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 poor women had spent the bulk of
that day working in this exhibit's
"Patriotic Legacy" room. Which — to quote from the map that Ronald
Reagan staffers hand off to every person who buys a ticket to
"Treasures" — is the room which …
… explores the special relationships Presidents of the
United States and, in particular, Ronald Reagan, have shared throughout the years
with Walt Disney and the company that bears his name.
Anyway … A big highlight of the "Patriotic
Legacy" portion of this exhibit is
that it features all 44 busts of the U.S. Presidents which the Imagineers had sculpted
prior to the construction of the Audio-Animatronic figures for the "Hall
of Presidents" attraction at WDW's Magic Kingdom.
Photo by Jim Hill
So why did I say "poor woman" in regards to the
docent who'd been assigned to cover this one particular room in the "Treasures
of the Walt Disney Archives" exhibit? Well, as I overheard her explaining to
her co-worker, all day long, she'd been
standing in front of these extremely fragile busts (which are only separated
from the public by this flimsy velvet rope). And every hour or so, a
kid would enter the "Patriotic Legacy" room, growl and then loudly
proclaim "I'M GONNA WRECK IT!" And then this docent would then feel
like she had to keep an extra-close watch on this child, all because he-or-she
had just announced their intention to destroy part of this exhibit space.
It was at this point in their conversation that I just
couldn't help myself. I walked over to the two docents and asked them if they'd
heard about "Wreck-It Ralph," the new animated feature which Walt
Disney Studios would be releasing to theaters later this Fall. These two ladies
then admitted that they didn't know anything about that upcoming Walt Disney
Animation Studios production.
"Well, there's a huge picture of the title character
from this animated feature towards the end of that photo collage which is
located right at the entrance to the 'Patriotic Legacy' room," I
explained. "And just so you know: Wreck-It Ralph is a video game character
whose catchphrase is 'I'M GONNA WRECK
IT!' "
Photo by Jim Hill
You should have seen the relief wash over these two docents
when they realized that the little kids who had
been touring "D23 presents Treasures of the Walt Disney
Archives" weren't actually looking to bust any of those presidential busts.
But — rather — these kids were just quoting what they'd heard Ralph say in the "Wreck-It Ralph" trailer.
But in a strange sort of way, that's what's really great
about this 12,000 square-foot exhibit. "D23 presents Treasures of the Walt
Disney Archives' isn't just some fond look back at what the Ol' Mousetro accomplished
over the course of his life (EDITOR'S NOTE: Just so we're clear here. The
previous sentence shouldn't be seen as a knock on the Walt Disney Family Museum.
Which actually does an excellent job of showcasing & illuminating
everything that Walt did during his 60+ years on the planet. If you haven't yet
made your way up to The Presidio at San Francisco to check this place out, make
plans to do so NOW). But — rather — the more-that-500 artifacts on display
here take you all the way from the "Alice Comedies" & the
Oswald-the-Lucky-Rabbit cartoons right up to the Studio's latest blockbusters,
"Marvel's The Avengers" and Pixar's "Brave." As well as
giving exhibit attendees a quick sneak peek over the horizon at Disney's
holiday 2012 release, "Wreck-It Ralph."
So is "D23 presents Treasures of the Walt Disney
Archives" perfect? Well, I have to admit that I could have done without much
of the "Fantastic Creations for Heroes and Heroines" portion of this
exhibit. Which seemed to have primarily been built around the costumes which
various celebrities wore while they were being photographed by Annie Leibowitz
for that "Disney Dream" print
ad campaign.
But that said, I have to admit that it was pretty cool to
get to see Iron-Man's armor as well as Tony Stark's racecar from "Iron Man 2
" …
Photo by Jim Hill
… not to mention great theme park curios like the head from
the original Maleficent-as-dragon figure which used to appear in Disneyland's
"Fantasmic!" nighttime waterfront extravaganza. As well as the Mickey
Mouse AA figure which used to conduct Disney's all-star character orchestra in
the "Mickey Mouse Revue" attraction at WDW's Magic Kingdom.
Photo by Jim Hill
That's what I genuinely enjoyed about "Treasures of the
Walt Disney Archives." exhibit. The obvious effort that the D23 team had
put into trying to make this exhibit as comprehensive & as balanced as they
possibly could. Including displays which would be sure to appeal to hardcore
Disney history buffs (EX: Walt's office …
Photo by Jim Hill
… as well as the Pinocchio costume that studio staffers
used while they were shooting live-action reference footage for Disney's second
full-length animated feature).
Photo by Jim Hill
But at the same time, Steven Clark & Co. made a point of
including props & costumes which would obviously appeal to baby boomers.
People whose favorite Disney films — like "Babes in Toyland
" …
Photo by Jim Hill
… "Mary Poppins" …
Photo by Jim Hill
… "The Happiest Millionaire" …
Photo by Jim Hill
… and "Bedknobs & Broomsticks" …
Photo by Jim Hill
… — were all produced in the 1960s / early 1970s.
Mind you, the Studio's sci-fi adventure epics (like 1954's
"20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" …
Photo by Jim Hill
and 1982's "TRON") are represented in
"Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives."
Photo by Jim Hill
As are Disney's run of hit hand-drawn animated features from
the 1990s.
Photo by Jim Hill
Likewise the Studio's modern era billion-dollar blockbusters
(i.e. the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies …
Photo by Jim Hill
… and "Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland").
Photo by Jim Hill
These items from Disney's most recent hit films are
admittedly very cool to look at. But as a theme park history buff, I have to
admit that — me personally — the very best part of "D23 presents
Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives" was getting the chance to take an
up-close look at the Oscar AA figure from "Country Bear Jamboree" …
Photo by Jim Hill
…as well as the RX-24 droid from the original version of
"Star Tours" …
Photo by Jim Hill
… and the Hitchhiking Ghosts from Walt Disney World's
version of "The Haunted Mansion."
Photo by Jim Hill
Now please understand that — all by itself — the Ronald
Reagan Library is well worth a drive out to Simi Valley. I mean, how many times
do you get the chance to see an actual chunk of the Berlin Wall and/or wander
through Air Force One?
Photo by Jim Hill
But for Disneyana fans, the reason that they'll be willing
to make that two hour-long drive from the Disneyland Resort to the Ronald
Reagan Presidential Library & Museum is to see what Steven Clark, Becky
Cline and the rest of the team have hauled out of the various warehouses,
storage cabinets and cubby holes that the Walt Disney Archives has stashed
stuff in over the past 40+ years.
Be warned, though: This genuinely comprehensive look at Walt
Disney and all that the Company which bears his name has accomplished is only
slated to run at the Reagan through April of 2013. And given that "D23 presents
Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives" has already proven to be quite
popular (with hundreds of museum patrons patiently standing in line daily in a
queue that actually wraps itself around both the inside & the outside of
the Library's main lobby area. As these people wait for their specific entry
time to begin so that they can then begin touring this multi-level exhibit
space), it is strongly recommended that you purchase your tickets well in advance of your
visit at www.ReaganLibrary.com/Treasures.
Photo by Jim Hill
The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum is located
at 40 Presidential Drive in Simi Valley, CA. It's open 10:00 a.m. until 5:00
p.m. every day of the week, except Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New
Year's Day. For further information on the Library & Museum itself as well
as the "Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives" exhibit, please visit
the official Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum website.