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Are you a Pixie Planner?

JHM contributor Angela Ragno certainly is. As in: She’s one of those Central Florida residents who always goes out of her way to make sure that friends & family have a really great time on their Disney World vacations. Read all about what Angela just did in order to make her Gram’s recent WDW trip that much more memorable.

Published

20 years ago

on

My family calls me the “Pixie Planner.”

Why? Because I’m the daughter who lives in Central Florida. The one who know Walt Disney World like the back of her hand. Which is why friends & family members are always asking me to serve as their personal tour guide during their WDW vacations.

(Do I sound like I’m complaining? I don’t mean to. After all, I actually enjoying having an excuse to take yet another trip to the Disney theme parks. More to the point, I’m a real pro when it comes to planning.

Seriously, folks … I don’t mean to sound like I’m bragging … But the company that I work for actually plans for & stages these massive corporate events all over the country. And I’m so good at my job that I’ve actually won awards for functions that I’ve staged. Where hundreds of people had a perfectly wonderful time at events where everything went off without a hitch.

So — with that sort of experience — do you seriously think that I’m one of those people who gets a little intimidated by the idea of having to lead a few family members around the Magic Kingdom on a crowded Saturday afternoon? … Please! Give me a break!)

Anyway … Getting back to my whole “Pixie Planner” persona. Let me give you an example of what I typically do when friends & family are in town. The lengths to which I’ll go to make sure that they have a truly memorable Disney World vacation experience.

The most recent guests to stay at the “Hotel Disneyangela” (AKA my apartment) were mother & my Gram. Now, my mother … She comes down to Orlando most every year to visit me as well as tour Walt Disney World. Whereas my Gram … She hasn’t been back to WDW since February of 1972. Which was her first and only trip to the Magic Kingdom.

Now let me give you a little background on my grandmother. She was recently diagnosed with lung cancer. Which was why I was really rather anxious to make sure my Gram’s WDW vacation experience was truly something memorable.

So what did we do? Well — for starters — my Gram has always wanted to go to Hawaii. Which is why on the very first night that she & my Mom are in Orlando, I took them over to Disney’s Polynesian Resort Hotel for dinner.

Gram had no absolutely no idea where we were going. But as soon as she saw how much that hotel looked like Hawaii, she was in heaven.

Given Gram’s limited dietary needs, we decided to go with Kona Kafe for dinner that evening. The food was wonderful and dessert was unbelievable. (HINT: The very best dessert at WDW is served at the Polynesian’s Kona Kafe. I don’t spoil the surprise and reveal what this tempting treat is actually called. All I can tell you is that it involves ice cream, Mickey Confetti candy and cotton candy.)

After dinner, I took Gram on a tour of the hotel. We arrived at the Poly’s waterfront area just as the shells for “Wishes” began exploding over the Magic Kingdom. Which, to be honest, wasn’t something that I had planned on us seeing. But – what the hey – my grandmother seemed to enjoy this nightly fireworks spectacular. So I was just happy that the timing of events had worked out the way that it did.

Next on Gram’s wish list was a trip to the Magic Kingdom. Where – out of all the attractions in that theme park – the one that my grandmother most wanted to see was (of course) “It’s a Small World.”

Well, as regular readers of JHM already know, WDW’s version of “Small World” has been down for rehab for the better part of a year now. This Fantasyland favorite isn’t even scheduled to re-open ’til sometime later this Spring. So – try as I might – I couldn’t make that particular piece of Gram’s wish list come true.

Still, I did my very best to try & make the rest of my Mom and Gram’s visit to the Magic Kingdom more enjoyable. We hit all the attractions that I knew would give my grandmother the best experience. More importantly, the ones that she’s actually be able to ride (I.E. No “Splash,” no “Big Thunder,” no “Space Mountain,” etc.).

Over the course of that day, the three of us visited “Mickey’s PhilharMagic,” “Snow White’s Scary Adventure,” “Peter Pan’s Flight,” “The Haunted Mansion,” “The Hall of Presidents,” “The Enchanted Tiki Room,” “The Jungle Cruise” and “The Country Bear Jamboree” (My grandmother loves Big Al!), “The Carousel of Progress,” as well as taking a trip on the WDW railroad & attending a performance of the “Share a Dream Come True” parade.

Of course, when you’re the infamous “Pixie Planner,” you want to make sure that the meals you have while you & your family are in the Magic Kingdom are also magical. Which is why we wound up having lunch at the Plaza as well as dinner at Cinderella’s Royal Table.

Now you have to understand that my grandmother’s very favorite motion picture is Disney’s “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.” So when we visited with the Princesses (Gram didn’t know that she was going to encounter characters during her visit to this theme park), Princess Aurora and Cinderella were in the room. But – just as we were about to leave — Snow White made her grand entrance.

To be honest, I don’t know who was more excited about seeing Snow White: Myself or my grandmother (Why was I excited? Because I knew how special this moment would be for my Gram). Now my grandmother doesn’t normally like getting her picture taken. But – seeing as “The Fairest in the Land” was there – Gram readily agreed to having her picture taken with Snow White by WDW’s official photographers. Which I happily bought for her later.

And — of course — no trip at the Magic Kingdom would be complete without a visit to Mickey’s Toontown Faire to see if the old Mousetro is receiving guests in his judging tent.

Obviously, we all had a great day at the Magic Kingdom. The only other Disney theme park that my Gram, my mother & I visited during their recent trip to Central Florida was Disney-MGM Studios.

(“Why not Animal Kingdom or Epcot?,” you ask. Well, pushing my grandmother’s wheelchair over all of those textured walkways in DAK wasn’t going to be much fun for her or me. And – as for Epcot – the day that we were scheduled to go visit Disney’s science & discovery park, it was much too cold for my Gram to be outside. Such is the fun of Central Florida in December. Anyway ..)

Our afternoon/evening outing at the Studios began with lunch at a restaurant that my grandmother had been dying to eat at for years now: The 50’s Prime Time Café. For more than a decade, she has been hearing from various family members about how much fun it is to dine there. How my Dad had once gotten in trouble for wearing his hat indoors and/or how my brother had once been scolded for putting his elbows on the table.

Well, I am sorry to report that “Mom” didn’t make it out of the kitchen to visit with us while my Gram, my mother  & I were there eating lunch. But – beyond that – the three of us had truly a swell time at the 50’s Prime Time Café. Dining on comfort food as well as playing with our “cousins.”

After lunch, we hit “The Great Movie Ride,” the “Voyage of the Little Mermaid” as well as catching the special Christmas edition of Disney-MGM’s “Stars and Motorcars” parade. After that, we attended a performance of “Fantasmic!” About which my Gram said: “If I saw nothing else this whole trip, it was worth it.” So obviously she liked that show!

As an extra added bonus, I wheeled her on over to the park’s New York Street. Where the three of us took in the new version of the Osbourne “Spectacle of Lights.” (Me personally? I preferred the old version of the spectacle, where Disney-MGM visitors could stroll along that theme park’s Residential Street as they “Ooohed” and “Aaahed” at the Osbourne Lights. But for my grandmother & my mother – who had never seen the earlier version of this seasonal show – thought that MGM’s lit-up cityscape looked just great.)

As for what the three of us were able to accomplish during my Gram & Mom’s recent trip to Central Florida … Our only limitations were time, mobility and weather.

Since my grandmother can’t do much walking these days, a wheelchair is a necessity. And – in all my other trips to the Disney theme parks – this is the first time that I’ve ever had to push a wheelchair around the place.

And let me tell you, folks, that I really got a work-out that week. Disney may do a wonderful job when it comes to handicap access for its rides, shows, attractions, parades, etc. But the theme parks themselves – what with all their textured pavements (like the Cobblestone streets in Liberty Square) – and/or the steep grades on all those ramps leading to the monorail don’t exactly make life easy for those folks who are stuck in wheelchairs. Or – more importantly – the poor relatives who wind up pushing their family members around in wheelchairs.

I didn’t need to go to the gym the entire time that my Gram & my Mom are in town. Heck, it still makes my calves hurt just to think about all the pushing that I did while those two were here visiting Walt Disney World.

But – in spite of all the stresses and the strains – I still think that it was all worth it. My Gram describes her recent trip to WDW as the most wonderful vacation of her life. She says that she can’t wait to come back and that she doesn’t know why she ever got on that plane to go back to Connecticut.

So obviously, this trip went well. Which makes the “Pixie Planner” in me proud.

In fact, even as you read this, the “Pixie Planner” is already putting together plans for Gram’s return trip to Orlando. Of course, we’re going to have to wait ’til things get a little warmer (So that my grandmother can then be sure to get in her trip to Epcot). We’re also going to wait ’til the newly refurbishing “It’s a Small World” finally re-opens its doors. So that my grandmother can once again experience her favorite Disney theme park ride.

So what about all you other Central Florida residents out there? Are you also a “Pixie Planner”? Someone who will always go the extra mile to make sure that your friends & family have a truly memorable Disney World vacation experience?

Well, if so, what do you do to help their WDW vacation that much more memorable?

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General

Seward Johnson bronzes add a surreal, artistic touch to NYC’s Garment District

Published

10 years ago

on

June 23, 2015

By

Greetings from NYC. Nancy and I drove down from New
Hampshire yesterday because we'll be checking out
Disney Consumer Products' annual Holiday Showcase later today.

Anyway … After checking into our hotel (i.e., The Paul.
Which is located down in NYC's NoMad district), we decided to grab some dinner.
Which is how we wound up at the Melt Shop.


Photo by Jim Hill

Which is this restaurant that only sells grilled cheese sandwiches.
This comfort food was delicious, but kind of on the heavy side.


Photo by Jim Hill

Which is why — given that it was a beautiful summer night
— we'd then try and walk off our meals. We started our stroll down by the Empire
State Building
…


Photo by Jim Hill

… and eventually wound up just below Times
Square (right behind where the Waterford Crystal Times Square New
Year's Eve Ball is kept).


Photo by Jim Hill

But you know what we discovered en route? Right in the heart
of Manhattan's Garment District
along Broadway between 36th and 41st? This incredibly cool series of life-like
and life-sized sculptures that Seward
Johnson has created.


Photo by Jim Hill

And — yes — that is Abraham Lincoln (who seems to have
slipped out of WDW's Hall of Presidents when no one was looking and is now
leading tourists around Times Square). These 18 painted
bronze pieces (which were just installed late this past Sunday night / early
Monday morning) range from the surreal to the all-too-real.


Photo by Jim Hill

Some of these pieces look like typical New Yorkers. Like the
business woman planning out her day …


Photo by Jim Hill

… the postman delivering the mail …


Photo by Jim Hill

… the hot dog vendor working at his cart …


Photo by Jim Hill


Photo by Jim Hill

… the street musician playing for tourists …


Photo by Jim Hill

Not to mention the tourists themselves.


Photo by Jim Hill

But right alongside the bronze businessmen …


Photo by Jim Hill

… and the tired grandmother hauling her groceries home …


Photo by Jim Hill

… there were also statues representing people who were
from out-of-town …


Photo by Jim Hill

… or — for that matter — out-of-time.


Photo by Jim Hill

These were the Seward Johnson pieces that genuinely beguiled. Famous impressionist paintings brought to life in three dimensions.


Note the out-of-period water bottle that some tourist left
behind. Photo by Jim Hill 

Some of them so lifelike that you actually had to pause for
a moment (especially as day gave way to night in the city) and say to yourself
"Is that one of the bronzes? Or just someone pretending to be one of these
bronzes?"

Mind you, for those of you who aren't big fans of the
impressionists …


Photo by Jim Hill

… there's also an array of American icons. Among them
Marilyn Monroe …


Photo by Jim Hill

… and that farmer couple from Grant Wood's "American
Gothic."


Photo by Jim Hill

But for those of you who know your NYC history, it's hard to
beat that piece which recreates Alfred Eisenstaedt's famous photograph of V-J Day in Times Square.


Photo by Jim Hill

By the way, a 25-foot-tall version of this particular Seward
Johnson piece ( which — FYI — is entitled "Embracing Peace") will actually
be placed in Times Square for a few days on or around  August 14th to commemorate the 70th
anniversary of Victory Over Japan Day (V-J Day).


Photo by Jim Hill

By the way, if you'd like to check these Seward Johnson bronzes in
person (which — it should be noted — are part of the part of the Garment
District Alliance's new public art offering) — you'd best schedule a trip to
the City sometime over the next three months. For these pieces will only be on
display now through September 15th. 

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Wondering what you should “Boldly Go” see at the movies next year? The 2015 Licensing Expo offers you some clues

Published

10 years ago

on

June 10, 2015

By

Greeting from the 2015 Licensing Expo, which is being held
at the Mandalay Bay
Convention Center in Las
Vegas.


Photo by Jim Hill

I have to admit that I enjoy covering the Licensing Expo.
Mostly becomes it allows bloggers & entertainment writers like myself to
get a peek over the horizon. Scope out some of the major motion pictures &
TV shows that today's vertically integrated entertainment conglomerates
(Remember when these companies used to be called movie studios?) will be
sending our way over the next two years or so.


Photo by Jim Hill

Take — for example — all of "The Secret Life of
Pets" banners that greeted Expo attendees as they made their way to the
show floor today. I actually got to see some footage from this new Illumination
Entertainment production (which will hit theaters on July 8, 2016) the last time I was in Vegas. Which
was for CinemaCon back in April. And the five or so minutes of film that I viewed
suggested that "The Secret Life of Pets" will be a really funny
animated feature.


Photo by Jim Hill

Mind you, Universal Pictures wanted to make sure that Expo
attendees remembered that there was another Illumination Entertainment production
coming-to-a-theater-near-them before "The Secret Life of Pets" (And
that's "Minions," the "Despicable Me" prequel. Which
premieres at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival next week but
won't be screened stateside 'til July 10th of this year). Which is why they had
three minions who were made entirely out of LEGOS loitering out in the lobby.


Photo by Jim Hill

And Warner Bros. — because they wanted "Batman v
Superman: Dawn of Justice" to start trending on Twitter today — brought
the Batmobile to Las Vegas.


Photo by Jim Hill

Not to mention full-sized macquettes of Batman, Superman and
Wonder Woman. Just so conventioneers could then see what these DC superheroes
would actually look like in this eagerly anticipated, March 25, 2016 release.


Photo by Jim Hill

That's the thing that can sometimes be a wee bit frustrating
about the Licensing Expo. It's all about delayed gratification. You'll come
around a corner and see this 100 foot-long ad for "The Peanuts Movie"
and think "Hey, that looks great. I want to see that Blue Sky Studios production
right now." It's only then that you notice the fine print and realize that
"The Peanuts Movie" doesn't actually open in theaters 'til November
6th of this year.


Photo by Jim Hill

And fan of Blue Sky's "Ice Age" film franchise are in for an even
longer wait. Given that the latest installment in that top grossing series
doesn't arrive in theaters 'til July
15, 2016.


Photo by Jim Hill

Of course, if you're one of those people who needs immediate
gratification when it comes to your entertainment, there was stuff like that to
be found at this year's Licensing Expo. Take — for example — how the WWE
booth was actually shaped like a wrestling ring. Which — I'm guessing — meant
that if the executives of World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. didn't like
the offer that you were making, they were then allowed to toss you out over the
top rope, Royal Rumble-style.


Photo by Jim Hill

I also have to admit that — as a longtime Star Trek fan —
it was cool to see the enormous Starship Enterprise that hung in place over the
CBS booth. Not to mention getting a glimpse of the official Star Trek 50th
Anniversary logo.


Photo by Jim Hill

I was also pleased to see lots of activity in The Jim Henson
Company booth. Which suggests that JHC has actually finally carved out a
post-Muppets identity for itself.


Photo by Jim Hill

Likewise for all of us who were getting a little concerned
about DreamWorks Animation (what with all the layoffs & write-downs &
projects that were put into turnaround or outright cancelled last year), it was
nice to see that booth bustling.


Photo by Jim Hill

Every so often, you'd come across some people who were
promoting a movie that you weren't entirely sure that you actually wanted to
see (EX: "Angry Birds," which Sony Pictures Entertainment / Columbia
Pictures will be releasing to theaters on May 20, 2016). But then you remembered that Clay Kaytis —
who's this hugely talented former Walt Disney Animation Studios animator — is
riding herd on "Angry Birds" with Fergal Reilly. And you'd think
"Well, if Clay's working on 'Angry Birds,' I'm sure this animated feature
will turn out fine."


Photo by Jim Hill

Mind you, there were reminders at this year's Licensing Expo
of great animated features that we're never going to get to see now. I still
can't believe — especially after that brilliant proof-of-concept footage
popped up online last year — that Sony execs decided not to go forward
with  production of Genndy Tartakovsky's
"Popeye" movie.  But that's the
cruel thing about the entertainment business, folks. It will sometime break
your heart.


Photo by Jim Hill

And make no mistake about this. The Licensing Expo is all
about business. That point was clearly driven home at this year's show when —
as you walked through the doors of the Mandalay
Bay Convention Center
— the first thing that you saw was the Hasbros Booth. Which was this gleaming,
sleek two story-tall affair full of people who were negotiating deals &
signing contracts for all of the would-be summer blockbusters that have already
announced release dates for 2019 & beyond.


Photo by Jim Hill

"But what about The Walt Disney Company?," you
ask. "Weren't they represented on the show floor at this year's Licensing
Expo?" Not really, not. I mean, sure. There were a few companies there hyping
Disney-related products. Take — for example — the Disney Wikkeez people.


Photo by Jim Hill

I'm assuming that some Disney Consumer Products exec is
hoping that Wikkeez will eventually become the new Tsum Tsum. But to be blunt,
these little hard plastic figures don't seem to have the same huggable charm
that those stackable plush do. But I've been wrong before. So let's see what
happens with Disney Wikkeez once they start showing up on the shelves of the
Company's North American retail partners.


Photo by Jim Hill

And speaking of Disney's retail partners … They were
meeting with Mouse House executives behind closed doors one floor down from the
official show floor for this year's Licensing Expo.


Photo by Jim Hill

And the theme for this year's invitation-only Disney shindig? "Timeless
Stories" involving the Disney, Pixar, Marvel & Lucasfilm brands that
would then appeal to "tomorrow's consumer."


Photo by Jim Hill

And just to sort of hammer home the idea that Disney is no
longer the Company which cornered the market when it comes to little girls
(i.e., its Disney Princess and Disney Fairies franchises), check out this
wall-sized Star Wars-related image that DCP put up just outside of one of its
many private meeting rooms. "See?," this carefully crafted photo
screams. "It isn't just little boys who want to wield the Force. Little
girls also want to grow up and be Lords of the Sith."


Photo by Jim Hill

One final, kind-of-ironic note: According to this banner,
Paramount Pictures will be releasing a movie called "Amusement Park"
to theaters sometime in 2017.  


Photo by Jim Hill

Well, given all the "Blackfish" -related issues
that have been dogged SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment over the past two years, I'm
just hoping that they'll still be in the amusement park business come 2017.

Your thoughts?

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General

It takes more than three circles to craft a Classic version of Mickey Mouse

Published

10 years ago

on

June 9, 2015

By

You know what Mickey Mouse looks like, right? Little guy,
big ears?

Truth be told, Disney's corporate symbol has a lot of
different looks. If Mickey's interacting with Guests at Disneyland
Park (especially this summer, when
the Happiest Place on Earth
is celebrating its 60th anniversary), he looks & dresses like this.


Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc.
All rights reserved

Or when he's appearing in one of those Emmy Award-winning shorts that Disney
Television Animation has produced (EX: "Bronco Busted," which debuts
on the Disney Channel tonight at 8 p.m. ET / PT), Mickey is drawn in a such a
way that he looks hip, cool, edgy & retro all at the same time.


Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights
reserved

Looking ahead to 2017 now, when Disney Junior rolls out "Mickey and the
Roadster Racers," this brand-new animated series will feature a sportier version
of Disney's corporate symbol. One that Mouse House managers hope will persuade
preschool boys to more fully embrace this now 86 year-old character.


Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc. All rights reserved

That's what most people don't realize about the Mouse. The
Walt Disney Company deliberately tailors Mickey's look, even his style of
movement, depending on what sort of project / production he's appearing in.

Take — for example — Disney
California Adventure
Park's "World of Color:
Celebrate!" Because Disney's main mouse would be co-hosting this new
nighttime lagoon show with ace emcee Neil Patrick Harris, Eric Goldberg really had
to step up Mickey's game. Which is why this master Disney animator created
several minutes of all-new Mouse animation which then showed that Mickey was
just as skilled a showman as Neil was.


Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc.
All rights reserved

Better yet, let's take a look at what the folks at Avalanche Studios just went
through as they attempted to create a Classic version of Mickey & Minnie.
One that would then allow this popular pair to become part of Disney Infinity
3.0.

"I won't lie to you. We were under a lot of pressure to
get the look of this particular version of Mickey — he's called Red Pants
Mickey around here — just right," said Jeff Bunker, the VP of Art
Development at Avalanche Studios, during a recent phone interview. "When
we brought Sorcerer Mickey into Disney Infinity 1.0 back in January of 2014,
that one was relatively easy because … Well, everyone knows what Mickey Mouse
looked like when he appeared in 'Fantasia.' "


Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc. All rights reserved

"But this time around, we were being asked to design
THE Mickey & Minnie," Bunker continued. "And given that these Classic
Disney characters have been around in various different forms for the better
part of the last century … Well, which look was the right look?"

Which is why Jeff and his team at Avalanche Studios began watching hours &
hours of Mickey Mouse shorts. As they tried to get a handle on which look would
work best for these characters in Disney Infinity 3.0.


Copyright Disney
Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved

"And we went all the way back to the very start of Mickey's career. We began
with 'Steamboat Willie' and then watched all of those black & white Mickey shorts
that Walt made back in the late 1920s & early 1930s. From there, we
transitioned to his Technicolor shorts. Which is when Mickey went from being
this pie-eyed, really feisty character to more of a well-behaved leading
man," Bunker recalled. "We then finished out our Mouse marathon by
watching all of those new Mickey shorts that Paul Rudish & his team have
been creating for Disney Television Animation. Those cartoons really recapture
a lot of the spirit and wild slapstick fun that Mickey's early, black &
white shorts had."

But given that the specific assignment that Avalanche Studios had been handed
was to create the most appealing looking, likeable version of Mickey Mouse
possible … In the end, Jeff and his team wound up borrowing bits & pieces
from a lot of different versions of the world's most famous mouse. So that
Classic Mickey would then look & move in a way that best fit the sort of
gameplay which people would soon be able to experience with Disney Infinity
3.0.


Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc. All rights reserved

"That — in a lot of ways — was actually the toughest
part of the Classic Mickey design project. You have to remember that one of the
key creative conceits of  Disney Infinity
is that all the characters which appear in this game are toys," Bunker
stated. "Okay. So they're beautifully detailed, highly stylized toy
versions of beloved Disney, Pixar, Marvel & Lucasfilm characters. But
they're still supposed to be toys. So our Classic versions of Mickey &
Minnie have the same sort of thickness & sturdiness to them that toys have.
So that they'll then be able to fit right in with all of the rest of the
characters that Avalanche Studios had previously designed for Disney Infinity."

And then there was the matter of coming up with just the
right pose for Classic Mickey & Minnie. Which — to hear Jeff tell the
story — involved input from a lot of Disney upper management.


Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc. All rights reserved

"Everyone within the Company seemed to have an opinion
about how Mickey & Minnie should be posed. More to the point, if you Google
Mickey, you then discover that there are literally thousands of poses out there
for these two. Though — truth be told — a lot of those kind of play off the
way Mickey poses when he's being Disney's corporate symbol," Bunker said.
"But what I was most concerned about was that Mickey's pose had to work
with Minnie's pose. Because we were bringing the Classic versions of these
characters up into Disney Infinity 3.0 at the exact same time. And we wanted to
make sure — especially for those fans who like to put their Disney Infinity
figures on display — that Mickey's pose would then complement Minnie.

Which is why Jeff & the crew at Avalanche Studios
decided — when it came to Classic Mickey & Minnie's pose — that they
should go all the way back to the beginning. Which is why these two Disney icons
are sculpted in such a way that it almost seems as though you're witnessing the
very first time Mickey set eyes on Minnie.


Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc. All rights reserved

"And what was really great about that was — as soon as
we began showing people within the Company this pose — everyone at Disney
quickly got on board with the idea. I mean, the Classic Mickey that we sculpted
for Disney Infinity 3.0 is clearly a very playful, spunky character. But at the
same time, he's obviously got eyes for Minnie," Bunker concluded. "So
in the end, we were able to come up with Classic versions of these characters
that will work well within the creative confines of Disney Infinity 3.0 but at
the same time please those Disney fans who just collect these figures because
they like the way the Disney Infinity characters look."

So now that this particular design project is over, does
Jeff regret that Mouse House upper management was so hands-on when it came to
making sure that the Classic versions of Mickey & Minnie were specifically
tailored to fit the look & style of gameplay found in Disney Infinity 3.0?


Copyright Lucasfilm / Disney
Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved

"To be blunt, we go through this every time we add a new character to the
game. The folks at Lucasfilm were just as hands-on when we were designing the
versions of Darth Vader and Yoda that will also soon be appearing in Disney
Infinity 3.0," Bunker laughed. "So in the end, if the character's
creators AND the fans are happy, then I'm happy."

This article was originally posted on the Huffington Post's Entertainment page on Tuesday, June 9, 2015

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