Eli Scott has arrived. He showed up on Wednesday morning, March 19 at 7:55 am and weighed 9 lbs 8 oz. and was 21 inches long. My little mouseketeer. Heather has called him "Brother Bear" (because he does have a bit (ok, a lot) of dark baby fur and a head full of black hair) trying to keep the Disney thing going. It's a fun time at the house these days. We're dealing with sleep deprivation but it's definitely worth it. We were driving around yesterday and today with all 4 of us in the car and I thought how cool it was to have a full family in the minivan. I'm a lucky man. A great wife who's a wonderful mom, a great little girl who's so excited to be a big sister and now a son who I can teach how to fish and hit a baseball...not that Emmy won't want to learn that too. I see many Disney trips in the future. Maybe Disney will ask us to model for them. They always show a family with a girl and a boy and they build the rooms for a family of four.
**Now for a shout out to you C-section moms... As the nurses were working on Eli after he was born, I stole a look over at the table where they were working on Heather. I saw a lot of stuff; stuff that had to be put back in. I didn't get queasy, but I do have a new appreciation for recovery and for Percoset.
Also, a thanks out to Mom and Dad for their help..and for my 80+ old Grandma for mopping our floors.
back to posting a bit more often now that I have some new experiences to share...
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Friday, March 7, 2008
101 dalmations, over 6 million spots
We bought 101 Dalmations this week and watched it tonight with Emmy. She likes Lucky the best because we bought her a little stuffed dalmation at the Disney store and I told her that was his name. It was fun watching it with her.
Did you know Walt didn't like this movie, from a stylistic standpoint. He loved the story by Dodie Smith but didn't like the look of the story and was pretty vocal about it. I think more than anything he was bemoaning the passing of an era. Up to then, and most recently Sleeping Beauty in 1959, each animated cell was hand painted. This created the vibrant, smooth lines you see in all of the Disney classics until then. This process was labor intensive and expensive. Ub Iwerks, Walt's earliest collaborator and animator of the original Mickey Mouse, came up with a technique using Xerox to copy cells onto each other and add color without painting in by hand. Much cheaper, but put many cell painters out of a job and drastically changed the look of animation. You'll see it if you compare 101 to, say, Cinderella. All animated movies from that point forward utilized this Xerox technique, until Pixar came along. It was the end of an era and I think Walt realized it.
101 is a very contemporary, stylish piece. If you buy it, be sure and check out the second disc that details much of what I've said here and really gives a lot of credit to Milt Kahl, Marc Davis, and Ken Anderson...Disney legends of animation.
There's a lot of snow in 101, and there's a lot of snow coming down outside. It's MARCH, for goodness sakes! Maybe we'll animate a snowman tomorrow.
Did you know Walt didn't like this movie, from a stylistic standpoint. He loved the story by Dodie Smith but didn't like the look of the story and was pretty vocal about it. I think more than anything he was bemoaning the passing of an era. Up to then, and most recently Sleeping Beauty in 1959, each animated cell was hand painted. This created the vibrant, smooth lines you see in all of the Disney classics until then. This process was labor intensive and expensive. Ub Iwerks, Walt's earliest collaborator and animator of the original Mickey Mouse, came up with a technique using Xerox to copy cells onto each other and add color without painting in by hand. Much cheaper, but put many cell painters out of a job and drastically changed the look of animation. You'll see it if you compare 101 to, say, Cinderella. All animated movies from that point forward utilized this Xerox technique, until Pixar came along. It was the end of an era and I think Walt realized it.
101 is a very contemporary, stylish piece. If you buy it, be sure and check out the second disc that details much of what I've said here and really gives a lot of credit to Milt Kahl, Marc Davis, and Ken Anderson...Disney legends of animation.
There's a lot of snow in 101, and there's a lot of snow coming down outside. It's MARCH, for goodness sakes! Maybe we'll animate a snowman tomorrow.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Dad Part II
I'm getting excited about having a son. We're due in just a couple of weeks and we've been working on the nursery. No, nothing Disney. Lots of Baseball stuff though. St. Louis Cardinals baseball is another love of mine, along with history. So, we're combining those 2 things with a bit of a vintage baseball theme going. If anyone has "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" sung in lullaby, let me know. My dad coached me in baseball when I was little and those are some of the best, most vivid memories I have of my childhood. I can't wait to do that with my son...and my daughter, for that matter. My daughter has my heart. My son will have my name and I know I'll relive my childhood through him. I've been told watching him will awaken long-forgotten memories. That will be cool. Can't wait to see you Eli!
By the way, first trip to Disneyworld was when I was 14, in 1984 with my family. I remember it well...I remember how hot it was (middle of the summer). That was a great vacation..didn't have many that long or expensive. I'm not sure how mom and dad paid for that. Do you think my kids will be there a few times before they're 14? Emmy's already been 3 times and she just turned 3!
Have a good one everybody!
By the way, first trip to Disneyworld was when I was 14, in 1984 with my family. I remember it well...I remember how hot it was (middle of the summer). That was a great vacation..didn't have many that long or expensive. I'm not sure how mom and dad paid for that. Do you think my kids will be there a few times before they're 14? Emmy's already been 3 times and she just turned 3!
Have a good one everybody!
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
what's next
just fyi...we've put in a bid for a resale Disney Vacation Club "property". It's not real property as this is Disney's version of the timeshare but there are good deals out there as the economy pushes folks into financial issues and they want to sell their interest. Also, Disney is not buying these back as much now as they have their own to sell. We plan on taking family and friends over the years so be nice to us!! Other than owning stock, it's the only way to "own" part of the magic....
anything in particular anyone wants to know about? It's been awhile since I posted, I know.
anything in particular anyone wants to know about? It's been awhile since I posted, I know.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Pinocchio
February 7, 1940..what, 68 years ago tomorrow, Pinocchio opened at the Roxy Theatre. Walt and his animators, not to mention animators and critics since, consider Pinocchio Walt's best picture from a technical aspect. It's detail and first feature use of the multi-plane camera gave the picture more vividness and depth than any disney feature before or since. Based off an old Italian story, Pinocchio had to "grow" into the picture it became. Did you know in the original story, Jiminy Cricket is a background character that ends getting squished by Pinocchio? So Walt came up with the idea of him being Pinocchio's conscience. Walt was keenly aware of needing the audience to gain sympathy for the main character and by using Jiminy, you could see and hear the battle going on over right and wrong in Pinocchio's little wooden head.
There are interesting side stories about how they came up with Jiminy's look and name...for another time (thank you Ward Kimball, one of the famed "Nine Old Men"). You may wonder why I'm focusing on the cricket. Well, at Disneyland's animation building down in the "Sorcerer's Workshop", you can take a test to see which Disney character you most resemble. Yep, mine was Jiminy. Maybe Heather will share hers in a response. Can anyone guess?
Pinocchio didn't really make money for Disney until it was re-released years later. You see, much of Snow White's revenue was made in Europe. Well, in late 1940, there was a bit of a disruption going on in Europe, so Pinocchio didn't make it over there. Maybe Hitler should have seen the picture. Maybe it would have awakened his inner Jiminy Cricket.
And yes, Pleasure Island at Downtown Disney comes from Pinocchio. I'm waiting for this one on dvd by the way.....
There are interesting side stories about how they came up with Jiminy's look and name...for another time (thank you Ward Kimball, one of the famed "Nine Old Men"). You may wonder why I'm focusing on the cricket. Well, at Disneyland's animation building down in the "Sorcerer's Workshop", you can take a test to see which Disney character you most resemble. Yep, mine was Jiminy. Maybe Heather will share hers in a response. Can anyone guess?
Pinocchio didn't really make money for Disney until it was re-released years later. You see, much of Snow White's revenue was made in Europe. Well, in late 1940, there was a bit of a disruption going on in Europe, so Pinocchio didn't make it over there. Maybe Hitler should have seen the picture. Maybe it would have awakened his inner Jiminy Cricket.
And yes, Pleasure Island at Downtown Disney comes from Pinocchio. I'm waiting for this one on dvd by the way.....
Monday, February 4, 2008
Epcot
MAD...know you don't like Epcot, and I'm not so sure that Walt wouldn't be right there with you. We'll never know, I guess.
Walt had pushed the envelope of modern culture several times in his career and after the success of Disneyland, Walt had a crazy idea. What if he could create a model city where everything was intertwined perfectly...residential, retail, commercial? It would look like a hub with monorails running back and forth to the city center. It would be clean. It would stretch the mindset of how city planners thought cities should look. It would be the highlight at the new property in Florida. Walt had visions of Epcot while laying in the hospital close to death.
After his death, there was a pause in the Florida project, but Roy soon picked it up and pledged to finish WDW (which he did). Epcot, however was a problem. The Disney Imagineers just couldn't see Walt's vision and couldn't justify it economically. See, Walt didn't worry about economics much. He could make things work by sheer force of will. Now, who knows if Walt would have had to back off his plans. It would have been a first. We'll never know, but what Epcot DID become is still a point of controversy. It does have the World Showcase, which was discussed as part of another project, and does incorporate the "World's Fair" look that Walt loved so much. And, it involves rides and showcases of technology, but that feels a bit too much like big advertisements if you ask me. They've tried to revive it with a couple of high thrill rides, but it does have to grow on you. As a kid, I hated the World Showcase, but now find it one of the best things about Disneyworld. Dining there is pretty cool.
Epcot, the Experimental Prototype City of Tomorrow...a name that doesn't fit what the park actually is.
Walt had pushed the envelope of modern culture several times in his career and after the success of Disneyland, Walt had a crazy idea. What if he could create a model city where everything was intertwined perfectly...residential, retail, commercial? It would look like a hub with monorails running back and forth to the city center. It would be clean. It would stretch the mindset of how city planners thought cities should look. It would be the highlight at the new property in Florida. Walt had visions of Epcot while laying in the hospital close to death.
After his death, there was a pause in the Florida project, but Roy soon picked it up and pledged to finish WDW (which he did). Epcot, however was a problem. The Disney Imagineers just couldn't see Walt's vision and couldn't justify it economically. See, Walt didn't worry about economics much. He could make things work by sheer force of will. Now, who knows if Walt would have had to back off his plans. It would have been a first. We'll never know, but what Epcot DID become is still a point of controversy. It does have the World Showcase, which was discussed as part of another project, and does incorporate the "World's Fair" look that Walt loved so much. And, it involves rides and showcases of technology, but that feels a bit too much like big advertisements if you ask me. They've tried to revive it with a couple of high thrill rides, but it does have to grow on you. As a kid, I hated the World Showcase, but now find it one of the best things about Disneyworld. Dining there is pretty cool.
Epcot, the Experimental Prototype City of Tomorrow...a name that doesn't fit what the park actually is.
Friday, February 1, 2008
The Palm Tree
Another story behind the story...
Disneyland was built on an orange grove (Orange county, CA, get it?). Some questioned "Why is he building this way out here? It takes half an hour to get here from the city". But Walt knew that being close to Interstate 5 and between LA and San Diego, development would come his way. His only mistake was not buying more land, even though he really couldn't...he was over-extended as it was.
Anyway, the Dominguez family that owned 10 acres of the orange grove land had 2 requests when they sold to Walt. Their son, Ron, needed a job and there was a palm tree that they requested stay put. Many had been wed under that tree and it was very special to them. Walt honored both requests.
Ron Dominguez started working in 1955 as a ticket taker and retired in 1994 as an executive at the park. His name is on a window on main street. By the way, those names up there are all Disney legends, which you can find listed if you google "disney legends".
That palm tree, just outside where the Dominguez home once stood (just outside of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride), is...yes, still there. I saw it last time I visited. It's a majestic palm tree located just outside the Indiana Jones ride and Tarzan's Treehouse in Adventureland. If you're ever there, ask a cast member where the Dominguez palm tree is. Then, go take a picture under it and tell people something they probably don't know.
Disneyland was built on an orange grove (Orange county, CA, get it?). Some questioned "Why is he building this way out here? It takes half an hour to get here from the city". But Walt knew that being close to Interstate 5 and between LA and San Diego, development would come his way. His only mistake was not buying more land, even though he really couldn't...he was over-extended as it was.
Anyway, the Dominguez family that owned 10 acres of the orange grove land had 2 requests when they sold to Walt. Their son, Ron, needed a job and there was a palm tree that they requested stay put. Many had been wed under that tree and it was very special to them. Walt honored both requests.
Ron Dominguez started working in 1955 as a ticket taker and retired in 1994 as an executive at the park. His name is on a window on main street. By the way, those names up there are all Disney legends, which you can find listed if you google "disney legends".
That palm tree, just outside where the Dominguez home once stood (just outside of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride), is...yes, still there. I saw it last time I visited. It's a majestic palm tree located just outside the Indiana Jones ride and Tarzan's Treehouse in Adventureland. If you're ever there, ask a cast member where the Dominguez palm tree is. Then, go take a picture under it and tell people something they probably don't know.
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