General
Why “Western River” Went South — Part 9
Before you hit the trail, check out a few more stories about the greatest attraction that never was !
A NOTE TO READERS: You know, you’d think – after eight long, drawn out chapters – you people would have had enough of “Western River Expedition.” (I know *I* have.) But – judging by all the notes that keep turning up in my mailbox – you folks still have a lot of questions about this proposed WDW attraction.
So – before we officially say “adios” to Thunder Mesa – I’m going to try to tie up a few loose ends.
Like: What do the “America Sings” figures being in “Splash Mountain” have to do with Tony Baxter trying to make it up to Marc Davis?
In Part 6 of this story, I mentioned the grudge that Marc Davis held toward Tony Baxter. Davis felt that Baxter had done him wrong by proposing a different attraction to be built on the “Western River Expedition” construction site.
To this day, Baxter insists that he wasn’t out to deliberately undercut Marc’s plans. He was just attempting to make Thunder Mesa’s secondary attraction – a runaway mine train ride – as good as possible.
According to Tony, it was Card Walker who came up with the idea of pulling “Big Thunder Mountain Railway” out of the main Thunder Mesa show building so that it could become a stand-alone show. It was only then – when “Big Thunder Mountain Railway” and “Western River Expedition” began being perceived as separate attractions – that the two shows went head to head for the Frontierland “E” Ticket slot.
Of course, we all know which ride won this competition. What’s not generally known outside of WDI is how personally Marc took the news that “WRE” wasn’t going to be built. Davis was angry with Tony for years after this.
Okay. We’ve recapped that part of the story. Now it’s time to touch on what Baxter did to try and make it up to Marc.
Right from the start, it’s important to understand that Tony Baxter is a really nice guy. Generous with his time and talent, quick with a compliment or a kind word, Tony is highly thought of at WDI. There are Imagineers that claim that they’ve never heard Baxter say a bad word about anybody.
(Mind you, there are some at Imagineering who wish that Baxter *COULD* bring himself to say something negative – particularly about Disney’s California Adventure Theme Park. They believe that if Tony had challenged Paul Pressler and Barry Braverman early on about some of their creative decisions concerning DCA, Anaheim’s expansion project wouldn’t be in such a mess about now … But that’s a story for another time.)
ANYWAY … Tony Baxter is a nice guy. More importantly, he *LIKES* the idea that he’s thought of as a nice guy. That’s why Tony was so troubled by the idea that Marc Davis was mad at him.
Here was this Disney Legend, this master of animation as well as Imagineering, that Baxter had inadvertently slighted. Tony tried apologizing to Marc in person. Davis just grumbled in reply.
As the 1970s slipped into the 1980s, Baxter became recognized as one of the modern masters of Imagineering. After helping to create Epcot’s original “Journey into Imagination” attraction, Tony was the driving force behind Disneyland’s New Fantasyland. Baxter then pushed Disney to forge an alliance with George Lucas, which eventually lead to “Captain EO,” “Star Tours” and the “Indiana Jones Adventure.” If you stumble across something good in a Disney theme park in the 1980s, chances are that Tony Baxter was somehow involved with that project.
And yet – Tony was still bothered by how his big break had come about. By choosing Baxter’s “Big Thunder Mountain Railway” over Marc’s “Western River Expedition,” Card Walker had kicked Tony’s Imagineering career into over-drive. But – in the process – Marc Davis’ dream (and over five years of hard work) were swept aside.
As the 1980s rolled around, Tony too had had his share of disappointment. Baxter had also dreamed up a magnificent mega-attraction for a Disney theme park – Discovery Bay – that Card Walker had (after years of hemming and hawing) opted not to build. So Tony now knew from experience what Marc must have gone through with “Western River.” And it didn’t feel very good.
So now it’s 1983. And Tony Baxter is caught in traffic on the Santa Ana Freeway. To kill time, Tony thinks about all the stuff that’s waiting for him on his desk once he finally arrives at work in Glendale.
There’ll be yet another memo from *** Nunis, president of Disneyland and Walt Disney World. Nunis has been nagging Baxter for years now to come with a flume ride for the Disney theme parks. Tony’s been reluctant to work on this project since A) every run- of- the- mill theme park has a flume ride, B) Disneyland and WDW’s Magic Kingdom *AREN’T* run- of- the- mill theme parks, so C) Baxter has to come up with a tactful way to tell *** Nunis that the Disney theme parks *SHOULDN’T* have flume rides.
Plus Disneyland management was looking for WED to come up with ways to lure guests back into Bear Country. It turned out that the “Country Bear Jamboree” show wasn’t nearly as big a hit with Disneyland guests as it had been with WDW visitors. Without sufficient guest traffic back in this part of the Anaheim park, Bear Country’s shops and restaurants weren’t meeting their revenue projections.
Then there’s the trouble with Tomorrowland. It’s been 16 years since Disneyland last got a new Tomorrowland and that side of the park is really showing its age. Most of the shows over there are ridiculously dated and out- of -step – particularly “America Sings.”
This audio animatronic musical extravaganza may have been popular with Disneyland guests back when it first opened in June 1974. But – once the hoopla surrounding America’s Bicentennial faded – attendance levels at this Tomorrowland attraction dropped off drastically. Nowadays, Most “AS” showsran with fewer than 50 people inside each theater
Even so, Tony was reluctant to do anything about “America Sings” because … Well, over the 9 year run of the show, he had grown fond of the show’s 100+ figures. Baxter believes that the AA cast featured in this Tomorrowland show was some of Marc Davis’ finest work.
(Tony wasn’t alone in his assessment of “America Sings.” Though many WDW guests still marvel at the audio animatronic Ben Franklin figure that walks upstairs in Epcot’s “American Adventure,” most Imagineers will tell you that Ben doesn’t move half as well as the alligator Davis designed for “America Sings.” Marc made that AA figure appear as if it were strolling up a set of step out of the subway while singing “See You Later, Alligator.” That 1974 audio animatronic gator had a grace and a fluidity of movement that the 1982 Franklin figure never achieved.)
Plus Tony knew that – if he were to come up with a new attraction for Disneyland’s “America Sings” / “Carousel of Progress” theater – all those great Marc Davis AA figures would end up on the WED scrap heap. Given the minor role he played in “Western River” never making it off the drawing board, Baxter wanted no part in shutting down of the *LAST* theme park attraction Marc Davis ever designed.
And yet – sitting there in his car, trapped in traffic – Tony felt sad. For he knew that whichever Imagineer came up with a new show idea for Disneyland’s “Carousel of Progress,” they’d still end up getting rid of all of Marc’s AA figures. Which was a shame.
But – given their toony style – it was obvious that those “America Sings” AA figures didn’t really belong in Tomorrowland. They’d be better suited for a show set in Frontierland or Bear Country or …
Now, on one knows for sure what weird sort of alchemy occurred in Baxter’s car that morning. Somehow Marc’s “America Sings” figures got mixed up with *** Nunis’ flume ride memo and Bear Country’s dipping attendance levels. But – By the time Tony finally made it into the WED parking lot that morning – he had the whole ride in his head. A flume ride for Bear Country that would make use of all the old “America Sings” figures.
In a way, it *WAS* an ingenious idea. By re-using the “America Sings” characters to people a flume ride for Disneyland, Baxter would create a new attraction for the Anaheim park with a cast that would rival “Pirates of the Caribbean” at virtually no cost. Best of all, Marc’s great AA figures would escape being stripped for parts.
Mind you, it took another four years – and a change of management at the Walt Disney Company – before Baxter got permission to build “Splash Mountain.” By then, Tony and his team at Imagineering had had enough time to play with the model of this proposed Critter Country attraction to include a sly homage to “Western River Expedition.”
Think about it. If Thunder Mesa had actually been built, visitors – after boarding their wooden launch – would have floated over to the first sequence of “Western River Expedition.” Here, they would have glided up a waterfall while listening to the ride’s narrator, Hoot Gibson – an audio animatronic owl – do the standard safety spiel.
Now let’s consider Disneyland’s “Splash Mountain.” In that attraction, guests riding in wooden logs also float over the show’s first sequence – the grist mill at the base of the mountain. But – once they’re inside the grist mill – these same guests pass an audio animatronic owl while gliding up a waterfall.
Do that seem a touch too co-incidental to you?
And consider this ironic factoid: Had Thunder Mesa actually been built in Frontierland at WDW’s Magic Kingdom, it would have risen up out of the ground right behind where the “Briar Patch” shop is currently located.
But – if you think about it – there *IS* a water-based ride featuring Marc Davis designed AA figures rising up behind the “Briar Patch” shop now. It may not feature the exact same cast Marc originally had in mind. But there’s no denying Davis’ influences on “Splash Mountain.”
Think about it: The WDW train rumbles through the “Splash Mountain” show building, giving folks on the train a preview of the attraction – which is what Marc had wanted the train to do while traveling through the “Western River Expedition” show building.
And “Splash Mountain” climaxes with guests zooming down a steep waterfall and racing toward the edge of the Rivers of America – just like guests riding on “WRE” were supposed to do.
Now please don’t think of these pieces of “Western River” turning up in “Splash Mountain” as Tony stealing ideas from Marc. That’s *NOT* what Tony was doing here. Rather, he and his “Splash Mountain” design team were just trying to pay tribute to Davis’ much- beloved- but- never- built Frontierland attraction.
Sure, you’d have to be a bit of a Disney dweeb to get all those obscure references to a ride that was never built. But that pretty much describes 90% of the people currently working at WDI.
Mind you, after all this hard work, it would be nice to report that Marc Davis really appreciated Tony Baxter’s efforts to save his “America Sings” AA figures as well as get some of his ride ideas for “Western River Expedition” finally off the drawing board. But this isn’t a Disney film, kids. This is real life.
In spite of Baxter’s best efforts, Davis was furious that his “America Sings” AA figures had been ripped out of Tomorrowland’s “Carousel of Progress” theater. It didn’t matter to Marc that attendance had fallen away to nothing for the original “AS” show or that millions more people each year now got to see and appreciate his AA figures.
All Marc knew was that one of his attractions he designed been shut down and Tony Baxter was to blame. From the day “America Sings” closed in April 1988 until the day Davis passed away in January 2000, this elder statesman of animation continued to bad-mouth the younger Imagineer.
It’s like they say, folks. No good deed goes unpunished.
By the way, before we move on with the “Western River” stories, I’d like to take a moment here to poke a hole in some Disneyland mythology: If you’ve ever spent any time in the queue area of “Star Tours” with a Disneyana buff, they’ll invariably give you the inside scoop on the two labor droids – G214 & G219 – that you see in the repair bay.
As the story goes, these robots weren’t originally created for “Star Tours.” They’re supposedly two geese AA figures that WDI decided to recycle from Tomorrowland’s recently closed “America Sings” show. So the Imagineers just pulled off these animatronics’ costumes and feathers off, quickly reprogrammed them and – Presto Chango! – “Star Tours” has two additional droids in its repair bay. (That’s reportedly why the robots are named G214 & G219. “G” stands for “goose.”)
Well, that’s a great story and all. Except that “Star Tours” opened on January 9, 1987 and “America Sings” didn’t close ’til April 10, 1988.
So where exactly did these goose droids come from?
Of course, it’s possible that the Imagineers just took two of the singing geese out of “America Sings” to use as labor droids in “Star Tours.” But wouldn’t you think that someone would have noticed two of the attraction’s AA figures were missing?
Alright – enough about “America Sings” and the geese …
Several other D-I-G readers wrote in and asked about the WDW “Western River Expedition” preview display. They’d heard that there was some sort of bizarre story associated with the model.
Indeed there is! This model – which illustrated the sequence where a cowboy on horseback got up on the roof of the town’s saloon – was a beauty. Done to 1′ to 1″ scale, it featured upwards of 10 different characters reacting to this silly scenario. The bartender trying to shoo the man and his mount off the roof. Three saloon girls. Other cowboys who were hooting and a- hollering.
This model – along with a few production paintings nearby – gave WDW guests a real taste of what “Western River Expedition” was going to be like. However, that wasn’t good enough for the Imagineers. As part of their Thunder Mesa, they included an audio animatronic owl.
That’s right. “Hoot Gibson,” the narrator of this proposed Frontierland attraction, sat on a perch in the post show area of the “Walt Disney Story” theater. If you pressed a button near this display, this robotic owl would come to life and – while he explained a bit about audio animatronics – “Hoot” would also give a brief preview of “Western River Expedition.”
Below, you’ll find an exact transcript of the spiel “Hoot Gibson” gave to Walt Disney World guests. I personally recorded this speech during a trip to the Orlando resort in the summer of 1980. (A special thanks here to Michelle – a.k.a. the Fabulous Disney Babe – for transcribing this recording.)
It goes as follows:
This short show opens with Hoot Gibson asleep on his perch. Nearby, a large storybook – labeled “Our Family Tree” – sets on a pedestal. Below this is a mock-up of an audio animatronic programming console.
HOOT(Snores for a moment, then wakes with a start) Woooooo! Who are you? Uh, Who am I? Why, hee hee, I’m the real Hoot Gibson, that’s who. I’m the star of a brand new western show being made for Walt Disney World.
I’m what they call audio anima .. animo… animah .. Hee Hee ! You see, before my kind came along Walt Disney’s Characters were strictly movie- star types. (The book on the pedestal now opens open, revealing a picture of the wise old owl from “Bambi.” ) My grandpa, for example, had one of the lead roles in Bambi.
But with all due respect, he and the rest of the family were sort of flat actors. (The book turns to another page, revealing a family tree of Disney animated owls. ) Yeah, they were these flat drawings.
Well. one day Walt felt it was high time to work up some three dimensional animation. (The book turns to another page, revealing an Imagineer working on an audio animatronic figure.) It took years and years of thinkin’ and tinkerin’.
First there were little bitty figures (The book turns to another page, revealing an Imagineer working on one of the toucans for “the Enchanted Tiki Room”), then full size ones (The book turns to another page, revealing the Imagineers working on the Lincoln AA figure for “Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln), and finally out of all of this came a brand new kind of animation Walt called ani .. anima audio .. audio animatronics.
Today right here in Walt Disney World you see the greatest animated stars here led by the old mousetro himself, Maestro Mickey Mouse (The book turns to another page, revealing the Mickey Mouse AA figure from “The Mickey Mouse Revue”).
I’ll tell you something, though… It wasn’t easy for any of us to break into this kind of showbiz. Why, whooood whood ever thought that even I had to start right at the bottom? (The book turns to another page, revealing Hoot Gibson in one of Marc Davis’ “Western River” concept drawings.) There I was, just a rough idea on an artist’s sketchpad. Hee hee hee!
Next, they made me very carefully into a tiny little model. (The book turns to another page, revealing Hoot Gibson recreated as a tiny macquette for the “WRE” scale model.) Pretty cute, huh?
Just when I figured I was good enough, they did me up full size, big as life. Hee hee! (The book turns to another page, revealing the Hoot Gibson AA figure being assembled.) Well, from the sculptor’s table, I winged over to the workbench to get loaded up with all those nuts and bolts and wires, control hoses and even air hoses… You can’t hoot without an air hose! Oooh hoo hoo hoo!
After that my very own makeup crew came along. Treated me just like a star out of Who’s Whoooo. and finally (The audio animatronic programming console now comes to life, with all sorts of lights flashing and beeps & bips) I got my schoolin’ from a mighty smart fella and his computer console.
One set of switches makes my beak a-snap. Another set of switches gets my wings to flap. They use a bunch of rotors to make my head go ’round. Put them altogether, you’ve got a real cool sound!
(Brief musical interlude while Hoot performs on his perch. The audio animatronic programming console quiets down and the book on the pedestal closes as the demonstration draws to a close.)
Well, that’s my story, folks. I sure hope you’ll come back and see me in the future at the Western River Expedition right here in Walt Disney World.
Now that you know whoooo I am, Whoooo are you?
The Hoot Gibson AA Figure now closes its eye and goes into its rest position on the pedestal, waiting for the next guest to come along, press the button and restart its demonstration program.
The Hoot AA figure and the “Western River Expedition” model were on display in the post show area of the “Walt Disney Story” from April 1973 ’til the Spring of 1981. Then this area was rethemed to serve as the preview center for WDW’s soon- to- be- opening second theme park, Epcot Center.
As guests exited the Epcot preview film that was playing in the “Walt Disney Story” theater, they now encountered a room full of displays hyping all the new shows and attractions top be found in the new theme park. Hoot Gibson also got into the Epcot promotional game. This AA owl had been reprogrammed by WED to serve as a spokesbird for WDW’s newest theme park. Nowhere in his two minute speech did Hoot ever mention “Western River.”
The same thing happened in 1988 when WDW was getting ready to open the Disney / MGM Studio Theme Park. Once again, the post show area of the “Walt Disney Story” theater was redone as a preview center. This time around, Hoot was reprogrammed to play a movie directing owl. Wearing a beret and perched next to a director’s chair, this AA owl tried to convince WDW guests to return to Orlando next year to take part in all the move-making fun that would be found at Disney / MGM.
After that … Well, it appears that Hoot flew the coop. No one at WDW ever saw that audio animatronic owl again. It was assumed that the Imagineers had just packed Hoot away in the same warehouse where they’d stored that “Western River Expedition” model.
Only the Imagineers hadn’t stored that “WRE” model away. When rehabbing the “Walt Disney Story” theater back in 1981, the workman couldn’t be bothered with taking down the elaborate display in the post- show area. So they just sealed the “Western River” model up in the wall – covering up its glass front with a big sheet of fiber board.
13 years later .. Another set of workman were once again renovating the post show area of the “Walt Disney Story” theater. This time, they were making the space into a preview center for WDW’s 25th anniversary celebration. So the workman pulled down some fiber board along one of the walls to find … this long forgotten display hidden away in the wall ! Not only is the ‘Western River Expedition” model still intact … But the tiny lights in the lanterns and the windows of the model are still lit.
The workman who had sealed the display up in the wall 13 years earlier had never bothered to turn off the electricity going to the “WRE” model!
The folks who were redoing the post- show area had no idea what they’d uncovered, so they called the Imagineers. When WDI learned what had been unearthed at the “Walt Disney Story” theater, they moved quickly.
Now please remember that most of the figurines that had been sculpted for the original “Western River” model had disappeared ‘way back in 1975 as part of a mysterious theft at WED. And now here was a sequence from that proposed attraction with all its figurines still intact.
WDI moved fast. The Imagineering office at WDW quickly sent over several staffers to take pictures of the “Western River” model as it had been found. Then each of the figurines and set pieces were carefully packed away in bubble wrap and sent back to WDI headquarters in Glendale, CA. Once there, I’m told that the “WRE” model was lovingly restored and reassembled. It’s now on display in the Imagineering Research Library and is considered one of the true treasures of the WDI collection.
And that – my friends – is the last bit of trivia associated with Thunder Mesa and the proposed “Western River Expedition” ride. I want to thank you all for your patience and understanding with this series. It took a long time for all of us to get to the end of this tale. Hopefully, the wait was worth it.
In particular, I’d like to thank a few individuals for their information, insights and help on this project. These include Mike Lee of the “Widen Your World” web site (Who did the first – and arguably the best – story on “WRE” for the Web). I’d also like to thank James Disney of the “Southern California Coaster Club” web site for lending me his expertise on Disney’s thrill rides. Dan Alexander and Marvin Mitchell also deserve kudos for their insights on “WRE” and other Disney theme park attractions.
And an extra-special “We’re not worthy” goes out to Michelle AKA the Fabulous Disney Babe for coming throooough with that “Hoot Gibson” transcript.
Hope you enjoyed the tale …
GUESS WHAT – this series is finally completed – really – honest – we mean it! Thank you for following along.
General
Seward Johnson bronzes add a surreal, artistic touch to NYC’s Garment District
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.
General
Wondering what you should “Boldly Go” see at the movies next year? The 2015 Licensing Expo offers you some clues
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
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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