Monthly Archives: July 2014
Disney Fan Art: EPCOT Pavilion Coasters
Jul 31
As none of you probably know, I work at a paint your own pottery studio, so I am constantly painting things, and they are usually Disney things. I also have a BFA in Illustration, so just do lots of Disney artwork in general. So, I would like to share with you some of the art and craft type things I have around the house, starting with this coaster set I just made a few days ago. I made stencils of the 4 of the EPCOT pavilion symbols from opening day, laid them on the coasters, painted over them, then glazed them, stilted and loaded them into the kiln, and set them to fire. The set of 4 bisque-ware coasters came with a cute little metal holder as well. They are now all done and sitting in Josh and my living room!
Front View:
Purple: Journey Into Imagination, Blue: Horizons, Green: The Land, Gray: EPCOT Center
Back View:
See more Disney Fan Art here!
Angie Carreiro
Disneyland May 2014 Trip Report
Disney Fairy Tale Weddings Planning Journal
Disney Trip Planning: Disneyland May 2014 Trip Report Part 6 – Day 3 – California Adventure
Jul 29
My birthday was the first day I’d ever been in Disney’s California Adventure, and Josh’s first time seeing it since they added Buena Vista Street and Cars Land. We decided to wait for a Fastpass for Radiator Springs Racers and get that out of the way so that we could casually wander the rest of the park. Waiting for the Fastpass was definitely worth it, the line forms to the left of Buena Vista street, but beware of rude people who want the first spot in line because as soon as the rope drops, they don’t care what’s in their way, they will push you to the ground.
Someone in line told us about this “amazing night time show that we should definitely see called World of Color” and Josh and I had to bite our tongues and just be polite instead of saying, “Yeah, we already know about everything you could possibly tell us about, you see, we run a Disney Fan Website.” haha
Anyway, we ended up getting our World of Color Fastpasses, which are easiest to get by veering right at the end of Buena Vista street, heading towards Condor Flats, pass Soarin’ over California, and head straight to Grizzly River Run, where you will find the queue for the World of Color Fastpasses. Josh said he definitely wanted to see World of Color that night and not wait because he had a feeling we’d want to see it again. I was skeptical, but agreed, and I will just tell you now that boy, was he right!
Unlike what I am used to in EPCOT, Soarin’ over California barely had a wait. We hopped in line. The queue is very different than the EPCOT attraction in that it is much more focused on aviation props, history, and basically makes you feel like you are in an Airplane Hangar – very cool for anyone who is into that kind of stuff.
It was time to take a stroll through the Hollywood Land portion of the park, where we saw Muppet Vision 3D, Mike and Sulley to the Rescue (one of my new favorite attractions!), and ate a couple ears of corn at a small cart near Award Wieners. This was some seriously good corn. While munching away, we “window shopped” inside Off the Page, which ended up being one of our favorite shops inside the parks. The Disney Animation building was almost completely empty (everyone must have been in Cars Land) so we played around and sang, and found out which Disney Character was our counterpart – Josh got Winnie the Pooh and I got Belle.
We snatched up some Fastpasses for Tower of Terror, headed over to a bug’s land to ride Heimlich’s Chew-Chew Train. Seriously a fun ride. He has commentary on all the food he eats along the way. We noted later that we had to wear seat belts on Heimlich’s but not on Splash Mountain…. just sayin’
We enjoyed a cookie and an alright cup of coffee (oh and an extra cookie on-the-house as a “congrats for getting engaged” gesture from the Cast Member working the cart), then walked around Pacific Wharf.
It was Paradise Pier time, so we grabbed California Screamin’ Fastpasses, which I recommend doing, then asking for the front seat, because we rode it a few times and experiencing it from the front seat seems to be how it was meant to be seen. Also, Fun Fact: did you know that Neil Patrick Harris is the voice that counts you down on take-off?
Toy Story Midway Mania was great as always, especially since I beat Josh’s score. Also, I will never ride Mickey’s Fun Wheel again. We were in a cart with a group of 3 other people, 2 guys who were a couple and their friend. The one girl and one of the guys were completely fine and excited about the ride, but the guy in the middle was terrified. He was cold and hated heights, oh, and did you know that Mickey’s Fun Wheel is nicknamed by Josh “Mickey’s DEATH Wheel?” That’s because the ride cages swing you over the edge, then sway back and forth. For me, this wasn’t terrifying, rather the swinging motion made my stomach start flipping and turning and after the ride, Josh had to buy me a water and we had to find a bench I could lay on just so I didn’t vomit. Never. Again. Ever.
Our Fastpasses for Radiator Springs Racers were ready, so we headed to Cars Land. Definitely an attraction worth waiting for. I mean, I would never wait in line for more than like 40 minutes for it, but getting the Fastpass first thing in the morning was the way to go. The ride was of a much larger scale than I had imagined it (and I purposely didn’t watch any kind of POV ride videos before we went). Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree is on my and Josh’s list of must-do’s. It whips you all around and you just can’t stop laughing. It’s ridiculous.
Josh had been messaging Guy Selga from TouringPlans.com all day to make plans to meet up, and now was a good time. He’s been an online-friend of ours, so we wanted to make sure we got in a meeting before the trip was done. We walked over to Paradise Garden Grill because they had appealing-sounding vegetarian options (though in the end, it wasn’t amazing) and had some lunch together. We tried taking the obligatory selfie, when someone offered to snap the photo for us.
(We also tried to meet up with Jeff Heimbuch from CommunicorWeekly.com and Justin Scarred from LiveFastDiePoor.com, but rush hour traffic and things got in the way. But, next time!)
Aladdin, the Musical was the perfect show to settle my stomach a little more. I was still feeling woozy from Mickey’s Do-You-Want-to-Have-a-Bad-Time Wheel, and sitting through that show was the perfect remedy to heal me.
Josh then made a life changing call and said we should go take the The Bakery Tour and he will never let me live down that I said I thought it would be boring, but we did it anyway and they give you a bread sample and it tasted so good, then you smell the bread they are making, then instead of exiting into the gift shop, you exit into the Pacific Wharf Cafe which has bread bowl entrees and oh my god they are so freakin’ good please give me one now I can’t live without more Boudin bread bowls. The goodness of the bread bowls can only have been described in run-on sentence form to fully understand the magnificence. (We had the bread bowls with vegetarian gumbo at Disneyland Park at the Royal Street Veranda the previous day and were like, “yeah I’m glad we had those first because I will never eat another bread bowl besides these bread bowls ever again.)
World of Color was next, and what having Fastpasses means is that you have a reserved standing section. We, of course, arrived at 7:30pm when we could have arrived as early as 7pm which was a huge mistake because there were only tall people left to stand behind. The show was still amazing though, and I wrapped Josh in my scarf because he was cold. After the show, the World of Color music was playing and Josh got really lost in the magic of it all and stretched my scarf out like wings and started twirling to the music and suddenly stopped when he realized some man was standing behind him just watching. He was quite embarrassed.
Oh, and Josh was right, the next day we were determined to get Fastpasses again for World of Color and show up early for a good spot.
At the tiki tiki tiki tiki tiki bar
Angie Carreiro
Disneyland May 2014 Trip Report
Disney Fairy Tale Weddings Planning Journal
Monday Memes: Drunk Pooh Bear
Modern Mouse on YouTube
Jul 27
Keith has long been the video content provider for the site. Angie and Josh have popped up from time to time but they are here to add more videos to the site. Now with Keith, Josh, and Angie all doing videos, you’ll have tons of footage to look forward to each week! Here is your first glimpse at our new Modern Mouse videos! The following links are where these videos will always end up.
https://ModernMouseRadio.com
Disney Film History: The African Lion
Jul 27
While many at the studio were working on animation and live action films, Alfred and Elma Milotte spent two years in Africa filming wildlife. Walt Disney had hired the two to spend time filming footage for his next great True Life Adventure and the two years of footage was enough to make a film mostly on the great cats of the African continent. The result of all of this footage was the 1955 film, The African Lion.
Following on the heels of 1953’s The Living Desert and 1954’s The Vanishing Prarie, this True Life Adventure took viewers out of the North American continent for the first time and put them into the Serengeti of Africa. The film is similar in many ways to it’s predecessors, starting with an animated segment on Africa before bringing us to the real wildlife that we see the in the film. The major difference, however, in this film is that Walt Disney learned that True Life Adventures don’t necessarily need the gags that were in his popular animated films. Some scenes from his films on the Desert or Prarie were plagued with unneccessary comedy that gave the wild life documentaries of Disney lack credibility. That’s not the case The African Lion. The film nixes the comedy and brings you a very real and dramatic look at these animals.
Prey versus predator is a key story here as we watch lions hunt for food. This allows the viewer to not only learn about the cats of the film, but also many other animals in the Serengeti including zebras, wildebeests, and elephants. This film is also filled with lighthearted moments as well. These segments are often filled with cute and cuddly baby animals and their mothers nursing them. It’s actually refreshing to see both sides of the lions as we often view them as dangerous animals instead of caring and loving family members. I guess that’s often the case with predatory animals, but I’m glad Disney decided to showcase this here.
The African Lion was released on September 14th 1955 to a modest box office of $2.1 million which is on par with the previous True Life Adventure films. The African Lion, unlike the previous films, did not get nominated for an Academy Award. It did win an award at the Berlin International Film Festival, but did not bring home the big prize that Disney had hoped with many of his nature documentaries.
The film was released by itself in 2006 on DVD as part of the True Life Adventure series but has not sustained any home video release since making it a difficult find and a lesser known film within the True Life Adveutures. Having said that, I can’t help but think that The African Lion gave birth to much of the television and film specials we see on lions and Africa now. Walt Disney was a pioneer in the nature documentary field. He practically invented the genre. The African Lion takes one step farther in signifying the first time we saw these beautiful animals on a big screen in this way and we will no doubt see many more documentaries like this one in the future.
Josh Taylor
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Previous Film: Lady and the Tramp
Next Film: The Littlest Outlaw
Modern Mouse Radio #61: Top 10 Disney World Attractions That Will Stand the Test of Time
Jul 27
Josh and Keith return to another extinct attraction. The Skyway took over the skyline above Tomorrowland and Fantasyland at 3 of Disney’s Parks. The guys discuss the attraction, why you would want to ride it, and why it just didn’t work out for today’s modern Disney park. Enjoy the show
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A Tour of Marvel’s Avengers Station
Jul 26
Keith made a trip to Times Square to check out the new Marvel’s new Avengers Station. Is this something we could be seeing coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando or even Tomorrowland in Anaheim? Maybe this type of exhibit will be a part of the Marvel Experience that will be touring starting next year! Regardless, see Keith as he checks out the science and technology behind Marvel’s Cinematic Universe. Be sure to also check out the links below fro more from Keith!
Top 5: Disney Songs You Totally Forgot About
Jul 25
When you think of classic Disney tunes, it’s easy to think of songs like “A Whole New World”, “Circle of Life”, or even “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes.” Those are all classic songs that don’t leave you once you’ve heard them. However, I’d admit that there are songs that I hear and forget, but when I hear them again I think of how magical all of them are. These songs are sometimes from popular films that we’ve all seen one hundred times or it couldn’t be that hidden gem in a rarely seen movie. Whatever the case may be, here are my top 5 Disney songs you totally forgot about.
#5-“Not in Nottingham” (Robin Hood). A slow sad song can have great purpose in a film. It gives the viewer time to comprehend the tradgedy on screen and creates a mood fo the evenual uphill climb. Hearing a song like “Not in Nottingham”, you know this is probably the low point of the film for the characters involved and it indeed is. All of Sherwood Forest is pracitically in jail and the colors of the film have change to darker shades. It’s a very well put together scene in the film with an amazing song. Combine that with the folk-country style of Roger Miller during the height of the folk sound and you’ve got such a hit on your hands. Unfortunately time has not shown Robin Hood a good time and it’s become a lesser known film with an even lesser known soundtrack. It may have a comeback though as Mumford and Sons and Los Lobos have covered the song.
#4-“All the Cats Join In” (Make Mine Music). This great song fit into the package film Make Mine Music. It may not be a stand out Disney song, but it’s probably one of the greatest Swing songs during the 1940s Swing ear and it was composed by one of the Swing’s greatest band leaders, Benny Goodman. Goodman would later go on to perform the song at Disneyland on occasional Date Night and Disneyland evenings. It’s a great animated sequence as well as it’s simple enough with a hand continuing to draw the seecene on paper. The comedic timing and the teens dancing is all part of the fun and a real highlight of the package film.
#3-“No Way Out” (Brother Bear). Did you see Brother Bear? Maybe not. It was one of those post Renaissance films that just didn’t resonate with a wide audience. my advice is to get on Netflix and see this film as it actually is powerful and touching. No song does a better job of explaining that than “No Way Out”. Phil Collins reprises his Disney collaboration for the soundtrack and he does a great job of making you feel the pain these characters go through. Like “Not in Nottingham”, this song is that low point, but unlike our #5 song, it’s the turning point for everyone as well and we see that misfortune turn into something positive. Thanks Phil Collins.
#2-“Down in New Orleans” (Princess and the Frog). A return to two dimensional and classic animation and a return to a princess film brought us a great jazz soundtrack. Sadly, the audience that loved to see Disney movies wouldn’t return to the theater in droves until the following year to see Tangled. Princess and the Frog’s opening number delivers on giving this film a great feel. It drops you right in the French Quarter of New Orleans and you feel as though you already know the town once you’ve delved into the plot. Written by Pixar maestro Randy Newman and sang by NOLA native Dr. John, ti’s a song most peolle don’t remember due to not seeing the film or if they have seen it, not standing out as much as many of the later songs, but trust me, you should give this one another listen.
#1-“Give a Little Whistle” (Pinocchio). The first motion picture soundtrack for purchase was that of Pinocchio. Every song on it is classic. I mean it’s soundtrack has generated a song that is played at the beginning of every single Disney film. I believe, however, that “Give a Little Whistle” gets tucked away behind all of the other songs we know from the film. The song boasts the upbeat ideals of Pinocchio and Jiminy Cricket working as a team. It’s a great song that gives us all hope and promise that we have someone to lean on.
Any songs you love that didn’t make the list? Leave a comment with it and telling me why it should have made the list.
Josh Taylor
https://ModernMouseRadio.com
Monday Memes: Phone Signal Problems
Jul 21
We”ve all done this hundreds of times right? I know I have!
Josh and Angie’s Disneyland 2014 Trip
Jul 19
In May, Angie and Josh headed to Disneyland for a 5 day trip to the Happiest Place on Earth. It was a wonderful time. They got engaged. (no footage of that…sorry!) and they did most everything the resort had to offer. This is 5 days of footage compiled into one video. If you want to hear more about the trip, listen to Josh and Angie on the podcast where they go into more detail on their engagement and the trip itself, or you can read Angie’s trip report. Enjoy!
https://ModernMouseRadio.com