuring "The Old Mill" (although they could have made stronger use of BAMBI here), "Colors of the Wind" from POCAHONTAS (with green fountain "trees"), and the pirates sequence (although I could have done with less fire and more of the movie theme music).

After seeing the show I read Al Lutz's review at MiceAge and discovered he made many of the same points: "I still see people get misty-eyed whenever they run the 50th anniversary fireworks at Disneyland. The carefully chosen soundtrack excerpts from the attractions, and lush orchestral arrangements of classic Disney melodies not only make for a slick show, but a heart tugging experience too. World of Color has lots of pretty scenes, and a few 'how did they do that' moments. But since it doesn't build thematically (because everything is so jumbled) it's not something that stays with you for any time afterwards. It's especially disappointing after having followed all of [Steve] Davison's presentations leading up to it. It's painfully obvious that he didn't get to deliver what he had been carefully working so hard on these past few years. The good thing is that this versatile show system allows for ongoing changes to the program."

Bottom line: I think Disney needs to call in John Lasseter, Tony Baxter, and others and focus much more on emotionally connecting with the audience. Over time, hopefully the show will be tweaked and adapted.

Will I go see it again? Absolutely! It will take more than one viewing to fully absorb all that was happening. I'm sure I'll see it on multiple occasions; I'd particularly like to see it from a more central location. We might consider seeing it as part of the dinner package with a meal from Ariel's Grotto, a restaurant we've wanted to try for quite a while now.

On a scale of four stars, I'd give World of Color a three, and hope that a year or two from now I have reason to award the show the fourth star.

Today at Disney's California Adventure: Glow Fest, World of Color, and More!

We spent some time at Disneyland today, in honor of the park's 55th anniversary weekend, but we spent most of our visit at Disney's California Adventure.

The parks were strangely uncrowded for a Friday in July. Perhaps the high temperatures kept people away. After sailing onto a parking lot tram and through security, we decided to see if perhaps there were still tickets available for the World of Color show...there were!

The tickets were for the late show, and we figured we'd just go home if we were tired, since seeing World of Color wasn't in our original plans. We ended up having such a fun evening that we did stay all the way through the World of Color show.

The Silly Symphony Swings is now a delightful old-fashioned boardwalk ride set to the William Tell Overture. The concept is that riders are swept away by a storm like in the old Mickey Mouse cartoon THE BAND CONCERT. There are even lightning effects at night.

A detail from the ride:

We tried out the new Dino Darts game which is now part of Toy Story Midway Mania:

Lots of new things to see in the Blue Sky Cellar! The Goofy's Sky School remake of Mulholland Madness looks like it should be a lot of fun:

Paradise Pier as it will look in the future:

Then it was time for the Glow Fest performance at Sunshine Plaza, which started at dusk:

We thought the Bollywood-style "Indian" dancers were terrific. (The other set of dancers were a little too "out there" for us -- terrible costumes.) The skill and energy of the Indian dancers was extremely impressive.

When the show ends after dark, the crowd follows the dancers to the Hollywood Pictures backlot area for a street party with music and dancing along with glow in the dark decor:

We were frankly surprised by how much we enjoyed Glow Fest. We started out as skeptics. The decor looks garish during the day...

...and we weren't thrilled by the idea of bars set up selling alcoholic beverages in the middle of the street. (We suspect the high prices kept very many people from purchasing drinks, and we didn't notice a smell of liquor.) But everywhere we looked, people were having fun, including us! The high-energy dancers did a good job of interacting with guests and especially encouraging little children to dance. We saw many families having a great time together. What initially seemed as if it might be just a little too "edgy" for a Disney park instead turned out to be a real pleasure.

(Update: Here's an L.A. Times review I just found. The reviewer was also quite surprised to realize the Glow Fest concept is a success.)

It's rather interesting that Disney's own surveys found that guests have rated the Glow Fest experience higher than the World of Color show.

I'll be sharing my thoughts on the World of Color show in a separate review.

All in all, it was a great day!

Today at Disneyland: 55th Anniversary Eve

It was extremely hot here today -- in the low 90s -- but that didn't stop us from having a lot of fun at Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure. More on California Adventure coming later...first stop, Disneyland!

July 17th is Disneyland's 55th anniversary! Wasn't it just the 50th?!

Main Street dressed up in its summer best for Independence Day and the anniversary:

Summer flowers at Town Square:

The Market House window's summer display:

More Main Street:

It all began with these two Partners:

Happy Anniversary, Disneyland!

Five-Year Bloggiversary!

It's very hard to believe, but as of today, July 16th, Laura's Miscellaneous Musings has been in existence for half a decade.

Some readers have been "regulars" from very early on, and your loyalty means a great deal. And I'm always delighted to make the acquaintance of new readers. I appreciate all of you who take the time to visit and provide your encouragement and friendship!

I have been deeply touched by various acts of kindness from some regular visitors. There are wonderful people out there on the Internet, and it's a marvelous thing that blogging allows those of us with common interests to become acquainted.

On to the next half-decade!

Previous blog anniversaries: 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009.

Tonight's Movie: Bank Holiday (1938)

The British film BANK HOLIDAY, also known in the United States as THREE ON A WEEKEND, is an interesting movie which mixes melodrama, romance, and observations of various characters vacationing at a seaside resort.

Catharine (Margaret Lockwood), a nurse, has planned to go away for a long holiday weekend at the beach with her boyfriend Geoffrey (Hugh Williams). Catharine's feelings for her beau seem tepid, at best, and while on holiday she is also haunted by thoughts of a young man named Stephen (John Lodge), who lost his wife in childbirth just before Catharine left for the weekend.

The film juxtaposes Catharine and Geoffrey's awkward weekend with Stephen walking the streets of London remembering his lost love. Catharine ultimately must decide whether to go ahead and share a hotel room with Geoffrey (not an issue one would expect in a U.S. film of this era) or follow her instincts and return to London to help Stephen.

The above scenes are interspersed with what was apparently meant to be comic relief, profiling a lower-class family with a pub-crawling father and ill-mannered urchins, as well as a couple of lovelorn ladies who are in town for a "Miss England" beauty contest. (As a side note, I suspect the name of the family's youngest child, Marina, was inspired by the popular Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent, who married into the British royal family in 1934.) There are a few nice moments in these sequences, particularly near the end of the film, but they go on a bit long; Margaret Lockwood's character is the heart of the film.

I enjoyed the depiction of everyday British life, including the crowds on the escalators in the train station, the Loew's movie theater showing SILLY SYMPHONIES, and Stephen passing by landmarks such as Admiralty Arch. And I'm curious to know -- did holiday-ers at crowded resorts in that era really sleep on the beach, or was that dreamed up for the movie?

John Lodge, who played Stephen, was an American actor whose credits included playing John Brooke in the Katharine Hepburn version of LITTLE WOMEN. After WWII he left films for politics, becoming governor of Connecticut and then an ambassador in the Eisenhower, Nixon, and Reagan administrations.

Linden Travers (from THE LADY VANISHES) plays Stephen's wife. The cast also includes Felix Aylmer, Rene Ray, and Merle Tottenham. Michael Rennie is credited as being a guardsman -- I need to rewind and take another look!

This movie was shot in black and white. It runs 86 minutes.

BANK HOLIDAY is one of several films in which Margaret Lockwood was directed by Carol Reed. Their other notable titles included THE STARS LOOK DOWN (1940), with Lockwood's costar from THE LADY VANISHES (1938), Michael Redgrave; and NIGHT TRAIN TO MUNICH (1940) with Rex Harrison.

BANK HOLIDAY is not available on DVD or VHS in the United States. It's available in the UK on Region 2 DVD as part of the Margaret Lockwood Collection.

This film was recently shown on Turner Classic Movies so it may turn up there again in the future.

All in all, BANK HOLIDAY is a pleasant film which is worth the investment of time.

November 2013 Update: BANK HOLIDAY is now available on DVD in the U.S. from VCI.

Coming to DVD: Disney Documentaries

Three well-received Disney documentaries will be coming to DVD on November 30, 2010: WAKING SLEEPING BEAUTY (2009), WALT & EL GRUPO (2008), and THE BOYS: THE SHERMAN BROTHERS' STORY (2009).

The Disney website says the WAKING SLEEPING BEAUTY extras will include deleted scenes, a featurette, studio tours, and more.

Extras on WALT & EL GRUPO will include a commentary track and the original theatrical version of SALUDOS AMIGOS (1942).

THE BOYS will include featurettes on the Sherman Brothers' theme park music, casting MARY POPPINS, Roy Williams of THE MICKEY MOUSE CLUB, and a "jukebox."

I'm delighted I'll finally have the opportunity to see WALT & EL GRUPO and THE BOYS for the first time, as well as being able to revisit WAKING SLEEPING BEAUTY.

Update: Amazon links are now up for the three movies: WAKING SLEEPING BEAUTY, THE BOYS, and WALT & EL GRUPO.

Tonight's Movie: Night Train to Munich (1940)

Thanks to the Criterion sale currently taking place at Barnes and Noble, tonight we watched the new DVD release of NIGHT TRAIN TO MUNICH (1940). The film proved worth the anticipation: NIGHT TRAIN TO MUNICH is a deliciously Hitchcockian, fast-paced suspense film with an ingenious, humorous screenplay by the great Sidney Gilliat and Frank Launder.

NIGHT TRAIN TO MUNICH was directed by Carol Reed (THE THIRD MAN) and stars Rex Harrison and Margaret Lockwood. Lockwood was the star of another "train" movie with a Gilliat-Launder screenplay, Hitchcock's THE LADY VANISHES (1938). NIGHT TRAIN TO MUNICH makes very clever use of two supporting characters from THE LADY VANISHES, the cricket-mad twosome of Charters (Basil Radford) and Caldicott (Naunton Wayne).

The film even starts out like THE LADY VANISHES, with a cute little model set which seems to place the film in a fantasy world...a fantasy world which abruptly vanishes with footage of Hitler's army invading country after country. In Czechoslavakia, Anna Bomasch (Margaret Lockwood) is arrested and thrown into a concentration camp after her scientist father (James Harcourt) flees the country.

Karl Marsen (Paul Henreid), a fellow prisoner, helps Anna escape to England, where she is reunited with her father and aided by the mysterious Gus Bennett (Rex Harrison). Things are not quite as simple as they initially seem, and eventually everyone ends up back in Germany, where the story climaxes with a nail-biting journey on a NIGHT TRAIN TO MUNICH. I am not saying more about the plot so that those who are new to the movie can enjoy the surprises as they unfold.

The movie speeds by like lightning; I was a bit startled to glance at a clock at the half hour mark and realize how much had happened on screen in such a short time. The film does a wonderful job alternating nerve-wracking suspense and marvelous bits of humor. Some of the lines are delightfully droll; I loved a scene where a bunch of worried British agents mix business with chatter of tea and recipes for the following weekend, and a scene with Charters and Caldicott musing on the fictional cricket player RAFFLES was very funny.

I love Margaret Lockwood, on and off trains, and she has some wonderful lines as well as being a great beauty. The film chiefly belongs, however, to Rex Harrison, whose character turns up in the most interesting places. (The Criterion DVD booklet calls his character "shape-changing," while Glenn Erickson terms him a "proto James Bond.") It's a terrific role, and Harrison makes the most of it. Radford and Wayne also deserve a great deal of credit for making the movie such fun.

This was one of Paul Henreid's earliest English-language films; he was billed as Paul von Hernreid. Soon after making this film in England he left for America, and by 1942 he had starred in the two films for which is is best known, NOW, VOYAGER and CASABLANCA.

The Criterion DVD print is gorgeous. The sole extras are a "video conversation" about the film and an attractive booklet with background information and analysis, as well as a handful of beautifully reproduced photographs.

A side note: although the DVD box says the film runs 90 minutes, which IMDb says is the U.S. running time, the film actually ran the U.K. length, 95 minutes.

NIGHT TRAIN TO MUNICH can be seen occasionally on Fox Movie Channel. The film was produced by Fox's British division.

NIGHT TRAIN TO MUNICH is grand entertainment which is highly recommended for purchase or the Netflix queue.

January 2020 Update: I had the wonderful opportunity to see this film in 35mm at the Egyptian Theater. A really delightful film all over again.

Kim Novak To Appear at Egyptian Theatre

Southern Californians might like to be aware the Kim Novak will be making a personal appearance at Hollywood's Egyptian Theatre on July 30, 2010.

Novak will appear in between screenings of PAL JOEY (1957) and BELL, BOOK AND CANDLE (1958), hosted by American Cinematheque.

Later in the weekend the theatre will have screenings of PICNIC (1956), MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT (1959), and VERTIGO (1958).

All titles but VERTIGO will be shown in restored 35mm prints. VERTIGO will be a 70mm print.

The following Tuesday, August 3rd, a boxed set of Novak films will be released on DVD, containing all of the above titles -- with the exception of VERTIGO -- as well as JEANNE EAGELS (1957). It sounds like there will be some nice extras, including featurettes.

I visited the Egyptian for April's Noir City Film Festival and found it a very enjoyable place to see movies.

July 28th Update: An interview with Kim Novak.

Criterion DVDs on Sale

DVD collectors will want to check out the Criterion sale currently taking place at Barnes & Noble.

All Criterion DVDs are 50% off. The sale is both online and in "bricks and mortar" stores.

There are some amazing deals. For instance, the new release NIGHT TRAIN TO MUNICH (1940), currently selling for $22.46 at Deep Discount and $26.49 at Amazon, is just $14.99 plus tax.

The recent release of STAGECOACH (1939) is currently $31.99 at Amazon and $32.60 at Deep Discount. It's $19.99 in the Barnes & Noble sale.

I'm rather glad now that I was saving for my vacation last month and had to put off buying NIGHT TRAIN TO MUNICH!

I hadn't ordered anything from Barnes & Noble online recently and just learned that B&N no longer offers its membership discounts online; instead members receive "free express shipping" online. (A poor tradeoff, if you ask me, given that it's easy to get free shipping there with a minimum purchase anyway.) However, I confirmed with a store employee that the discount is good for use shopping the sale at one of their stores. The 10% savings basically offsets the sales tax these days here in California...

Happy shopping!

Destination D, Here We Come!

Tickets went on sale today for D23's Destination D: Disneyland '55, being held the last weekend of September at the Disneyland Hotel.

I'm very excited to have bought tickets today. I'll be attending with my oldest daughter.

On the Sunday following the Destination D events, we're also going to give the Scavenger Hunt a try. It sounds a bit intimidating, as it covers not only Disneyland, but Disney's California Adventure and even Downtown Disney -- in just five hours! But since we've now got one experience with the similar MouseAdventure under our belts we decided we'd give it a try.

The smaller Destination D event is alternating with the D23 Expo. Disney will hold its next D23 Expo on August 19, 20, and 21, 2011.

Tickets go on sale for the D23 Expo on August 19, 2010.

New Book: MGM: Hollywood's Greatest Backlot

The upcoming book MGM: HOLLYWOOD'S GREATEST BACKLOT, a 304-page hardcover, looks like a real "wow" for fans of MGM and Hollywood's Golden Era.

The book, by Steven Bingen, Stephen X. Sylvester, and Michael Troyan, will be released on October 1, 2010. (Update: Amazon now lists the release date as February 2011.)

The book's website says it will include "never before published" maps of Lots 1, 2, and 3, as well as over 350 previously unpublished photos. Lists will match up MGM films with their backlot sets. Interviews with Betty Garrett and Richard Anderson will be included as well.

I'll be watching for updates!