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Inside The Mouse Castle: Disney News, Information and Commentary

From July 2014 to April 2021, Disney geeks extraordinaire Tim Callaway and Anthony Reynolds commented, analyzed and generally made a shambles of Disney news "Inside the Mouse Castle." Relive those embarrassing days here as they talk about Disneyland, Walt Disney World, Walt Disney Studios, Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, Disney Publishing, Disney Consumer Products and the Disney/ABC Television Group. You've been warned. www.TheMouseCastle.com
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Now displaying: July, 2015
ITMC 07-27-2015 - D23 Expo, Marvel's 'Ant-Man' and Disney's 'Descendants' 0
Jul 28, 2015

In this week's episode of Inside The Mouse Castle, Anthony has an existential crisis. We're attributing it to a cataclysmic combination of Neil deGrasse Tyson, sleep deprivation, Ant-Man shrinking down to a molecular level and the wretched "Be Our Guest" number from Disney's Descendants (debuting this Friday on the Disney Channel). 

 

With Anthony curled up in a fetal position, he and Tim delve deeply into these thought-provoking topics guaranteed to make you feel insignificant against the infinite backdrop of space: 

  • For the first time, the D23 Expo will split their traditional motion picture fan presentation into two separate events, one for animation and one for live action. We're hoping for big announcements (or at least some new trailers) for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Captain America: Civil War and Finding Dory.
  • Tim finally saw Ant-Man and thoroughly enjoyed it. He left the theater totally perplexed, though. Why don't people stay all the way to the end of a Marvel movie to see the post credit-scenes? Have they not learned? The last scene in Ant-Man (and yes, it comes at the very end) is not to be missed. It does an epic job setting up (and raising a few questions about) Captain America: Civil War.
  • Annnd.....The Sword in the Stone is the latest Disney animated classic to go into development as a live-action film. We recap all we know about the full slate of upcoming Disney retreads.
  • There's a new trailer for Pixar's The Good Dinosaur. Despite our earlier concerns about production delays, recasting and a new director, we're encouraged by what we see. But, with all the (justified) attention Inside Out has received, will people take to a second Pixar film in the same year?
  • Avengers: Age of Ultron will be available on digital download September 8th. Want it in a disc in a box? That's available on October 2nd.
  • Michael Jackson as Jar Jar Binks? It almost happened. Well, Michael thought it would anyway.

Enjoy!

www.TheMouseCastle.com

ITMC 07-20-2015 - Disneyland's Diamond Celebration, Shanghai Disney Resort and New Disney Legends 0
Jul 21, 2015

Tim is back from a fun-filled weekend in Anaheim where he not only wished Disneyland Happy Birthday on Friday, but he also attended a benefit for the Walt Disney Birthplace where the guest of honor was none other than Bert the Chimney Sweep himself, Dick Van Dyke. Dick performed with his a capella group, the Vantastix.

Disneyland was unsurprisingly crowded for Friday's official Diamond Celebration, but it was totally worth it to get an "I was there" button and join thousands of guests to sing "Feed the Birds" and "Happy Birthday" with Richard Sherman and Ashley Brown. Michael Colglazier, hosted the rededication ceremony in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle. And while the Disneyland president hit all the proper notes as far as thanking guests, cast members and assorted Disney Legends, his delivery left a bit to be desired. Let's just say he's not personality plus delivering an overly-rehearsed, pre-written speech. He needed to inject a lot more excitement and spontaneity into the festivities. Thank goodness for Sherman, Brown and the welcome cast of costumed Disney characters.

 

Tim and Anthony polished their presentation skills for this week's episode of Inside The Mouse Castle. Here's what else is going on: 

  • Bob Iger revealed some of what guests can expect when Shanghai Disney Resort opens in China next year.
  • Mickey's Halloween Party at Disneyland will be held on 17 different nights between September 11th and November 1st this year. Tickets to the late-night event will go on sale for annual passholders, DVC members and Disney Visa cardholders beginning July 22nd. The rest of the world can have at them on July 29th.
  • Marvel's Ant-Man opened at number one at the box office over the weekend, taking in $58 million in the U.S. Neither Tim nor Anthony have seen it yet. They offer their deepest apologies. What did you think of it?
  • Tilda Swinton has been cast as "The Ancient One" in Marvel's upcoming Doctor Strange. Apparently the white, middle-aged woman will play an elderly, Asian man.
  • Annnnnd......Aladdin is the latest winner in the Disney animation-to-live-action-movie lottery. A prequel is in the works on how the genie ended up in his bottle and got that horrible crick in his neck.
  • We approve of the newly-named Disney Legends who will be honored at this year's D23 Expo: Andreas Deja, Susan Lucci, Danny Elfman, Julie Reihm Casaletto, George Bodenheimer, Eyvind Earle, Carson Van Osten and George Lucas. They will all be officially inducted on August 14th at the D23 Expo.
  • Disney and Lucasfilm are not amused that GQ appropriated (without permission) a handful of Star Wars characters to join comedian Amy Schumer in a racy photo spread. We're not sure what annoyed them more, Schumer in bed with R2D2 and C3PO or Schumer drinking with the droids and Chewbacca at a biker bar. Regardless, we think all the pics are pretty freakin' funny.

Enjoy!

BTW, this show marks the one-year anniversary of Inside The Mouse Castle. Hooray!


www.TheMouseCastle.com

ITMC 07-13-2015 - Disneyland's 60th Birthday, 'Star Wars' at Comic-Con and 'Wreck-It Ralph 2' 0
Jul 14, 2015
So, who's going to Disneyland Friday for the park's 60th birthday party? Tim is! We hope you are too.

Sadly, Anthony won't be joining us for the festivities, so let's try not to have too much fun in his absence.

Disneyland's Diamond Celebration will be a somewhat low-key event (especially for those of us who remember the 50th). Contrary to earlier rumors, Disneyland and DCA will not be open 24 hours like they were Memorial Day weekend. Disneyland will be open 8:00 a.m. to midnight, DCA from 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. As far as special events during the day, Disneyland Resort president Michael Colglazier will preside over a rededication ceremony in Town Square. The event will be streamed live on big screens set up throughout Disneyland, DCA and Downtown Disney. There will also be special late-night performances of World of Color and Paint the Night. Guests are also encouraged to dress in 1950s-style garb just like it was on Disneyland's opening day.
 
For a complete list of activities this Friday, visit https://disneyland.disney.go.com/calendars/day/2015-07-17/.
 
Other goings-on in this week's edition of Inside The Mouse Castle:
  • Harrison Ford made a surprise appearance at Comic-Con last week. He joined J.J. Abrams and the cast of Star Wars: The Force Awakens on stage in Hall H to the delight of the packed audience. It was his first public appearance since March when he crashed landed a vintage airplane on a golf course in Southern California.
  • Christopher Miller and Phil Lord, the directing duo that helmed The Lego Movie, will direct a standalone Star Wars film that tells the backstory of Han Solo. Lawrence Kasdan is working on the script and the film is expected to be released on May 25, 2018.
  • Ant-Man is getting mostly favorable reviews (75% on Rotten Tomatoes as of this post). The latest tale in the Marvel Cinematic Universe stars Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Evangeline Lilly and Corey Stoll. It opens in U.S. theaters this Friday.
  • John C. Reilly has confirmed that there will be a Wreck-It Ralph 2 and he will again be voicing the title character. Expect there to be a bigger Nintendo tie-in like we talked about previously Inside The Mouse Castle.
  • Marisa Tomei will play Peter Parker's guardian Aunt May in the upcoming MCU Spider-Man films. Is it wrong to be hot for Aunt May?
  • Who says princesses get all the attention? Disney is developing a film centered around the life of Prince Charming. Personally, we think Prince should play the prince.
  • Disney Infinity 3.0 will hit stores (finally) on August 30, 2015. It will have Star Wars in it. That's all you need to know. Order it. Now.
  • By a 3-2 vote, the Anaheim City Council passed an ordinance extending a gate-tax ban for the Disneyland Resort an additional 30 years. Anthony continues to be bored by this type of news.
  • Bill Cosby and the Confederate Flag can no longer be found at Walt Disney World. Tim and Anthony make inappropriate jokes about it.
Enjoy!

www.TheMouseCastle.com

ITMC 07-06-2015 - Remembering Blaine Gibson, Changes at Disney's Hollywood Studios and New Exhibitions at the Walt Disney Family Museum 0
Jul 7, 2015

In this week's episode on Inside The Mouse Castle, we pay tribute to the late Blaine Gibson, the animator, sculptor and Disney Legend who passed away Sunday at the age of 97.

 

Blaine began his career at Disney in 1939 as an in-betweener and assistant animator. His feature animation credits include Fantasia, Bambi, Song of the South, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Sleeping Beauty and 101 Dalmatians.

 

He considered himself an animator first, but he also had a gift for sculpting. Aware of Blaine's talent, Walt Disney assigned the artist to WED Enterprises (later Walt Disney Imagineering) to create character forms that would transform into Audio-Animatronics. Blaine made significant design contributions to Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion. Arguably, his most impressive accomplishment in Imagineering was overseeing the design of every president up to George W. Bush in the Magic Kingdom's Hall of Presidents.

 

Even though Blaine retired in 1983, he continued to consult on projects with Disney. The "Partners" statue that depicts Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse standing hand-in-hand at Disney theme parks remains one of Blaine's lasting creations.

 

All of us at The Mouse Castle send our condolences to Blaine Gibson's friends and family. Rest in peace.

 

Also in this week's episode:

  • Pixar's Inside Out and Universal's Jurassic World ended the July of 4th weekend box office battle in a virtual tie for first place. They were aided by poor debuts from Terminator: Genisys and Magic Mike XXL.
  • Inside Out's solid performance helped Disney's stable of 2015 film releases (including Avengers: Age of Ultron and Cinderella) pass $3 billion in international box office. It's the sixth year in a row that Disney has passed the $3 billion mark.
  • Marvel's high-tech entertainment roadshow, The Marvel Experience, is closing up shop after finishing its stint in Philadelphia over the weekend. Upcoming appearances in Chicago, New York and St. Louis this summer have been cancelled and tickets are being refunded. Complaints about technical issues, overpriced tickets and poor crowd management have been rampant on Yelp and other social media sites for months.
  • Ant-Man premiered in Hollywood last week. Tim is looking forward to seeing MCU's latest entry when it debuts on July 17th. Anthony has concerns after being unimpressed by the film's sneak preview at Disney California Adventure.
  • It's not just selfie sticks that have gone away at Walt Disney World. Poop candy has exited Animal Kingdom and DisneyQuest is closing at Downtown Disney to make way for the NBA Experience.
  • In business news (Anthony's least favorite kind of news), Christine McCarthy has been named the new Disney CFO, replacing the departing Jay Rasulo. Also, Disney Interactive and Disney Consumer Products, once independent divisions, will now operate under the same umbrella.
  • There are two new exhibitions getting ready to open at the Walt Disney Family Museum. Disney and Dali: Architects of the Imagination will open on July 10th and will feature an audio tour narrated by Sigourney Weaver. Tomorrowland: Walt's Vision for Today opens on July 22nd and will be curated by filmmaker Brad Bird.

Enjoy!

www.TheMouseCastle.com

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