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Roundtable
Contributors: Princess Fee (DF’82),
Estelle Hallick (This Happy Place), Alan Mize, Blake Taylor (BlakeOnline.com),
Andrew (Disney
Hipsters Blog), and yours truly.
Andrew (Disney Hipsters Blog)
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I'm not that excited
about the new Oz movie. Like, at all.
Sure, I loved the 2010 Alice In Wonderland and Disney is blatantly
trying to capitalize on the charm of that film. But something about the
pushiness of their formulaic marketing has been a turn off for me.
One bright spot, in the otherwise dull campaign, is the launch of a
promotional hot air balloon touring the country leading up to the release of
the film. Not only is a giant ballon a
rare sight (for most people anyway...especially considering it will be in
Central Park at one point) but it also ties into the movie brilliantly! The
balloons first stop is the premiere at the El Capitan Theatre, followed by
Disneyland, before making its way out west.
Blake Taylor (BlakeOnline.com)
Disney is keeping quiet about a gem released on YouTube this week: the
first full-blown trailer for Pixar's Monsters University. The film, releasing
June 21, will tell of Mike and Sulley's college days, long before they were the
most dynamic scaring duo Monsters, Inc. had ever seen. The trailer debuted on
Walt Disney Studios' UK YouTube account, and as such hasn't had any buzz from
official Disney social media based in the US. It's unknown whether a completely
different American trailer is on the way, if the UK trailer will remain basically
the same for its US push, or even why American Disney sources are staying mum
about it.
We haven't heard anything out of Monsters University since the teaser
dropped back in June, so this new trailer is a welcome treat. I, for one, can't
wait to enroll.
Princess Fee (DF’82)
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As Disneyland Paris is my ‘home’ park
nowadays, I thought I would report with some of the latest news from the
beautiful European theme parks. Parc Disneyland is currently celebrating its
20th Anniversary (now extended until 30th September 2013), and as part of the
celebration the beautiful Castle show Disney Dreams! was introduced. It has
just been announced that there are going to be two additional scenes to the
existing Disney Dreams! show: The Lion King and Brave. I, of course, am very
excited for this addition of Brave! Although there are rumours that the parts
that will be replaced is Mary Poppins (currently ‘Step in Time’) and Jungle
Book (‘I Wan’na Be Like You’). If you are visiting Paris before the end of
March 2013, however, you should still be
able to see these existing segments, before the new Simba and Merida parts are
added.
Alan Mize
If you've been a Walt Disney World fan for any length of time, you've
probably heard your fair share of monorail rumors. They're getting new trains.
They're going to expand the line to include every deluxe resort. They're going
to expand the line to include every resort and Downtown Disney. While I admit
that it would be extremely awesome for those things to happen, it's pretty
unlikely that those things will happen. However, the newest rumor that I've
heard is a lot more plausible.
There are rumors that the WDW monorail system will get a $75 million
overhaul over the next two years. The main part of this overhaul will include
making all of the trains fully automated. There will still be
"pilots" on board the trains, but they will act more as attendants to
monitor the functions of the train as opposed to actually piloting the trains.
In addition to that, the control of the trains will now belong to operators
inside the station as opposed to the pilots. These operators will decide when
to close the doors and when to launch the trains. Perhaps the most interesting
detail of the rumors is that each one of the lines will reverse course. The
express loop will now travel clockwise moving from the TTC past the Polynesian
and the Grand Floridian resorts before unloading at the Magic Kingdom. The
resort loop will travel counter clockwise moving from the Magic Kingdom to the
Grand Floridian, the Polynesian, the TTC, and the Contemporary. Lastly, the
Epcot loop will now also travel counter clockwise which means instead of
traveling through the park before arriving at Epcot, you'll travel through the
park on your way out of Epcot. All of this is being done with safety in mind.
By switching the direction of the trains, all track switches will happen with
the trains traveling forward as opposed to backward, which was a contributing
factor to the tragic monorail accident in 2009.
As with any rumor regarding Walt Disney World, and especially the
monorails, take this information with a grain of salt. Having said that, if
this overhaul actually happens and it not only increases the safety for guests
and cast members in addition to providing the WDW monorails with some much
needed TLC, then I'm all for it.
Estelle Hallick (This
Happy Place)
All aboard! This week, Disney Cruise Line
announced its itineraries for 2014 including a new stop in Venice, Italy for
European cruises, and (most exciting to me!) stops in San Juan, Puerto Rico for
the first time ever! Guys, I also really want to go to Antigua, St. Lucia,
Grenada, Barbados and St. Kitts. (This is what I get for visiting an airport
this weekend.)
I love that the Disney Cruise itineraries
are always expanding (sadly with a price that is forever increasing too), even
if I was hoping for another announcement that one of the beautiful ships was
taking the journey back to New York. Oh well, there’s always 2015. Or I could
write a super adorable complaint letter like this young child did when it came
to his cruisin’ experience.
Ryan P. Wilson (Main
Street Gazette)
This bit of news didn’t make any
headlines, but there were those out there who noticed that Robert Sherman was
not part of the In Memoriam section at last week’s Grammy Awards. Robert and
his brother Richard, collectively known as the Sherman Brothers, crafted the
music that would become the soundtrack to generations of children. Many of
these were tracks laid down for Disney animated films, live action features,
and park experiences, but their reach was, and continues to be, far beyond just
the Disney canon. Included amongst his individual and collaborative awards, of
which there are far too many to list, are a Grammy Award (1965 Best Original
Score for a Motion Picture – Mary Poppins) and two other nominations (1972 Best
Original Score for a Children’s Show – Snoopy Come Home and 1974 Best Original
Score for a Musical Show – Over Here!).
With a musical legacy more than a mile
long, Robert Sherman is not a name that should have been forgotten by an
organization that once bestowed one of their prestigious awards upon him. It
may seem a bit morbid to wish to see someone included in an In Memoriam segment
of an awards show, but with his passing, it is only fitting that his lifelong
passion and achievements be included amongst the other legends of the music
industry and it is disgraceful that such a luminary was forgotten. There may
not be any way for the Grammy Awards to make amends at this point in time, save
a public apology, but I hope that they take a look at their review process for
such portions of their awards show to stem the likelihood of further slights in
future programs.
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