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Toon fans and film historians just don't know what to make of Walt Disney Animation Studios ' " Get a Horse! " There's a real air of mystery surrounding this animated short. The fact that it's done in black-and-white, features rubber-hose, pie-eyed versions of classic Disney...

Did you need a distraction from all of the sad news coming out of Boston tonight? I know that I do. Which is why -- rather than watch that footage of the explosion at the marathon's line yet again -- I picked up a copy of Doug Lipp 's terrific tome, " Disney U: How Disney University develops...

So what does it actually take for D23 to pull together those Fanniversary events that they've been presenting around the country for the past few weeks? According to Jeffrey Epstein, spokesman for the Official Disney Fan Club, it takes a solid six months of behind-the-scenes effort to produce each...

Huffington Post -- Mickey Mouse gets a retro makeover for the Disney Channel's new series of 2D animated shorts In Hollywood, it's customary for stars of a certain age to periodically go under the knife. Freshen up their look every now and then, if you will. In Mickey Mouse 's case, when...

Huffington Post -- Joe Roth reflects on "Oz The Great and Powerful," looks forward to "Maleficent" in 2014 It's every screenwriter's nightmare. To be in the office of one of Hollywood's most powerful producers, pitching all of your script ideas. Only to then have that...

The Internet is really a wondrous place. Especially if you're a young person who's considering a career in animation. If you've ever considered becoming a character designer someday, you can always swing by Tom Bancroft 's Character Mentor Studio or Stephen Silver's blog and then...

If you listen carefully today, you can hear thousands of people around the country quietly cursing. "And why are these people cursing?," you ask. Well, that's because these folks are just now realizing it's February 13th. Which means that tomorrow is Valentine's Day. That day when...

For three weeks now, photos of a mysterious bankers box have been making the rounds on the Web. Brad Bird and Damon Lindelof reportedly deliberately put these images out there to help whet people's appetites for " Tomorrowland ," the sci-fi -themed project that these two wrote which is...

I have to admit that I'm kind of a sucker for all of these castle shows that Disney has begun doing in the Magic Kingdom . Whether it's draping this iconic structure with over 200,000 lights to turn it into a wintery wonder for the "Cinderella's Holiday Wish / Castle Dream Lights"...

They say that a man's home is his castle. Well, tonight, my castle is under siege. The wind field associated with Hurricane Sandy has already made its way up to New Hampshire, sending wind gusts of 50 - 55 MPH whistling through the trees. Which means that Nancy and I have already experienced a number...

Earlier today, Chris sent me a note which read: Hi Jim I am loving the daily why for entries. I heard that when planning a european park the original plan was to construct somewhere is Spain. if this is true why for did Disney feel the need to build it in France? As a Britt, I can say that the amount...

The full-length animated features that Walt Disney Animation Studios has produced over the past 75 years can mostly be sorted into two distinctly different piles: Those films that Walt personally had a hand in and those movies which were produced after Disney passed away. Please note that I said "mostly...

Last Monday afternoon, I was at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library & Museum and overheard a pretty funny exchange between two of the docents who'd been assigned to work the " D23 presents Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives " exhibit. Photo by Alice Hill It seems that one of these...

It's always interesting to talk with an author, have them tell you what they think is the most important part of their new book is. Because their answer -- more often than not -- will surprise you. Take -- for example -- Bob Gurr 's recently released memoir, " Design: Just for Fun "...

The old adage is "April Showers bring May Flowers." Image courtesy of S/R Laboratories. All rights reserved Well, Nancy and I are down in Orlando right now. And this year, April Showers seems to be bringing May Downpours. Which suggests that June might be a really good time to go shopping for...

"You're serious? You really want to do this?" That's what Chris Prynoski remembers saying to Mouse House executives when they had their very first conversations with Chris about he and his Robin Red Breast, Inc. team possibly producing a brand-new animated series for Disney XD . Copyright...

Today's the day that the 2012 Newport Beach Film Festival officially gets underway. And given that -- for the past four years now -- this annual event has been a lot of animation fans' radar thanks to those "Evenings of Disney Rarities" screenings that Oscar-nominated producer Don Hahn...

If any baby boomers that you know seem a bit blue today ... Well, there's a reason. Robert B Sherman , the man who -- along with his brother Richard M Sherman -- basically wrote the soundtrack for their childhoods ... passed away yesterday. Robert Bernard Sherman (December 19, 1925 - March 5, 2012...

I have long been a fan & supporter of Didier Ghez 's "Walt 's People" books , that series of paperbacks which collects amazing interviews with Disney Legends. But with Volume 11 of this series, Ghez has truly out-done himself. This 630-page book features 36 separate interviews which...

I have to admit that It's been kind of amusing to watch the reaction (both here and elsewhere around the Web) that Tuesday's "What's really behind the sudden change in Disney Parks & Resorts' facial hair policy" story has been getting. With all sorts of would-be Disney scholars...