A very cool behind the scenes peek at the new Hitchhiking Ghosts of Disney’s Haunted Mansion.

From the Disney Parks Blog:

The Disney Parks Broadcast Production used a miniature camera so that you can now see what it would be like to ride the train in Germany’s miniature garden railroad.

On Monday the Disney Channel introduced Disney Junior, the replacement for the retiring preschool-oriented “Playhouse Disney”. It’s a new name and direction for it’s preschool oriented programming, one that is now focused on social values and not so much on teaching basic academics.

Interesting article from the LA Times.

You’ll recognize the style if you grew up in the 70s or watch classic movies.

Tron vs. Saul Bass from Hexagonall on Vimeo.

Found at The Disney Blog.

From the Disney Parks Blog:

Walt Disney Parks and Resorts has officially broken ground for what will be the largest expansion in the history of Magic Kingdom Theme Park – Fantasyland.
Just look at the images from the 1/4 inch dimensional model… it’ll be remarkable when completed. There will be four Disney classic-inspired areas or neighborhoods to explore. And one of the most unique offerings in those neighborhoods will be new interactive Storybook adventures with your favorite Disney princesses.

Behind the breakthrough magic of Walt Disney’s first animated feature, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and his other 30s and 40s classics—Pinocchio, Fantasia, Bambi—toiled as many as 100 young women, the inkers and painters, working from dawn to dusk on thousands of cels that brought his dreams to life. The author recaptures their white-gloved esprit de corps, and a golden age of Disney that would be disrupted by strike, World War II, and, eventually, the Xerox machine.

Read the full Vanity Fair Article here.

From the Disney Parks Blog.

John Lasseter, chief creative officer for Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios, added, “I first met Roy when I was still an animation student at CalArts. Not only did I consider him a personal friend, but he was a great man who believed deeply in the art of animation. He put his heart and soul into preserving Disney’s legendary past, while helping to move the art of animation into the modern age by embracing new technology. Roy was a visionary and passionate supporter of the art form, and he was all about quality. I was always impressed that he would make time for someone like me when I was fresh out of college, and he continued to support and encourage me throughout my career.”

From the Disney Parks Blog.

43 years ago today Walt Disney died of lung cancer, sadly it was a few years prior to the opening of his Walt Disney World Resort dream project in Florida.

(Left to right:) Robert Sherman, Richard Sherman, and Walt Disney sing “There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow” in a film made for General Electric, sponsor of the Carousel of Progress attraction (for which the song was written) at the 1964 New York World’s Fair and later at Disneyland.
Screen capture from Walt Disney Treasures Tomorrow Land DVD set.

“Walt Disney was the eternal optimist, and he really believed that things could be better. And Bob and Dick Sherman wrote that song as a personal ode to Walt. They really meant it…. That was Walt’s anthem, and they recognized that.”
– Marty Sklar

Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Did you know …

• That – as the film’s title sequence is getting underway while Dr. John is singing “Down in New Orleans” – you can clearly see the carpet from “Aladdin” being shaken out by someone who’s standing on a wrought-iron balcony.
• That – as Mama Odie is quickly digging through a pile of magical objects during “Dig a Little Deeper” – the lamp from “Aladdin” gets tossed to one side.
• That – during this movie’s Mardi Gras sequence – one of the floats in that parade features a figurehead that is clearly modeled after King Triton from “The Little Mermaid.”

Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved