It's summer, let's go on the beach .... at DLP !

Guests coming at Disney Parks have sometime strange behavior, but these two german tourists obviously decided that a beach is a beach, wherever it is........even if this is the one of Adventure Isle at DLP's Adventureland!

On this incredible-but-real picture below, shoot in June 1992 - two months after Disneyland Paris opening, obviously these two people were not aware of the park rules. It was hot, lot of sun , all they needed was a beach. And obviously they thought that Adventure Isle ( very ) private beach - at 10 meters from Pirates of Caribbean entrance - will be fine!



But as we know, all good things have an end, even at DLP, and 15 minutes later, a cast member came to remember them that it was not really allowed to step or lay down on Adventure Isle beach...!

Soon after this, back in 1992, SQS - the imagineering section at DLP - added driftwood piles on the beach to prevent any one to lay down on the beach again. in fact, this was not the only place where they had this kind a problem. at the entrance of Adventureland, they also added small fences , as young kids were going on the sand and play in the "dunes"!

More recently, at the WDS Toon Studio, a similar problem happenned with Luigi's Cars - the young kids who love the characters were climbing on them while their parents took a picture. SQS first put wood fences with "hot set" writing on it, but kids were going through and it didn't changed anything. So, they've built real metallic 50cm high fences and.........kids are still going through! Their love for the Cars characters is so strong that nothing stop them to transgress!

Photo shoot in June 1992 by Daniel Rous

Special movie preview : Some news from James

It's one of the most awaited movie of next year - if not THE most. It will be also the big return of the director who did the most successful movie of all time. And it will also be a technological feat.

James Cameron's "Avatar" will be release in 3D - and a "special" 3D, developed by Cameron and his team. As a matter of fact, there will be more than one technological innovations as revealed slashfilm.com.

As for the story, here is the synopsis:
In a distant future, humanity discovers the planet 'Alpha Centauri B-4', and for those scientists and astronauts who've traversed the gulf between neighboring suns and arrived on its alien soil know it as 'Pandora'. A world filled with an incredible diversity of beautiful and deadly ammonia-breathing lifeforms. Its also a world that harbors treasures and resources almost beyond price. But just as the original Pandora's Box wrought devastation on those who would use it for their own gain, so too this world may destroy not just the Pandorans home, but ours as well.

Avatar is the story of a wounded ex-marine, thrust unwillingly into an effort to settle and exploit an exotic planet rich in bio-diversity, who eventually crosses over to lead the indigenous race in a battle for survival.

Below, here is a concept sketch for one of the alien creatures of Avatar



Avatar will use so many innovations and had a such long development - not to mention that its release date has moved from May to December 2009 - that we can be sure that James is not going to fail his comeback in SF movies..."It is the most challenging film I've ever made," Cameron said, and for sure we believe him. D&M will keep an eye on it and let you know more as soon as news will be available!

Artwork: copyright James Cameron

How Marc Davis legendary " Western River Expedition " attraction was almost built at Disneyland Paris

If you're a true Disney theme park fan, you've certainly heard before about this Marc Davis legendary attraction project "Western River Expedition". What you don't know is how this attraction was almost built in early 1990's at Disneyland Paris Frontierland. I will explain to you in details why and how, but first, for those of you who don't know Marc's original project, here is a short description of it, and if you want to know more about this concept, you will find a full information HERE and also in the excellent Jim Hill ten parts article HERE.



The Western River Adventure attraction was a Marc Davis project originally designed for Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom. Marc designed the attraction and characters in the form of drawings and models over a five-year period. Although the attraction had a significant cost, Disney executives such as Dick Irvine and Roy Disney both liked the idea when presented with Davis' concepts.




Originally, this flume ride attraction was located both inside, outside, and around an architectural feature in Frontierland known as Thunder Mesa mountain. Guests would have enter a cave marked "Western River Shipping & Navigation Co" which led to a canyon in perpetual "twilight" lighting. After boarding in a boat - similar to the boats of Pirates of Caribbean although with a different theming, of course - the boat would have glided softly in the canyon where was located the different scenes. The ride's narrator, Hoot Gibson (an audio-animatronic owl) would have explained first the ride's safety instructions.

Western River Expedition was an Audio-Animatronic delight with dozens of new AA figures, and certainly as many as in Pirates of Caribbean. Just like in POTC Marc Davis designed scenes where humour was always present. Potential scenes included:

A stage coach robbery




Banditos where even their horses had bandanas across their faces!



An Indian (Native American) rain dance that causes it to rain



Other gag scenes with desert animals, cactus, buffaloes, bear...





A western town called Dry Gulch with scenes showing a cowboy on horseback on the roof of the town's saloon - and 10 characters, including a bartender ( who is trying to shoot the cowboy and his mount off the roof ), saloon girls, and other cowboys hooting and hollering, and more...





...And a waterfall-drop finale.

If built, it would have been one of the most complex and expensive Disney attractions of its time, housed in one of the largest show buildings (a large warehouse that stores the interior of the attraction) ever created by the WDI. Its projected expense is one reason it was never built. The attraction, would have also shared the show building with a "runaway" mine train themed roller coaster. Other features of the pavilion-style WRE would have included hiking trails atop the mesa, a Pueblo Indian village, and a pack mule attraction.

The Western River Expedition was supposed to be Walt Disney World's answer to Disneyland's Pirates of the Caribbean. When plans were being made for the Magic Kingdom, Imagineers had no plans to replicate "Pirates" for the Magic Kingdom. It was believed by many Imagineers at the time that Florida residents were too accustomed to pirates, as pirates are a part Florida's local legend and lore. Disney management thought that cowboys and Indians would be more surprising and exciting to Florida residents.

However, when the Magic Kingdom opened, the most common complaint from guests were "Where are the Pirates?" Disney hastily built a second Pirates of the Caribbean in the Magic Kingdom, thus scrapping plans for the Western River Expedition because much of the budget planned to build the Western River Expedition was used in building Pirates of the Caribbean for the Magic Kingdom. Years later, there was the possibility that the Western River Expedition would be built, however various problems plagued the attractions development, and instead, over the course of many years, two complex attractions- Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Splash Mountain - each both using elements and inspiration from the Western River Expedition, now occupy the land originally placed aside for the Western River Expedition.

Western River Expedition is something of a legend among Disney Imagineers, especially to those who admire the work of Disney legend Marc Davis and parts of the ride was slipped into other attractions like Epcot's World of Motion.

Let's come back now to Disneyland Paris. Soon after the park opening in 1992, new attractions to increase the park capacity were needed, and as quick as possible. Each land show producer and their team were asked to propose new projects, and here is where the Western River Expedition attraction project makes its comeback.

For Jeff Burke, show producer of DLP's Frontierland, the unique landscape theming of the land was perfect to introduce WRE. You see, at DLP, Frontierland don't have all this greenery you can find in the U.S parks with a Tom Sawyer island at the center of the river. In Paris, we have instead Big Thunder Mountain island in the middle of the Rivers of the far west, and a vegetation coming more from the desert - cactus, etc...than from the banks of the Mississipi river. In two words, Paris Frontierland has a more "dry" vegetation. And when you'll know that Marc Davis WRE had a kind of red "canyon" exterior theming, you will understand why DLP's Frontierland would have been ( and still is ) the perfect Frontierland to build Marc's attraction.

So, back in 1993, the imagineers bring out again Marc's artwork and WRE models and thought that the best place to build the attraction in Frontierland would have been in the land available behind the train station - exactly where rumors since the last 10 years keep saying that the park-is-going-to-build-here-Splash Mountain-anytime-soon. Although it's true that a Splash Mountain attraction was also envisioned by the imagineers at this same location, the first one who almost did it was definitely Western River Expedition.

The location would have been perfect, and the imagineers really thought that this time , that was it: Marc Davis legenday project was finally going to be build!

So, what happenned? Well, what happened is that somebody called Michael Eisner - remember this man who was the CEO of the Walt Disney Company before he became anchorman of his own show on a cable network? - Michael Eisner, so, came and had a look to all the different projects. And once again, the "cost" curse of Western River Expedition burried the project... Eisner asked for the cost of it - and it's true that WRE is really an expensive attraction, let's say probably not less than 150 M $ - and that was really too much for Michael.

Goodbye Western River Expedition, and welcome......nothing, as in Frontierland no attractions were built back in 1993 at the exception of the Fort scenes. Instead, Indiana Jones and the temple of peril, Casey Jr, Story Book Land, Les Mystères du Nautilus and Space Mountain were built, all successful attractions, i must add.

Do we have a chance to see a Western River Expedition in the future at DLP's Frontierland? Mmmmh, although the land is still available, i would not bet too much on it. It's a pity, because every guest will love it, but, hey, if you are an Arab Prince who have 150 M $ and don't know what to do with them, please call DLP executives and tell them you're ready to fund a WRE project. Marc Davis - from where he is now, will bless you till the end of your life!

Artwork: copyright Disney Enterprises

Thanks to Wikipedia for the description text.

Editor's note : Once you will have read the "UP!" article below, don't miss the new Al Lutz update on Miceage.com ! As always, Al have a lot of insider infos , beginning by the soon opening DCA preview center!



Also, for all of you who are interested to see more about the TDL Hotel, there is a great photo report from TDL Fan with dozens of pictures on Mice Chat!

More about " UP ! "

Something really fun is happening with the upcoming Pixar movie " UP ! ": the more we know about it, the less we understand what it is really talking about!

However, the lucky guys who were at the San Diego Comic Con recently had the pleasure to watch some footage. Among them, the folks from comingsoon.net who give us a kind of "pitch" . Here is their transcript, and i added some pictures shoot during this Pete Docter's presentation to illustrate it - including the teaser video which fits perfectly with a scene they describe :

"We were shown footage of Carl, the old man voiced by Ed Asner, about to leave his home to go to a retirement community.




Carl is a former balloon salesman who will use his remaining balloons to lift his house up to the sky.



The house lazily begins floating into the air and away from the city.



Carl intends to travel to Venezuela to see the remote plateaus and rainforests. He intends to fulfill a promise he made to his deceased wife to go there one day. Just as Carl settles into his living room in the floating house... there's a knock at the door. The director revealed that it was a Boy Scout (of sorts) named Russell. He's missing just one badge - the one for aiding the elderly.




So the young man joins Carl on his quest to travel to Venezuela to the Tepui table top Mountains.



We were shown some test footage of their interaction which was pretty funny and featured them carrying the house tied to themselves like a balloon through the rainforest."




And that's all we know for now!

You can read more in the comingsoon.net article where they also talk about the "Bolt" preview that same day, at the Comic Con.

Pictures: copyright Disney-Pixar

DLP Update Part One : Miracle at Disney Village !

It's Frank Gehry - yes, the acclaimed Pritzker price architect who designed the famous Gugghenheim museum at Bilbao or the Walt Disney Concert Hall at L.A - who did the original design of the Disney Village. Disney Village, for those of you who never came to Disneyland Paris is the shopping and entertainment area of DLP - the equivalent of Downtown Disney at WDW, just smaller.

When the park opened in 1992, it looked like this original rendering, with these huge pillars covered with copper plaques. As Disney Village is close to the train station, Frank Gehry's idea was that these pillars were " the remains of a giant factory that once supplied the station with energy ".



From Gehry's original concept, most of the pillars have been removed - on this picture shoot from the balloon last year, some of them are still there, but many more have been removed since then.



As for the buildings, it is now a mix of different architecture styles which goes from the Planet Hollywood's giant bowl to the Rain Forest cafe and his giant mushrooms, not to mention the german Ludwig restaurant with a bavarian style. And i forget the big Mac Donald's with its 1960's facade. In two words, the best idea that Frank Gehry could have is to never come back at DLP to check his original creation!

Although it's almost a rule in Disney's entertainment areas to have a mix of different architectures, until recently there was another big problem at the Disney Village: the total lack of vegetation, leaving the guest in a space where metal and concrete coexisted with multicolored facades....Finally, it reached a point were i thought it was such an architectural disaster that i often say that the only good thing to do with it was to dynamite everything, and rebuild a new Disney Village !

And then, in this month of July, a miracle happened ! Somebody had the genious idea to install trees and vegetation all along the Disney Village, creating really cool spaces where for the first time since a looong time i was happy to stay and enjoy a good cold beer...It was just as simple as that: add some trees and the place miraculously become "friendly" !

As you will see on the pictures below, specially if you already know the Disney Village, this vegetation addition really changed everything. People have room to sit under the trees, The New York Style cafe now have a terrasse, the Planet Hollywood bowl is surrounded with vegetation, etc...



As a friend of mine said: the only question is " why did it took 16 years to them to have the idea? ". Now that it's done, it looks so obvious that it was the right thing to do, and let's hope that they won't stop and add more vegetation in the future. It should be the case, and it will be even better.














One last thing: a nice food cart is now installed at the exit of the Disney Village, and its style fits quite well with the 1950's architecture of Annette's Diner nearby.



So, next time you'll come to DLP, when you will exit the Magic Kingdom, don't hesitate to go to Disney Village, as it is now a real cool place to enjoy a drink or having dinner.

Photos: Alain Littaye and Daniel Rous for Disney and more.

DLP Update Part Two : POTC Collectibles on sale at Harrington's shop !

For all Pirates of Caribbean fans expecting to visit DLP soon, it's a great news: gorgeous collectible sculptures of Pirates of Caribbean most famous scenes are now on sale at Harrington's shop on Main street U.S.A.

These one were created by the talented guys of Walt Disney Classic Collection. they are already sold in the U.S, but it's the first time that all of them are on sale at Disneyland Paris.

Among the different scenes, you can find: The auctioneer, The Red Head, The skeleton of Hurricane Lagoon, The Pirate with the pigs, etc...and the best one - for me - is the Prisonners with the dog scene - beautiful, just perfect.

as usual with the WDCC products, they are expensive - prices are between 250 and 550 euros - but i suppose that it is the price to pay for a perfect sculpture! Check the pictures below!









Photos by Daniel Rous for Disney and more