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Given that April 1st is typically the day when a number of Disney news sites post these elaborate prank stories where they then try & convince a few poor April Fools that their obviously bogus article is legit, I thought that JHM should go the other way today. In that I'm going to post a story...

Figment's Friend sent me a rather anxious e-mail last week. This JHM reader wanted to share a bit of news coming out of WDW's Magic Kingdom which had really upset him: Did you see what happened to that portrait of Tony Baxter which was hung in the new interactive queue of Big Thunder Mountain...

Chris sent me an e-mail earlier this week in regards to the "Unofficial Guide Disney Dish" podcast that I do with Len Testa , where he asked: "Where do you get all of the stories that you tell on these podcasts? I'm a big Disney history buff. But you always seem to have these behind...

You're going to be seeing a lot of stuff about Tony Baxter online today. Stories about how this longtime Disney Company employee (i.e. Tony started at Disneyland Park back in August of 1965 as a sweeper and eventually rose through the ranks to become Senior Vice President of Creative Development...

Go ahead. Ask a Disneyana fan who Marc Davis was. Better yet: Find yourself a comfy chair, sit down, and THEN ask a Disneyana fan who Marc Davis was. Marc Davis shows Walt one of the Audio Animatronic figures that were built based on his designs for Disneyland's "Pirates of the Caribbean"...

Have you been following that "Believe in Fantasy" thing that the Disney Parks Blog has been doing over on Tumblr ? If not, you may want to head on over there now and get in on the fun. You see, Gary Buchanan & Co. are using the bread crumb technique when it comes to promoting that flying...

Pirate Pete wrote in this weekend to say: Have you been following what's been going on with the Luigi's Flying Tires ride at DCA 's Cars Land ? Why exactly did they remove the balls from that attraction? Was it a safety issue? Photo by Paul Hiffmeyer. Copyright Disneyland. All rights reserved...

My apologies, folks. I know that JHM has been extremely light on content this past week or so. But I have been traveling. Dear Lord, have I been traveling. I wonder how many Frequent Flyer miles The Dreamfinder racked up while he was flying this contraption around EPCOT Center's Kodak pavilion? Copyright...

LAX 's Encounter Restaurant and Bar has encountered some pretty serious challenges over the past 15 years. Photo by Jim Hill For those of you who don't remember: When this WDI-designed restaurant and bar first opened inside of the Theme Building at Los Angeles International Airport back in January...

It's one of those must-do aspects of a Walt Disney World vacation. Especially if you've got young kids. Character dining . That pricey breakfast, lunch or dinner which is periodically interrupted as Disney characters come by your table, pose for pictures and sign autographs. Copyright Disney...

And how was your weekend? Mine contrasted sharply with last weekend. Instead of being inside of the brightly-lit Anaheim Convention Center surrounded by thousands of Disney fans, I was sitting in the dark here at home with Nancy, Alice and the cats. What with all the wind & wet weather associated...

So what was the very best part of the original D23 EXPO ? To be honest, that depended on what aspect of the Walt Disney Company most excites you. For fans of Disney's live-action movies, it would be hard to top that moment from the Studio Showcase when the wreckage of a sailing ship slowly rotated...

Maddy Mouse wrote in to say: I have kind of a weird question for you to answer. I notice that Walt Disney World has lots of rides, shows and attractions that the Imagineers originally designed for Disneyland . But when it comes to rides, shows and attractions that the Imagineers originally designed for...

As you watch Mickey's Soundsational Parade roll through Disneyland Park , this feeling of Disney déjà-vu is bound to come over you. By that I mean: While this is obviously a brand-new parade with a look, style and sound all its own, there are just enough elements here that harken back...

As part of this week's hit-and-run trip to Southern California, I made a special trip to the Disneyland Hotel yesterday. Just so I could then check out that replica of the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad which had recently been installed in the Frontier tower lobby. Photo by Jim Hill When you're...

The Disneyland Resort 's Soundsational Summer media event continued on Friday morning with the opening ceremony for Star Tours - The Adventures Continue . TV crews from around the country were out in front of this recently-refurbished Tomorrowland attraction doing live remotes. And to give these...

There are many myths associated with Audio Animatronics. With the biggest one being that these mechanized marvels can do just about anything that the Imagineers can dream up. Not so says Imagineer Darrin Hughes . Who's spent the past 20 years programming AA figures for Walt Disney Parks & Resorts...

Given that CSI kicks off its 11 th season on CBS tonight and given that Michael Eisner's new book, "Working Together: Why Great Partnerships Succeed," was released to stores earlier this month, it's almost inevitable that some entertainment reporter out there is going to connect the...

This past Sunday, I spent an hour or two wandering around the Disneyland Hotel . Photo by Jim Hill Which was something of a challenge. Given all of the construction that's going on at that Resort right now. Photo by Jim Hill "So what's going on behind all of those construction fences?,"...

You don't normally find alligators lurking inside of the Disneyland Hotel . Photo by Jim Hill Or - for that matter - PeopleMover cars parked just outside of this hotel's Grand Ballroom . Photo by Jim Hill But - then again - this past Saturday night wasn't exactly your average night at the...