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.

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Space Mountain landing in Magic Kingdom this Sunday
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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.

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Disney VoluntEARS serve Homeless for the Holidays (and all year round)
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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.)

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Disney’s Fastpass inspires solution to long Swine Flu Shot lines
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Haunted Mansion Action Figures! They’ve done something like this before, but these are more affordable.

This new Pirates Mickey Ears actually looks like a dead mouse skull if you ask me. Not exactly a Disney image.

If you like Disney’s new Vinylmation collectibles, then you’ll love these plush versions. I like the monorail one myself.

Even if you can’t make it to the parks, you can find some of the best Disney Themepark Merchandise available on the LaughingPlace.com Store.

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Highlights of New Merchandise at WDW
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Of course, this can make things interesting from time to time. From what I’ve seen the flight up is fine, but sometimes the landings can be a bit shakey. The video below wasn’t even the roughest landing I saw all day, but it’s still an e-ticket experience. Check out the passengers clapping at the end. Happy they all survived it sounds like.

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Characters in Flight – an E-Ticket Ride
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Singer & Arena Football team owner Jon Bon Jovi poses with Goofy Nov. 16, 2009 on the New York Street backlot set at Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park. Bon Jovi and his band, who have sold more than 120 million records in a career that spans 26 years, have just released their newest album, “The Circle.” The group will begin a world concert tour in early 2010. (Photo courtesy Disney. Gene Duncan, photographer)

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Goofy meets Jon Bon Jovi
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Fulton’s Crab House

Executive Chef Ron Cope has crafted a decedent Thanksgiving menu guaranteed to surpass even your wildest dreams of the perfect turkey-day feast. Guests will start their meal with either Butternut Squash soup (topped with cinnamon whipped cream) or a Baby mixed greens salad with candied pecans, roma tomato & Maple ginger vinaigrette. The Thanksgiving entrée goes classic with a Roasted Turkey Breast with sage stuffing, turkey gravy, homemade cranberry relish, whipped sweet potatoes, Yukon gold mash. As always, end on a sweet note with Homemade Pumpkin Pie! Kids also have the option to make their own sundae with vanilla ice cream, Oreo cookie crumbs, rainbow sprinkles, and chocolate sauce.

Fulton’s Crab House is located at located at 1670 Buena Vista Drive Lake in Downtown Disney. The Thanksgiving Day hours are 11:30 am- 11:00 pm. $29.95/person. Kids under 10 $12.95/person.

Portobello

This Thanksgiving at Portobello, Chef Steven Richard & Consulting Chef Tony Mantuano will serve a traditional three course dinner with a creative twist. Priced at $33.95 per person and $14.95 for children 10 and under, the first course offers options such as Caesar Salad or Sweet Potato Bisque. Enjoy an entrée of Roasted Turkey Breast with Rosemary Gravy, Pancetta and Apple Dressing, Haricot Verte, Whipped potato and cranberry relish. And of course, Thanksgiving dinner wouldn’t be complete without dessert so dig into Portobello’s delicious Pumpkin Bread Pudding.

Portobello is located at located at 1670 Buena Vista Drive Lake in Downtown Disney. The Thanksgiving Day hours are 11:30 am- 11:00 pm.

Wolfgang Puck Grand Cafe

Chef Sinclair Thorne & Consulting Chef Wolfgang Puck have created an immaculate Thanksgiving menu to be offered in their gorgeous upstairs dining room. Start with an Amuse Bouche of Duck Comfit (long island duck in puff pastry with toasted Hazelnuts and orange cranberries sorbet) before you move on to the first course with a choice of Seared Scallop (Creamy celery root puree and duo pepper puree) or Duck Napoleon Slow braised duck layered with herbed goat cheese, Crispy wontons and apple-raspberry chutney. The Second Course offers a choice of Lobster Bisque with crispy prosciutto and lime chive crème fraiche or Tomato Mozzarella Salad Butter lettuce, heirloom tomato, arugula, shaved parmesan cheese Buffalo mozzarella, balsamic reduction and basil aioli. Wolfgang Puck has created a tradition main course consisting of Oven Roasted Free Range Turkey (with mushroom duxelle, garlic mashed potato, turkey dressing baby vegetables Orange spice cranberry relish) and Braised Short Ribs (with Herb and goat cheese polenta and fall vegetables.) End on a sweet note with Pumpkin Crème Brule (Spiced pumpkin custard with caramelized sugar)

Wolfgang Puck Grand Cafe is located at located in Downtown Disney. The Thanksgiving Day hours are 11:30 am- 11:00 pm. $69.95/person. $16.95/person for children 12 and under.

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Make it a Downtown Disney Thanksgiving
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Today TouringPlans.com, the fine folks behind the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World, are launching a preview version of Lines, a mobile website for iPhone users that displays estimates of wait times for every attraction at Walt Disney World, in real time.

For the past 10 years they’ve been obsessively researching wait times at Walt Disney World, collecting and processing a massive amount of data along the way. Their products like Touring Plans and the Crowd Calendar help you efficiently tour the parks and avoid the crowds.

In Lines, it’s obvious they thought a lot about one’s experience while touring the parks: standing in Frontierland and want to know how long the line is at Space Mountain? Is Soarin’ really a ninety minute wait? Will there be FASTPASSes left at Toy Story Mania if we get there at noon?

Lines was built to solve these problems. There are many mobile applications doing wait times (Disney included), and accurate estimates are particularly challenging. TouringPlans has the unique dataset required to provide the most accurate estimates.

There is also a handy preview of what tomorrow will look like. I’d like to see this expanded in future editions.

To give it a test-drive, grab an iPhone our iPod Touch and navigate to http://m.touringplans.com (other mobile platforms are on the way). You’ll need a TouringPlans.com subscription (which is free) to use Lines during this preview.

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Unofficial Guide launches WDW Wait Times iPhone mobile website
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From Halloween to Christmas in a few minutes
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When asked about his leadership style he said:

Albert Einstein said, “Setting an example is not the main means of influencing another, it is the only means.” I really believe that. People don’t care what you say, they care what you do. Since our Cast is what makes our guest experience unique and they deliver the magic, I spend most of my time finding ways to support them in their roles and making sure they can be as successful as possible.

More at Blooloop.

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Interview with EPCOT VP Dan Cockerell
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Many a finger has been pointed in Rasulo’s direction when it comes to fans unhappiness with the theme park divisions direction. (Of course, some of those same fans are not so quick to give accolades when things go right.) He was often accused of not being interested in the parks to the point of avoiding any travel to them. The focus on DVC over regular resorts, the disasterous run (DCA, Paris Studios, Hong Kong Disneyland) of small theme parks with little themeing over immersive parks favored by the fans, and the general decline of the dining experience at the parks have all be laid at the feet of Rasulo’s policies. I’m not sure how fair any of that is.

As for Staggs, to be honest, I don’t know much about his views on Disney’s theme parks division. But I’ve found his handling of the corporate financial conferences to be masterful. To me this move is roughly the equivalent of Eisner putting Wells in charge of the theme parks, a move which I’m sure would have pleased many fans. So there is hope here.

Quotes from Bob Iger and Tom Staggs at the Orlando Sentinel.

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Jay Rasulo and Tom Staggs to flip roles
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Mr. Q had a large role in designing the ambient sound for Walt Disney World and solving one of the big problems encountered when moving from land to land… where does one soundtrack end and the other begin?

In the mid 1990’s, the park started researching the problem. It would eventually find no existing solution, so the engineers had to design and construct, on their own, one of the most complex and advanced audio systems ever built. The work paid off: today, as you walk through Disney World, the volume of the ambient music does not change. Ever. More than 15,000 speakers have been positioned using complex algorithms to ensure that the sound plays within a range of just a couple decibels throughout the entire park. It is quite a technical feat acoustically, electrically, and mathematically.

As we land, I ask Mr Q what he considers the highlight of his career. He describes how he wrote some software for “manufacturing emotion” with the thousands of new speakers in the park. The system he built can slowly change the style of the music across a distance without the visitor noticing. As a person walks from Tomorrowland to Fantasyland, for example, each of the hundreds of speakers slowly fades in different melodies at different frequencies so that at any point you can stop and enjoy a fully accurate piece of music, but by the time you walk 400 feet, the entire song has changed and no one has noticed.

More at How Mr. Q Manufactured Emotion.

(Via BoingBoing)

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Inventing Ambient Sound for Walt Disney World
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“We really appreciate Disney VoluntEARS coming out here to help as one large organization,” said John Porter, chairman of Keep Brevard Beautiful. “It makes a huge impact for our county and will make the beaches nicer for everyone.”

Joined by friends and family, Disney VoluntEARS from Walt Disney World Resort, Disney Cruise Line and Walt Disney Imagineering helped protect the environment and preserve the natural beauty of nearly four miles of beach near the Disney Cruise Line terminal in Port Canaveral. The majority of items picked up were cigarette butts, bottle caps and fishing line.

“Small objects – such as cigarette butts and fishing line – may look really insignificant, but they can be life-threatening to marine animals,” said Jackie Ogden, vice president of Animal Programs and Environmental Initiatives for Walt Disney Parks & Resorts. “Picking up trash on the beach is a simple action that people can take to really make a difference for wildlife and wild places.”

Coastal Cleanup participants are acting locally as part of a global mission to eliminate ocean debris, protect marine life and make the beaches more enjoyable for everyone. This year, the Ocean Conservancy estimates 500,000 volunteers – one million helping hands worldwide – will join in on the effort.

“Trash along our beaches and waterways threatens marine wildlife and undermines tourism and other economic activities,” said Dianne Sherman, director of the International Coastal Cleanup. “The Cleanup gives everyone a chance to be a part of an important global movement to end the tide of ocean trash.”

Disney’s involvement in the Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup spans six years; since 2003, more than 1,700 VoluntEARS have picked up more than 26,000 pounds of garbage at Florida Coastal Cleanup events.

The Walt Disney Company, through the Disney VoluntEARS program, provides opportunities for Cast Members to contribute their time and expertise toward positively impacting their communities. Disney VoluntEARS are active in Central Florida; in 2008, they gave more than 204,000 hours in service to the community ranging from serving meals to the homeless to coaching Little League.

Don’t forget that beginning January 1st you can register online with Disney to get a free days admission in exchange for a volunteer shift.

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Disney VoluntEARS join International Coastal Cleanup
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Small World Holiday Disney Parks Commercial
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If you’re coming to Walt Disney World this week you might want to call and see if the 2008 Hurricane Policy is still in force. But basically, just come prepared for rain with a couple ponchos and good water proof shoes or Keen like sandles you can wear without socks (my personal preference).

The best advice is to stay safe and follow any advisories Disney or your hotel might give out.

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Hurricane Watch for Walt Disney World
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Registering is easy. Just head to http://thedisneyblog.com/townsquare (or click the ‘forums’ button at the top of this page) and click where it says ‘register’ in the middle of the page. Or you can go right there by clicking here. Enter your information and a password will be sent to the email you provide. (You may need to check your spam folder to find the email.)

I created Townsquare because I think every community needs a place to mingle. In small town America the town square was a place for the community to gather and discuss the latest news, share rumors, and socialize. Walt Disney built a town square in each of his Magic Kingdoms that served much the same function.

Please be sure to read our Community Guidelines before posting. Then once you’re ready, post about anything Disney related (or use the Holidayland area for non-Disney topics). I hope you’ll find The Disney Blog’s Townsquare a great place to mingle and be a Disney fan and to meet other Disney fans.

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Introducing “Townsquare” – Forums for The Disney Blog
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One last little bit to share from the media event for Tiana’s Showboat Jubilee at the Magic Kingdom. I got the chance to meet and interview Tara Anderson, Show Director from Creative Entertainment at Walt Disney World Resort.

Her previous work at the Magic Kingdom includes the Move It! Shake It Celebrate It! Street Party – which shares a very similar energy to Tiana’s Showboat Jubilee. A good thing in my book.

In the three and a half minute interview we discuss coordinating development of the show on both coasts, the song choices, and more.

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Update: The Disneyland Version will officially open tomorrow. The LA Times has a preview.

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Interview with Tiana’s Showboat Jubilee Show Director
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I’ve put together a few clips from the show to give you an idea on what to expect.

The show is currently scheduled to run through January 3rd, 2010 as a tie-in to the movie’s launch on December 11th.

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Tiana’s Showboat Jubilee Video Clips
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It’s one of the realities of Disney Animated Features, they’re just plain expensive to produce. So much that sometimes even a $400 million box office earning film, like Cars, just breaks even for the company after marketing and production are accounted for. So how does Disney make money off these animated beauties? One word, merchandise.

That makes Dara Trujillo a very important person at Walt Disney World. She’s the Manager of Merchandise Synergy and is in charge of coordinating the theme park’s line of products with the animator’s vision for the film.

I got to speak with Trujillo at the premier of Tiana’s Showboat Jubilee, the Magic Kingdom’s tie-in to the launch of “The Princess and the Frog”. She was presiding over a very full and very beautiful table of merchandise to be sold in the parks. Much of it already available and flying off the shelves even with the film’s debut more than a month away.

Tiana is the Walt Disney Company’s newest princess in 12 years and the first princess under Trujillo’s watch. So she was excited about the possibility of making dreams come true for a whole new generation of theme park guests.

Central to those dreams is the Princess Tiana costume. It’s a theme park exclusive and very similar to the dress that Tiana wears in the film and the park. There were already a number of little princesses wearing this dress at the Magic Kingdom, anxious to spot the ‘real’ Princess Tiana as she made her way through the park. It was very cute.

Another item that I think will be a bit hit are the Kissing Frogs. These are a pair of frogs from the film representing Tiana and Naveen in amphibian form. A magnet in their heads keeps them together in the kissing pose.

All this merchandise is currently available in every park in at least two locations, said Trujillo. And they’ll roll out to more locations as the film’s premier draws closer.

See anything you like?

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Princess Tiana merchandise already a big hit
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At the premier of Walt Disney World’s newest show, Tiana’s Showboat Jubilee, I had the chance to speak with Bruce Smith, the Supervising Animator on Dr. Facilier, the Villain at the center of Walt Disney Animation’s next feature “The Princess and the Frog.”

Smith honed his craft at Cal Arts, a school created by Walt Disney to help provide his studio with a ready flow of animators to work on his projects. Smith’s first work with the Walt Disney Company was on “Who Framed Roger Rabbit.” He’s since done quite a lot of great work including Supervising Animator on Kerchak from “Tarzan”, Pacha from “The Emperor’s New Groove”, and Pearl from “Home on the Range.” He also was the creator and director of the Disney Channel show “The Proud Family” and the directing animator on Warner Brother’s “Space Jam” with Michael Jordan.

While “Home on the Range” was once thought to be the end of the Disney Studios hand drawn animation division, they even sold all the animator’s desks, the genre has been revived with an all star team of animators for “The Princess and The Frog.” In this roundtable interview Bruce Smith talks a bit about what it’s like to work on a team like that, creating Dr. Facilier, working with the theme parks, and much more.
Listen here:
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Or Download
Interview with Disney Supervising Animator Bruce Smith – Dr. Facilier from The Princess and The Frog

Your host with Bruce Smith.

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Interview with Bruce Smith, Supervising Animator on The Princess And The Frog
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