Inside The Mouse Castle 03-08-2016 - Marvel at Disney California Adventure, 'Star Wars' on Blu-Ray and 'High School Musical 4'

By Tim Callaway

Zootopia's Nick Wilde and Judy Hopps.

Disney's Zootopia opened last weekend with record-breaking box office numbers for a March release. Naturally, Anthony and I didn't bother to see it. No worries, we'll both rectify that this week. A 99% rating on Rotten Tomatoes certainly got our attention. 

Disneyland's announced April 2 closure of Super Hero HQ caught us all by surprise. What will be next for the Star Wars Launch Bay's attic? A preview center for Star Wars Land maybe? And what will happen when Captain America and Spider-Man are sent packing to DCA? Will the Mad T Party be replaced by a Mad A (for Avengers) Party? It's time to get some rumors started.

Here's what else we've got Inside The Mouse Castle this week:

• Keep those calendars marked. The Jungle Book begins sneak peek screenings at DCA and Disney's Hollywood Studios on March 18. Frozen--Live at the Hyperion opens at DCA May 27 and Rivers of Light, the new nighttime water show at Disney's Animal Kingdom, debuts April 22.

• It was no coincidence the Walt Disney Company had its annual shareholders meeting in Chicago last week. It was a fitting reminder that the Windy City was where Walt was born. To mark the occasion, Bob Iger announced that the Company would donate $250,000 towards the restoration of the Walt Disney Birthplace.

Disney Cruise Line will add two new ships in 2021 and 2023.

• Disney Cruise Line will launch two new cruise ships in 2021 and 2023, bringing their fleet total to six. The as-yet-unnamed ships will have 1,250 staterooms each and will be larger than DCL's current biggest ships, the Disney Dream and the Disney Fantasy.

• Star Wars: The Force Awakens comes out on Digital HD on April 1 and Blu-ray on April 5. Want a little variety with your trip to a galaxy far, far away? Retailers Target, Walmart, Best Buy and the Disney Store are all offering unique packaging and/or bonus materials.
• Big Hero 6 is moving to the small screen. An animated series based on the hit film will debut on Disney XD in 2017.
• A live-action movie version of The Nutcracker Suite? Disney is working on it and Lasse Hallstrom (The Hundred-Foot Journey, Chocolat) is slated to direct.

Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens in High School Musical 3: Senior Year.

• Ten years after the original High School Musical hit big for the Disney Channel, casting calls are going out for High School Musical 4. Jeffrey Hornaday (Teen Beach Movie) will direct. 

Enjoy!

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The Mouse Castle Lounge 08-21-2015 - Inside the Disney Marketing Machine, the Walt Disney Hometown Museum and the Walt Disney Birthplace

By Tim Callaway

A Midget Autopia car on display at the Walt Disney
Hometown Museum booth at the D23 Expo.

Another D23 Expo has come and gone. Hopefully you caught our slightly inebriated recap of the festivities on Inside The Mouse Castle. Today, we’re going to sit down in the Lounge with some of the people who were part of the Expo. We’ve got Kaye Malins and Peter Whitehead with the Walt Disney Hometown Museum in Walt’s boyhood home of Marceline, MO. They’re going to talk about their ambitious fundraising efforts to restore the Midget Autopia, which was relocated from Disneyland to the city of Marceline in 1966. It operated in Marceline for a number of years before falling into disrepair and now the Museum wants to bring it back…and you can help.

Another great cause to support is the Walt Disney Birthplace in Chicago. It’s the actual home designed and built by Walt’s parents in 1893 and the very place Walt was born in 1901. The Birthplace is undergoing an extensive restoration and Todd Regan will be here to bring us up to date on how it’s progressing.

Author Lorraine Santoli and Dave Mason with
Saturday's Toys at the D23 Expo

Before we get to that, though, we’ll be joined by the former director of corporate synergy with Disney, Lorraine Santoli. She’s also an author who’s had a longtime association with the original Mouseketeers. In fact, Lorraine hosted a celebration of 60 magical years of the Mickey Mouse Club at the D23 Expo. She was joined on stage by Sherry Alberoni, Sharon Baird, Bobby Burgess, Tommy Cole, Darlene Gillespie, Cubby O’Brien and Doreen Tracey. It was a delightful presentation.

Before the Expo, Lorraine and I chatted about her latest book, a memoir of her 22 years at the Walt Disney Company, Inside The Disney Marketing Machine. In it, Lorraine recalls the many memorable events she was part of in the 1970s, '80s and '90s, including Mickey Mouse’s 50th birthday, Donald Duck’s 50th birthday and Disneyland’s 30th anniversary. She also talks at length about the leadership styles of Disney’s top executives during that time, Michael Eisner and Frank Wells. It’s an insightful look behind the scenes of an entertainment company on the verge of becoming the media giant it is today.

Enjoy!

For more fascinating books about Disney history, visit www.ThemeParkPress.com.

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Inside The Mouse Castle 10-22-2014 - 'Moana,' 'Avengers: Age of Ultron' and the Walt Disney Birthplace Restoration

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Yep, we're blaming Hydra.

If Marvel can finger its fictional terrorist group for leaking the trailer for Avengers: Age of Ultron six days early, then we can blame them for the technical issues that kept Tuesday's Inside The Mouse Castle off the air until tonight.

Actually, it was a wonky HP laptop that caused our podcast problems. Who knows what nefarious force made the Internet explode with glee when the new Avengers trailer found its way online? Entertainment websites everywhere posted the lo-res video before Disney and Marvel quickly slammed the door on the leak. But, since nothing online is ever really deleted once it goes viral, Marvel had no choice but to release the official trailer well before its scheduled TV premiere on next Tuesday's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

For our part, you won't hear anything about the leak in today's ITMC. Anthony and I recorded the show well before the story broke. Rest assured, we'll be talking about it plenty on Friday's show.

(l. to r.) Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Jeremy Renner,
Robert Downey, Jr. and Don Cheadle in Avengers: Age of Ultron.

And so, here's the trailer for Avengers: Age of Ultron in all its intense, epic, superhero glory. WOW!!!

Also in today's show:

• Moana, an adventure set in the oceans of Polynesia, is Walt Disney Animation Studios newest project. John Musker and Ron Clements (The Little Mermaid, Aladdin) are directing the film which is due for release in late 2016.
• What's better than listening to the Guardians of the Galaxy Awesome Mix Vol. 1 on CD or vinyl? How about listening to it on cassette, just like Peter Quill intended?

• Keston Ott-Dahl and her wife Andrea have a young daughter with Down Syndrome. They've started an online petition to ask Disney to create a special needs princess their daughter and others like her can relate to. Do we think it will succeed? Probably not, but it's not a bad way to raise awareness of Down Syndrome. For more info visit www.delaneyskye.com.
• Disney Fantasia: Music Evolved is an imaginative and beautifully rendered video game that cleverly interacts with all styles of music from classical to contemporary pop. It's available now for Xbox One and Kinect for Xbox 360.
• Start some good and support the restoration of the Walt Disney Birthplace, the Chicago home built by Elias Disney where his son Walter was born. To contribute to the cause, visit www.startsomegood.com/WDB.

Enjoy!

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'Saving Mr. Banks' and Saving Walt Disney's Birthplace in the MCL

Concept image of the fully-restored
Walt Disney birthplace home.

Merry Christmas from The Mouse Castle Lounge!

It's not just the season of giving this year, but the season of saving, as in Saving Mr. Banks and saving Walt Disney's birthplace. In the MCL today, I chat with Brent Young and Dina Benadon, the husband and wife team who head up Super 78 Studios, a company that designs and develops media for theme park attractions. They also happen to be the owners of the house in Chicago where Walt Disney was born. Brent and Dina have embarked on an ambitious plan to restore the two-story home on the southwest corner of Tripp Avenue and Palmer Street to its original state. Walt's father Elias built the home in 1893 and Walt was born on the second floor in 1901.

To help pay for the restoration, Brent and Dina have launched a Kickstarter campaign in an attempt to raise $500,000. There are less than two weeks left to make a donation to the campaign, so please consider giving to this worthwhile cause.

Also in the Lounge today, we take a look at Saving Mr. Banks, the charming (and yes, very fictionalized) account of the making of Mary Poppins. I'll give a short version of my review (you can read the long version here), plus we'll hear from the stars of the film, Tom Hanks (Walt Disney) and Emma Thompson (P.L. Travers).

All this--plus breakfast booze in your holiday coffee--in today's edition of The Mouse Castle Lounge. Enjoy!

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Related: A Great Day to Be a Walt Disney Fan
Reviewing 'Mr. Banks'
'Saving Mr. Banks,' 'Mary Poppins' and 'Thor' in 'The Mouse Castle Lounge'

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A Great Day to Be a Walt Disney Fan

Yesterday marked Walt Disney's 112th birthday and it was an excellent day to celebrate being part of this wonderful Disney fan community. Two exciting projects were launched and The Mouse Castle is happy to throw its support behind both of them.

First, Dina Benadon and Brent Young run Super 78 Studios, a design and development firm for theme park attractions. They recently purchased Walt Disney's birthplace home in Chicago and are raising money on Kickstarter to help fund the renovation and restoration. There are plans to ultimately turn the historic residence into a museum.

For more information about this extremely worthwhile project, visit www.thewaltdisneybirthplace.org.

Another Disney podcast? Really? Well, considering it's being produced by the Walt Disney Family Museum, I call that a win. Give a listen to their first episode featuring longtime Disney producer Don Hahn and the last interview with the museum's founder, Diane Disney Miller.

Learn more about the WDFM podcast at www.waltdisney.org/podcast.

Related: 'Saving Mr. Banks' and Saving Walt Disney's Birthplace in the MCL

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