Press Release: Destination D: Attraction Rewind DATE CHANGE

Destination D: Attraction Rewind

DATE CHANGE

I posted a press release from February about an amazing event happening at Walt Disney World this summer. Shortly after the release, D23 announced a date change.

I attended the last Destination D that celebrated the 40th Anniversary of Walt Disney World and it was not to be missed. I have a feeling this one will be just as spectacular.

Are you planning on going?

Today D23: The Official Disney Fan Club announced the date of Destination D: Attraction Rewind presented by H2O plus at Walt Disney World Resort will shift to November 22 and 23. Check-in and exclusive shopping opportunities will begin on Friday, November 21.

In addition to this news, D23 is thrilled to announce Disney Legends Marty Sklar, Bob Gurr and other popular Disney Legends who worked on the Walt Disney shows for the New York World’s Fair will be taking part in the event this fall.

Additional ticketing information—including discounted hotel and park ticket rates for guests attending the event—will be posted later this spring on D23.com.

About Destination D: Attraction Rewind presented by H2O plus:

Walt Disney once said, “Disneyland will never be completed. It will continue to grow as long as there is imagination left in the world.” It’s in that spirit that guests this fall will have the opportunity to visit—or revisit—some of the most beloved Disney attractions and entertainment of yesteryear. Destination D: Attraction Rewind, November 22 and 23 at Walt Disney World Resort, will bring Disney archivists, Imagineers, Legends, and luminaries together to celebrate fan favorites such as Adventure Thru Inner Space, If You Had Wings, and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea with rarely seen concept art and images; vintage video clips; and revealing stories. In addition, several presentations will be dedicated to the 1964–65 New York World’s Fair, which spawned beloved attractions like it’s a small world and Carousel of Progress.

All D23 events, dates, and talent are subject to change.

Press Release: The Muppets Take Disney Club Penguin

Do you play Disney Club Penguin? My kids played it briefly before moving onto other sites and before they started playing MineCraft. Being a huge Muppet fan, I thought this was a great way to promote the film and bring the characters to a younger audience.

The Muppets Take Disney Club Penguin

The Muppets World Tour comes to Club Penguin Island March 20 through April 1

KELOWNA, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, March 20– The Muppets are taking over Disney Club Penguin, the #1 virtual world for kids, for a two-week event where members will be able to dress up like and perform with their some of their favorite Muppets to celebrate the all-new, big-screen adventure Muppets Most Wanted, in theaters March 21. In the movie, the entire Muppets gang takes off on a global tour, selling out grand theaters in some of Europe’s most exciting destinations, including Berlin, Madrid, Dublin and London. And now, penguin players can make their own international performance debuts alongside the Muppets in exotic locations like Paris, Mexico, India, and Germany. Club Penguin members will even get to dress up like the Muppets, including Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, The Great Gonzo, Swedish Chef and more.

Starting on March 20, players will embark on quests, traveling across the island to take the stage and perform alongside the Muppets. Players will have to master performances like singing a duet with Miss Piggy in Great Britain or throwing cream pies with Fozzie in Germany. Along the way, penguins will earn exclusive rewards for their quests. On March 28, penguins will unite for a Grand Finale performance at the Muppets Theater hosted by Kermit the Frog.

During the Muppets World Tour on Club Penguin:

• Members can leave the dressing room in style with exclusive character costumes including Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, and more.
• Members can fill their igloos with the Club Penguin Airliner, Air Pilot’s Seat, Check-in Terminal, Stage Curtain, and Grand Stage Arch to prepare for the Muppets World Tour.
• Members can collect exclusive items like a floral shirt, tourist camera and straw hat.
• With the one-of-a-kind Muppet Maker, members can create customized Muppet costumes for their penguins to wear on the island.

Catch the show at clubpenguin.com.

Press Release: Oh My Disney and Mondo Present "Nothing's Impossible" Gallery Celebrating Disney Films

Disney.com’s pop culture blog, Oh My Disney, partnered with Mondo, the collectible art division of Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, to unveil "Nothing's Impossible," a gallery event at this year's South by Southwest Festival that celebrated classic and contemporary Disney films with more than 30 original and fresh posters.

Oh My Disney brings classic and current Disney characters to life for digital audiences through humorous and heartfelt original artwork, stories, articles and videos. 

I chose just a few to share but you're welcome to follow the link and check out the rest of the posters. They are quite spectacular!

Which poster would you like to have on your wall?

Kristin Bell Weekly

So, we went ahead and changed our beloved Communicore Weekly to Kristin Bell Weekly. Make sure to check out the new theme songs and Kristin Bell references!

http://youtu.be/lgpicCTp_Uo

Direct Download: http://www.bamferproductions.com/communicore/0114-CommunicoreWeekly.mp3

We discuss the history of Frozen and look back the changes the film went through over the years.

• George's Book of the Week: Art of Frozen by Charles Solomon
• 60 Second Review: Frozen on Blu-ray

Very Important Post: Foxxfur and the Polynesian Village Resort

Hunting down the lost and forgotten parts of Walt Disney World history is a singular passion. Surprisingly, there are still some elusive areas, like the locations of certain shops and restaurants at the Contemporary, Polynesian and Golf resorts. I took an unofficial tour with a friend who worked at Walt Disney World in the 1970s and he was able to point out where all of the lounges and shops were.

I've taken several tours with Foxxfur from Passport to Dreams (which is incredible, by the way) but we always had questions about the layout of the Polynesian.

Foxxfur recently acquired an employee notebook from the Polynesian Village opening that had floor plans!

Check out her post and make sure to leave her a comment. Seriously, it might be one of the best posts of the year.

Want to start learning about Walt Disney world history? Check out Jeff Kurtti's great look at the first 25 years with Since the World Began.

The Last Standing Magic Kingdom Ticket Booth

From the beginnings of Disneyland, you had to purchase tickets in order to experience an attraction (some attractions were sponsored by corporations and were free, like Adventures Through Inner Space). The seminal term for an amazing experience, an E-Ticket, was coined based on the 1959 additions to Disneyland. When the Magic Kingdom opened in 1971, tickets were used as well. It wasn't until the late 1970s, when Disney experimented with a multi-day passport and eventually shuttered the ticket system when EPCOT Center opened. One of the reasons was that every attraction that debuted at EPCOT Center was considered an E-Ticket.

At the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, we're down to one free-standing ticket booth. The previous one was located outside of The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh but was removed when the tree from Pooh's Playful Spot was relocated to directly in front of the Pooh show building. The last ticket booth is currently being used as a Disney Vacation Club information kiosk. I have had a question about a remaining booth that was in or near the Yankee Trader. Any thoughts?

It's also used as a landing pad?

Fitting with the inter-galactic theme of Tomorrowland, Disney Vacation Club welcomes visitors to earth with a few choice images. Including one the local population being stabilized, apparently.

I'll end with a few random shots.

It looks like the door hasn't changed much over the years.

Check out my Mice Chat article on the differences between a 1975 Walt Disney World vacation (with ticket books) and a 2014 vacation.

How often have you walked past this piece of Magic Kingdom history?

 Looking for a great title on the first 25 years of Walt Disney world? Check out Jeff Kurtti's Since the World Began.

The Art of Disney Frozen by Charles Solomon

I just finished The Art of Frozen (Chronicle Books) by Charles Solomon. It truly was a gorgeous book that shed a lot of light onto the creation of Disney Frozen. If you're a fan of the film, then you need to pick up a copy of the book. A full review is coming to Communicore Weekly and Mice Chat.

Other books by Charles Solomon:

• Enchanted Drawings, The History of Animation by Charles Solomon
• The Art of Toy Story 3 by Charles Solomon
• Tale as Old as Time: The Art and Making of Beauty and the Beauty by Charles Solomon
• The Disney That Never Was: The Stories and Art of Five Decades of Unproduced Animation by Charles Solomon

Press Release: Clip: Frozen's "Love is an Open Door" Performed by Kristen Bell & Santino Fontana

Disney has released a teaser clip of Kristen Bell and Santino Fontana singing the incredible song, "Love is an Open Door." It's hard to imagine anyone that hasn't seen Frozen, yet, but our review is coming to Mice Chat and Communicore Weekly.


Love Is An Open Door by Kristen Bell and Santino Fontana from Frozen - Disney Movies Anywhere - Disney Video

World's Fair Books by Bill Cotter and Bill Young

I received three review copies from the Images of America series from Arcadia Publishing all focusing on the two New York World's Fairs. The authors are Bill Cotter and Bill Young. I'm in the process of on enjoying the books and can't wait t do a full review for Mice Chat and Communicore Weekly.

The 1939-1940 New York World's Fair

The 1964-1965 New York World's Fair

The 1964-1965 New York World's Fair: Creation and Legacy

These titles are particularly timely since it is the 50th anniversary of the 1965-1965 New York World's Fair. The Fairs were also very influential on the planning and design of Walt Disney World and Epcot Center. All three books are full of great photos and great history.

• Check out my review of the amazing audio collection: Walt Disney and the 1964 World's Fair.

Press Release: The Making of Frozen

Disney has released a bonus clip of one of the special features on the blu-ray of Frozen, called The Making of Frozen!

Go behind the scenes of Disney's Frozen with Josh Gad ('Olaf') and Jonathan Groff ('Kristoff')! These two have something to sing about in the bonus feature 'The Making of Frozen,' and we've got a sneak peek clip below!  

Disney's Frozen releases on Digital HD February 25th and Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD & On-Demand March 18th!

Making of Frozen - Frozen Behind the Scenes on Disney Video
I'm really excited about the blu-ray release of the film, especially after reading about the specials. And hearing these guys sing!

Blu-ray Features!

• The Making Of Frozen (Blu-ray, Digital)
• D’frosted: Disney’s Journey From Hans Christian Andersen to Frozen (Blu-ray, Digital)
• Breaking The Ice - The Real Making Of Frozen (Blu-ray, Digital)
• 4 Deleted Scenes with introduction by Directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee
• Original Theatrical Short - “Get A Horse” (Blu-ray, Digital & DVD)
• “Let It Go” Music Videos by Demi Lovato, Martina Stoessel & Marsha Milan Londoh (Blu-ray, Digital & DVD) • Frozen Teaser Trailer (Blu-ray, Digital & DVD)

Press Release: Theme Park Studios Coming Soon!

I've been a supporter of Pantera Game's Theme Park Studio since their initial Kickstarter Campaign. I've posted a few articles about their progress at Mice Chat:

• http://micechat.com/28769-theme-park-studios-kickstarter-update/
• http://micechat.com/20555-theme-park-studio-a-first-look/
• http://micechat.com/23027-theme-park-studios-update/
• http://micechat.com/26578-theme-park-studios-kickstarter/

I'm really excited about the game and Pantera Game Studio has announced an Early Access Launch Date!

Theme Park Studio is almost here!

Early Access Launch Date: February 27th, 2014.

Purchase and download Theme Park Studio: http://store.steampowered.com/app/254590/

THE WAIT IS ALMOST OVER! 
We are inviting theme park and roller coaster fans to take part in our “Early Access” development build that will be released on Steam February 27th, 2014.

If you have purchased Theme Park Studio via Kickstarter or our own crowd-funding, you should have received your Steam Key already!

This first release allows our community to get started designing their parks, creating custom assets, and importing/sharing custom scenery.

Most modules are 70 percent complete. Each will be released in phases, with additional modules unlocked as we polish and add new features requested by the community. 

Theme Park Studio has branched out way beyond its original design, as we listened to our customer base. We have held focus group meetings with Kickstarter backers, interacted with forum members, and truly set out to build the ultimate theme park sandbox game, shaped by the community.

Theme Park Studio is a powerful suite of tools that allow players to design, build, and experience stunning amusement parks of their own design. Players can build whatever they can imagine, and then share it online for others to experience.

When all phases are released, Theme Park Studio will feature:

• Custom coaster creation. Players can bend, pull, and stretch coasters into any design they wish. Prefabricated templates are provided as helpers, if desired.
•  Custom Flat Rides. Design your own flat ride from the ground up, or select from our pre-built ride library.

• Park guests: After opening your park, watch park guests (peeps) tour your theme park and hop on your coasters and flat rides.
• Mesh importing: Build your own environmental objects and import them for maximum customization.

• Particle effects, including fire, smoke, fountains, fireworks, and weather effects. Our particle effects module is very versatile, allowing the player to create a wide range of effects. Particles can have triggers for setting up shows or like coasters splashing through water.
• Landscaping: Import your own height maps and textures to create stunning landscapes, or custom sculpt one of your own design. 

• Water: Control water parameters like speed, level, color, and ripple size.
• Vegetation: Our engine features an advanced vegetation solution. Our proprietary technology allows players to build everything from grass to elaborate oaks. Trees are procedurally generated and can be controlled by custom wind and turbulence settings. This technology has been integrated into Theme Park Studio.

• Oculus Rift Support: Due to overwhelming requests for this support, we are proud to announce this cutting edge technology will be included in all versions of Theme Park Studio.

New trailer video: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuSix4ySxrU

Are you excited about this new release? Did you support their Kickstarter?

A Hidden Disney Detail: MuppetVision

It's obvious that the Muppets were allowed to decorate their area of Disney's Hollywood Studios. If you've ever walked around the attraction building (close to the Stage One Company Store), then you know that the Muppets had a great time paining and decorating the building. I ran across this great little detail on a recent trip.

Obviously, the Muppets converted a planter into a giant sundae with a cherry on top!

Do you have a favorite hidden detail from the Muppets?