The Theme Building at Los Angeles International Airport is that iconic arched structure with the round observation deck and restaurant in the middle. I remember hearing that it was in need of some repairs, but I had now idea how extensive it would be. LA… Read More »LAX’s Theme Building Getting Some TLC
TSMM – Joe Ranft Tribute Originally uploaded by indigoskye I had been through the Disney’s Hollywood Studios version of the Toy Story Midway Mania! Fastpass queue at least a dozen times before I noticed this wonderful detail. Just before you enter the main queue room,… Read More »Joe Ranft Tribute in Toy Story Midway Mania
Toy Story Midway Mania is a new 4-D video game opening soon at Disneyland and Walt Disney World resorts. Guests ride through a series of Midway games, each with a different concept related to a Toy Story character, and use a unique ‘pull-string cannon’ to launch various projectiles at various targets and easter eggs in order to score points and be awarded a virtual prize.
What puts the Disney touch on this game is the great design of the queue and loading area and the amazing integration of 3-D and 4-D (real world) effects to raise the experience above something you could otherwise find at home in your living room. That and the addition of the characters from Pixar’s popular Toy Story series.
Read More »Toy Story Midway Mania: New 4-D Video Game from Disney/Pixar
Update: the photos below have been removed. There has been a rumor that Disney’s Imagineers whipped up a real life version of WALL-E, the star of the same named film from Pixar later this year. Well, it’s no rumor. Mr Fox was at the Walt… Read More »Real WALL-E to Greet Tourists at Theme Parks
Disney Imagineer Kim Irvine was just on KCRW’s design and architecture show. She talked about changes coming to “it’s a small world” and the fan uproar surrounding said changes. You’ll probably be able to find an archive or transcript of the show at the KCRW… Read More »Imagineer Kim Irvine talks about “it’s a small world” changes
Disney has fired another salvo in defense of the goofy changes coming to Walt Disney’s classic attraction “it’s a small world.” This time the weapon of choice is Disney Archivist Dave Smith. In an email sent to LaughingPlace.com* Dave Smith defends the changes arguing again… Read More »Disney fires another salvo in defense of “it’s a small world” changes
There were a lot of things I wanted to talk about tonight, but none of that is as important as you finding 70 minutes of time to watch this video or $14 to buy this book and learn a few important lessons about life and… Read More »Randy Pausch – The Last Lecture from a Disney Imagineer
Found this pair of videos of the Mr. Potato Head (voiced by Don Rickles) audio-animatronic at the entrance to “Toy Story Midway Mania” at California Adventure. This audio-animatronic is an example of two great Imagineering technologies merging to make some magic. Audio-animatronics harkens back to… Read More »Mr. Potato Head from Toy Story Mania – New Video