The Disney Look... to the Past! (November 12-18)
Enjoy this week's edition of "The Disney Look... to the Past!" Let's take a glimpse of the past:
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This Week in Disney History: November 12-18
Nov. 17, 1989 - Walt Disney Pictures releases “The Little
Mermaid”
“I don’t know where, I don’t know how, but I know something’s starting right now.” Indeed, “The Little Mermaid” started a string of blockbusters from the Walt Disney Animation Studios, which had struggled to find traction in the two decades following Walt Disney’s passing. The original fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen had been considered for a Disney adaptation in the late 1930s, and was picked up by the writer-director team of Ron Clements and John Musker (“The Princess and the Frog”) during the mid 1980s. This marked the first Disney collaboration between the Broadway songwriting team of Howard Ashman and Alan Menken, whose score and the song “Under the Sea” won Academy Awards. Ashman and Menken’s music later helped set the tone for “Beauty and the Beast” and “Aladdin.” The film inspired the “Voyage of the Little Mermaid” stage show at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure at Disney California Adventure Park, with a similar attraction coming to Magic Kingdom Park in 2012.
“I don’t know where, I don’t know how, but I know something’s starting right now.” Indeed, “The Little Mermaid” started a string of blockbusters from the Walt Disney Animation Studios, which had struggled to find traction in the two decades following Walt Disney’s passing. The original fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen had been considered for a Disney adaptation in the late 1930s, and was picked up by the writer-director team of Ron Clements and John Musker (“The Princess and the Frog”) during the mid 1980s. This marked the first Disney collaboration between the Broadway songwriting team of Howard Ashman and Alan Menken, whose score and the song “Under the Sea” won Academy Awards. Ashman and Menken’s music later helped set the tone for “Beauty and the Beast” and “Aladdin.” The film inspired the “Voyage of the Little Mermaid” stage show at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure at Disney California Adventure Park, with a similar attraction coming to Magic Kingdom Park in 2012.
SAD: Nov. 16, 2004 - Stitch’s Great Escape! opens at Magic Kingdom
Park
It’s your first day as a prison guard recruit for the Galactic
Federation. As your training begins in Tomorrowland’s Prison Transport Center,
Captain Gantu alerts you that a “Level 3” prisoner has been captured, and it’s
headed your way. Inside the secure teleportation chamber, the subject is beamed
in amidst flashing lights and billowing fog. The chamber tube lowers, and it’s
revealed to be… Stitch? The utterly adorable Experiment 626? Unfortunately, his
badness level is extremely high at the moment. Stitch outsmarts the laser
cannons trained on him and plunges the chamber into darkness. Binaural audio and
sensory effects built into the seats make it feel like Stitch is creating havoc
everywhere, and certainly you’ll never think of chili dogs the same way again.
Inspired by a sequence from Walt Disney Pictures’ “Lilo & Stitch,” the
attraction replaced the far more sinister ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter,
but fans will recognize one of its characters, Skippy, as the cute convict
featured in the preshow.
Also this week in Disney history:
Nov. 121932 - “The Klondike Kid” and “Wayward Canary” (Mickey Mouse cartoon shorts) debut
1946 - Walt Disney Pictures releases “Song of the South”at Loew’s Grand Theatre in Atlanta
1993 - Walt Disney Pictures releases “The Three Musketeers”
1999 - Downtown Disney Marketplace carousel opens
Nov. 13
1940 - Walt Disney Pictures premieres “Fantasia” at the Broadway Theater in New York
1997 - Disney Theatrical Productions’ “The Lion King” opens at the New Amsterdam Theatre on Broadway
Nov. 14
1941 - “The Art of Skiing” (Goofy cartoon short) debuts
1947 - “Mail Dog” (Pluto cartoon short) debuts
1995 - Disney Magic is announced as the name of the first Disney Cruise Line ship
Nov. 15
1932 - The first class of Disney Art School is held on a Walt Disney Studio soundstage to train animators
1965 - Walt Disney and Roy O. Disney announce the “Florida project” that later would be known as the Walt Disney World Resort
1993 - The Garden Grill Restaurant opens in The Land pavilion at Epcot
1980 - Grand opening of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at Magic Kingdom Park
Nov. 16
1990 - Walt Disney Pictures releases “The Rescuers Down Under”
2004 - Turtle Talk with Crush officially opens in The Living Seas at Epcot
2006 - Disney Theatrical Productions’ “Mary Poppins” opens at the New Amsterdam Theatre on Broadway
Nov. 17
1990 - Resort leaders begin the first of a two-day grand opening for Disney’s Yacht and Beach Club Resort
1993 - An interactive fountain between Future World and World Showcase opens at Epcot
1997 - Leaders dedicate the Disney Cruise Line Terminal at Port Canaveral, Fla.
Nov. 18
1928 - “Steamboat Willie” (the first cartoon with synchronized sound and the debut of Mickey Mouse) premieres
1962 - Swiss Family Treehouse opens at Disneyland Park
1978 - Mickey Mouse becomes the first animated character to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
1988 - Walt Disney Pictures releases “Oliver & Company”
1993 - The Partners statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse is dedicated at Disneyland Park
2001 - Chester & Hester’s Dinorama! featuring TriceraTop Spin opens at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park
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Thank you for reading, and have a great rest of your day!
All photos and information here posted are subject to the copyright of the Walt Disney Company. All rights reserved.
All photos and information here posted are subject to the copyright of the Walt Disney Company. All rights reserved.
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