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Midnight Magic
Posted on Fri, 03/11/2011 - 06:00

Our amazing model of Disneyland was built by Kerner Optical in San Rafael, California, a former division of George Lucas' Industrial Light and Magic. It was completed and installed in Gallery 9 before the completion of the reading rail.

The original installation of the rail was very tricky and time-consuming; it was a striking thing, winding down the length of the ramp, bright peacock blue, and full of information...

From the Collections
Posted on Mon, 03/14/2011 - 06:00

We asked Martin Salazar, our Art Conservator, to pick his favorite artifact from our Collection and write about why he chose it. He chose a unique artifact from the the movie Fantasia.

The Costume Design of 'Mary Poppins' with Tony Walton - Recap!
Posted on Tue, 03/22/2011 - 06:00

Throughout the month of March, The Walt Disney Family Museum is showing Walt Disney's classic film Mary Poppins. In celebration of this beloved movie, the Museum hosted an extraordinary afternoon with the film's costume and design consultant, Tony Walton. Brad Rosenstein, curator of the San Francisco Museum of Performance and Design, moderated the discussion on Tony's life and work. The conversation focused on Tony's designs for Mary Poppins, his firsthand experiences working with Walt, and a few behind-the-scenes secrets of the film...

Look Closer Recap: Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers
Posted on Mon, 03/28/2011 - 06:00

Ever since I began working for the Museum in September 2009 and learned that we’d be offering a Film of the Month for our guests, I anxiously awaited the showing of Mary Poppins. It had always been my favorite Disney feature-length film, and when it was finally scheduled to run this month, I was thrilled. Not only did I have the chance to watch it again in our intimate Fantasia-themed theater, I also had the pleasure of introducing it to visitors throughout the month, and then making the book behind the movie the focus of our March Look Closer presentation...

The Miniature Worlds of Walt
Posted on Wed, 03/30/2011 - 06:00

New to Gallery 7 within The Walt Disney Family Museum is an enlarged display of the Museum’s tiny treasures, including several pieces of Walt’s unique collection, mentioned in this excerpt from Jim Korkis’s book, The Vault of Walt.

Fooling Around at Disney: Walt's April (and Other) Foolishness
Posted on Fri, 04/01/2011 - 06:00

Often lost in the public perception of Walt Disney’s personality is his wicked sense of humor. He has frequently been characterized as simply a lowbrow, fond of barnyard humor and gags involving the rear end. Although Walt admitted, “I can’t laugh at intellectual humor, you know? I want to be hit here. I’m just corny enough. I want to be hit right here in the heart...

A Bloom in the Garden of a Marriage
Posted on Fri, 04/08/2011 - 06:00

English poet Alfred Austin said, “Show me your garden and I shall tell you what you are.” Our Consulting Historian Paula Sigman Lowery has turned the earth in the Disney garden, and her discoveries are pleasant revelations of Walt’s life at home.

In Memory of Collin Campbell
Posted on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 06:00
We are saddened to note the passing of Collin Campbell, who died in Florida on April 2. He was a layout and background artist in the Disney Animation Department, and was a long-time art director and concept artist for Walt Disney Imagineering.
Mary Blair is Here in San Francisco!
Posted on Wed, 04/13/2011 - 06:00

You can't talk about Walt Disney's Alice in Wonderland without acknowledging the contributions of artist, Mary Blair. We asked Michael Labrie, Director of Collections, to share with us the story of the acquisition of the Mary Blair collection.

What Do YOU Do, Renalyn Tan?
Posted on Fri, 04/15/2011 - 06:00

Each month, we ask a museum staff member to answer five questions about their position at The Walt Disney Family Museum, their fondest Disney memories, and personal tidbits. This is the fourth in our series titled "What Do YOU Do?" and in honor of Tax Day, we're highlighting Renalyn Tan.

Posted on Mon, 04/18/2011 - 06:00

The TCM Classic Film Festival is drawing near, and I for one am particularly excited about a program that The Walt Disney Family Museum is presenting there. As some of you know, the TCM Festival will be held in Hollywood from April 28-May 1. In collaboration with New York’s Museum of Modern Art, we of the WDFM are presenting a program of the very earliest animated cartoons in Walt Disney’s career—some of them “lost” films that today’s Disney fans have never seen before...

Walt Disney and the Enviromental Movement
Posted on Fri, 04/22/2011 - 06:00

In recognition of the power of millions of individual actions, today's Earth Day 2011 is organized around A Billion Acts of Green®: Personal, organizational and corporate pledges to live and act sustainably. In observation of Earth Day, Disney scholar Douglas Brode offers this except from his book, From Walt to Woodstock: How Disney Created the Counterculture.

In 1962, [Rachel Carson’s] book Silent Spring belatedly brought “the basic irresponsibility of an [ever more] industrialized technological society toward the natural world” to the public’s attention...

The WDFM and TCM: Back Story
Posted on Mon, 04/25/2011 - 06:00

Our Digital Archivist, Lynn Zook, worked behind-the-scenes with the staff of Turner Classic Movies to make her dream of The Walt Disney Family Museum participating in the TCM Classic Film Festival a reality. We asked Lynn to share the story.

Diane Disney Miller at the TCM Classic Film Festival
Posted on Thu, 04/28/2011 - 06:00

Our digital archivist, Lynn Zook, is on the scene at the TCM Classic Film Festival in Hollywood this week and filed this report about Wednesday's events.

Although the TCM Classic Film Festival does not officially begin until Thursday afternoon, the festival's headquarters at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel was abuzz with activity on Wednesday afternoon.

From the Film Festival
Posted on Fri, 04/29/2011 - 06:00

Our digital archivist, Lynn Zook, is on the scene at the TCM Classic Film Festival in Hollywood this week, and filed this report.

It was a grand opening night in Hollywood for the second annual TCM Classic Film Festival!

More than 2,500 film buffs from around the world arrived to spend the next few days immersed in what can only be described as classic film heaven...

Look Closer Recap: Our Lady of Flair
Posted on Mon, 05/02/2011 - 06:00

For our April Look Closer presentations, The Walt Disney Family Museum Interpreters had the pleasure of focusing on four related artifacts, which together comprise the display devoted to Mary Blair. Located under our lower level stairwell, this display has become a popular stopping point for visitors, from curious newcomers to longtime fans of the beloved Disney Legend, Animator, and Imagineer...

Dumbo! The Ninth Wonder of the Universe!
Posted on Wed, 05/04/2011 - 06:00

In the aftermath of the blockbuster success of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and the ambitious but disappointing performances of Pinocchio and Fantasia, and as Bambi struggled to find its way; as divisive labor problems troubled the Studio and the threat of a World War loomed on the horizon, one of Walt Disney's most timeless and unpretentious animated features was created...

Inside the Studios: A Day in the Life of a Studio Member
Posted on Thu, 05/05/2011 - 06:00

Ever wonder what a day in the life of an animator at the Studios would be like? We're introducing a new series at The Walt Disney Family Museum, which will allow visitors to experience what it’s like to be a member of a studio team, through live demonstrations in our Galleries. This month, we’re kicking off our Inside the Studios series by focusing on “the Animator.”