For most of its history, the state of Florida has been known for its natural beauty, citrus farms, cattle ranching, and as a place to escape the harsh winters of the north. Over the 50 years, Florida has also become established as the world leader in vacation destinations. Leading the charge has been the state’s growing list of theme and amusement parks.

The new book, Florida Theme Parks: A Guide by Alex Miller provides a pictorial tour of 20 of the state’s top theme parks. With over 280 color photographs and concise summaries of each of the parks, it’s a pleasure to read and a great way to get acquainted with some of the destinations you may not yet have visited. I even learned a few things about the parks I had visited.

Alex currently works for the Walt Disney Company in Glendale, California. And you might recognize Imagineer Tony Baxter who provides the forward in this book.

At 160 paperback pages Florida Theme Parks: A Guide makes a great buy for just $19.99 at your local book store or you can pick up a copy today via Amazon and save 28%.

Note: The Disney Blog was provided a review copy of the book, but the opinions are our own.

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It’s hard to believe but Sunday, June 23, will mark the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room at Disneyland. Crowds were wowed by the world’s first Audio-Animatronics show in a place where the birds sing words and flowers croon.

Inspiration for the Tiki Room came from Walt Disney’s earliest days of animated filmmaking, as he looked for a way to animate in three dimensions. He was fascinated by an antique, miniature mechanical songbird that he had purchased in New Orleans and thought if someone could animate this figure a century before, it should be possible to do it using modern technology.

The resulting Audio-Animatronics technology developed for the Enchanted Tiki Room would eventually lead to such iconic Disney theme park attractions as “Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln,” “it’s a small world,” Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion and others.

“The Enchanted Tiki Room continues to delight thousands of guests every day, some 50 years after Walt originally introduced us to Jose, Michael, Pierre & Fritz,” said Jon Storbeck, vice president of Disneyland Park. You might enjoy reading about the experiences of one of the attractions original VIP Hostess or The Disney Blog columnist Linda’s experience shadowing Walt Disney on the press preview.

Some interesting facts about the historic Enchanted Tiki Room:

• The cast of the Enchanted Tiki Room show features 225 animated singing birds, flowers and Tikis.
• Eight macaws, six cockatoos, twelve toucans and nearly 30 other tropical birds join more than 50 orchids, seven bird-of-paradise flowers,12 Tiki Drummers and singing Tikis in the magical, musical show.
• The Enchanted Tiki Room originally was the Adventureland seating area for the Plaza Pavilion restaurant, now the Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe. From 1955 to 1961, Plaza Pavilion seating occupied both Main Street, U.S.A., and Adventureland and the restaurant incorporated themes from both lands in its design. Part of the Adventureland dining area for Plaza Pavilion was also converted into the Tahitian Terrace restaurant, now Aladdin’s Oasis.
• During the planning stages, the Enchanted Tiki Room itself was conceived as a restaurant with the birds, flowers and Tikis performing an after-dinner show. There was even going to be a “birthday bird” that would be rolled out on a cart to sing for guests celebrating birthdays. After evaluating the challenges of combining the show with a restaurant operation, it was decided to make the Tiki Room a show only.
• When the Enchanted Tiki Room premiered in 1963, not even an E-ticket could get you in. The attraction had its own special tickets, priced at 75 cents apiece.
• “The Tiki Tiki Tiki Room” theme was composed by the Sherman Brothers, Richard and Robert, whose many Disney music credits include the Annette Funicello top ten hit “Tall Paul,” the “it’s a small world” theme and the Academy Award-winning score for “Mary Poppins.”
• The Tiki Room show’s four hosts – Jose, Michael, Pierre and Fritz – were referred to as “MacAudios” in early publicity.
• Jose is voiced by Disney legend Wally Boag, who performed at the Golden Horseshoe Revue. Michael is voiced by Irish tenor Fulton Burley, also of the Golden Horseshoe Revue. The voice of Pierre is Ernie Newton, who also created the voice of the singing knight in the Haunted Mansion. Deep-voice Thurl Ravenscroft voices both Fritz and, in The Enchanted Garden waiting area outside the Tiki Room, the Tiki god Tangaroa. Outside of the Disney theme parks, Ravenscroft is known as the voice of Tony the Tiger.
• The Tikis in the Enchanted Tiki Garden entry area to the Tiki Room represent gods and goddesses for various Pacific Island cultures, including:
  • Pele – Hawaiian fire goddess.
    Tangaroa – Maori and Polynesian god of sea of sky, depending upon which culture is involved.
    Maui – the Polynesian trickster god who slowed down time.
    Rongo – Polynesian god of agriculture
    Ngendei – from Fiji, the creator and head of all gods; every time he moves there is an earthquake
    Hina Kaluua – Hawaiian mistress of rain
    Tangaroa-ru – goddess of the east winds, which bring rain.
• In 2005, Imagineers pulled the original audio source tapes from the vault and carefully restored the Enchanted Tiki Room soundtrack. They also installed new speakers and audio equipment in the attraction that produce a clear sound that surpasses fidelity limitations of the past.

The attraction has seen its fair share of changes over the years, but it continues to be on of the true Disneyland classics. What is your favorite part of the show?

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Disney’s Contemporary Resort was one of two hotels to open with the Magic Kingdom back in 1971. Disney partnered with US Steel to come up with what was seen as an innovative way of building the Contemporary with the goal of making it the resort’s flagship hotel. The rooms were assembled off-site and trucked in then installed. Contrary to popular belief, the idea was never to upgrade the rooms by replacing them with new modules. In fact, the construction of the Contemporary counted on the building to settle a bit and ‘lock’ in the rooms.

Here’s a clip from US Steel’s promotional video highlighting the construction of Disney’s Contemporary Resort:

I’ve always loved how the Monorail runs through the middle of the resort, it still seems very futuristic. The modern Contemporary complex, pictured above, has grown to include a 90,000 foot convention center, a new Disney Vacation Club Tower, and has expanded recreation offerings. It also has some of the best dining on property with the California Grill, due to return from an extended rehab this summer.

Have you ever stayed at The Contemporary or its modern additions? What advice do you have for someone looking to add a few nights there onto their next vacations?

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I didn’t do a reminder post on Friday, so I think that really hurt our turn-out, but there were still some great tweets and I think everyone who did join in had fun!

This month’s “master tweeter” is…

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The first trailer for Disney’s Frozen is not what I expected at all. The movie is adapted from The Snow Queen, and instead of focusing on the Princess Anna, the Snow Queen Elsa, or even the Mountain Man Kristoff, we get a dose of interaction between Sven the reindeer and Olaf the snowman. We also don’t get to embed the trailer (as has become Disney’s habit as of late, they’re partnering with a sponsor to debut early trailers). In this case it’s the weather channel, which I think at least wins for being well themed to a movie named Frozen.

Update: I can embed the UK version of the trailer:

With wacky ‘physical’ comedy like that, it’s apparent Disney wants to communicate very early that Frozen will be appropriate for children of all ages. How well do you think they did?

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Recently the popular water ballet entertainment company Aqualillies performed a special “In-Sync” routine at the largest resort swimming pool at Walt Disney World — the Big Blue Pool, located appropriately in the “Finding Nemo” courtyard at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort. The professionally choreographed performance of Aqualillies also show-off a lot more of the Art of Animation Resort in the video:

A+ to Disney for bringing such a unique partnership to Walt Disney World. Makes me think of Pushing Daisies (that wonderful show on ABC that couldn’t survive the writer’s strike). Which scene is your favorite?

(Photo courtesy Disney. Gene Duncan, photographer)

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Disney’s The Lone Ranger promises a new sort of old western. Clearly a return to the classic genre, but with a twist that will keep audiences focused on the screen waiting for what comes next. Here are three recent behind the scenes looks at how the movie was made:

The Craft

The Spirit Tower

Cowboy Bootcamp

Which featurette did you like the best?

From producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Gore Verbinski, the filmmaking team behind the blockbuster “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise, comes Disney/Jerry Bruckheimer Films’ “The Lone Ranger,” a thrilling adventure infused with action and humor, in which the famed masked hero is brought to life through new eyes. Native American spirit warrior Tonto (Johnny Depp) recounts the untold tales that transformed John Reid (Armie Hammer), a man of the law, into a legend of justice—taking the audience on a runaway train of epic surprises and humorous friction as the two unlikely heroes must learn to work together and fight against greed and corruption.

“The Lone Ranger” also stars Tom Wilkinson, William Fichtner, Barry Pepper, James Badge Dale, Ruth Wilson and Helena Bonham Carter.

A Disney/Jerry Bruckheimer Films presentation, “The Lone Ranger” is directed by Gore Verbinski and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Gore Verbinski, with screen story by Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio and Justin Haythe and screenplay by Justin Haythe and Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio. ‘The Lone Ranger” releases in U.S. theaters on July 3, 2013.

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Leader of the Autobots, Optimus Prime, and his sidekick Bumblebee have arrived at Universal Orlando Resort to get ready for the grand opening of Transformers: The Ride – 3D – which will take place this Thursday, June 20. I’ve been able to sneak on a couple rides during the attraction’s technical rehearsals (aka soft opening). The attraction is essentially a clone of the California Transformers attraction, which a more compact layout that requires an elevation change. You don’t really notice the up and down movement, because your eyes are transfixed on the action happening in front of you.

From ground breaking to its official opening construction of Transformers took less than 12 months. That’s the fastest they’ve ever built an attraction at Universal Orlando. Watch this time-lapse video showing the construction compressed down to about 30 seconds:

The ride system itself is very similar to the Spider-man 3D attraction at Universal’s other park Islands of Adventure. The main difference is the heavy CG animation used in the Transformers has a realistic feel, while Spiderman is obviously set in a comic book universe. They throw the usual set of tricks at you, but do it in such a fun way that you don’t really mind the similarities between the attractions. You could really ride both on the same day and have two difference experiences.

For the grand opening on June 20th the famed Autobot duo of Optimus Prime and Bumblebee will be rolling through Universal Studios Florida looking for recruits to join them in the battle to save Planet Earth from the Decepticons. Transformers: The Ride – 3D pushes the limits of technology to place guests in the middle of a larger-than-life battle between the Autobots and the Decepticons and offers a transforming experience for theme park guests.

So far when I’ve been on the attraction, the Express Pass hasn’t been available. That meant the Standby queue moved at a steady pace (barring any attraction breakdowns). When the Express Pass opens, the single rider line will become a great option to a standby queue that will snake slowly through its rooms. Hopefully you’ll be able to spend much of the wait inside where it’s air conditioned. As you can tell by the size of this exterior queue, they’re expecting huge crowds with long waits.

If the line is too long, there is also a great meet and greet area around the back of the attraction where you can get your photo taken with the Transformers. Then come back when the evening has fallen and you won’t have to worry about sun beating down on your head in that huge queue. But do come back Transformers is a terrific ride.

( Photo Courtesy Universal Orlando Resort.)

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I’m a big fan of Hand Drawn animation, as are many Disney fans. But we haven’t been enough to save the artform from withering on the tree at Walt Disney Animation Studios. In April, Burbank let go most of the hand-drawn animation team. It’s a shame, because artists like Nick Ranieri can still crank out some pretty amazing stuff with pen and and paper.

Here’s a pencil test for Wreck-it Ralph from Ranieri. The film’s directors used it to get a sense for how the character would move and act while the CG Animation Department was still working in early stages.

Below the jump is another pencil test, this time from Eric Goldberg, of King Candy:

The quality isn’t all that good. But you still get a feel for it.

What do you think, would Wreck-it Ralph have worked as a 2d animation?

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I’m leaving in a few minutes to catch a press screening of Monsters University so I can deliver a timely review here later this week. There have already been a number of earlier screenings at Disney World, so I’m actually the last person in my family to have seen it. I’m keeping an open mind, but everyone else has been very complimentary. Of course, Monsters Inc is one of my favorite Pixar films, so I can’t wait to return to the world of Monstropolis one more time.

For everyone who has to wait until June 21st, here’s another preview with a few small snippets of new scenes:

Ever since college-bound Mike Wazowski (voice of Billy Crystal) was a little monster, he has dreamed of becoming a Scarer—and he knows better than anyone that the best Scarers come from Monsters University (MU). But during his first semester at MU, Mike’s plans are derailed when he crosses paths with hotshot James P. Sullivan, “Sulley” (voice of John Goodman), a natural-born Scarer. The pair’s out-of-control competitive spirit gets them both kicked out of the University’s elite Scare Program. To make matters worse, they realize they will have to work together, along with an odd bunch of misfit monsters, if they ever hope to make things right. Screaming with laughter and oozing with heart, Disney•Pixar’s “Monsters University” is directed by Dan Scanlon (“Cars,” “Mater and the Ghostlight,” “Tracy”), produced by Kori Rae (“Up,” “The Incredibles,” “Monsters, Inc.”) and features music from future Rock-and-Roll-Hall-of-Fame–inductee and award winning composer Randy Newman (“Monsters, Inc.,” “Toy Story 3″). The film opens in U.S. theaters on June 21, 2013, and will be shown in Disney Digital 3D™ in select theaters.

Are you convinced enough to pre-order a ticket? Or will you be waiting until DVD to see Mike and Sulley again? Let us know in the comments.

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In a much anticipated move, D23, the Official Disney Fan Club has relaunched their website. It now includes more member-exclusive content, but the cost to become a member has been reduced to zero. Paid membership levels with additional benefits will remain.

D23: The Official Disney Fan Club relaunched their reimagined website with thousands of pages of new content, including a story that features photographs of Walt’s daughters Diane and Sharon on the merry-go-round on that fateful day that ultimately changed how Americans — and people around the world — vacation.

The Walt Disney Archives recently discovered rolls of film from Walt’s personal camera with hundreds of images, just a few of which are showcased today on D23.com in their new member-exclusive section. Other photos include a young Roy E. Disney on the same carousel, as well as candid moments from Walt’s life and travels around the world.

In addition, visitors to D23 will find new content, including:

• Disney A to Z – A complete and newly-updated electronic version of the definitive Disney encyclopedia with more than 7,000 entries written by Dave Smith, founder and Chief Archivist Emeritus of the Walt Disney Archives
• A selection of new member-exclusive discounts and special events
• Exclusive Audiocast Interviews with Ginnifer Goodwin of Once Upon A Time and the evil Dr. Doofenshmirtz of Phineas and Ferb
• Disney Legends and the Walt Disney Archives – Two new microsites; Disney Legends will provide a deeper look at those who’ve made significant contributions to the Disney legacy, and the Archives site will open up the doors of this venerable institution so D23 can share more of The Walt Disney Company’s expansive collections.

Head over to D23.com today and sign up for a free membership to unlock this content and more in the exclusive members only area.

Now that D23 is moving down the path toward actually being a fan club for all Disney fans, what would you like to see from them in the future?

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The Main Street Bakery soft opened over the weekend and is set for an official opening tomorrow. In addition to many of your favorite Disney treats, new sponsorship from Starbucks will bring its product assortment including all the coffee drinks you would normally find.

What will be you first drink order?

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And now it’s time to close some tabs with stories I’ve been meaning to get to but just haven’t had the time. So draw a cup of coffee on that Keurig and pull up a chair, here we go:

• Up first is a story you’ll need the kleenex for: The Most Beautiful Ruined Moment.
• An amazing tumblr with photos and videos from backstage at the Haunted Mansion.
• Steven Spielberg and George Lucas predict the demise of the movie industry as we know it today.
• Over on Slashfilm we find the exciting news that Lucasfilm is working on an animated feature. Pixar alumni Gary Rydstrom and Brenda Chapman are both involved.
• Disney by Mark checks in with an update on the construction at Aulani Disney’s Hawaii resort. Let’s all dream we’re there.
• Downtown Disney Orlando’s Rainforest Cafe opened its Lava Bar this week and lit the fuse on its new Volcano sign.
• LaughingPlace.com visits the new Character Meet and Greet location at EPCOT.
• Donald Duck had a birthday earlier this week. Here’s a look back at his 50th Birthday Celebration.

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I did forget to cover one chapter of the Orlando theme park wars. I often see the question, why hasn’t Disney added Marvel characters to Disney’s Hollywood Studios yet? Disney has said they’re actively looking at ways to involve Marvel characters in the parks. They even opened a Stark Enterprises exhibit at Disneyland to promote Iron Man 3. But there’s a big roadblock to using Marvel in Orlando.

That’s because Universal owns the theme park rights to about 8 of the core Marvel superheroes within a 250 mile radius of Orlando. Marvel gave Universal these rights when they opened Islands of Adventure in renewable in perpetuity as long as they paid a reasonable licensing fee every year. That agreement is still in effect and, unless Disney pays Universal a significant sum, it’s not going to change. I’m told that Disney’s lawyers threw everything they had at the contract before they finalized the purchase of Marvel, but Universal controls nearly every option. Disney couldn’t even run the Avengers or Iron Man monorails on the EPCOT look for fear or raising the ire of Universal.

My guess is that Universal would be happy to sell Disney back those rights for the right price. That price would have to include enough money to totally relaunch that corner of Islands of Adventure plus a reasonable sum to cover expected profits from the Marvel characters for probably a decade or so. For Disney to want to pay that amount (most likely in the neighborhood of a half a billion dollars) they would have to be able to convince the Walt Disney Company board of directors that the cost could be recouped with whatever Marvel expansion they decide to build. The leading contenders there are either A) re-theme Streets of America in DHS into a Superhero land (think roller coasters flying by overhead, a stunt show, a dark ride or two, and a Marvel makeover experience for the kids) or B) a fifth gate thrill park with a villains vs hero theme. (combining Marvel, Star Wars, and Disney heroes and villains). Option B) is at least 8 years off, so if that’s what Disney is leaning toward, they probably don’t feel in a rush to make an offer to Universal.

The themepark division as it stands now is earning The Walt Disney Company an estimated $300 million in net profit each year. So any move on Marvel in Orlando would have to raise that significantly to pay for the cost of the payoff to Universal and the new construction. Are there enough Marvel fans that would want to add a day to a vacation to make it worth it? Would the extra guests fill or expand the existing rooms at Disney’s hotels? Would the merchandise sales be profitable?

Even if Disney decides not to buy out Universal, all hope is not lost. It might be possible for Disney to build a Marvel themed hotel at WDW and not violate the ‘theme park’ rule… but if Disney wants to try and recover the rights to Marvel’s characters in Orlando, it will have to play nice for a while.

What do you think Disney should do?

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Concept art for Star Wars mini-park planned for Disneyland Paris

Orlando in the 1990′s was bookended by stiff competition between Disney and its rival Universal Studios. When Michael Eisner got wind that Disneyland’s cross-town rival Universal Studios was preparing to open in Orlando as well, he rushed the mouse’s plans for its own studio theme park into production, even opening a whole year ahead of Universal. Universal returned the favor by firing back with Islands of Adventure, which contained rethemed versions of the Beastly Kingdom attractions Disney had cut from its Animal Kingdom project just a year earlier. Universal even hired a lot of the Imagineers Disney had just laid off to help make IOA a quality theme park.

And then things calmed down for nearly a decade. Disney kept churning out new attractions (Expedition Everest, Toy Story Midway Mania to name two) while Universal Studios was the forgotten step-child in a larger corporation that was dealing with ownership and financial problems. Eventually that got all sorted out and two things happened that turned around the fortunes at Universal Orlando Resort.

First, Universal got the theme park rights to use the Kuka robotic arm roller coaster that everyone was excited about at IAAPA in 2004. Second, it was able to convince Harry Potter scribe J.K. Rowling that they would be better caretakers for her story than Disney. The Kuka robocoaster win had something to do with that, but Universal was also willing to give Rowling final approval on nearly every detail. Disney would not.

Since the opening of Wizarding World of Harry Potter in June of 2010, it’s been clear to every theme park fan that Disney was no longer the only company capable of achieving totally immersive storytelling that its Imagineers had become famous for. For the last few years, everyone has been waiting for Disney to answer with a project that reset the level for theme park design. I have not seen it myself, but I’d told that Cars Land out in California is amazing. Alas, that’s not helping here in Orlando. New Fantasyland, while richly detailed (and not totally finished yet), has fallen flat in terms on increasing attendance, and didn’t really add any new E-ticket attractions when all is said and done. Tom Staggs, back when he was still Disney’s chief financial officers, did reach out to James Cameron to secure his Avatar franchise as a counter-punch to Harry Potter. However the current target date for opening Avatar-land is now 2017, construction may not even begin until the second Avatar film has opened in 2015.

Universal, in the meantime, has seen that if you build it they will come. WWOHP has been the catalyst for a huge improvement in attendance for Universal Orlando: 30% one year, 26% the next and a still healthy 9% the last. That’s real return on investment. Universal wants to make sure that growth continues, so they’re opening a new Transformers 3D attraction (that took less than 9 meonths to build, btw), an expanded Simpsons town, and a second Harry Potter themed land that will be open next year.

So are we to wait 4 years for Disney’s direct answer to Universal renaissance? If you believe the growing buzz, the answer is no.

Cars Land at DHS would replace backlot and Lights Motors Action.

That Disney’s Hollywood Studios would get some sort of expansion between now and when Avatar-land opens at Animal Kingdom is becoming more and more clear. The question has always been how much money will be invested in fixing the park? One major rumor was that since Kathy Magnum, the head show producer for DCA’s Cars Land was asked to come to Orlando, Cars Land was on the horizon. Since they just built Cars Land at DCA, they could conceivably replicate it at DHS without spending as much money. But we now know that Magnuson is attached to the Disney Springs project. That’s not to say she couldn’t do both, just that it makes Cars Land less likely than it once seemed.

There was also a rumor that they’d cherry pick a few of Cars Land’s best elements and then also add a Monsters Inc themed attraction (or Ratatouille or Crush Coaster, depending on what day of the week you heard the rumor).

A TRON themed coaster intented for Shanghai could easily be rethemed to Star Wars.

The other expansion idea for DHS has been Star Wars Land. In fact, this rumor has been floating around for years. Lucas has long expressed interest in doing more with Star Wars at Disney and now that we own Lucasfilm, a lot of the licensing barriers have been eliminated. The problem with this rumor is that the existing Star Tours attraction is landlocked. This isn’t a show stopper, but it means that Disney has to replace some existing elements no matter which way it goes (Toward the Muppet Theater or toward echo lake area and current parade building/parking lot (I think this is more likely)). With the new Star Wars films VII, VIII, and IX set to roll out every 2 years starting 2015, Disney definitely wants to take advantage of the expected excitement.

Or they could do any combination of the above. When will the announcement be made? Wait for D23 Expo is what I’m hearing. But the rumors are getting louder and time to open something quickly is running short. ThemeParkInsider.com has a few juicy rumors similar to what I’ve been told. Lance at Screamscape has also heard similar rumors.

The schedule sounds like it will be this:
2014 – Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (MK)
2015 – New Stage show (DHS) – Magical Map in place of B&TB
2016 – Star Wars Phase I & Cars Land (DHS)
2017 – Avatarland (DAK)
2018 – Star Wars Phase II & More Pixar Attractions (DHS)

But the schedule could be even more aggressive when its announced. That is apparently part of the negotiations going on between Imagineers and management right now.

I’m not sure we have any reason to get excited until any announcement is actually made. Persistent rumors like this usually come from teams who are pitching their ideas to those who control the money. They leak details of their plan in order to show they have public support for the idea. The other side then has to do the same and you end up with rumors that never had a chance of coming true. That said, I was expecting the Star Wars Land announcement to come during Star Wars Weekend, but no dice. Now D23 seems the most likely chance, although it could happen at any time if Disney greenlights everything.

If this is happening, then the real winners will be Orlando visitors. They’ll get a better experience at both Universal and Disney. Even SeaWorld, Legoland, and minor players like Fun Spot and Gatorland will be forced to continue investing as well. With Orlando setting record growth in visitors for the last three years, now is the time for Disney to fire back at Universal and show they can still tell immersive theme park attraction stories better than anyone.

I have one thing to say, let the Battle for Orlando Begin!

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“Much Ado About Nothing”, directed, adapted and produced by Joss Whedon (director of “The Avengers” and now the unofficial Marvel God) was released last week (in a limited release and will be gaining theaters as its run progresses) to the tune of an 82% on Rotten Tomatoes. The film is a re-imagining of the classic Shakespeare romantic comedy set in modern times, though utilizing the same exact script, and was filmed in black and white, in Whedon’s home within a 12 day shooting period.

I had the opportunity to catch a screening of the film last night and I enjoyed it immensely. I am not a huge fan of Shakespeare, but I have always enjoyed Much Ado, though the last time I viewed the play was 4 years ago. The first scene of the film appeared and I was incredibly confused. To jump right into Shakespearean speak is always a daunting task, but by the 3rd scene, I was enthralled. The film had multiple laugh out loud moments and an incredible score that needs an Oscar nomination. It is a must-see film in my book.

This was a passion project of Whedon’s, a nice palate cleanser between huge superhero films. While watching, I couldn’t help but think, why can’t Disney do this anymore? Last year they released “The Odd Life of Timothy Green”, which was JUST what I wanted. Was the summer release date a good choice for a movie of that nature? Heck no, but it was a refreshing change of pace for Disney and I loved it.

I have wrote before on Iger’s passion for only big budget films, but I want to see more range. “Prom” was a good idea, but a bad result. I would be fine with more “Lizzie McGuire Movie” esque films and more passion projects.

Luckily, we are getting some of these types of films soon. “Saving Mr. Banks”, the story of how P.L. Travers gave Walt Disney the rights to “Mary Poppins” is being released this December in hopes for some Oscar Buzz and next year brings us “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” starring Steve Carell and Jennifer Garner next October. Let us hope these films to well enough to keep the trend alive!

Do you agree with Disney’s “Big Budget Only” mentality? Are you interested in Whedon’s passion project? Are you a movie score-snob like I am? Let me know in the comments below! Until next time…have a magical day!

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The Walt Disney Studios just revealed their updated theatrical release schedule. Included in the announcement (reproduced below) are a name change for the upcoming Muppets film, formerly titled The Muppets… Again!, and the first official mention of a sequel to DisneyToon Studios’ Cars spinoff, Planes.

SAVING MR. BANKS (Disney)

• Now opens 12/13/13 limited. The previously announced 12/20/13 wide playdate is unchanged.
• Inspired by true events, SAVING MR. BANKS is the extraordinary, untold story of how Disney’s classic MARY POPPINS made it to the screen—and the testy relationship that the legendary Walt Disney had with author P.L. Travers that almost derailed it.

MUPPETS MOST WANTED (Disney)

• MUPPETS MOST WANTED is the final title of the follow-up to 2011’s THE MUPPETS. The previously announced 3/21/14 wide playdate is unchanged.
• Starring Ricky Gervais, Ty Burrell and Tina Fey, Disney’s MUPPETS MOST WANTED takes the entire Muppets gang on a global tour where they find themselves unwittingly entangled in an international crime caper.

PLANES: FIRE & RESCUE (Disney)

• Now dated on 7/18/14 wide in 3D.

ALEXANDER AND THE TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY (Disney)

• Now dated on 10/10/14 wide.
• Steve Carell and Jennifer Garner have been cast.
• 21 Laps and The Jim Henson Company are producing.
• Miguel Arteta is directing.
• ALEXANDER AND THE TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY, based on the award-winning children’s book by Judith Viorst, follows young Alexander through the mishaps of a terrible day for his family after he wishes they all would experience the same troubles he does.

TOMORROWLAND (Disney)

• Moves to 12/12/14 wide (from 12/19/14 wide).
• The film is being directed by Brad Bird and written and produced by Bird and Damon Lindelof.
• George Clooney, Hugh Laurie, Raffey Cassidy and Thomas Robinson have been cast.

INTO THE WOODS (Disney)

• Now dated on Thursday, 12/25/14 wide.
• Rob Marshall is directing.
• INTO THE WOODS, based on the Tony-winning original musical by James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim, surrounds a baker and his wife’s quest to break a witch’s curse in order to start a family.  Along the way, they encounter several well-known fairy tale characters, and together they learn what happens after “happily ever after”.

THE HUNDRED-FOOT JOURNEY (DreamWorks)

• Now dated on 8/8/14 wide.
• Lasse Hallstrom is directing.
• Steven Spielberg, Oprah Winfrey and Juliet Blake producing.
• THE HUNDRED-FOOT JOURNEY, based on the international best-selling book by Richard C. Morais, tells the story of an Indian boy living in France who becomes the culinary apprentice to his father’s rival.

UNTITLED MARVEL FILMS

We’ve also announced dates for two UNTITLED MARVEL films (5/6/16 and 5/5/17), in line with Marvel’s successful tradition of opening films in early May, including the billion-dollar hits MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS and Marvel’s IRON MAN 3. We look forward to announcing more details about these films as well as the sequel to THE AVENGERS (opening 5/1/15) at a later date.

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Tuesday, Busch Gardens Tampa announced a new attraction heading to the park in spring of 2014. This comes after some constant growth for the park, starting with the opening of Cheetah Hunt, their newest coaster, in 2011, soon followed by their new ice show “Iceploration” in 2012 and “Madagascar Live: Operation Vacation” just a few weeks ago.

The announcement came with park president Jim Dean falling from the top of the stage (subtle foreshadowing at its best) and announcing “Falcon’s Fury”.

This drop tower will be the tallest in North America (While the video released stated it would be 335 feet tall, the website now says it will be “nearly 300 feet”).

The big draw, however, will be its 90 degree tilt towards the Earth as you reach the top, making your descent at 60 mph all the more scarier. Even hearing the announcement made me tremble in fear.

The attraction will take home in the Timbuktu area of the park, with the location previously owned by the Busch Gardens classic “Sandstorm”, which had resided in the park since 1979 and has recently closed. (The picture below is where the ride will reside after it has been completed)

The walls are already up to get park goers excited to return…myself included.

Are you excited for Falcon’s Fury? Do you like how Busch Gardens is constantly bringing in new attractions? Let me know in the comments below! Until next time…Have a Magical Day!

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Tupperware sales women pose in front of the company’s iconic rocket sculptures.

Here’s a great vintage film that captures Orlando, Florida as it was just before Walt Disney World changed it forever. Walt’s vision for an experimental prototype city of tomorrow is discussed starting at 4:45 and there’s actually some excellent vintage footage of Disneyland scattered throughout.

I think it’s safe to say Orlando would have done just fine even without Disney choosing it as the site for his next grand vision. The same things that drew Walt to the region drew other industries as well.

How do you think Orlando would have been different if Walt had chosen another location for the east coast edition of Disneyland?

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Disney has been building its China strategy for over 15 years now. It started with Hong Kong Disneyland, includes some unique film partnerships, Disney English schools, and soon Disneyland Shanghai. Current Chair and CEO Bob Iger has been right there at the center of it for most of the effort. So it’s with more than a little authority that he took the stage last week at the Fortune Global Forum in Chengdu, China. Bob shared his unique insight into where Disney is headed, the company’s place in the global economy and his overall outlook on business — particularly business in China.

Below the jump are a few highlights from Iger’s responses:

On how the Disney brand works in a global economy:

“I think there’s a misconception that exists in the world, because technology and development overall has created access to markets, to territories, to countries that is unprecedented, meaning we’ve never seen it before, that maybe the world is gradually becoming kind of a one world culture. And I think that’s absolutely not the case.

“I think you can really trip a company up if they start believing that, because the pride that geographies or countries, or markets have for their own culture, and the desire to own and control it still is quite existent, whether it’s for political reasons, economic reasons, or just nationalistic reasons.

“And so if you are a global brand like Disney, and we’re different from a brand perspective because we’re not a consumable, really, even though people consume our products, they buy our product. We’re much more of an experience brand, whether you’re watching a movie, watching a television show, certainly going to a theme park. And I think because we are an experience brand, we touch culture in a very different way than a typical luxury brand might.

“And when that happens I think you have to be very careful. You have to have a very deft hand, because on one hand the Disney brand and what it stands for is of interest to the culture and to the people in the culture. Disney, that’s certainly the case we’re an optimistic brand or an inclusive brand. We’re a brand that is viewed as good for me and good for my family. There are values to the Disney brand and what it stands for that have interested people all over the world. But, it’s very, very important that while we bring Disney to a market we make sure that in that market it feels like, for instance, China’s Disney. It can’t just be the Disney that exists in carbon copy form somewhere else in the world.”

On social media, modern technology, and keeping your edge:

“I think the first thing you have to do is you have to obviously be aware of what your most significant brand attributes are. What makes your brand your brand? Why is it great? You have to focus on quality and on those attributes that, again, created the value in the first place. You can’t look to cut corners. You can’t look to make something with your brand on it that’s any cheaper simply because it’s going into a market that may not be able to afford it the way another market may have. You can’t compromise in that regard. So it starts with what I’ll call quality and a respect for an allegiance to the very brand attributes that created the value in the first place.

“Then I think you have to be, as we talked about earlier, and come up a few times, you have to be incredibly aware, you have to have your ear to the ground, you have to have people on the ground from that market that are essentially teaching you enough about the market, it’s likes and its dislikes, so that the product ultimately feels right for that market. In our case, again, I think because of what I said earlier about pride and local culture, and ownership of local culture, it has to feel like theirs. It has to feel like the markets.

“I don’t think it’s necessarily going to work if it feels like it’s some other market’s product, at least in the product that we make. It’s very, very important. What was discussed with high school musical was a successful television franchise in the United States. We could have brought it here and just put a Mandarin language track on it and put it on and I’m sure it would have gotten some consumption. Instead we decided let’s take it to China and let the Chinese make it for themselves, not just with their own language track, but their own characters and then adapting it, as was discussed rather articulately to the market, so that things that may have worked for it in the U.S. didn’t work.

“There are so many different components, I think, that go into it. I was also discussed in today’s world social media and the proximity that you can create to your customer base is so incredibly intimate. It didn’t exist before. You’ve got to monitor that very carefully and then adapt very quickly. So that also means that the speed of adaptation has gone up tremendously, too. You can’t simply wait for a market to catch up to you very easily. You’ve got to react to the market pretty quickly.”

You can check out a complete transcript of the Fortune Global Forum town hall here.

During Bob’s trip to China, he also had an opportunity to sit down with CCTV2 (Chinese Business Network) to talk about Disney and China. Check out the news clip below.

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