Last week, the Disney fan community exploded when Disney placed temporary tarps and projections of ghosts Phineas, Ezra, and Gus in the hitchhiking ghost scene of the Haunted Mansion at the Magic Kingdom without any announcement. Rumors have indicated that new, interactive elements are coming to the Haunted Mansion, both in the queue and on the ride. We may have a clue to what’s happening inside:
If you look very closely at the Fall 2010 issues of Disney’s Twenty-three magazine, you would see this piece of concept art fairly hidden in the article on Walt Disney Imagineering. The artwork shows two guests being frightened by all three of the ghosts in what has to be projection form. If this artwork is any indication, when work on the scene is complete, guest’s reflections will have the ghosts floating around them both inside and outside of the vehicle.
Stay tuned to WDW News Today as more information on these changes to the Haunted Mansion become available.
Here is a look at the back of the 9″ Park 5 Sorcerer Mickey Vinylmation:
Fantasmic! first appeared in Disneyland in 1992, Disney’s Hollywood (then MGM) Studios in 1998 and is set to premier at Tokyo Disney later this Spring. The show is a little different at both parks and has a runtime of 22-26 minutes. I also just found out that EACH SHOW costs between $25,000-$30,000 a night!
Do you enjoy Fantasmic! (the attraction or the Vinylmation)
WDWNT’s own Cody Smith recently attended the “Love is Magical” pin event at Walt Disney World. How does this apply to Star Tours? Well, there was a pin preview board at the event, and Disney was showcasing some of the pins that will be released when Star Tours re-opens at Disney’s Hollywood Studios on May 20th and Disneyland Park June 3rd:
Now, the photo is not of the best quality, but we believe it reveals destinations guests will be traveling to in “Star Tours: The Adventures Continue”, and maybe even what will happen when they get there. The two announced locations of Coruscant and Tatooine are represented. The Tatooine poster pin even shows the Starspeeder 1000 getting stuck in a podrace, a scenario that has already been revealed. With this in mind, we believe the other 6 pins reveal more destinations and events that guests may experience randomly.
Let’s examine the posters in order from left to right:
On Geonosis (a setting from Episode II), guests may be chased by Boba Fett and the Slave I vehicle.
The second pin features Darth Vader and the Death Star, so we may be running into some friends from the Empire once again.
Coruscant is the third poster, an already revealed location.
Kashyyyk is the 4th poster, the home of Chewbacca. Since we noticed concept art that looked like this planet behind George Lucas in a Disney-released publicity shot from many months ago and were then told we will see Chewbacca along the way, this location is really no surprise. However, the poster clearly states that we will visit Treetop Villas, perhaps an inside joke about Disney’s Treehouse Villas?
Hoth is the fifth planet poster. This snowy planet from Episode V has a poster featuring a Tauntauns and what we believe is a Wampa (the snow-monster that attacks Luke Skywalker).
Tatooine is the sixth planet poster. The already revealed scenario where guests get stuck in the middle of a podrace is featured here, including famous racer Sebulba from Episode I.
The seventh poster pin features Bespin, the cloud city from Episode V. You may remember Bespin was featured in the queue-area commercial Disney previewed last summer at Star Wars Celebration V in Orlando.
The final poster pin features Naboo from the prequel trilogy. Home to Queen Amidala and the Gungans (including Jar Jar Binks), the Starspeeder 1000 may encounter a giant sea monster like the one featured in Episode I.
Again, these destinations are not confirmed, but the appearance of the Starspeeder 1000 in these scenes and the fact that several already announced locations & character encounters are featured leads us to the conclusion that these are spoilers for the new attraction. Stay tuned to WDW News Today as more information on “Star Tours: The Adventures Continue” becomes available.
WDWNT’s own Cody Smith recently attended the “Love is Magical” pin event at Walt Disney World. How does this apply to Star Tours? Well, there was a pin preview board at the event, and Disney was showcasing some of the pins that will be released when Star Tours re-opens at Disney’s Hollywood Studios on May 20th and Disneyland Park June 3rd:
Now, the photo is not of the best quality, but we believe it reveals destinations guests will be traveling to in “Star Tours: The Adventures Continue”, and maybe even what will happen when they get there. The two announced locations of Coruscant and Tatooine are represented. The Tatooine poster pin even shows the Starspeeder 1000 getting stuck in a podrace, a scenario that has already been revealed. With this in mind, we believe the other 6 pins reveal more destinations and events that guests may experience randomly.
Let’s examine the posters in order from left to right:
On Geonosis (a setting from Episode II), guests may be chased by Boba Fett and the Slave I vehicle.
The second pin features Darth Vader and the Death Star, so we may be running into some friends from the Empire once again.
Coruscant is the third poster, an already revealed location.
Kashyyyk is the 4th poster, the home of Chewbacca. Since we noticed concept art that looked like this planet behind George Lucas in a Disney-released publicity shot from many months ago and were then told we will see Chewbacca along the way, this location is really no surprise. However, the poster clearly states that we will visit Treetop Villas, perhaps an inside joke about Disney’s Treehouse Villas?
Hoth is the fifth planet poster. This snowy planet from Episode V has a poster featuring a Tauntauns and what we believe is a Wampa (the snow-monster that attacks Luke Skywalker).
Tatooine is the sixth planet poster. The already revealed scenario where guests get stuck in the middle of a podrace is featured here, including famous racer Sebulba from Episode I.
The seventh poster pin features Bespin, the cloud city from Episode V. You may remember Bespin was featured in the queue-area commercial Disney previewed last summer at Star Wars Celebration V in Orlando.
The final poster pin features Naboo from the prequel trilogy. Home to Queen Amidala and the Gungans (including Jar Jar Binks), the Starapeeder 1000 may encounter a giant sea monster like the one featured in Episode I.
Again, these destinations are not confirmed, but the appearance of the Starspeeder 1000 in these scenes and the fact that several already announced locations & character encounters are featured leads us to the conclusion that these are spoilers for the new attraction. Stay tuned to WDW News Today as more information on “Star Tours: The Adventures Continue” becomes available.
All 8 of the Nerds in the Nerds Rock! set were available yesterday online for $9.95 each. Today however, everyone but Minnie Mouse is Sold Out. (We have to believe they will come back soon)
The 9″ Park 5 Goofy’s Barnstormer and Retro Disneyland figures released online yesterday as well for $44.95. They are both still available.
OTHER NOTEABLES:
Disneyland Ticket Books for $99.95. The price tag is steep on these, but I have them in hand, and for vintage Disney fans, it’s well worth it. Great packaging. And limited to just 1955
Urban 5 Car and Driver 9″ + 3″ combo set for $74.95
9″ Park 5 Mad Hatter and Dormouse 9″ + 3″ combo for $74.95. I can’t believe this one is still available!
The Urban 5 Creatures and Hidden Mickey Ear Hat + 3″ figure combos for $49.95.
10 of 12 Flags. The UK is the latest to drop off the site joining the United States. They retail for $9.95 a piece.
WDWNT Reporter Taylor Martina was roaming around Walt Disney World on Friday and lucky for us he had his camera with him to snap some newsworthy photos:
Yes, both legs of Spaceship Earth are back to normal for the first time in 12 years…
Well, Disney has finally let a piece of valuable info slip. Today Stephen Miller posted a blog about his interview with the Disney Artist responsible for the Flags Set.
For a while now we here at Destination Vinylmation have been wondering who the mystery artist behind this series is, and now we know. The mystery artist is Caley Hicks, a new comer to the Vinylmation front. Also of note is that Lisa Badeen designed the cool boxes that came along with the series. Congrats to both of them on such a well designed series.
As days get longer and the weather gets warmer (well, hopefully!), we are very excited about summer 2011 at the Disneyland Resort. And today I’m thrilled to share the grand opening dates for three new experiences headed your way.
Grand opening June 3: At Disney California Adventure park, get ready for an all-new voyage with one of Disney’s most beloved characters, Ariel. The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure will invite guests to take a journey under the sea to experience all the fun and adventures in Ariel’s world. From the great songs to state-of-the-art animatronics and special effects, guests will become a part of her world in a way that’s never happened before.
The Little Mermaid attraction is the next big milestone in the expansion of Disney California Adventure park. “World of Color” debuted last year and continues to wow guests every night with magic that combines choreographed fountains, lights, lasers, music, animation and Disney storytelling. And on the horizon, guests can see the awesome Cadillac Mountain range taking shape as the backdrop to the 12-acre Cars Land, which opens in 2012.
Here’s a first look at the vision Walt Disney Imagineers have for Ursula, who will play a big role in The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure.
Across the esplanade at Disneyland park, guests this summer will be dancing to the beat of a whole new parade and jetting off to new galaxies far, far away.
May 27 Premiere: “Mickey’s Soundsational Parade” officially steps off for Memorial Day weekend, with an explosive musical score, thrilling rhythms and bold percussion that will have people dancing to many of their favorite Disney tunes. Look for whimsical float units, live musicians and some of your favorite characters. Mickey Mouse and his pals will be jamming like never before and creating an atmosphere that will be…soundsational!
Here’s a peek at the preparations:
Grand opening June 3: And for those who dare to venture into the deep, dark corners of the universe, Star Tours – The Adventures Continue officially launches in Tomorrowland at Disneyland park, taking guests on interstellar adventures to Coruscant, Tatooine, and other destinations in the “Star Wars” galaxy. With the return of favorite Star Wars characters and the addition of more familiar faces and destinations, guests are going to experience Starspeeder travel in an all-new way…in 3D!
Summer Fun: Along with these three exciting additions, guests will find even more fun this summer at the Disneyland Resort. So, stay tuned to the Disney Parks Blog for updates.
What are you most looking forward to this summer at the Disneyland Resort?
This is what arrived at my doorstep yesterday: The Admiral Donald Set! Available only from the Disney Dream’s inaugural cruise. We saw this set back at Trade City, and Nick just loves Donald, so it was only a matter of time before the set was purchased. At Trade City we saw both 3″ figures, but never knew there would be a Jr included in the set.
Dream Stars Jr.
In the top picture you can see the back of this junior with the fancy Dream logo. Here is the front, with white stars and two yellow stars.
The 3″ figures in this set are pretty straight forward, designwise. One shows a color version of Donald Duck, the other shows the same design but as a bronze statue, similar to the statue that is in the Dream ship itself. On the back is a tail, and that’s about it. Still a cool set, but there wasn’t anything more then we saw beforehand.
