July is coming, and so are lots of events:

A Jolly Holiday is Coming Your Way

A Jolly Holiday With Dick Van Dyke Thursday, July 16th, 2015 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel at The Disneyland Resort. Have dinner and spend a fun-filled evening with Mary Poppins’ best pal Bert, inventor Caracatus Potts, and Alan Brady’s best writer all in one person: the legendary Dick Van Dyke!

With your ticket purchase, you will enjoy a beautifully decorated private venue at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel, a full dinner, an exciting Q & A with Dick Van Dyke, Complimentary autographed (8″ X 10″ for General Admission/Full Size Poster for VIP Participants), A dazzling performance of songs from Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Disney favorites by Dick Van Dyke and his acappella group the Vantastix, and the opportunity to purchase one of a kind items including artwork and more in a silent auction to benefit The Walt Disney Birthplace!  20 Lucky participants will have an individual photo opportunity with Dick Van Dyke. VIP Tickets will have this included, General Admission will have the option to purchase this  opportunity.

You could win 2 FREE tickets to this amazing event just for commenting on this article and sharing with your friends.  All you need to do is comment below mentioning a favorite Dick Van Dyke story, character, etc. and share the following link on Facebook and/or Twitter and we’ll automatically enter you. Two runners up will each be offered 50% off. Here’s that link to share: http://jollyholiday.eventzilla.net/

, Fab News: A Jolly Night, An Animated Goodbye, Steampunk Woods and PIXAR Palooza
Buena Vista/Disney

PIXAR Palooza at the D23 Expo

Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird. It’s a plane. It’s . . .  a 67.7-foot long Buzz Lightyear. This year’s D23 festival goers may spot something huge in the skies above the Anaheim Convention Center as PIXAR punctuates its big D23 Expo plans by flying its MACY’s Thanksgiving Day Parade float proudly at the Expo.

Buzz Lightyear is just your notice that PIXAR has a major presence inside the Expo hall. Here’s what they’ve announced so far:

Every Story Is a Journey: The Upcoming Films of Walt Disney and Pixar  (Friday, August 14, 3:00 pm  – Hall D23)  John Lasseter himself will spill the beans on upcoming Pixar films, including never-before-seen footage from the upcoming The Good Dinosaur, Finding Dory, Disney Animation’s Zootopia and Moana. You can expect some surprise announcements as well as some musical performances and celebrity appearances.

In Conversation with the Filmmakers and the Emotions Behind Inside Out  (Friday, August 14, 2015, 11:30 am – Stage 28)  Get the inside story on the making of Pixar’s latest summer release Inside Out. Pete Docter and Jonas Rivera lead this one.

Pixar Secrets Revealed! Hear the Stories They Didn’t Want You to Know! (Saturday, August 15, 2015, 3:00 pm – Stage 28)  Pixar senior development executive Mary Coleman hosts this presentation about the back stories and roller coaster story development of some of your favorite films.

Toy Story: 20 Years Later, the Original Crew Looks Back (Saturday, August 15, 2015, 4:30 pm – Stage 23)  Pixar celebrates the 20th anniversary of Toy Story, the film which changed the animation industry. The very special guests of this panel include filmmakers John Lasseter, Pete Docter, Andrew Stanton, Lee Unkrich, Galyn Susman, Ralph Eggleston, Sharon Calahan, Eben Ostby, Bob Pauley and Bill Reeves as they share their stories and the challenges they faced along the way.

On the Expo Floor, you’ll also find plenty of Pixar:

Animation – Show Floor Exhibition – “Pixar teams up with Walt Disney Animation Studios for an unforgettable adventure that showcases magic from both animation studios, featuring live demonstrations, presentations and autograph signings with top filmmakers, free giveaways and interactive displays. With highlights from films like Inside Out, The Good Dinosaur, Zootopia, Finding Dory and Moana, animation fans will get the inside scoop on their favorite films and characters.”

Say Aloha to John Lasseter’s Film-Themed Hawaiian Shirts – Did you know that John Lasseter (Chief Creative Officer of Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios) commissions an exclusive movie-themed Hawaiian shirt for nearly every Pixar film he’s every worked on? The Disney Store at D23 EXPO celebrates John and Pixar with a D23-exclusive Reyn Spooner-designed shirt featuring characters from all the feature films produced under the creative guidance of John Lasseter. The shirt will retail for $99.95. We expect this shirt to be one of the big hits of the show. If you’d like one, be sure to make the store one of your first stops.

Still need D23 EXPO tickets? Hurry up! Discount tickets are available through today only and go up to full price on July 1st. Through June 30, 2015, tickets are $67 for a one-day adult admission and $48 for children 3–12. Tickets for members of D23: The Official Disney Fan Club are $58 for a one-day adult admission and $42 for children. Multi-day tickets are also available visit D23EXPO.com for discount tickets and more event info.

D23Tickets2015

I’m tired already . . . and that was JUST the Pixar news!  You can meet me and the rest of the MiceChat crew, along with a flotilla of Disney legends, artists, authors and celebrities, at the MiceChat booth at this year’s Expo. We can’t want to see you!!! If you haven’t signed up for our newsletter, do so today and we’ll send you a schedule of our stars, signings, contests and Expo tips when the event gets a little closer. SIGN UP FOR INFO HERE.

Another Part of the Studio Will Be History

Today, Disney’s Hollywood Studios Cast Members learned that their Animation building, which stopped producing animation a few years back, is shutting down for good. There’s no word what will be replacing it. It’s not a huge surprise, but it seems odd to me that they would close something without opening something else first.  I’m not privy to their reasoning, so I don’t know why their timing is the way it is.  I hope something wonderful is on the way to surprise us all.

MAGICAL MOUSE:  Sorcerer Mickey Mouse welcomes guests of all ages to Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park.  Guests can experience showbiz excitement from music, movies, television, stage, feature animation and more in innovative and interactive attractions, shows and dining experiences.
Disney

No More Poo For You

Well, that was fast. Due to guest complaints, the poop-shaped treats have been pulled from Zuri’s at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Curious about your thoughts on this folks. Did you think the poop snacks were clever or foul?

Now open, ZuriÕs Sweets Shop in Harambe Market at DisneyÕs Animal Kingdom showcases a bevy of new animal-inspired treats. The location features 80 new items, including decorative candy apples, uniquely flavored chocolate bars, African-spiced popcorn, animal-shaped lollipops, animal crackers, chocolate mini crocodiles and other treats. ZuriÕs Sweets Shop also offers African spice rubs, a gourmet cocoa set and Flame Tree Barbeque sauce. Disney's Animal Kingdom is one of four theme parks at Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. (Matt Stroshane, photographer)
Matt Stroshane/Disney

This Certainly Didn’t Stink

Steve Davison, the Imagineer behind the magical Spectaculars at Disney Parks worldwide, is also part of SoCal’s Steampunk Theater Company. No, the productions are not all mechanical and gears. I asked. “Could you imagine us doing Annie?” asked Davison. I could, and couldn’t speak for a moment. Honestly, it would be pretty funny. And so awful. No, no, no, there’s kind of an experimental feel to it, but I went and saw their production of Into the Woods, directed by Davison, and I have to say first, I’m not a fan of far-out experimental theater of the absurd or what have you. It’s not that. What I can tell you is that it was really, really, REALLY good. I went A.) to support someone I’m a big fan of and  B.) because I was curious. Well, it ended up that C.) I actually liked it. Loved it. If Disney had taken THIS version to the screen, they’d have swept the Oscars. Most of the actors had dual (and trio….l?) roles, and almost everyone got a wonderful chance to really sing their hearts out, including MiceChatter Marss Ramos, who played Jack:

, Fab News: A Jolly Night, An Animated Goodbye, Steampunk Woods and PIXAR Palooza
Beanstalk, schmeanstalk. You should hear his PIPES!

Here he is again, with Milky White the cow (who attempted to dispense milk through an empty baby bottle), played by the hilarious Ferdie Directo, who also played ugly stepsister Lucinda, and Jack’s Mother, played by someone named…I hope I get this name right: Steve Davison. , Fab News: A Jolly Night, An Animated Goodbye, Steampunk Woods and PIXAR Palooza

Brian J. Cook
Brian J. Cook played The Baker and one of the wolves!
Steve again, with David Ponce, who created his Little Red Ridinghood to be like Gabriel Iglesias channeling Frida Kahlo.
Steve again, with David Ponce, who created his Little Red Ridinghood to be like Gabriel Iglesias channeling Frida Kahlo.

I can’t wait to see what they have in store — or, rather, in theater– next.

I TOLD You!

So FINALLY Disney Consumer Products and Disney Interactive takes my advice and merges. Yes, yes, I know, they did it all on their own, but I’ve been saying they should do this for years, so let me have this. It’s such a smart move on their part; both Disney Infinity and Disney Playmation will have seamless integration where you don’t know where the program ends and the toy begins.

Let’s End On a Positive Note

Disney has banned selfie sticks from the parks. The gods had been angered by all the selfie takin’. I think I can hear the cheering already.

Our thanks to Hailey Williams for the wonderful Into The Woods photos.

Shelly Valladolid
Shelly Valladolid, aka Fab, has been writing about Disney and theme parks for about two decades. She has written for various fan and pop culture sites, Disney Magazine and OCRegister.com and participated in several books, including Passporter's Disneyland and Southern California and Disney World Dreams. She was co-founder and president of the Orlando, Florida chapter of the NFFC (now Disneyana Fan Club). She taught a class on theme park history at a Southern California University. She is creator and co-owner of Jim Hill Media, one of the creators of MousePlanet and was a consultant on MSNBC, The Motley Fool and others about Disney and various media matters. She was a Heel wrestling manager on TV and a voice artist on the radio in Honolulu, HI, where she grew up. She has a blog and a podcast with her daughter, Mission:Breakout Obsessive Alice Hill. She and her husband, MiceChat columnist Noe Valladolid, live in Southern California with Alice.