Disney News and Information — by fans, for fans

The Walt Disney Family Museum recently asked veteran filmmaker Don Hahn to create a film that would celebrate the holidays through the lens of Walt Disney. Under the direction of Diane Disney Miller, her husband Ron, and executive director Richard Benefield, the genesis of this idea became Christmas with Walt Disney, an enchanting fifty-one minute film filled with the joy and merriment of the holidays as well as some unique looks into the Disney family’s holiday traditions.

Mr. Hahn, whose credits include The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast, was tapped to produce this film that will now become an annual event for The Walt Disney Family Museum to stage and entertain their guests each year during the holidays.

Christmas with Walt Disney is full of surprises including scenes from the television specials and vintage commercials from early Disney sponsors such as Kodak and Coca Cola. The studio Dixieland band, Firehouse Five plus Two makes a spirited appearance, as do clips from dozens of Disney’s films including Swiss Family Robinson, Lady and the Tramp, Fantasia and a clip from The Happiest Millionaire featuring Fred McMurray and Greer Garson singing “It Won’t be Long ‘til Christmas”— a very rare clip since this song was cut out of the picture.

“During our first screening of some selected clips to Ron and Diane, we showed clips of Walt skiing and ice skating with Lillian (Walt Disney’s wife), intercut with clips of Mickey and Goofy on ice,” said executive producer Craig Murray. “The quick cuts from Walt to Goofy did the trick and showed how much this man’s life became his art.”

Sounds like the beginning of a great tradition for Disney fans.

What: Christmas with Walt Disney
Where: The Walt Disney Family Museum Theater, 104 Montgomery Street, The Presidio of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94129
When: November 27, 2009 – January 4, 2010 (except Tuesdays, December 25 and January 1)
Show Times: 10:30am, 12:00pm, 1:30pm, 3:30pm, 5:00pm and 6:30pm
Tickets: $4-$10; check Website for details

The accurately named CoolHunting blog has an interview with Ron Magliozzi, curator of the Tim Burton Retrospective at NYC’s MoMA.

Faced with the responsibility of being the first Museum to present so much previously unseen work from an artist as popular as Tim Burton, who luckily has saved much of what he’s done creatively since adolescence, we felt our first job was to provide some chronological and narrative structure to its exhibition.

We’ve attempted to accomplish this by organizing material under “Surviving Burbank” covering the years of Tim’s upbringing in Burbank, CA; “Beautifying Burbank” on his years as a student at CalArts and an apprentice animator and concept artist with the Walt Disney Company, including his early collaborations with sculptor and artist Rick Heinrichs, animator Joe Ranft and effects artist Stephen Chiodo; to “Beyond Burbank” for the years since his first feature, “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” (1985), to the present, when he’s called on a number of successful collaborators—costume designer Colleen Atwood, special effect make-up artist Stan Winston, character designers The Carlos Grangel Studio, puppet fabricators Mackinnon and Saunders and composer Danny Elfman—to bring his vision to the screen.

More of the interview here.

This Sunday marks the official reopening of Space Mountain at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. Technically, it’s currently in soft open; which means it might experience some down time. (Heck, it might even experience downtime after Sunday).

While not exactly the major overhaul that many thought Space Mountain deserved, this rehab has brought some fairly significant changes to the attraction. Okay, it’s mostly a fresh coat of paint, some new projections, and some queue enhancements. But hey, it’s open again.

To celebrate I’m calling mini-meet, or Tweetup if you’re reading this from twitter, to experience it together. Let’s get together at 11:00 AM on Sunday in front of Space Mountain by the round planter. We’ll go once through the standby queue and once through fastpass, so come early and pick up your fastpass.

In a ‘choose your own villain adventure’ the dispute between Disneyland and the unionized hotel and restaurant works of UNITE HERE has now stumbled into dangerous territory where the health of guests is at risk. It’s not that they’re operating dangerous equipment or attractions, but without any paid sick days cast members are coming into work sick, sometimes with flu like symptoms, and interacting with food and guests.

There appears to be no easy solution to this matter as neither side has budged in the negotiations in 2 years and 92% of the union members voting to reject Disney’s latest offer. One of the big reasons for that rejection is Disney’s new health plan that could cost these employees 4 to 5 times as much as they’re currently paying. Still, almost every other union Disney negotiates with has entered into that new health contract. So you can see where Disney thinks they got things right.

Having employees who interact with the public forced to come into work sick is not good PR anyway you look at it. Nor is it good national health policy. In fact, there is a bill in congress to mandate paid sick days for workers right now.

More at the OC Register.

It’s the time of year to be thankful and to give of your heart. The spirit of giving shines 365 days a year at Walt Disney World Resort, which provides cash and in-kind support to more than 100 local non-profit organizations. One such organization, Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida, provides food and shelter to approximately 600 people each night, including many families with children.

Coalition for the Homeless is more than a shelter; it is a comprehensive program designed to empower homeless men, women and children to become self-sufficient. In addition to food and shelter, the Coalition provides programs and services including education, job skills training, case management, licensed day care, child development programs and housing placement.

“When you see homelessness in the media, you are moved to humility and compassion but when you see homelessness in person, you are moved to action,” says Trevor Larsen, vice president of Engineering Services & Manufacturing for Walt Disney Parks & Resorts, who is making a difference at the Coalition by providing leadership through his board service and support in the maintenance and improvement of Coalition facilities. “There are plenty of ways people can help,” says Larsen, who invites others to “come meet these adults and children in need and get involved.”

Additionally, Disney VoluntEARS serve nearly 750 meals monthly at the Coalition and chefs from Disney Resorts will prepare and serve dinner for residents on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. Disney Chef Tony Marotta is overseeing Thanksgiving meal preparations, which begin two days prior to the holiday. “What surprises me most is when we ask our team for volunteers to help at the Coalition, we always get two-to-three times more than we expect,” says Marotta, who will be making a traditional feast to feed approximately 700 people.

“Disney’s generosity, both financial and in-kind, has been invaluable to us in meeting the needs of the homeless individuals and families seeking our help,” says Coalition for the Homeless President/CEO Brent Trotter. “And the volunteer involvement of Disney Cast Members really extends our reach in helping those in desperate need.”

For the past two years, Walt Disney World Resort has recognized Coalition for the Homeless with its top Disney’s Helping Kids Shine Grant – the Bob Allen Outstanding Community Service Award – for its outstanding outreach efforts to the homeless children of Central Florida. Disney provides funding to the non-profit’s children services program, which aims to instill values such as trust, honesty, integrity, responsibility, personal power and self-esteem.

“It’s humbling and a great honor to be recognized for our work with families,” says Trotter. “Families with children are the fastest growing segment of the homeless population in Central Florida today. We’ve created a wide variety of services to meet the unique needs of the growing number of children who the Coalition serves and are happy to have the support of Disney in our mission.”

To learn more about how you can help, visit www.centralfloridahomeless.org.

It’s not often that fans of a particular artist get a chance to give back to that artist. But today us Disney fans get that chance. If you ever got a chuckle from a classic Chip & Dale cartoon or were wowed by a Disneyland audio-animatronic then you’ve experienced the magic of celebrated Disney Legend and Animator Bill Justice.

Justice is getting ready to celebrate his 96th Birthday, but he’s been in a rehabilitation home for the last few years and not receiving many visitors.

Here’s a note sent to me from a source I trust on how you can make a difference.

We need your help flooding Disney Legend Bill Justice with cards and letters. He has been residing in a convalescent home the past few years.

For those of you unfamiliar with his name, Bill Justice is best known for his work as an animator of Chip & Dale, and directed several cartoons including “What’s the Truth About Mother Goose?” He also programmed the Country Bear Jamboree, Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion. He was very active at fan events such as Disneyana Conventions and NFFC events in the 80’s and 90’s.

We’ve been asked to share an address where cards and letters can be sent. Please help us show him that we still remember him and appreciate what he has given us as fans. Perhaps send him a picture that you took with him or just a simple card. You can send the cards and notes to:

Bill Justice
Arbor View Wellness & Rehabilitation Center
1338 20th Street
Santa Monica, CA 90404

Thanks for helping out. Let’s show Bill how much we appreciate the joy and fun he has brought into the world.

Now we’re getting somewhere! This episode felt like it was moving much more quickly, even though the action covered barely more than a single day. It was thoroughly enjoyable, full of surprising twists and reveals. We still don’t know what the Visitors are up to, but they’re scary smart when it comes to manipulation.

We start with a “previously on V”, where we get to relive – again – Erica bashing Dale and discovering his reptilian reality. It’s a little soon to tell if the scenes selected for “previously…” are indicating the theme or focus of the episode to come the way they do on Lost.

“Previously…” segues right into the current episode…it’s Anna against a white screen and she’s getting her picture taken for her nifty new traveling visa. Chad’s voiceover tells us it’s a Bright New Day, as we see several other Visitors smile for the camera, then Anna waves her ticket to freedom for the cameras. As Anna ascends, angel-like, inside the Peace Ambassador Centre, Chad’s assistant tells him, “You made this happen.” Chad agrees, but appears to struggle with whether or not this is, in fact, a good thing.

Meanwhile, Father Jack hears confession from humans who are struggling with the ramifications of this alien invasion. They give voice to his own inner turmoil. In spite of the Bright New Day, people are confused and scared – lost.

Then we zip over to Erica’s house; our favorite FBI agent has gotten her groove back. Gone is the shaken and uncertain woman of last week. She’s filing, sorting, hectoring Tyler about staying out of the city’s chaos. She’s disgusted with her government’s malleability: “It’s like 9-11 never happened!” But a knock at the door interrupts. Father Jack has come calling.

Erica and FJ speculate on the V’s motives. The Visitors need us for something, Erica foreshadows. Meanwhile, FJ can take over the filing while duty calls for Erica – there have been death threats against the V’s, and Erica recognizes the importance of humans not being seen as the bad guys.

Ryan’s also nervous about this Bright New Day, warning Val about being careful now that the V’s can travel freely. Val reassures him that it’s normal for people to fear change and then teases him about keeping secrets from her.I wonder if Ryan intentionally sought out a girlfriend who was a psychotherapist to get an education about the human psyche. But Ryan’s got an agenda today. He meets with a very scared Georgie and tells him about the mythical John May, former leader of the Fifth Column and the very first group to betray their leader. Georgie declines accompanying him to see Cyrus. Georgie’s carrying some deep scars, and after the tragedy at the warehouse he’s reluctant to join forces.

Back to the Mother Ship, where Anna’s creepy sidekick Marcus (played by Christopher Shyer) gets an update on Dale’s condition from Joshua, a Visitor doctor whose uniform of flowy white invokes an image of New Age healer. Dale comes to as Joshua watches. “You’re a hero,” Joshua tells the amnesia-stricken Dale. Turns out Dale’s survival can be credited to the fact that his heart’s in the wrong place – haha. Where IS his heart? That’s something our resistance fighters may have to learn as they battle the V’s in the future.

The FBI has arrived at the Peace Ambassador Centre. There are the dots and dashes symbols that indicate the V’s have a language of their very own. It’s a dash of nostalgia for original fans. Erica is teamed – reluctantly – with a Visitor agent, and assigned to find the baddie who’s issuing death threats. Erica requests a tour of the V’s surveillance room, and is surprised at its simplicity. “It was like this when we got here,” her V partner tells her. Three weeks on Earth, and he’s already mastered blaming the US government. Erica glimpses a V entering the real surveillance room, and you just know she’s getting in there eventually.

Ryan finds Cyrus, who seems surprised to see him. “29 guesses why I’m here,” says Ryan. In case anyone forgot the significance of 29, the camera cuts back to the Mother Ship, where Anna’s issuing orders to the captains of all 29 Mother Ships. She lectures them on the impact of popular opinion among humans and encourages them to monitor and shape it when they can. In a new and improved version of beam-me-up, the holographic captains vanish one by one.

The protest movement has a figurehead, Mary Faulkner, whose F16 pilot husband was killed during The Arrival. We learn that 642 others died that day, and Mary’s determined to avenge them all by encouraging everyone to hate on the V’s. Anna is really worried about Mary Faulkner and explains to Marcus that hatred is contagious – they’ll have to make an example of Mary so she doesn’t infect others.

Left with the FBI weirdo list, FJ finds Georgie and heads off to his last known address. FJ is clearly new at keeping a low profile – the name of his church is printed on the side of his car. Inside the house, he finds newspaper clippings about Georgie’s murdered family. A woman – a neighbor? – tells FJ that Georgie went off the deep end after the murders. Choosing not to remain anonymous, FJ leaves his calling card.

Ryan’s told Cyrus what he’s after, but Cyrus isn’t going to play ball. Pulling a gun, Cyrus presses an alarm button and tells Ryan the V’s are coming. Turns out, they’ve promised Cyrus they’ll “reconnect” him if he turns in enough Fifth Column. “They’ll skin you alive,” insists Ryan. And what, turn him into a nice pair of boots? But Cyrus is crazed – he misses “the bliss” that Anna can provide. What’s this mysterious “bliss” going to turn out to be? A drug, or perhaps a mind-altering operation? We’re not given more than that. But it must be pretty special and powerful since Cyrus seems to think the end justifies the means. Ryan, however, is not interested in bliss – he tackles Cyrus and disarms him. When the V’s arrive, they find Cyrus and Ryan gone and a message spray-painted on the wall: John May Lives.

Erica and her current partner have their suspect in sight and the chase is on. The sound mixing on both broadcasts I watched was off or something for the next two scenes, so the dialogue was meaningless – it’s a testament to the makers of V that the gist of things was conveyed effectively anyway. The shooter pulls his gun and Erica wrestles him to the ground in five seconds flat, saving Marcus’ life. The V’s lead the suspect away; they’ll do the questioning. Erica’s not happy about it, but doesn’t argue.

Marcus thanks Erica for saving his life. “Blame instinct and training,” she says, then smiles to reassure him she’s joking. But Marcus is wary – better keep his eye on this lady!

Now that V security is occupied, Erica sneaks into the REAL surveillance room, where hundreds of live images are being projected from all over the city. By touching them, Erica can zoom in and hear what’s happening. Our clever girl sees herself in one of the images, and moves around the room until she finds the source of the camera. It’s the patch on the V jacket.

Tyler hooks up with Lisa, who has forgiven him – of course, he’s back on the approved list again. The two head to Tyler’s place, where they begin a passionate embrace, only to be interrupted by Erica’s arrival. Tyler strips off his uniform and heads off Erica in the hall. It must suck to be a cop’s kid – Erica sees right through him and barges into his room. There’s Lisa, sans uniform, and for the first time this episode, we see Erica flummoxed. How embarrassing! Erica, of course, has no idea that Lisa is a V.

Joshua is walking Dale through an environment constructed from the memories they found in his brain. It’s the FBI offices. With Joshua’s prodding, Dale recalls living among the humans as a sleeper V: It was smelly, crowded and disgusting. Dale recalls that he was not the only V at the bureau, confirming our suspicions that there are more we’ve yet to meet. Finally, Dale remembers it was Erica that cracked him open and vows to kill her.

But not so fast! Joshua remarks that Erica will make a wonderful ally, as a surprised Dale experiences the illusion falling to pieces around him. “The Fifth Column says hello,” Joshua tells him as he plunges a needle into Dale’s arm, presumably killing him. Yay! for more Fifth Column, but fans were already upset at the thought that Alan Tudyk might not return. Is this the first will-he-or-won’t-he-be-back cliffhanger of the fall season?

Georgie finds FJ and the two empathize with each other, while FJ encourages him to help mount the resistance. Georgie’s still not sure – he’s been there and done that, and “they crush us every time.” Georgie’s obviously a tortured soul; I hope we’re going to get more backstory.

Anna rehearses her sympathy speech for Widow Mary; what a great scene for Morena Baccarin! She plays it with such a serious earnestness it’s almost comical. Anna even manages a tear, just in time to meet the Widow and convince her that hope and trust are the keys to healing. Mary says as much to the protesters gathered outside, while the world and the media watch. It’s a feel-good speech, almost a standard for politicians or anyone encouraging tolerance and understanding: what we share is far greater, yada yada. Anna follows up with assurances that the V’s will not seek revenge for the assassination attempt.

Chad, of course, will get the exclusive interview with Widow Mary. We haven’t seen much of Chad this week, other than commentary about events taking place. I hope he gets a little more screen time before the end of this fall block – it’s been hard to get a read on the character. I’d like to think there’s some depth there. As Chad reports on the events of the day being a PR coup for the V’s, we see Anna thank the assassin – she staged the whole thing! I wonder if Marcus knows it?

Our shaky resistance meets – Georgie, Erica, FJ and Ryan. Such a small group and such a monumental task before them!

The final scene has one more reveal coming – Lisa is Anna’s daughter! Nice to see the V’s don’t eat their young. “Tyler’s the one,” Lisa tells her, leaving us wondering just what’s in store for the Evans family in the future.

Next week’s teaser – the fall finale – makes that episode look as action-packed as this one. Without spoiling too much, it appears as though the writers were very intuitive; the plot could play on the real-life borderline hysteria over the flu vaccine controversies. Now they’re going to have to leave viewers with the perfect combination of enough information to care about what happens next and enough questions unanswered that we have a reason to tune in next March. Feel free to add your theories and thoughts in the comments.

It’s A Small World After All Disclaimer: I discovered last week that Executive Producer and Writer Scott Peters went to university with my brother-in-law – Comm. Studies, which happens to be what my own daughter is currently studying at the same university. Nice to see a local boy done good!

When not leading the Resistance, Shelley blogs at Once I Was A Writer

Quebec’s citizens looking to get a flu shot for the H1N1 Virus have a health official’s trip to Walt Disney World to thank for their short wait to get vaccinated. Inspired by the Fastpass system that saves guests a virtual place in the queue for attractions like Peter Pan and Space Mountain, a coupon tells each patient when to return for their flu shot.

Lines are still forming at some vaccination centres, where people are queuing up early just to get their coupons. But officials say the system has been effective. At one vaccination centre in Montreal’s Plateau Mont Royal district recently, nurses and health workers outnumbered people in line.

“The system is marvellous,” said Johanne Spencer, who’d whisked through her vaccination. “You know what time you’re going to have your turn and you know how long you’ll have to wait. You don’t waste three, four hours in line.”

I’m pretty sure Disney won’t be promoting this as they don’t want the parks identified with Swine Flu at the moment.

More here (Hat Tip to BoingBoing’s Cory D.)