Disney World PF Gathering and Tips for Disney Mania!

[ZapperZ]

If you consider Lady and the Tramp as one of the best animation movies of all time, then you should read this:

http://www.laughingplace.com/News-ID510050.asp

A new, restored Lady and the Tramp will be released on a Special Edition DVD at the end of this month to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the movie.

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

A really neat video tour of the Pixar exhibition at MOMA.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11048953/site/newsweek/

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

Donald is trying to catch some water...

This can be found by the main pool at Saratoga Springs. Wish I'm there right now... :(

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

Disneyland and Disney World Podcast

From the DVC e-mail:

The Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resorts now offer official podcasts, which are free, Internet-based shows featuring peeks behind the scenes of these vacation destinations, the latest Disney Theme Park news, exclusive interviews and more.

Here's the "low-down" on the downloads:

Simply download these shows to your MP3 player by visiting www.disneyland.com/podcast for the monthly Official Disneyland Resort podcast, and www.disneyworld.com/podcast for the weekly Walt Disney World version, titled "Walt Disney World Resort: Plugged In." Imagineers, animators, entertainers, authors, celebrities and Resort Cast Members are among those featured in the shows.

Craig Dezern, Vice President of Global Public Relations for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, sees the podcasts as another great way for Guests to stay "plugged in" between vacations, saying, "This dynamic new medium provides a terrific way for Disney fans around the world to discover the many exciting things happening during the Happiest Celebration On Earth."

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

The Magic Kingdom's Tomorrowland at dusk.

<sigh>

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

As you can guess, I belong to several Disney fan websites (no, really??!). The buzz surrounding Expedition Everest is still at its peak on most of them, understandably, especially when it is still being previewed by Disney resort guests.

On one website, they have a "Waltpaper" contest. The theme this time is, of course, Expedition Everest. This contest is different than the regular photo contest in that you can use your creativity in editing and modifying your picture to your heart's content.

So, this was my entry. It's very amateurish compare to a very professional looking one that is also in this contest. But I'm dumb enough not to care. :)

Zz.

http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/9208/ee0ly.jpg

 

[ZapperZ]

An interesting factoid from the latest DVC member mailings. A question was asked regarding the kennels at Disney's theme parks.

Question: Do the kennels at the Disney Theme Parks also take cats, and has Disney always had a kennel?

Answer: While dogs represent almost 90 percent of the Guests at Disney kennels, Pluto and his friends also have welcomed cats, parrots, chimps, snakes, hamsters, lizards, ferrets, squirrels, pigs, skunks and, on at least one occasion, a miniature pony and an armadillo. The first Kennel Club opened at Disneyland Park in January 1958, and the festivities included popular Disney child star Kevin Corcoran and Old Yeller's son, Duke. Under the original sponsor, Ken-L Ration, the name was "Ken-L Land."

A miniature pony?!

Someone actually goes to a Disney theme park on a miniature pony? (It can't possibly fit inside a Saturn, I can tell you that!)

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

This may appear to be another picture of the "golfball" (Spaceship Earth) at Epcot. But if you look real carefully, you'll see that there's the beginning of a rainbow right at the pool of the water fountain!

This was obviously a Kodak moment that I couldn't let slip by.

Zz.

http://img466.imageshack.us/img466/5889/img19391mo.jpg

 

[ZapperZ]

OK, it's time we have another Disney contest. This time, you WILL win a PIN if you are the first person to answer this correctly. Post your answer here. I will only acknowledge the correct answer on Jan 9th. So even if someone post an answer, it doesn't mean it is correct, which means people should still attempt the contest.

Only one answer submission per person, please. So make your answer counts!

I will contact the winner to arrange on how to send the pin. Unfortunately, Moonbie, you're disqualified again for this contest.

The question this time has to do with the picture below. It is a loading area for a very popular attraction. Name the attraction.

Zz.

http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/5476/img21462mt.jpg

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Space Mountain

 

[ZapperZ]

Did you miss the Disney's "What's Next?" commercial after the Superbowl last night? You're in luck. You can watch it here:

http://disney.go.com/destinations/features/whatsnext/

They recorded two versions, one for Disneyland, and the other for Walt Disney World.

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

An incredibly charming pin, to be released tomorrow at WDW. Luckily, this is an open edition pin.

Zz.

http://eventservices.disney.go.com/files/9526066.jpg

 

[ZapperZ]

Disney's 1st quarter profit rose 7% on the strength of record theme park attendence (no kidding!).

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000006&sid=ayU.muv60T4o&refer=home
http://www.thestreet.com/_yahoo/stocks/media/10266708.html?cm_ven=YAHOO&cm_cat=FREE&cm_ite=NA
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/yho...o&guid={D9D22B55-2FDB-4D02-A9AC-F322142538D4}

Zz.

 

[Astronuc]

http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/9208/ee0ly.jpg

[/URL] Geez, for a moment there, I thought I was hallucinating. Not that I ever have!

Pretty cool images.

As I browse this thread, I feel like I'm in . . . Disney World.

 

[ZapperZ]

Geez, for a moment there, I thought I was hallucinating. Not that I ever have!

Are you sure? What have you been sniffing lately? :)

Pretty cool images.

As I browse this thread, I feel like I'm in . . . Disney World.

Thanks! That's the idea. And as everyone can guess, stay tuned - there's more to come!

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

The Superbowl MVP did go to Disney World!

http://www.laughingplace.com/Lotion-View-191.asp

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

I kinda like this view, and the ivy climbing up the tree. So that's why I took this picture.

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

Another view of this wonderful flora and fauna. Humm... have I suddenly gotten into plants?

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

So, did I finally become a tree hugger? Did I fall in love with this branch and the ivy climbing up the tree limbs?

Nope! This is Ivy at the Animal Kingdom theme park! It is one of these things you see as you walk between Africa and Asia section of the theme park. It is quite impressive and entertains lots of people along the way...

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

Disney finally admits that it is in talks with the Chinese Govt. for a possible theme park in Shanghai.

http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=12&art_id=11580&sid=6570607&con_type=1

Oy vey. I hope they have learned from their lessons in Hong Kong.

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

Oh no! Bambi is returning to the forest where they gunned down his mommy! :(

Bambi II is released on DVD today.

http://disney.go.com/inside/issues/stories/v060207.html

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

Disney's California Adventure turns 5 years old today. This is a theme park looking for a theme and a purpose. It is also the lowest attended Disney theme park in North America.

So Happy Birthday, DCA. You have a lot of catching up to do to match your next door neighbor.

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

The 3rd hotel at the Tokyo Disney Resort has been announced and will open in 2008. It will be called Tokyo Disneyland Hotel.

http://www.laughingplace.com/Latest.asp?I1=ID&I2=932

Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disney Sea continues to be the most popular Disney theme parks outside of North America.

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

Space Mountain

I suppose it was plainly obvious that Ivan answered this correctly. So CONGRATULATIONS!

You will have to PM me on how you want the pin delivered to you, Ivan!

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

This is an adorable pin being released at Disneyland as part of their Pin Trading night. It kinda reminds me of Moonbie harassing cast members for their lanyard pins!

:)

Zz.

http://eventservices.disney.go.com/files/10307586.jpg

 

[ZapperZ]

Disney history expert Jim Korkis had a very interesting article he wrote for the DVC member on Disney and the Presidents.

Disney and the presidents
As we celebrate Presidents Day in the U.S. this month, I thought it might be fun to take a look at some of the stories about American presidents in the world of Disney.

Did you know that when President Harry Truman, a staunch Democrat, visited Disneyland Park in 1957, he refused to have his picture taken near the Dumbo the Flying Elephant attraction because he said the elephant was an icon of the Republican Party?

Here are some more fun facts.

In 1952, Disney artists, Roy O. Disney and the "Citizens for Eisenhower-Nixon" collaborated to produce the first animated TV commercial for a U.S. presidential candidate. In the only political commercial ever produced at the Disney studio, an animated Uncle Sam declared, "I like Ike."

Ike must have liked Disney as well, since President Dwight Eisenhower and his wife, Mamie, were always smiling in the photos of their Disneyland visits. Three years before his death, Eisenhower presented Walt Disney with a Freedoms Foundation medal, praising Walt for "communicating the hope and aspirations of our free society to the far corners of the planet."

Another president who always enjoyed his Disneyland trips was Richard Nixon, who joined Walt at a 1959 ceremony to dedicate the original Disneyland Monorail, pictured above.

One of the very few U.S. Presidents who never visited a Disney Theme Park was Lyndon Johnson. However, in 1964, Walt Disney was one of several Americans chosen by President Johnson to receive the President's Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor. According to a popular urban myth, Walt wore a "Goldwater" pin on his lapel during the award ceremony at the White House on Sept. 14, 1964. (At the time, Johnson was running against Republican nominee Barry Goldwater.) Photos and news reports from the event clearly show that Walt wasn't wearing such a pin.

Theodore Roosevelt was president when Walt Disney was born, but it was Abraham Lincoln who had the biggest influence on the young Walt. On Lincoln's birthday, a fifth-grade Walt transformed his father's derby into a stovepipe hat with cardboard and shoe polish, borrowed his father's church-deacon coat, added crepe hair to his chin and a wart to his cheek before citing "The Gettysburg Address" in class. His principal was so pleased with the impersonation that he took Walt into other classes to perform the recitation.

More than 50 years later, Walt was responsible for the creation of the first human Audio Animatronics® figure, a lifelike President Lincoln for the 1964 New York World's Fair (the figure later found a permanent home at Disneyland Park). Walt reportedly told his daughters that listening to Lincoln's speech at Disneyland Park always brought tears to his eyes.

In 1931, Walt and his wife visited Washington, D.C., and almost met another President. When they registered at the Mayflower Hotel, Walt told his V.I.P. host that he would like to meet General Pershing since he briefly chauffeured Pershing's son in France at the end of World War I.

"That's pretty hard to arrange," the man reportedly said. "Would you like to see President Herbert Hoover instead?"

Walt is said to have replied, "No, the president's too busy, and I wouldn't know what to talk to him about."

At the Disneyland opening on July 17,1955, Walt met a president before he became president, when Ronald Reagan appeared as a commentator for the televised ceremony. After Reagan became Governor of California, he corresponded with the Postmaster General to support the 1968 release of a commemorative six-cent postage stamp honoring Walt Disney.

Later, when Reagan became president and had to cancel his inaugural parade due to bad weather in Washington, D.C., organizers rescheduled the ceremony for May 27, 1985, and relocated the festivities to the American Adventure pavilion at Epcot.

Walt felt so strongly about the office of the president that he had plans for a Disneyland attraction called "One Nation Under God," where Guests would see a cinematic version of early American history and then perhaps a half dozen representations of prominent presidents.

That concept later evolved to become the Hall of Presidents at Florida's Magic Kingdom Park. There are some interesting secrets about that Walt Disney World attraction. Did you know that the flag pin worn by the Audio Animatronics representation of President George W. Bush is a replica of the one he wore during his post-Sept. 11, 2001, speech urging the nation to return to normal? In that speech, President Bush encouraged Americans to "Go to Disney World." That's still good advice today.

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

ESPN The Weekend

From the Disney press release:

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- ESPN and Walt Disney World Resort will again offer fans the opportunity to see and hear ESPN personalities and current and legendary athletes during "ESPN The Weekend Presented by Speed Stick® 24/7," a one-of-a-kind sports-themed special event at Disney-MGM Studios theme park in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., March 3-5, 2006.

"Following successful events the past two years, ESPN and Walt Disney World Resort are once again pleased to serve sports fans by offering this unique, in-person experience," said Heather Campbell, vice president, brand integration and synergy, ESPN, Inc. " 'ESPN The Weekend' has become one of the most exciting opportunities throughout the year for fans, athletes and ESPN to connect with one another and celebrate sports."

"ESPN The Weekend" will feature on-site ESPN telecasts including SportsCenter, Baseball Tonight and Cold Pizza; star motorcades and Q&A sessions featuring athletes and ESPN personalities; sports shows in the ESPN Theater with ESPN commentators and athletes; a visit from ESPN The Truck; live ESPN Radio broadcasts; ESPN Deportes Fuera de Juego telecasts; the ESPN Sports Zone interactive area; and a special sports edition of the game show attraction "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire-Play It!" Guests will also be able to enjoy all the popular shows and attractions, including the new "Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show."

LIVE ON-SITE ESPN TELECASTS

ESPN will present at least two live telecasts a day from a set in front of the Disney-MGM Studios Sorcerer's Hat on Hollywood Boulevard.

On-site programs include a special season preview edition of Baseball Tonight with host Karl Ravech and analysts Peter Gammons, John Kruk and Harold Reynolds. Major League Baseball Spring Training games get underway that weekend and the Baseball Tonight crew will put all the off-season moves in perspective and tell fans what to watch for during the spring.

In addition, ESPN will offer live telecasts of SportsCenter and Cold Pizza. Park guests will have a chance to appear on-air via crowd shots while watching the programming on in-park video screens.

ESPN Radio shows, including Mike and Mike in the Morning, The Herd with Colin Cowherd, the Dan Patrick Show and SportsBash with Eric Kuselias will be broadcast live from Disney-MGM Studios on Friday, March 3. A special edition of ESPN Radio's The Baseball Show will also be broadcast from the park on Saturday, March 4.

ESPN THEATER

Live shows will bring fans and guests behind the scenes of some of the network's most popular programs, including SportsCenter, Baseball Tonight, Cold Pizza, NFL Live and more. The shows will provide an inside look at favorite athletes, teams and ESPN programs, as fans will get into the action themselves by asking questions directly to ESPN personalities and athletes.

SPECIAL SPORTS EDITION OF "WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE-PLAY IT!"

Guests will get a chance to jump in the famed "Hot Seat" and partner with an ESPN personality or sports star to test their sports knowledge in a special sports edition of the popular game show attraction "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire-Play It!" The attraction is based on the television game show and allows theme park guests to play along from their studio audience seats.

STAR MOTORCADES AND CONVERSATIONS

Periodically, throughout the day, sports stars will motorcade down the park's Hollywood Boulevard to the stage at the base of the Sorcerer's Hat and join ESPN anchors for star conversations about their careers and Q&A sessions with park guests.

ESPN SPORTS ZONE INTERACTIVE AREA

The ESPN Sports Zone will give guests of all ages the opportunity to test their skills at everything from basketball games of H-O-R-S-E to racecar video games involving multiple drivers. Guests will even be able to learn how to cast a reel like a bass angler or have a golf swing evaluated by a Walt Disney World teaching pro. ESPN personalities and sports celebrities will make appearances in the interactive area throughout the weekend. Bands and in-park entertainers will also perform.

ESPN THE TRUCK

ESPN The Truck Presented by NFL Flag will be open for fans to sample the latest in sports television technology. Kiosks in the 53-foot trailer include: a replica SportsCenter desk, allowing fans to play sports anchor and take home their very own "Keep it Reel" audition DVD; ESPN The Magazine photo shoot area where fans can strike their cover pose and take home their picture of the mock cover; ESPN video games station; ESPN On-Air, where guests can select from a menu of ESPN video sources; and much more.

SPORTSCENTER AND PLAY-BY-PLAY ROLE PLAY

While visiting ESPN The Truck, guests can sit down at a replica of the SportsCenter desk and read the teleprompter as the highlights roll on the big game. In addition, guests will be able to test their play-by-play skills by calling some of the biggest moments in sports history.

The Walt Disney World innovative ticket pricing system "Magic Your Way" provides guests with the opportunity to customize their vacations, and Florida residents can save on tickets all year long.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

For information on "ESPN The Weekend" at Walt Disney World Resort and to book travel, guests may visit www.espntheweekend.com.

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

It was just announced that Pixar will now start producing 2 films a year, a change from their one a year policy so far. I hope this doesn't cause the quality to go down.

It is also official that they are taking over the production of Toy Story 3. No word yet if they will follow the story line that Disney already was producing before the bought Pixar.

http://filmforce.ign.com/articles/686/686649p1.html

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

More Disney Trivia... but no pins this time.

On what Disney attraction do you see this at the very end?

Zz.

http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/9403/img04729rp.jpg

 

[ZapperZ]

A look back at 5 years of Disney's California Adventure theme park.

http://www.laughingplace.com/Page-LP-DCA5Year.asp

Zz.

 

[scott_alexsk]

"Its a small world." How do I post pictures the same way you do?
-Scott

 

[ZapperZ]

"Its a small world."

Scott Alexsk wins the virtual pin!

<throws confetti>

How do I post pictures the same way you do?
-Scott

You have to bribe a mentor with a lot of money.







:)

You need to find a site that allows you to upload your pictures, and then link to it here using the IMG command. If you want to know the syntax, just quote one of the posts here that has a picture and look at it.

A site that I use to upload all of these pictures is imageshack.us. So you may want to try there.

Now, after all this, I expect you to upload LOTS of your disney pictures!

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

What do Al Michaels, John Madden, Monday Night Football, NBC/Universal, and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit have anything to do with one another and Disney?

You just have to read this:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/football/nfl/02/09/bc.fbn.nbc.michaels.ap/index.html

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

What do Al Michaels, John Madden, Monday Night Football, NBC/Universal, and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit have anything to do with one another and Disney?

You just have to read this:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/football/nfl/02/09/bc.fbn.nbc.michaels.ap/index.html

Zz.

More on this trade. Essentially, Disney traded a sports announcer for a rabbit!

:)

Zz.

Edit: Oy vey. I forgot to include the link. So here it is:

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/sto...-45E6-B48F-7BDF684010F8}&dist=rss&siteid=mktw

 

[ZapperZ]

I think free access to the Orlando Sentinel news item doesn't last long, so read this as soon as you can. You'd never think that Disney uniforms and costumes would make that big of a deal, but they do.

:)

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/custom/tourism/orl-bk-costumes9feb09,0,1882585.story

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

Newsweek has such a JUICY interview with former Disney CEO Michael Eisner. You have to read it, especially his terse remark about Roy Disney!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11234208/site/newsweek/

Man, I love dirt like this!

:)

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

More on this trade. Essentially, Disney traded a sports announcer for a rabbit!

:)

Zz.

Edit: Oy vey. I forgot to include the link. So here it is:

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/sto...-45E6-B48F-7BDF684010F8}&dist=rss&siteid=mktw

For those who want to know a bit about Mickey Mouse's history, and how Oswald the Lucky Rabbit fits into this, this is a terrific site. It can also make a great Disney trivia question.

http://www.characterproducts.com/info/character_histories/mickey_minnie_doorway.htm

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

Wow!

Expedition Everest came to Times Square in New York City! It's very impressive!

Zz.

http://www.wdwmagic.com/thumbnails/everest/web_wdw_everestcity_high.gif

http://www.wdwmagic.com/thumbnails/everest/webEverestBuilding_3912.jpg

 

[ZapperZ]

Pictures from the recent changes at Disneyland.

http://www.laughingplace.com/Lotion-View-192.asp

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

Wow! This trade-Al Michaels-for-Oswald is really making all the news wire!

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FBN_NBC_MICHAELS?SITE=CAANR&SECTION=SPORTS&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2006-02-10-05-27-33

Al Michaels is right. He WILL be an answer to a trivia one of these days.

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

A view of Epcot's Spaceship Earth across the lagoon from the Italian pavillion in the World Showcase. Those colorful sticks are supposed to represent the mooring place for the gondolas in Venice.

I think this is one of my better pictures of Spaceship Earth.

Zz.

http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/2341/img14729bq.jpg

 

[ZapperZ]

This is a blog of someone who is celebrating their 1-year anniversary at Celebration, a "town" that Disney created just off Walt Disney World.

http://celebrationfl.blogspot.com/2006/01/happy-anniversary.html

It was a very entertaining reading, but then I got to this :

As the finale fireworks bathed the sky in an explosion of color, I thought, "What a fitting end to our anniversary day." One of the main reasons that I wanted to move to Florida was because it always broke my heart to leave Disney World.

.. and I went "Oh my god! She's describing EXACTLY how I feel!"

<sobbing>

104 days and counting...

Zz.

 

[hypatia]

Well for a quick "fix" you could go to Home Depot and look at there Disney colors, paint chips. You can even take home Micky Mouse shaped ones!

 

[ZapperZ]

Well for a quick "fix" you could go to Home Depot and look at there Disney colors, paint chips. You can even take home Micky Mouse shaped ones!

What a great idea! :)

But unfortunately, hypatia, adding "Mickey Mouse shaped ones" to my place is like pouring salt into the sea. It is already over-ran by Disney stuff (as Tom can testify to when he was here last time).

Speaking of which, I need to do more re-arranging of the front shelf - those items have been displayed for more than 2 weeks. Time to cycle things around with those in storage... Oy.

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

A Disney gallery is opening on Fifth Ave. in New York City.

http://www.timesbeacon.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060210/ENT01/60210001/1031/NEWS01

Zz.

 

[ZapperZ]

We have another Disney trivia, and this one has Disney pins! So the first person to answer this correctly will win a Disney pin. I will only announce the winner in 2 days, so just because someone has submitted an answer, doesn't mean it is the right one.

Post your answer here.

Question: In which attraction can you see these lovable creatures hanging on the wall (they talk too!)?

Zz.

http://img340.imageshack.us/img340/3849/img06491al.jpg

 

[scott_alexsk]

I have got an accout on the site you told me about, but it won't let me download because it says the picture is to big. Do I need to download resizing software now?
-sCoTt

 

[ZapperZ]

I have got an accout on the site you told me about, but it won't let me download because it says the picture is to big. Do I need to download resizing software now?
-sCoTt

There is a limit on the size of each picture file that you can upload. I don't know what you are using, but if you're using XP, you can easily resize it. Besides, if it's too big, you'll mess up the formatting on this page. Something like 624 x 468 is more than sufficient.

So hurry up and show us those Disney pictures! :)

Zz.

 

[scott_alexsk]

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/4287/redfiretruck0kd.jpg

Yehh! [throws virtual confetti]. OK this picture is of the juloppy/fire truck my family got to ride in. Since my dad is in the miltary, they selected us to open the Magic Kingdom. We got to drive through the park completely empty, to go board the train. It was amazing to see it so empty.
-scott

 

[scott_alexsk]

http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/4543/redfiretruck26nx.jpg

OK here is another one. This one has me on the far right. (not the driver).
-Scott