Mousetalgia! - Your Disneyland Podcast

Mousetalgia jumps to the Outer Rim this week to talk about Star Wars Land, and we offer our take on the recent news about the planned 14-acre galactic space port. We discuss how guests will enter the land, and wonder "What about Star Tours?" We compare the "orange crates" from 2013's D23 Expo (which suggested upcoming Tattooine-based attractions) vs. the current plans for an unknown planet. Kriste...

This week, Mousetalgia offers an Emporium of topics, including: More D23 Expo tales from the floor, including an encounter with Dick Van Dyke and Kim Possible; a review of the new Disney Animation "Short Films Collection" on Blu-ray; a return to the Lucasfilm theater for a presentation from Disney Legend Tony Baxter and Imagineer Josh Shipley on Vintage Disneyland; and a conversation with Pixar an...

Join Team Moustalgia on another in-depth look at the 2015 D23 Expo, including a closer look at the Walt Disney Archives exhibition and a few of the panels and presentations. First, we talk about "Disneyland: The Exhibit," an extensive display of memorabilia, props and ephermera from Disneyland's 60 year history. We also have exclusive commentary on the exhibit from Disney Legend Tony Baxter and Wa...

Join Team Mousetalgia on a tour of the floor of the 2015 D23 Expo, where we'll examine the various pavilions and attractions scattered throughout the enormous biannual Disney fan convention. We take a look at the various queues, and examine the StagePass and StorePass systems D23 has in place to attempt to ease the pain of standing in lines. We'll visit the Disney Dream Store, Mickey's of Glendale...

Team Mousetalgia answers your email this week as we recover from the D23 Expo weekend. Topics include: places to find a drink at the resort; the best way to search the Mousetalgia archives; Haunted Mansion Holiday facts; the Disneyland Legacy Collection CD set discussed; CV Wood's Heritage Square; "When You Wish" - a Disney stage show currently performing in Utah; D23 - is the gold membership wort...

This week, Team Mousetalgia offers some Expo prep as we welcome Kevin Kern from the Walt Disney Archives to the show to discuss the Archives exhibit at this year's D23 Expo, and what you can expect to see at the exhibit. Kern also talks about his role at the archives, as well as his work helping to develop the presentations to occur on the Archives stage at the D23 Expo. Next, we welcome author an...

Walt Disney's fascination with steam locomotives takes center stage this week as Mousetalgia visits Walt's Barn in Griffith Park to learn more about Disney's love of trains. From his childhood chasing trains in Marceline, through his home steam engine at Carolwood, to the trains his studio built for the Disney parks - you'll get a crash course on why Walt was so moved by the notion of live steam f...

Visit to Disneyland on July 17, 2015 with Jeff and Kristen as they report from the park on its 60th birthday with location recordings as well as thoughts about the day. We listen in on Michael Colglazier's speech, visit New Orleans Square to catch Queenie and the Royal Street Bachelors, and even catch the new Disneyland Band in one of its first day performances. Also - Kristen does a rain-soaked V...

Join Team Mousetalgia live from the Pacific Northwest Mouse Meet as Jeff and Kristen report on the annual event. First, take a tour of the show floor and experience the Mouse Meet from the guests' perspectives, then go behind the scenes with Mousetalgia and special guest Imagineer Joe Herrington, and Disney voice artists Mark Silverman, Margaret Kerry and Pete Renaday. Joe Harrington talks about c...

Happy 60th, Disneyland! Team Mousetalgia offers our advice for dealing with the crowds at Disneyland on its 60th birthday, and then we take a look back at Disneyland's origin story to see how different (and similar) things were back in 1955. We'll take you back to opening day (when four-person-wide lines stretched a mile down Harbor Boulevard) on a brief tour of the original attractions that are n...

Everything D23 Expo: This week, Mousetalgia talks to Kristin Rodack, a director with D23, to learn more about the upcoming D23 Expo to be held at the Anaheim Convention Center August 14-16. Get tips and hints straight from the source as we learn about some of the magic in store for Expo attendees. StagePass, StorePass, the massive Hall D23, and the Expo floor are all examined and explained. Plus,...

Jeff does Disneyland's Diamond celebration and reviews the Matterhorn updates, Paint the Night, World of Color - Celebrate, the T Party Diamond Edition - even breakfast at Flo's. Also, Disneyland goes 101: How much downtime is acceptable for new attractions and effects? We also discuss new merchandise, summer trip planning, and more! Plus, Mousetalgia attends Fathom Events' "Insider Access to Insi...

Team Mousetalgia shares Disneyland travel tips and more in this week's listener email show. Topics include: Disneyland's 60th anniversary Diamond Celebration; using Fast Passes at Disneyland; tips on visiting Aulani from an Oahu resident - including comments on the weather, eating offsite, taking day trips and more. Also - confessions of a self-labeled Disney hater; The Running of the Hoods is exp...

Pixar's Pete Docter and Jonas Rivera appeared at the Seattle International Film Festival to introduce "Inside Out," and Kristen reports from the screening and discusses the filmmakers' inspirations, motivations, and obstacles that were overcome in the making of Pixar's latest film. Jeff reviews "Animation Anecdotes," a book by Disney historian Jim Korkis, and TEA reports that while Disneyland's at...

Author and historian J. B. Kaufman joins Mousetalgia this week to discuss Pinocchio, Walt Disney's second animated feature film. Our conversation covers the Disney adaptation's diferences from Carlo Collodi's original Italian morality tale, Walt's vision for the film and his unique characters, and Kaufman's new book, "Pinocchio: The Making of the Disney Epic." Learn about Walt's struggle to create...

Are diamonds anyone's best friend? Disneyland launches its spectacular Diamond anniversary with a 24-hour party at the parks which was by turns fun, chaotic, thilling and frustrating to the tens of thousands of guests who descended on the Anaheim resort on May 22. Team Mousetalgia welcomes Beci Mahnken, owner of Mouse Fan Travel, to the show to report on her experiences at the media preview, the 2...

Mousetalgia visits Storybrooke this week as Jeff goes to RegalCon, a convention for fans of ABC's "Once Upon a Time." We compare this convention with other Disney fan cons, discuss the seminars and offerings, and hear "Once" celebrities Lee Arenberg, Gil McKinney and Beverly Elliott talk about what the fandom means to each of them personally. Then, Team Mousetalgia reports from Disneyland's Tinker...

Team Mousetalgia takes you to the blue carpet and the world premiere of Tomorrowland in this week's episode! Join Jeff and Dave as they watch the celebrities descend on Downtown Disney's AMC multiplex to watch Brad Bird's fascinating new movie and report on the goings on. Jeff joins D23 to attend the private after-party in Disneyland's Tomorrowland, and Dave joins in to report from a Lucasfilm scr...

Heigh ho - it's time for Mousetalgia to dig, dig, dig into the mailbag! Topics include: tips for traveling with a child; what to expect from 24-hour day and Disneyland's 60th anniversary launch; picky eaters vs. Disneyland's restaurants; Disney-style wedding vows; traveling to Disneyland and dining with a large group; DCA's Frozen stage show; tips for attending the Pacific Northwest Mouse Meet; st...

Team Mousetalgia talks Star Wars on this special stellar-sized May 4th episode as we recount the highlights of a weekend of galactic adventure at the recent Star Wars Celebration convention held April 16-19 at the Anaheim Convention Center. From JJ Abrams and his stunning new teaser trailer to Princess Leia making out with a fan onstage in the Celebration Arena, we cover the moments and events fro...

In this special episode recorded live from Star Wars Celebration Anaheim on April 17, 2015, Mousetalgia welcomes writer/director/puppeteer/creature artist Kirk Thatcher to the show to talk about his work for ILM on Return of the Jedi creating creatures and aliens, and then bringing them to life for the film. Television producer Joseph Freed also joins our roundtable to discuss living la vida Star...

Mousetalgia continues our own 24/7 Newsies cycle with another Newsies-inspired episode today as we welcome session musician Derek Young to the show to talk about his experience as the "unsung Newsie" from the original Disney film, released 23 years ago. Derek talks about working with composer Alan Menken and arranger Danny Troob on the soundtrack album, for which he was hired to dub a line for one...

Join Team Mousetalgia as we take a look back at the release of star wars in 1977 with Lucasfilm's director of fan relations at the time, Craig Miller. Miller takes us for a look inside the inner workings of Lucasfilm as Star Wars was released, which caught everyone by surprise with its overwhelming success. Miller talks about starting the official Star Wars Fan Club, George Lucas's early plans for...

Mousetalgia welcomes Barbara Burnett Brock to the show to talk about her incredible career as a tour guide at Disneyland. Enjoy stories about touring with Ozzy Osbourne, Stephen King and Michael Jackson, and learn about the grand opening of Star Tours and Liz Taylor's amazing 60th birthday fête, which Barbara helped manage. As Kristen notes, it's really all about that tour guide outfit - and we di...

Mousetalgia visited the Walt Disney Company Annual Shareholder meeting at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco on March 12, and Jeff reports on the experience. From sneak peeks at upcoming films to an open mic for shareholders to speak to CEO Bob Iger directly, we cover all the bases and describe the interesting experience of hearing the company's leaders speak about the future of the Walt Dis...