Posing for a picture at the intersection of Mickey Avenue and Dopey Drive

The next stop was the Disney Studios in Burbank. As we were driving in, we saw the construction on the new animation building, so that animation would move back to the studio from Glendale, where it has been for the last ten years. Most of our time at the Studios was spent at the Archives. Dave was in Boston, so his assistant, Robert Tieman, gave us the complete tour. An interesting fact is that Robert's desk is the desk that Walt Disney used; Robert told us how Michael Jackson calls about once a year wanting to buy the desk or something else from the Archives, and Dave has to tell him that nothing in the Archives is for sale. We went in Dave's office, where he has several books and collectibles. There was also a picture of him and Groucho Marx on the wall, and a fake picture of him on the cover of the Disney Channel Magazine. Robert told us that the old television in the corner was not Walt's old set, as many people often asked, but it was Dave's old set that still works; he said they turn it on for natural disasters and such, but they almost need advance notice because the tubes take almost thirty minutes to heat up and give a good picture. We each got to hold an Oscar that had been won for White Wilderness, I believe. After our tour of the Archives, we ate at the Studio Commissary and shopped at the Studio store. While we waited for everyone to finish, I took a few pictures of Mickey Avenue and the Team Disney Building. We all had our picture made at the corner of Mickey Avenue and Dopey Drive. There was a long line of people waiting for something, and we found out that people were waiting for tickets to the premiere of "Nightmare Before Christmas." Once everyone was finished, we loaded up the van and went back to Glendale.

Our next stop was the one I had been looking forward to the most: Walt Disney Imagineering. In the reception area, where we all had to sign in, there was a model of the Orbitron at Euro Disney. Our guide, Jim, first took us to a wall containing pictures of all the different stages of design, and gave us a brief overview of how all their projects are created. We then went into a conference room; the walls were decorated with conceptual paintings of different attractions at the parks. Jim had us all tell where we were from and told us what we would be seeing during our tour. We saw the model of Toontown taken to the site to be used as a guide. A model of Blizzard Beach, the new water park at Walt Disney World, was in one room. I was particularly interested in the models of Animal Kingdom, a proposed new park at Walt Disney World. We saw a short video to be used in a preliminary presentation for Journey to the Center of the Earth at Euro Disney. We went into the room housing most of the sculptures created for the figures in the parks, including the bust of Bill Clinton for the Hall of Presidents. Also in this room was the statue of Walt and Mickey that was about to be placed in Disneyland. Jim showed us how they make intricate models using AutoCAD and a laser cutter, which works much like the plotter I use at the office, except that it has a laser instead of a pen. We went to the Tujunga Facility, also known as MAPO, where much of the construction is done; there we saw a new Audio-Animatronics pirate for Tokyo Disneyland, some characters from Food Rocks for Epcot Center, and a walk-through Nautilis for Euro Disney's Discoveryland. We then went back to 1401 Flower and looked around at Mickey's of Glendale, the store at Imagineering.

Once we left there, we went to Disney Consumer Products. Most of our time was spent in the conference room, where different people told us about the different areas of the division. The first person to speak to us (after Brent, our guide) was Bo Boyd, the head of Disney Consumer Products; he had just returned from Germany, and he was extremely interesting. We heard from the book publishing group, which gave us a copy of their best- selling Aladdin book, and from the Disney Classics Collection, which gave us buttons. Then we went and saw many rooms where the people design and market the different products. We met an artist who had drawn pictures for many products, including the different video games Disney has licensed. We also saw some of the products in development for "Aladdin" (the second phase of products for this film) and "The Lion King." When we were about to leave, they gave us black Mickey Mouse tote bags that were gifts from Bo.

We next went to the Disney Store World Headquarters. Several people had already left for the weekend, since it was around 3:30 when we got there; also, it was jeans day, and we were wearing our suits and dresses. The walls were decorated with character displays similar to those that appear in the stores. They were remodeling, so some rooms were empty. We were shown some products in development for the stores, including more products from "Aladdin." We then met Tom Heymann, head of the North American Disney Stores, who told us more of the plot of "The Lion King" and about the Christmas promotion for the next year (although the one for that year had just gotten started). After looking around a little more, we went back to the apartments.

Once we had all changed clothes, Gary, Tom, Tim, Todd, and Steve went looking for a place to eat or some place to order pizza from. Tracy, Barb, and I watched television; Leslie left to spend some time with her sister, and we did not see her any more during the trip. Once the guys got back (they had been gone for an hour, had tried to call, did not get an answer, found the Glendale Galleria, looked around some, and finally came back), we ordered pizza from Dominoes. Once our food got there, we ate, talked, and watched television (old Mickey Mouse Club tapes). We finally all went to bed so that we could go to Disneyland the next day.

The train station at the Disneyland entrance

We had decided that we would leave around seven Saturday morning so that we would get to Disneyland in plenty of time (it opened at nine that morning). It was raining that morning, but that did not slow us down any. Steve drove, since he had grown up in Los Angeles; there were a few times when he did not quite know where we were, but we still managed to get there around eight. We waited until they would let us in on Main Street; when we got in, Barb, Tom, and I went to make reservations for The Golden Horseshoe Jamboree (Aladdin's Oasis was closed due to the rain), while Gary went to buy a hat, and everyone else went to shop some.

Sleeping Beauty Castle with the Matterhorn in the background

We waited to be let off Main Street; Barb, Tom, and I were waiting near the front of the crowd. When they let us go, I headed for Space Mountain, while most of the others went to look for some place to eat breakfast. The ride is a little smoother than Space Mountain in Florida, and there aren't as many big drops, but it was still a good ride. I went to Fantasyland to see what was open; Alice in Wonderland was not working, and Pinocchio's Daring Journey was not open yet, so I rode Peter Pan's Flight, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, and Snow White's Adventures, and then I went and rode Pinocchio's Daring Journey when it opened. I never did get to ride Alice in Wonderland, because every time I went back either the line was too long or the ride was broken down. I saw the Enchanted Tiki Room, which has a very different pre-show from the one in Florida. I saw the Walt Disney Story, featuring Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, which I really wanted to see because of the newer Lincoln figure, although it has been outdated by some figures in the Disney-MGM Studios and at Euro Disneyland.

Space Mountain and Tomorrowland

Steve DeDen, his wife, Tim, Todd, Tom and I met at the Golden Horseshoe to see the show there; Some performers were the background people at the competition show, and they recognized Steve and picked him for a part in the show. At Grizzly Hall, they were showing the Country Bear Vacation Hoedown, so I saw that because it is not at Walt Disney World any more. I then ate at the Hungry Bear Restaurant, which is near Grizzly Hall. I then left the park to go to the Company D store, but I did not find anything to buy there. I came back in and saw the Aladdin's Royal Caravan parade, which is slightly different from the one in Florida. I rode the Disneyland Railroad several times, getting off at various places each time; in the Main Street Station, they have on display the Lilly Belle, the eighth-scale engine that used to run around Walt's backyard. I spent a good bit of time walking around Mickey's Toontown, although I did not go in Mickey's House or Minnie's House. I did, however, go on Miss Daisy, Donald's boat in Toon Harbor, and I looked around at the Gag Factory. I rode Pirates of the Caribbean once in the morning, but it always had a long line in the afternoon, so I did not ride it again, although I wanted to. I looked around in the Disney Gallery, which is above Pirates of the Caribbean; it is an art gallery that was originally meant to be an apartment for Walt and Roy and their families. I bought a few postcards of the pictures and a gallery catalogue. The Haunted Mansion was closed, so I did not get to ride it, as was the Matterhorn. In Tomorrowland, I wanted to ride the Monorail again, but the line was always long. I did ride the PeopleMover, although I found that the one in Florida is far superior.

The entrance to Club 33

While I was wandering around in Toontown, I ran into Wayne Allwine, the voice of Mickey Mouse, so I got his autograph. After he had gone, I realized that I should have had my picture made with him. While we were waiting for the group to meet a few minutes later, he walked by again, and I stopped him and had my picture made with him. All of us except Leslie, Steve, and his wife met at the Blue Bayou, the restaurant at Pirates of the Caribbean, for supper that evening. We had a table right next to the lagoon, so some of our group waved at the people as they rode by on the ride to see if they would wave back at us; some people waved, but most did not look. After we ate, some of us went to ride the Jungle Cruise, which is very similar to the ride in Walt Disney World; it was interesting to ride it at night to see how everything was lit. After that, we split up again; I went and saw Captain EO after I decided I did not want to wait in line for the Starjets. I went around to several shops to make sure that I had bought everything that I wanted. At midnight when the park closed, we met so that we could go back to the apartments; we had to wait a while on Tim because the people in the Emporium would not give him his 35% discount. Once he was finished, Gary drove us back to the apartments.

The Sword in the Stone

And that's where the report ends. The next morning, those of us who were left got up and headed back to LAX for our flights home. As you can tell, the whole trip was quite an adventure!

- Story and Photos by Steve Burns
Posted

Steve is a three-time Disney Store National Trivia finalist and webmaster of BurnsLand, home of Steve's Disney Railroad Adventures.

E-mail Steve at steve@startedbyamouse.com, discuss this article in the StartedByAMouse.com Disney Discussion Forums or use the Talkback feature below.

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