General

Wednesdays with Wade: The Disney / New Orleans Connection

As that city along the Mississippi continues to struggle as it tries to recover from the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina, Wade Sampson reminds us why New Orleans occupied such a special place in Walt Disney’s heart.

Published

19 years ago

September 6, 2005

Jim Korkis

The continuing tragedy in New Orleans is heightened for me by the fact that Walt Disney had a special affection for that city and that affection was clearly reflected in his theme parks.

I suppose most Disney fans would immediately think of “New Orleans Square” in Disneyland as the major connection. It was the first new “land” added to the theme park since it opened in 1955. It was officially dedicated on July 24, 1966 by Walt and the Mayor of New Orleans, Victor Schiro. A reporter for a New Orleans newspaper wrote that “it’s the next best thing to being there” and repeated the information from the Disney publicity material that it was built for almost the exact amount paid for the entire Louisiana Purchase in 1803.

When New Orleans Square opened you could hear the chants and ringing bells of a voodoo queen living off a balcony on the backside of the Square near the bathrooms and the train station. I always wondered if it was the infamous Marie Laveau who practiced voodoo in New Orleans in the 1700s and 1800s. After all, her portrait could be found in both “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Haunted Mansion” when those attractions opened.

It wouldn’t have bothered Walt whose massive personal apartment was being built over the “Pirates of the Caribbean” ride where his wife Lilly would have been able to easily visit the nearby “One-of-A-Kind Shop” filled with antiques.

At the dedication, Walt said, “Disneyland has always had a Big River and a Mississippi sternwheeler. It made

sense to build a new attraction at the bend of the river, and so New Orleans Square came into being – a New Orleans of a century ago when she was the ‘Gay Paree’ of the American frontier.”

However, Walt’s interest in New Orleans goes back to his childhood and his fascination of the big steamboats that journeyed from St. Louis, Missouri down the Mississippi to New Orleans. In fact, one of the things young Walt was looking forward to when he returned from France was to take a trip down the Mississippi on one of those steamboats.

The first Mickey Mouse cartoon took place on one of those steamboats and the song “Steamboat Bill” was about a steamboat trying to beat the record of the Robert E. Lee to race to New Orleans.

On a trip to New Orleans in 1946 with his wife, Lillian, who was an avid antiques collector and loved shopping in the collectibles shops, Walt discovered a small golden birdcage with a singing bird and wondered if this type of technology could be duplicated on a larger scale. Most research describes this moment as the beginnings of audio-animatronics.

When Disneyland opened in 1955, Walt had plans for the development of a New Orleans section next to the “Jungle Cruise”. “Aunt Jemima’s Pancake House” (later “Aunt Jemima’s Kitchen” when it expanded in 1962 and then eventually the “Magnolia Tree Terrace” and finally the “River Belle Terrace”) featured wrought-iron balconies in the style of New Orleans.

At the opening day ceremonies, hosts Ronald Reagan and Bob Cummings both referred to the New Orleans flavor at the edge of Frontierland and the famous “Firehouse Five” played Dixieland jazz to inaugurate the area. A Disneyland postcard of the area stated: “down on New Orleans Street over in Frontierland…finest barbeque this side of the Mississippi…”

It was Walt who created “Dixieland at Disneyland” that debuted at the Carnation Gardens on October 1, 1960 and featured big name entertainers playing Dixieland Jazz. (Dixieland Jazz is more frantic and faster than Chicago Jazz or New York Jazz. Dixieland mixes elements of military bands with street parades and adds syncopation and rhythmic swing.)

The following year (September 1961) saw Louis Armstrong join the performances that had been moved to the Mark Twain steamboat. This event was filmed for “Disneyland After Dark” that was shown April 15, 1962 on the Disney television show and later released theatrically as a short subject both domestically and overseas.

Armstrong, who was born in New Orleans, performed again in 1962 and 1964-1967. In 1968, he even recorded an album entitled “Disney Songs the Satchmo Way” that brought the flavor of New Orleans to Disney standards. (Louis Prima who was the voice of King Louie in “Jungle Book” was also born in New Orleans.)

However, it was not just this special event that showcased the music of New Orleans. The streets of Frontierland echoed with the sounds of the South from groups like “Young Men from New Orleans” (the gag being they were anything but young) who performed from 1955-1966.

Johnny St. Cyr was the leader of the small group that included vocalist Monette Moore, Johnny St. Cyr (banjo), Kid Ory (trombone) Joe Darensbourg/Paul Barn – clarinet, Harvey Brooks – piano, Alton Redd – drums and Mike Delay – trumpet. He continued to perform at Disneyland until his death in 1966 and the “Young Men From New Orleans” can be seen in the “Disneyland After Dark” special as well as clips from various Disneyland parades.

Another group was “Royal Street Bachelors” that performed starting in 1966. The leader, Jack McVea, was personally hired by Walt Disney himself. McVea kept the job for twenty-seven years, retiring in 1992. McVea was a famous musician in his own right having written the song “Open the Door Richard” in 1946. The original “Royal Street Bachelors” who all played string instruments included Harold Grant (who was replaced by Ernest McLean when Grant passed away) and Herb Gordy.

Other groups that kept the flair alive at Disneyland were the “Side Street Strutters” (that had a horn section) and “Bayou Brass” (that had a Cajun flavor).

The Disneyland parades were even influenced by New Orleans. Blaine Kern is known as “Mr. Mardi Gras” because when the Mardi Gras parades were offering only dim shadows of past glories in the Fifties, Kern became an innovator at creating fanciful, outlandish floats that included storybook characters whose heads turned and whose eyes moved.

In 1959, Kern met Walt Disney who was visiting Mardi Gras in search of new ideas. Walt was quite taken with one of Kern’s more inspired creations: an18-foot-tall King Kong-like gorilla, with five men inside, that walked and made facial expressions. Remember this was when Walt was still trying to get a grip on the concept of audio-animatronics for his park attractions. Disney showed a clip of Kern’s gorilla in an episode of his television program entitled “Carnival Time” where Ludwig Von Drake sends Donald Duck to report on the Mardi Gras in New Orleans.

Walt offered Kern a job to work as an Imagineer designing floats for Disneyland as well as working on other projects. Kern’s boss, Darwin Fenner (the son of the Fenner in the Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner and Smith) convinced Kern to say “no” to Walt.

Fenner reminded Kern of his love for New Orleans, and his passion for Mardi Gras. According to Kern, “Fenner said, ‘Son, let me tell you: You stay here in New Orleans, you’re gonna be a big fish in a little pond. You go out there, you’re gonna be a small fish in a big pond.’ He said, ‘Your fortune will be here in the future. Mardi Gras is democratizing, it’s opening up to everybody.’ “

However, Walt’s studying of Kern’s work helped inspire the re-design of Disneyland parades. Today, Kern’s son, Barry, carries on the family tradition and he is the builder and designer of props and sculptures for Disney and other theme parks.

Of course, the most notable New Orleans influence on a Disney parade was the famous “Party Gras” parade in Disneyland in 1990 to celebrate “35 Years of Magic”. In fact, the parade was so impressive that it was shipped out to Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom in 1991 to help celebrate the Twentieth anniversary of that park.

Singer, dancers, and stiltwalkers threw beads and a special Party Gras coin to guests and occasionally the parade stopped so the guests could participate. Huge forty feet tall floats of Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, Pluto and Roger Rabbit rolled down the street and seemed to dwarf the Main Street buildings.

In the early 1980s, *** Nunis pushed for an expansion of the Shopping Village at Lake Buena Vista (better known as “Downtown Disney” today) by creating a moderately priced themed resort to resemble Port Orleans. The Empress Lilly restaurant would have been a steamboat that had docked to unload its cargo at this riverfront town where the guest rooms would have been “hidden” in buildings resembling a cotton mill or a boatwrights shop.

A New Orleans themed resort did appear on Walt Disney World property on May 17, 1991 thanks to Fugleberg Koch Architects of Winter Park, Florida in collaboration with Disney Development Company. It was characteristic of the New Orleans French Quarter with balconies, wrought iron railings, cobblestone streets, and courtyards but with Disney touches like trombone playing alligators. Blaine Kern Artists, Inc. were responsible for collecting and creating the many Mardi Gras props, such as the jesters. Some of the Mardi Gras decorative props were purchased directly from Mardi Gras warehouses in New Orleans. (On March 1, 2001, it officially merged with “Dixie Landings” and became Port Orleans: French Quarter.)

There are other more subtle connections as well but my sadness at the plight of the population of New Orleans that will be felt for years is increased by the realization of the many Disney touches that were inspired by that famous location and its colorful residents.

Hey, gang. Jim Hill here. Wasn’t that a great column by Wade Sampson today? Reminding us of all the strong connections that the Walt Disney Company has with that city along the Mississippi. Mind you, due to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, it may be years before New Orleans regains much of the charm that made this place so enticing to Walt Disney. Which is why it’s crucial that we now all do what we can to help this city and its citizens get back on their feet.

So if you’d like to help out the on-going relief efforts, both Wade and I strongly suggest that you hammer on this link. Thanks in advance for your help.

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

10 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

10 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