Anthony Yacullo 
After unfortunately not getting into the D23 member event at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, our own Chuck Canzoneri decided, why not just go myself. Chuck had the chance to take a complete tour of the Studios, and he brings to us a huge photo report. We’ll start at the Studio Lot, Store, and Plaza:
Welcome to the Walt Disney Studios
The famous intersection of Mickey Ave and Dopey Drive
Chuck and his wife Leigh even got to meet Tony Baxter!
Just a few of the many Disney Legends
To go along with our photo report from today’s Los Angeles Lakers victory parade with Kobe Bryant at Disneyland, here’s a press video of the event:
Enter for your chance to meet Tinker Bell and see the Disneyland® Resort in a whole new light as Summer Nightastic generates high-energy excitement, from June 12 through August 23! Fairies fans will be mesmerized by Pixie Hollow Enchantment, an after dark, twinkling light show that unites the Fairies’ hidden talents in a celebration of … Read more
Our very own Shawn Hutchison paid a quick visit to Disneyland today to catch the 10am victory parade with Kobe Bryant in honor of the LA Laker’s NBC championship win. Let’s get to his photos:
Lots of people and film crews waiting to see Kobe
Purple and gold Mickey balloons, the Laker’s colors
The screaming is about to start
Myrna Litt brings us a great report which includes both of California Adventure’s great parades! Let’s get to her photo report:
The new billboards for Summer Nightastic at the Mickey and Friends Tram Station
It was incredibly busy on Monday and Tuesday, as they were 2 of few days this summer that the SoCal and SoCal Select Annual Passholders can see the new entertainment for Summer Nightastic
Some painting going on in the Hub
It’s once again time for a photo report from our very own Chuck Canzoneri:
Disney now has a parking lot on the famous strawberry fields. I don’t think it’s open to the public yet though
It must have been busy, as Chuck had to park in Buzz Lightyear!
Lots of nice merchandise, including this Sorcerer Mickey with orange robes for some reason
A very musical Goofy from the Mickey Mouse Club collection
Shere Kahn from The Jungle Book
Historic hotel to feature considerable changes to guest rooms, exterior ANAHEIM, CALIF. June 16, 2009 – Beginning in August 2009, Southern California’s landmark Disneyland Hotel will start a significant renovation project that will include major improvements to its guest rooms and considerable changes to the exterior of the hotel. The hotel will remain open during … Read more
I was at the lovely Disneyland Resort today and have some photos to share with everyone:
Signs for the D23 Expo around the Anaheim Resort
Long lines to get into Disneyland at opening
What’s wrong with these Summer Nightastic banners?
There’s a new Honda sweepstakes in the Esplanade to win a new Honda INSiGHT, as well as other smaller prizes
A Summer Nightastic poster by the security tents
Our third and final photo report for today comes to us from Shawn Hutchison who was at the beginning of Summer Nightastic yesterday at the Disneyland Resort:
An ad for Summer Nightastic at the Mickey and Friends Parking Structure
Finally new billboards at the Mickey and Friends Tram Station
Guess it was too late to change all the promotional images featuring the dragon? ;)
Looks like they’re going for a dragon combo here
A new edition to the Esplanade, a giant inflated house promoting “Up”
For our second of three photo reports for today, we go to Chuck Canzoneri’s trip on Thursday:
A new edition to the Esplanade, a giant inflated house promoting “Up”
Disney really took the time to get the small details right
The very memorable mailbox from the movie
Our very own Myrna Litt was at the Disneyland Resort this Wednesday and she shares these photos with us:
Wednesday was one of the last Grad Nites
A special “Up” display in the Esplanade
Carl and Ellie’s mailbox from the film
Oscar Martinez, Disneyland’s longest serving cast member still works at Carnation Cafe after more than 50 years
The OC Register’s Around Disney blog also has a report from last night’s media preview of Summer Nightastic:
Disney Channel stars Selena Gomez and Jennifer Stone were like any other kids at Disneyland Thursday night, standing in giddy excitement next to Mickey Mouse.
That is, until the “Wizards of Waverly Place” actresses were presented with magic wands by the mouse himself.
With a flick of the wrist, fireworks burst over Sleeping Beauty Castle — the quintessential kickoff to Disney’s Summer Nightastic, the summertime run of shows at the Resort that include the fireworks display, the Electrical Parade and Fantasmic!, which plays out on Disneyland’s Rivers of America.
Disney’s Electrical Parade (California Adventure)
When a sparkling mass of lights emerged onto the street of California Adventure, the crowd stood in awe.
Tinker Bell, the latest addition to the classic Disney parade, first trotted out in 1972, led the way waving her magic wand from a hot air balloon.
“It was bright, and very green,” said Grad Night guest Prince Jones, from the School of Arts and Enterprise said.
“It was pretty cool.”
“We thought it was the right place to put Tinker Bell – leading the parade,” Director of Entertainment Doug McIntyre said of the new float, which features 25,000 lights.
“She has a sort of pixie dust-effect coming from her float, and we added it to all the floats. We knew we wanted to do some enhancements to the rest of the parade, so we thought by adding Tinker Bell to the front, we could add this pixie dust swirl that goes throughout the parade.”
The Electrical Parade has been a part of Disney since its premiere in 1972. The parade has undergone numerous changes, adding new floats, more lights. It has showed up in locations around the world.
This phase of the parade combines a bit of the old with a bit of the new; for example, the diamond mine float from Snow White and the Pleasure Island scene from Pinocchio return after a long hiatus.
“They had been sitting there in a warehouse, so we had them shipped over. When they shipped that parade (back to the United States in 2001), they left that unit behind, so we called them up and had them ship it out and refurbished,” McIntyre said. “It’s the way I remember the Electrical Parade from its old days at Disneyland. It’s nice to have it back.”
Meanwhile, a new control system allows for intricate control of the lighting and 11,000 LED lights used on the dancers’ costumes make the parade more energy efficient.
Then there is the music.
“Music is a big part of any of our entertainment experiences, and we knew we wanted to update the soundtrack,” said McIntyre, a 27-year Disney veteran. “The music was written in 1967, and with the technology of synthesizers, we’ve come a long way. We wanted to maintain the classic-ness of what the guests expect using ‘Baroque Hoedown,’ which is the piece of music used. We were excited to do it with all of today’s modern technology.”
When the parade premiered on June 17, 1972, it was called The Main Street Electrical Parade, but since then it has moved to California Adventure.
“Part of the dynamic of the business here is balancing the guest flow and the experience between both parks, so it was a perfect fit to bring the parade here,” McIntyre said.
TLT Dance Club at the Tomorrowland Terrace (Disneyland)
The Tomorrowland Terrace is not the place you want when looking for a quiet dinner to wind down after a hectic day of spinning teacups and meeting giant mice. On the other hand, if you are looking for a serious energy boost, then the TLT Dance Club is the place to be.
“Hannah Montana” star Mitchel Musso opened the night on a high note while appearing with his band for a surprise performance.
For 11-year-old Elizabeth Burkemper of Missouri, standing so close to one of her favorite “Hannah Montana” stars was a dream come true.
“It was, like, the most amazing experience of my life,” she said.
The rest of the summer is filled with a lineup of appearances by popular radio stations and Top-40 bands, including KIIS-FM, Tomasina, 104.3 MYfm and Instant Replay. The club has already been compared to the now-defunct Videopolis, but this one will have a 2009 spin, such as the ability to vote on what song should be played via text message.
Fantasmic! (Disneyland)
Fantasmic! has been a staple of Disney nighttime entertainment since it began performances in May of 1992. It is set on the Rivers of America in Disneyland.
Just like the Electrical Parade, this nighttime show underwent changes in preparation for the summer, with Fantasmic! now including new digital projectors, a 12-foot-tall crocodile and giant eels slithering through the water.
Although the highlight of the show was slated to be a 40-foot-tall dragon from the movie “Sleeping Beauty,” technical difficulties forced last night’s premiere to debut sans dragon. Stay tuned to Around Disney for a peek at the dragon later this summer.
Here are a few of their photos from the media preview of Summer Nightastic:
Selena Gomez and Jennifer Stone were at Disneyland to launch Summer Nightastic
D23 have put up 2 articles for the debut of Summer Nightastic today. The first covers last night’s media launch: On Thursday, June 11, Disneyland was packed with summer guests, and D23 was invited for a peek at all the new happenings as Nightastic! takes over the park this summer. First stop was the new … Read more
Summer Nightastic begins tonight at the Disneyland Resort, and in honor of that, here’s a new Disney press video with footage from all three main offerings, as well as interviews with Carla Carlile (show director for Fantasmic), Denny Newell (senior show director for Disney’s Electrical Parade), and John Addis (senior show director for Magical):
Summer Nightastic launches tomorrow at the Disneyland Resort, and Disney has released a press release for Fantasmic, as well as more pictures of the updated version of Disney’s Electrical Parade:
More powerful projection technology and some awe-inspiring new creatures – including 37-foot-long eels Flotsam and Jetsam – make “Fantasmic!” an exciting part of Summer Nightastic! at Disneyland. The long-running nighttime special-effects spectacular, presented on the Rivers of America in New Orleans Square and Frontierland, jumps off the screen like never before with stunning video and lighting effects that bring brilliant life to Mickey Mouse’s encounters with classic characters and menacing Disney villains.
According to the LA Times Travel Blog: The Electrical Parade marks its return engagement at Disney’s California Adventure on Friday night with Tinker Bell taking over the lead float position from the Blue Fairy. The new Tink float features a magic wand-wielding face-character waving from the basket of a hot-air balloon amid a sea of … Read more
