Beginning February 10, guests visiting Disney Parks will be able to preview a scene from Disney’s epic new live-action adaptation “Beauty and the Beast” in sneak peeks planned for Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resorts.
At Disney California Adventure park, the preview of “Beauty and the Beast” will be presented in 3D with special in-theater effects at the Sunset Showcase Theater in Hollywood Land, while guests at Disney’s Hollywood Studios will get to see this advance look at a segment from the film as part of the One Man’s Dream attraction. Each sneak peek location will also include a display featuring a collection of props and costume pieces actually used in the film’s production.
The props on display at Disney’s Hollywood Studios will include Belle’s iconic yellow dress and the Enchanted Rose from the film.
Plan to catch the 8-minute sneak peek from the film at Disney Parks starting February 10, and you can experience “Beauty and the Beast” when it’s released to U.S. theaters in 3D on March 17.
The MuppetVision fountain at Hollywood Studios was temporarily turned into a planter to accommodate the Star Wars themed-land construction nearby, but it seems the galaxy far, far away will have a long-lasting impact on the look of the 1991 Hollywood Studios attraction.
The Kermit the Frog hot air balloon as it has looked since it was repainted in 2008 to remove references to the Jim Henson name.
It appears as if the iconic Kermit the Frog hot air balloon (which has loomed over the Muppets Courtyard for nearly 26 years) will be removed at some point over the next few weeks. Disney has not stated if the balloon will be reused somewhere else, but it doesn’t sound like the balloon will be returning as of this time.
The balloon as it appeared from 1991 until 2008.
The balloon is being removed because it would be visible from inside of the Star Wars-themed land that is being constructed.
With the move of the Magic Kingdom welcome to show to Cinderella Castle, it has allowed the park to move it security screening points out further and completely alter the way it screens guest entering.
Upon entering the park this morning, we noticed that a single bag check table and metal detector were placed at the end of the path from Disney’s Comtemporary Resort. While they did use the old security screening points before the park opened this morning, they were indeed using the new set up by the time we left around 9:30 AM.
The new set up includes bag check tables ahead of the metal detectors. All guests are now being made to go through the metal detectors. This area has been used for security screening on select days over the last few months, but it appears it will now be a regular occurrence.
What now has to be seen as a true Resort guest benefit, guests walking over from the Contemporary have their own private bag check table and metal detector with little to no wait. These guests can then proceed directly to the turnstiles for the Magic Kingdom after this screening.
The center section of security checkpoints and metal detectors are now used exclusively for guests arriving via the monorail or Resort launches. Guests coming off of the ferry boat will have to go through the new security area over to the right. This method is only used once crowd levels rise to a certain point later in the morning. If you arrive early enough, all guests we’ll be going through the center security checkpoints.
Overall, this seems somewhat more efficient than the procedures that were already in place and I applaud the Magic Kingdom for trying their best to expedite the wait times of those coming into the park. Will it work? That remains to be seen, but only time will tell.
While visiting Disney’s Animal Kingdom yesterday, I was surprised to see that the viewing area for Rivers of Light was open for guests to explore, perhaps offering a seating area for some nearby eateries.
Ae we explored, we noticed that techs for the show were out and turning things on.
After playing with the two boats for a while, things went quiet, so we left.
As evening fell, it was clear that the animal lantern barges had been rolled out, but they were not illuminated yet.
However, once 7:30PM hit and the park closed, the boat and two of the animal lanterns illuminated.
Now, this doesn’t necessarily mean that the show will debut soon, but it is a pretty decent sign at least.
We also have a video of the test to share with you:
As Radio Free Disneyland Episode 3, Inaugural Balls approaches, we offer a reprinted editorial about Disneyland’s first president, and a new audio presentation of the story, as we continue to determine who is the Ultimate of Disneyland .
Jack Lindquist was a thoroughly Mid Century man, at the helm of a physical representation of much of the zeitgeist of the times. He promoted and later ran a place that made popular cinematic genres into live experiences. He was the Barker in Chief for a venue that promoted a vanguard American future and celebrated its realized Manifest Destiny.
Lindquist, by nature of his age was somewhat blithe to many sociological changes in the country through the park’s first decades, which may have been to his and Disneyland’s advantage. A Frank Sinatra guy in the age of Led Zeppelin. But that ability to stay comfortably behind the times helped define an essential element of the Disney parks’ personality: reassurance.
Before his Disney career, he was an ad man. The TV and radio director for the small Mays and Company Advertising. Rep-ing client Kelvinator Appliance, he got to see the park during its construction. And he said, “I fell in love with the place.” He came to work at the fledgling park later just a month after its opening.
He was an ebullient cherub, with a constant gleam in his eye, bad teeth, and a bit of Barnum on his breath. At about five feet tall and with a similar circumference, he was in every way the antithesis of what we now think of as the persona of a Disney executive.
He worked directly with Walt Disney for a time. He was a bit star struck, but he observed the bosses’ well known insistence on a first name basis environment. Except, Walt thought that Lindquist’s first name was Bob. When it was pointed out to Disney by a third party, he said, “he looks like a Bob to me.”
But his appearance and lack of recognition belied his mastery of advertising and promotion.
Most of his campaigns, now in the first class promotion playbook, were being made up of whole cloth at the time. Disney Dollars, The Magic Kingdom Club involving Southern California workplaces, Grad Nites, and the, “I’m Going To Disneyland” championship sports campaign were all created under his tutelage.
He functioned as the Master of Fun on junkets involving Anaheim city officials, cementing a friendly, some say too cozy, relationship with the city. (Apparently there was some drinking and lots of card playing on these trips.)
He was also very active in Republican politics locally and nationally. He had a friendly association with H.R. Haldeman and Dwight Chapin, two associates from the J. Walter Thompson advertising agency.
Haldeman and Chapin became White House aides and later both served prison time for their involvement in the Watergate Scandal that felled a U.S. President.
Returning to Lindquist’s Mad Man/Ad Man expertise, Disney had been known as a company that was loathe to buy television advertising. When you have a Sunday night TV show that often finishes in the top 10, you might think it unnecessary. But using carefully targeted ads for Walt Disney World and precisely measuring the results, he proved that ads brought scads of patrons from the places the spots had been shown. This changed Disney advertising practices forevermore.
When Micheal Eisner and Frank Wells entered the Walt Disney Company in 1984, they generally eschewed most of the local management of the U.S. Parks. But Lindquist seemed to be a favorite.
Previously, the park properties had functioned with no rank higher that a vice president reporting to Burbank in a structure that may have been a holdover from the long past days when Walt Disney functioned as the top man, without title.
In 1990, the new Boys from Burbank elevated Lindquist to the position of President of Disneyland.
After his installment, he found that long lead times in developing ambitious new attractions would leave him without a major draw for the coming summer of 1992. In short order he put together a hybrid group of Imagineers and Disneyland hands to create a live show to run for four years on the Rivers of America section of the park.
The result was Fantasmic. An American Son et lumière. The show still runs at Disneyland Park, has been exported, and has influenced Disney park shows to this day.
After this success, and in spite of the fact that he came from the marketing side, not Imagineering, he is certainly most responsible for creating another singular area at Disneyland. But the creation of that special spot was a painful political process.
During the 1980s, the park relied on themed promotions to draw locals in the non summer months, Blast to the Park, State Fair, and Circus Fantasy among them. With the promotions came outsized icons at the park hub, in the shadow of the park’s central symbol, Sleeping Beauty’s Castle. A giant juke box, a car elevator to dispense giveaway Chevy Geo cars, and even a motorcycle cage called the Globe of Death, camped out in the Central Plaza. Park purists complained.
It fell to Lindquist who was certainly aware of, if not directly involved in these ungainly curations, to devise an elegant solution to the scenic and thematic intrusions.
The answer was the Partners statue. An untouchable element. Functionally a sacred spot. A must see, a must photo, a must selfie… for now and ever after.
In his memoir, In Service To The Mouse Lindquist related a story about a Christmas Eve walk he took in Disneyland.
Lindquist says he observed a family walking down Main Street U.S.A. The little girl in the family turned to her mother and said, “Mom, this really was better than having Santa Claus.” When Lindquist told this story, he deducted that the parents had told the children that if they went to Disneyland, Santa could not bring presents.
This story seems like an ad man’s dream. Using emotion to gain acceptance. And whether or not it happened, it is faithful to Lindquist’s feelings about Disneyland and to much of the public’s relationship to the park.
He said “this one brief moment proved to be my most meaningful memory at the park because it symbolized what we mean to people.
We are not a cure for cancer, we are not going to save the world, but if we can make people happy for a few hours, or for a day, then we are doing something worthwhile.”
Jack Lindquist, Disneyland’s first president, died on Sunday February 28, 2016, at age 89.
Pandora: the World of AVATAR is nearing completion at Disney’s Animal Kingdom and now some of the strange elements we have seen covered for many months are starting to be revealed. In our latest video update, we take a look at the entrance to the land, the bridge to enter it from Discovery Island, and more work happening on the floating mountains above the land. Take a look for yourself:
Starting January 11th, 2017, Disney Vacation Club members can get a special welcome every time they enter a Walt Disney World theme park.
Park entry touchpoints will activate a purple to green light sequence upon a successful scan with MagicBand for members, and cast members have been instructed to greet these guests with a “welcome home” message.
FastPass redemption will not activate any special effects, only park entry.
Formerly Miss Fortune Falls, the new attraction coming to Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon in 2017 now has a new name and new concept art.
Miss Adventure Falls family raft ride at Typhoon Lagoon
Miss Adventure Falls is an all-new, family-raft attraction owned by Captain Mary Oceaneer—a sea-faring treasure hunter whose haul was caught in a rogue typhoon and scattered across this tropical paradise years ago. Mary Oceaneer is a member of the Society of Adventurers and Explorers, made famous in various attractions around the world including Mystic Manor, the Jungle Navigation Ltd. Skipper Canteen, and Jock Lindsey’s Hangar Bar, so the S.E.A. should tie-in in some fun ways in this new ride.
From your 4-person raft, feel a rush of excitement with family and friends as an aquatic conveyor belt chutes you into action. Then, hold on tight as you spy precious artifacts collected from all around the globe. If you’re lucky enough, you may even meet the captain’s old diving partner—an Audio-Animatronic parrot who’s still hunting for treasures at Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon water park to this day.
Miss Adventure Falls family raft ride at Typhoon Lagoon
The attraction is set to open March 2017 at Walt Disney World’s Typhoon Lagoon water park.
We have been anxiously awaiting all of the fantastic food and drinks to be announced for the first ever Epcot International Festival of the Arts and now it is finally here! The festival takes place Fridays through Mondays, January 13 to February 20and the “food studios” will be open from 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM.
Please note: the following menu items marked with (GF) are gluten/wheat-friendly and those with (V) are vegetarian.
E = AT^2
Food:
BLT with Crispy Pork Belly, Tomato Jam and Soft Poached Egg – $6.50
Classic Reuben with Shredded Corned Beef, Thousand Island Dressing, Pickled Red Cabbage and a Rye Curl – $6.00
Cobb Salad with Smoked Duck Breast, Avocado Mousse, Nueske’s Applewood Smoked Bacon and Blue Cheese (GF) – $7.50
Figment White Chocolate Art Painting with Chocolate Easel (GF) (V) – $7.00
White Chocolate Mickey Puzzle with Artist Palette (GF) (V) – $6.50
Beverages:
Deconstructed Breakfast: Twinings® Spiced Apple Chai Tea Shake with Maple Bourbon Cream, a Waffle Crisp and Candied Bacon – $10.50
Deconstructed Breakfast: Twinings® Spiced Apple Chai Tea Shake with Maple Syrup, a Waffle Crisp and Candied Bacon (non-alcoholic) – $4.50
Pop-Artsicle: Red, White and Blue Frozen Slushy (non-alcoholic) – $3.75
Cuisine Classique
Food:
Braised Short Rib with Parsnip Purée, Broccolini, Baby Tomatoes and Aged Balsamic
Seared Red Snapper with braised Ratatouille and Lemon-Thyme Beurre Blanc (GF)
Port Wine Poached Pear, Vanilla Panna Cotta and Pistachio Crumbs (GF)
Artist Palette Jumbo Chocolate Chip Cookie
Beverages:
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
Bell’s Two Hearted American-style India Pale Ale
Duck Rabbit Milk Stout
Beer Braising Flight
Campo Viejo Rioja Reserva Art Series
The Artist’s Table
Food:
Roasted Pork Roulade with Marble Potatoes, Baby Carrots and Red Wine Sauce featuring Melissa’s Produce – $6.50
Pan-Seared Scallop with Chorizo, Roasted Red Pepper Coulis and a Parmesan Crisp (GF) – $6.25
Artist Palette Jumbo Chocolate Chip Cookie – $5.50
Beverages:
Callebaut Belgian Sipping Chocolate Flight: White, Milk, Dark (non-alcoholic) – $8.00
Callebaut Belgian Sipping Chocolate: Dark Chocolate with Chambord – $9.75
Perla Santa Coffee-flavored Wine – $9.50
The Painter’s Palate
Food:
Margherita Flatbread with Basil Pesto and Balsamic Drizzle (V)
Trio of Savory Croissant Doughnuts:
Whipped Herb Cream Cheese with Sea Salt (V)
Chicken Mousse with Fresh Herbs & Everything Bagel Seasoning
Spicy Tuna with Sriracha Mayonnaise and Sesame Seeds
Mary Blair White Chocolate Art Painting with Chocolate Easel (GF) (V)
Pop’t Art: Abstract Designed Sugar Cookie with Chocolate Hazelnut Filling (V)
White Chocolate Figment Puzzle on an Artist Palette
Beverages:
Pomegranate Mule featuring the Ginger People Ginger Beer and Van Gogh Vodka
Breckenridge Nitro Vanilla Porter
Young’s Double Chocolate Stout
3 Daughters Queens Court Strawberry Blonde Nitro
Neapolitan Beer Flight
Pop Eats!
Food:
Shrimp Ceviche with Lime Mint Foam (GF) – $6.00
Sous Vide Venison with Butternut Squash Purée, Pomegranate Reduction, Pickled Turnip and Juniper Berry Powder (GF) – $7.50
Almond Frangipane Cake layered with Raspberry Jam and Chocolate (V) – $4.25
Triple Chocolate Mousse, Chocolate Crunch, Dark Chocolate Sauce and Gold Leaf from our Master Pastry Chef – $9.25
White Chocolate Puzzle on an Artist Palette (GF) (V) – $6.50
Mickey and Pluto White Chocolate Painting with Chocolate Easel (GF) (V) – $7.00
Beverages:
Perrier-Jouët Belle Époque Brut Champagne – $12.00
Classic Sidecar with a Chocolate Twist – $9.25
The Meeker Vineyard Winemakers’ Handprint Merlot – $9.50
Additional Festival Locations
Block & Hans
Festival Cabernet Sauvignon, CA
Festival Chardonnay, CA
Anchor Brewing Meyer Lemon Lager, San Francisco, CA
Coppertail Brewing Free Dive IPA, Tampa, FL
Founders Porter, Grand Rapids, MI
M.I.A. Brewing Mega Mix Pale Ale, Miami, FL
Joy of Tea
Traditional Chinese Golden Fish
Panda Rice Cake
Fife & Drum
Artist Palette Jumbo Chocolate Chip Cookie
Les Halles Boulangerie-Patisserie
Opera Cake
Funnel Cakes
Gingerbread Funnel Cake
Japan Pavilion
Kabuki Café Kiosk: Futomaki Sushi
Tokyo Dining: Chirashi Sushi and Sashimi
Joffrey’s Coffee & Tea Company
Beverages:
All Festival specialty drinks served hot or cold.
Canada: Night Sky Latte: A delicious shot of Joffrey’s Italian Espresso mixed with Creamy Godiva Chocolate Liqueur, topped with Steamed Milk and Whipped Cream
Disney Traders: Cinnamon Sensation: A shot of Italian Espresso mixed with RumChata and Cinnamon Whiskey, blended with Steamed Milk and Whipped Cream
Future World East: Painted Lady Latte: A shot of Joffrey’s Italian Espresso mixed with rich Baileys Espresso Créme Liqueur, topped with Steamed Milk and Whipped Cream
The American Adventure: Dreamy Bourbon: A shot of Italian Espresso mixed with Bourbon Whiskey Cream Liqueur, blended with Steamed Milk and Whipped Cream
El Arista Hambriento (The Hungry Artist)
Choriqueso Taco served with Chihuahua Cheese, Red and Green Peppers over a Corn Tortilla and garnished with Poblano Peppers and Micro Cilantro
Flank Steak Guarache served with Black Beans, Salsa de Chile de Arbol, Frisee Lettuce, Queso Fresco, Red Cabbage, Shredded Carrots and Chipotle Mayo
Tangierine Café
Homemade Falafel with Pickled Beets and Turnip, Tomato Salad and Tahini Sauce
Refreshment Cool Post
Chilled Shrimp, Quinoa, Layered Vegetables, Spiced Yogurt and Red Pepper Coulis
Refreshment Port
Croissant Doughnut filled with Pastry Cream and topped with Colored Pearls
