The Walt Disney Family Museum Blog

Our guest curator this week is Issey Honton. Issey is our Conservation and Preparation Technician. He works closely with Ben Peters in designing and installing the various exhibits in The Walt Disney Family Museum.

We asked Issey to pick his favorite artifact from the Collection and write about why he chose it. Here's his pick:

My favorite object of the collection has to be one of the Heinrich Kley drawings. Kley, born in 1863, is best known for his satirical take on the modern industrial life of his time, as well as his ability to humanize animals. Although not as well-known today as he perhaps should be, his work influenced many artists throughout the 20th Century, including Walt Disney.

Harrison "Buzz" Price, the research economist who recommended Anaheim to Walt Disney as the location for Disneyland, passed away Sunday, August 15, at the age of 89.

"Despite his failing health, he continued to demonstrate his trademark humor, cutting edge wit and enduring love for family and friends," his son David Price said on behalf of his mother, Anne Shaw Price, and the Price family. "His legacy of laughter, wit, love, passion and commitment leaves its mark on each of us--family, friends and colleagues in the leisure and recreation industry he loved."

The Walt Disney Family Museum has an impressive collection of artifacts that were all part of the life and career of Walt Disney. We are looking forward to sharing some of those objects with you in the months ahead.

This particular object is the name plaque from Walt's office. As Walt became more well known, people from all over the world began sending him gifts. This name plaque was sent to Walt in apprecation for the hours of entertainment he provided an unknown fan. Walt kept the majority of items that he received as gifts over the years.

It’s hard to believe that there is just only a month left to see our Peter Pan exhibit, but this year--like so many others--seems to be flying by at a fast clip.

Due to Aloha Weekend at the Presidio, parking will not be free to our Museums guests on August 7 and August 8. We appreciate your patience during this time.

Many Disney enthusiasts will need no introduction to John Canemaker, one of the world’s foremost animation historians, and an Academy Award®-winning animator in his own right. Intimately acquainted with the craft of making animated films, John has used his unique insights to write books exploring the lives and work of past masters in the field. His books have included Before the Animation Begins, which focuses on the top Disney concept artists; Paper Dreams, about the creative talents in the story department; and Walt Disney’s Nine Old Men and the Art of Animation, profiling some of the studio’s greatest animators.

It truly was a Museum full of characters. This past Wednesday night, the Yelp Elite gathered at The Walt Disney Family Museum, in the Presidio of San Francisco, for an animated evening of fun, food, and a little bit of dress-up!

As many fans of Walt Disney and Disneyland know, The "E" Ticket was a magazine devoted to "collecting theme park memories". While the magazine is no longer published, it lives on in the hearts of its many devoted fans. Now, thanks to Diane Disney Miller, her family and the staff of the Museum, you have the chance to own a piece of this amazing history.

But first, a bit of the back story:

Our guest blogger, Jonas Rivera—an Academy Award-winning producer at PIXAR—shares his thoughts on the original film about twin sisters who were separated at birth, meet for the first time, swap places, and seek to reunite their parents.

On Friday evening, in front of a sold-out audience in the Museum’s theater, Executive Director Richard Benefield welcomed everyone to the program. He singled out retired Imagineer and Disney Legend Marty Sklar as the guiding force behind the weekend celebration ahead.