It's Official - BTMRR Closes For Refurbishement Jan. 7

The rumor has been out there since last summer but Disney finally officially announced the closing of the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad January 7 for an extended refurbishment. The iconic ride is not scheduled to reopen until next fall with the reported re-opening being around October 30. What does a 10 month closure of the gigantic ride get you? Officially from Disney (according to Disney Parks Blog) you get a new track (though the ride itself doesn't change). You get new ride vehicles (though it will still be a railroad train - let's hope the same people who designed and built the new Matterhorn vehicles stay as far away as possible). And you get a new paint job on the mountain (though after all these years, I still thought it looked pretty good).

Not quite official, we hear that the passenger loading platform will be rebuilt, the so-called NextGen queue elements will be added for some measure of entertainment for those waiting in line. And most controversial of all is the possibility of the removal of the town of Rainbow Ridge which overlooks the ride and is a remnant of the former mine train attraction that occupied the area decades back.

I don't think I've been on Thunder Mountain Railroad in 3 or 4 years. I tried a couple of times but it seems like every time I was by there and tried, the ride had somehow broken down and not taking on riders. So another 10 months isn't going to kill me. Look forward to the new and (hopefully) improved Thunder Mountain Railroad sometime late next year though....

Disney's Lone Ranger Extended Preview

Disney recently put out a new extended trailer of it's upcoming 2013 release The Lone Ranger starring Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer. Along with Depp, the movie is made by the Pirates of the Caribbean gang for better or worse. Let's just say after seeing the trailer a couple of times the jury is still out. Haven't made up my mind if the movie looks fun or a bit too over the top. See for yourself.

Sad

December 14, 2012

Our hearts and prayers go out to the children, parents, teachers, and staff of Sandy Hook Elementary School and the people of Newtown, CT on a horribly sad day.

The most valuable thing I ever learned in college was in some elective drama class where the teacher said the most important thing in life is to be kind to one another. There just isn't enough of that going on.

Avatarland Pushes Forward In DAK...Still?...Why?

Avatar - Original Concept Art

In an interview with the Orlando Sentinel a few weeks back, Disney Parks and Resorts Chairman (and rumored to be on the short list of names for the upcoming Disney CEO vacancy) Tom Staggs reaffirmed Disney's commitment to build a land based on James Cameron's Avatar in Disney's Animal Kingdom park in Walt Disney World. The completion would be sometime later in this decade with a 2017 date being thrown out there. Disney's scheme to build an Avatarland is now over a year old and Disney fans have complained mightily about the idea for perfectly valid reasons.

True, Cameron's Avatar movie is the all time box office champ on not by a small margin. The film pulled in over two billion dollars at the box office. Two more Avatar sequels are in the works. But it's not a movie in any way associated with Disney and to build anything around Avatar Disney would have to license the property from Cameron and Fox.

I'm not a Disney insider or corporate genius but the question remains - Why? - when Disney's loyal fans are so dead set against the concept. And the outcries have become even louder following Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm and the Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises. Why not develop WDW expansion based on those popular and highly profitable franchises. Disney now owns them so they wouldn't have to split profits with anyone. Disney could make Indiana Jones work in DAK especially with a backdrop of Expedition Everest. Anything Disney could do to expand the Star Wars presence in Disney Hollywood Studios would have fans buzzing for years in anticipation.

Avatar was an impressive visual movie but I find it rather souless and, for me anyway, just hasn't held up to the test of time. I could care less about Avatar 2 and Avatar 3 being released. I bought the Avatar Blu-Ray when it came out, watched it once, then sold it knowing full well that I really have no desire to see it again (unlike Indy and Star Wars which most movie fans have seen countless times). As Al Lutz mentioned in his recent rant against Avatarland, where is the merchandising leg for Avatar? It just doesn't translate into cash registers ringing in merchandise sales.

There have been rumors of clashes between James Cameron (known for impressive ego) and Disney imagineers. To this point, it appears that everything related to Avatarland is in the conceptualization phase. Let's hope it stays that way.

In the meantime, Disney, if you want to ramp up fans for future changes to Walt Disney World... start talking Star Wars and Indiana Jones. You won't be sorry. PS... Thanks for keeping Avatar talk 3000 miles away from Disneyland. Marvel Universe would be much more inviting.

A Thought About Walt Disney

Walt Disney's Last Official Disneyland Photo
A Disney Parks Blog Photo

Disney Parks Blog re-posted the above photograph of Walt Disney and Mickey at Disneyland. They originally posted it last December commemorating the 45th anniversary of Walt's passing. It is the last official photograph of Walt taken at Disneyland and dates to the fall of 1966. Walt Disney died December 15th of that year after being diagnosed with lung cancer about 6 weeks prior to his death.

Do you know what I think when I see that picture of Walt? I see a man who loved his park and loved his life. You can see the pride bursting through him. He loved imagining, creating, and bringing childhood memories to life and was pleased to share his creations with others.

A MiceChat reader posed a simple poll question on its forum a week or so ago. Paraphrasing, the question simply asked "Is Disneyland better now that it ever has been?" Sure it is. There's more to see, more to do, all the while keeping Walt's commitment to detail and making sure his park was fun for people of all ages. No, the park isn't perfect. There have been plenty of missteps along the way even when Walt was alive but the park continually refines itself to where it is a place that never gets old, even after almost 60 years of existence. 

But there is a BUT...... Walt Disney loved his park. It was a personal achievement of the grandest kind. I doubt that you could apply the word "love" to corporate Disney and the people that run it. Disneyland (and the Disneyland Resort as a whole) is a revenue stream, a small piece of a very large media corporation, a place designed to reach out a grab as much money as it can from the people who visit. 

Not that Walt Disney did not want his park to make money. It had to or fail. But making a profit kind went hand in hand with dreaming, imagining, creating, developing, and building. Today, Disney accountants set a dollar figure and the people that run the park are primarily in charge of seeing what they can do to reach it. Blue Sky Disney has been replaced with the color of money.

Do yourself of favor on your next visit to Disneyland. Try and look for the Disneyland that Walt Disney loved and try not to reach for your wallet so much.

A Candlelight Processional, Kurt Russell, and the Future

Candlelight Processional - December 5, 2012
Photo from MiceChat Member mre200200

You can certainly quibble of Disney's continual effort to profit from the Christmas Holidays. You can't quibble with the fact that they know how to put on a first rate live production and so we have the video below of a portion of Disneyland's expanded Candlelight Processional which is running twice nightly from December 1 - 20 (except when it rains) with assorted celebrity narrators. The video (and photos) come from MiceChat member mre200200 who attended the processional on December 5, the last of 3 nights when actor Kurt Russell was the narrator.

If you are not in the Christmas spirit, I assure you that watching the video should help. It's only 11 minutes long but certainly memorable. The Candlelight Processional in its entirety, I believe, is only about 25 minutes in length. Please note that the choir and orchestra are Disney cast members who volunteer their services. Enjoy!

Kurt Russell is a Disney Legend, an official honor that Disney gives to people that have made significant contributions to the various creative enterprises that make up the Walt Disney Company. Russell worked for Walt Disney for many years and new him personally even though he was just a boy at the time. There is an urban legend that the last words that Walt wrote in his office before his death was the name Kurt Russell. Its been taken a bit out of context in that at the time of his death, when Walt's office was sealed, there was a tablet with the name Kurt Russell written on it by Walt (though he misspelled the name as Kirt) along with some notation for another child actor and a potential TV project but just when exactly he made the notation is not known in relation to the time he left his office for the last time.

In any event, I'm sure seeing someone like Kurt Russell, knowing he actually knew and spoke with Walt Disney on numerous occasions, presented quite a thrill for those fortunate enough to see his turn as narrator. Mre200200 even got a quick glimpse of Russell shopping in Disneyland though security kept people well at bay.

David Koenig in his MousePlanet article last week put out the inside rumor that Disney would be taking the Candlelight Processional out of its traditional location of the Main Street Train Station and move it to the larger capacity Hyperion Theater in Disney California Adventure. Whether Disney frames the Candlelight Processional around high-priced dining packages or even a separate admission event is another story for another time. For now, I just have to see that attending the Candlelight Processional, wherever it might be held, is something that needs to be on the old Disneyland Bucket List.

PS: Those attending the Candlelight Processional tonight and tomorrow get to see Lou Diamond Phillips as narrator. If you a fortunate enough to attend the event Wednesday or Thursday of this week, its the turn of Bert the Chimney Sweep himself, Dick Van Dyke. 

Disneyland and the Camera Conundrum

My cell phone contract was up so I decided to pick up a new phone a week or so ago. My old HTC smartphone worked fine but these cell phone manufacturers make you feel like if you don't have the latest and greatest then you are just out of step with the modern world. So I did some research and came up with the Samsung Galaxy S III as my target. After a couple of days to adjust from my old phone I have come to the conclusion that the Samsung is an outstanding product in countless ways and much better than my old HTC (which was fine).

While researching the phone I read reviews that people were so enamored of the S III's picture quality that they have flat out given up on their regular digital cameras as strictly use the phone as their primary picture taking device. The S III is also capable of shooting full 1080p HD video. So the question becomes that on my next trip to Disneyland, can I walk in the place with only my cell phone and no other photo or video equipment and still get the desired result of countless great shots to share and post? That answer remains to be seen as I haven't had a chance to check out the photo quality of the camera myself just yet.

I'm always tinkering with the perplexing problem of picture taking at Disneyland. On my last visit which was in the spring of the year and the weather decent I used a high quality Sony point and shoot that was very small in size - perfect pocket size in fact. I also picked up a Kodak quickie HD video camera that also was pocket size (though a bit larger than the Sony camera). So I mainly wore cargo shorts with the Sony in one pocket, the Kodak in the other pocket, my wallet safely in the back pocket where is it should be and a couple free pockets for other odds and ends. And with all the photo stuff firmly pocketed, it left my hands free. I thought it was the perfect system. Nothing is perfect.

The free hands is kind of important. Nothing like getting on a ride that requires you to strap yourself in while fiddling with camera bags. I always feel like I'm holding the ride up while I get situated with seat belts and the camera in - camera out situation. Of course, there is always the possibility of doing what I once did long ago and leave a camera (the ancient film type) on the Skyway ride.

These days its tough to know what's more important to me - the freedom to just get on a ride and go or getting really good camera shots which requires fiddling around with equipment and bags. The enjoyment of a Disnyeland ride is fleeting. The pictures of a ride hold up for years as evidence by this blog where I still post photos that I took with my first digital camera in 2002. And if pictures are that important why not go all out and just use one of the high quality digital SLR cameras from Canon or Nikon. Yeah they are really big but just think of the picture quality that will hold up for years.

Or just take pictures and videos with my new cell phone.