General

Ken Anderson and the Haunted Mansion — Part II

New JHM contributor Wade Sampson returns with the conclusion of his debut column. Which goes into great detail about Disney Legend Ken Anderson originally envisioned for Disneyland’s “Haunted Mansion.”

Published

21 years ago

October 29, 2003

Jim Korkis

In the last installment (of this JHM series), I gave (you) a little bit of background about Ken Anderson’s approach to the Haunted Mansion concept. In this installment, let’s join a walking tour of Bloodmere Manor as it was conceived in 1957.

For the front porch of the mansion, Ken had written a one and half minute speech to be recorded by Walt Disney (some of which I included above when I first mentioned “Bloodmere Manor”in the previous installment) which would have explained the strange history of the house and ended with Walt explaining:

“The guide is made necessary by another strange characteristic of the house. It has rotted so long in the dank fastness of its lost hiding place in the swamps that not even Southern California sunshine or the best efforts of electricians and illumination engineers can dispel the dimness of the bayous…it mysteriously remains always night within the house…the night in which all ghosts are condemned to live. Now we cannot promise you that anything at all will occur during your visit…since it is usually in the wee small hours that the departed ones live it up…However, be prepared to see and hear something or other, and take whatever precautions you please. We recommend that you stay close together during your visit and please…above all…obey the guide’s instructions. Thank you.”

Once inside the house, the guests would immediately experience some sound effects and even an invisible ghost writing on the wall: “Foolish mortals…go home!” However, a butler appears and assures the guests they don’t need to worry. “He’s only a ghost writer!” The butler explains that the last group he took through had the good fortune to see a good deal of ghostly activity.

As the butler talks, a panel in the wall behind him opens and a “huge, hairy arm gropes menacingly” but the butler easily avoids it and warns the guests not to get too close to the walls and to stay with the group at all times during their visit “because Hairy the Arm, who was the insane brute of a man servant for the old Blood family, delights in picking off stray visitors”.

The group then passes through a gallery of portraits leading into the Library. The butler instructs the guests to come to the dead center so he can describe the portraits of the infamous ghosts because “the unfortunate Blood Family which inhabited the house in life had a tremendous circle of acquaintances and an international reputation as hosts. The supreme tragedy of the house occurred while the Blood Family was hosting numerous friends on the eve of the real life wedding of their beautiful daughter. An event too horrible to mention prevented the wedding and it has been rumored that on every anniversary for the last 150 years the ghosts have been attempting to complete the ceremony which would lift the curse on the house.”

An amazing thing about these portraits are that at first glance they appear quite normal “but on second glance, the eyes of each portrait appear to stare back directly at the viewer and follow him relentlessly wherever he moves.”

The guests are then led into a huge dimly lighted library. As the butler points out some of the items in the room, the group is joined by the “Lonesome Ghost” who is shunned by other ghosts because he likes people better than his ghostly peers. At first, the group only hears the ghost but then the butler directs them to look at the huge mirror hanging over the fireplace and the guests see not only their own reflection but the image of the Lonesome Ghost apparently moving through the group as he speaks.

The Lonesome Ghost is excited because “two of our ghosts from prominent old ghost families are getting married” today. The ghost directs the guests’ attention to more portraits in the library. As he talks about each portrait, an eerie light illuminates it and the portrait changes.

Here are some of Ken Anderson’s suggestions from 1957: “As a typical example of the type of reaction, a portrait of the blue-blooded relative will seem to fill up with blue blood like a bottle filling with liquid, sound effects and all. Also a maiden aunt with an austere face will coyly wink and the portrait of a gay blade will disintegrate ala Dorian Gray, etc.”

Does any of this sound familiar? While my admiration for Marc Davis is boundless, Ken Anderson’s descriptions of humorously changing portraits was suggested before Marc even became involved with the project.

Hairy the Arm makes another grab for the butler who tells the group they will need to wait in the room for a bit but the Lonesome Ghost suggests another alternative and suddenly the group hears his voice from an adjoining room beyond the walls.

“Oh dear me,” moans Lonesome, “I forgot you mortals can’t walk through the walls…you’ll have to use the bookcase…”

A bookcase creaks open allowing the guests to enter a room called the “Gallery” where they get to experience a screaming female ghost whose head separates from her body. It is the ghost of Anne Boleyn who was beheaded by her husband. “Of course she’ll have to pull herself together in time for the wedding,” remarks Lonesome who will now disappear from the group for awhile when the guests start to leave.

As the butler tries to lead the group out a large double door, the shadowy figure of Hairy the Arm is seen as it throws a knife which sticks in the wall panel across the room, forcing the guide to take the group through a secret wall panel.
In this new room, the butler is on the bedroom level when the group arrives in the bedroom at one end on a raised platform separated by a railing from the main floor. Originally, this platform was only a foot or two above the rest of the room…but now it has three separate levels so all the guests can see equally well into the bedroom.

There are a series of ghostly gags that take place in the bedroom including “five hideous little Charles Addams type children monsters who sit up in bed and glower at the visitors as they chorus: ‘EEK! PEOPLE!’…a door opens revealing an invisible bather taking a bath using a visible sponge, brush and wash cloth…and singing ‘I’ll Be Glad When You’re Dead You Rascal You’…” (It’s our old friend, Lonesome, getting prepared for the wedding.)

During these displays, Hairy the Arm pulls the butler into the wall and the room goes pitch black with only the sounds of fighting and then silence. The lights come back on with a disheveled butler appearing to usher the guests into a large oval room called the “Salon”.

The room slants toward a large bay window which displays a windy moonlit scene of distant bayous. As the guests watch, clouds obscure the moon, there are flashes of thunder and lightning and ghostly skeletons seem to rise from marble tombs and float towards the guests. There is a distant sound of pounding hoofs that signal the approach of the Headless Horseman who is eventually seen galloping through the tops of the small trees and overgrown shrubs.

A fireplace near the guests mysteriously rises and Lonesome reappears to invite the guests to follow him to the wedding. The guests enter an octagonal shaped room with rough unfinished walls and ceiling and windows on three sides with broken panes. Suddenly the storm breaks outside in full intensity with rain drenching the windows and more arriving ghosts (some with skeleton umbrellas).
A series of brilliant lightning flashes reveal the transparency of the ceiling…as it goes transparent guests can see at the highest point in the peaked ceiling is the ghost of a figure in full dress clothes…hanging by the neck. Does that sound familiar?

Since the room seems to be filling up, the guests are ushered into another short mirrored hallway and as guests look in the mirrors they see not only their reflections but the transparent reflections of ghostly visitors heading in the same direction. Ken actually wanted some of those ghosts to be famous like Dracula, Frankenstein, the Hunchback of Notre Dame, Phantom of the Opera, Scrooge and Marley, Little Eva and Simon Legree, Jack the Ripper, the Canterville Ghost, Captain Hook, King Tut, etc. According to Ken’s notes, apparently blacklight would be used in this effect as well.

Eventually, the guests would be in a large octagonal shaped room with mirrors on all sides. Even the doors are mirrored so that guests can clearly see in the mirrors all the ghosts who are attending the wedding and chattering away about gossip like the wedding gifts of a matched set of poisoned darts, guillotine bookends, etc. The Lonesome Ghost mingles through the group of ghosts.

The sound of wedding bells causes all the ghosts to disappear, leaving only the reflection of the guests who move into “The Great Hall” where the wedding is to take place. On the lower floor is a long table with a wedding cake, candles and flowers all covered in cobwebs. An invisible ghost plays an old pump organ. Well, all of this is starting to sound familiar as well.

The groom appears as does the bride on the opposite side who floats toward him. He tenderly reaches out and takes her head off and kisses it. She retaliates with a resounding slap. This action is repeated several times. This causes lights to flash, thunder claps, rattling shutters. The groom kisses her again and is slapped again. Suddenly the music gets faster and faster to crazy rhythm. Footprints run all around the floor and walls below while furniture is upset and the organ is now joined by various floating jazz instruments. The storm builds to a climax. The ceiling collapses and rain pours down to the floor below.

As things intensify, the butler leads the guest into the “Trophy Room” where the skulls of ghostly animals on the wall stare back at the group as the portraits did in the “Portrait Hall”. The group is rushed through a fireplace, still hearing the pounding rain and the loud chaos behind them. As they are led outside, they are surprised to see that it is not raining at all. (Remember this is years before the Tiki Room as well.)

The butler attempts to discuss the Blood Family crypt and graves which the guests still have to visit, but Hairy the Arm grabs the butler and pulls him back into the house with a bloodcurdling yell. The tour is finished and apparently so is the poor tour guide.

In the garden crypt, “visitors will be given the opportunity to buy pieces of ghost wedding cake neatly wrapped in shroud material, and tied with a bow of ribbon…suitable for placing under the pillow for inducing dreams, or Lonesome Ghost lapel buttons which plug a visit to the Ghost House…or Lonesome ghost balloons, complete with floating China silk shrouds (and Ken drew a quick sketch to show what this might look like)…In the high walled and fenced garden, the visitors may take many paths all leading to the exit. There will be knee bones, foot bones, and skulls protruding occasionally from the silent paths. A statue in a secluded spot in the unkempt, overgrown garden animates mysteriously at timed intervals. In one corner of the garden is a typical graveyard with epitaphs to be inspected, while closer to the exit gate is a wishing well with an echo effect.”

Ken Anderson moved back from WED to the Studios in the late Fifties for a variety of reasons and spent much of the next years working on the Disney animated feature films. In 1964, Walt Disney assigned the task of the Haunted Mansion to Marc Davis, Claude Coats and X. Atencio while Rolly Crump and Yale Gracey developed a “Museum of the Weird” which would have been a “spill area” near the attraction where guests could enter and exit at their leisure before going through the main attraction.

In later years, Marc Davis was quite vocal about how Walt didn’t want a storyline for the attraction and that when Walt died, there was a struggle over the direction. Most Disney fans agree that the first part of the attraction with its spooky elements reflect the contributions of Crump, Gracey and Anderson while the second part of the attraction, especially the graveyard scene, is indicative of the more humorous approach of Davis.

This disjointed approach has resulted in cast members and guests creating their own cohesive storyline for the attraction utilizing bits and pieces of the various different storylines from the original proposals. However, looking over Ken Anderson’s concepts from the late Fifties, it becomes instantly apparent that he should receive greater recognition for his contribution to the attraction. Just a short summary of one of his proposals reveals many elements from the transparent ceiling revealing a hanged gentleman to portraits which transformed humorously before your eyes to looking in a glass reflection to see both a guest and a ghost which are some of the most memorable experiences in one of Disney’s most popular attractions. So all of these ideas were in place before other talented Imagineers were assigned to the project nearly five years later.

Even the best researcher in the world relies on the contributions of others and for this article I would like to give my thanks to Ken Anderson, Paul Anderson (no relation but the guy who should be writing a biography of Ken Anderson), Jim Korkis, J. M. Ryan and most especially John Richard McDermott who introduced me to the world of Disney nearly three decades ago.

General

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

Published

9 years ago

June 23, 2015

Jim Hill

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

… 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.

General

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

Published

9 years ago

June 10, 2015

Jim Hill

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?

General

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

Published

9 years ago

June 9, 2015

Jim Hill

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.' "

"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.

"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.

"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.

"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.

"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?

"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