Greetings and salutations, friends and Fabanistas! I hope everyone is enjoying the completely unpredictable weather this week. I’m hoping to finally get to the DCA Food & Wine Festival this weekend, and also to catch a movie now that I can go without coughing long enough to see one! What do you have planned? Any suggestions?

The Jungle Book: A Personal Legacy for Composer John Debney

When it comes time to find a composer for a film, usually the filmmakers hire the composer; the composer does not usually campaign for the film. And I don’t think any composer has ever wanted a film so badly that they actually handmade a cloth-bound biographical scrapbook detailing their personal legacy with the makers of the original version of the film and lifelong relationship with those same makers of magic.

The first time I heard the music from SpectroMagic, I was floored. I had never heard anything that so captured the spirit of what made Disney magical so perfectly. I just stood there on the curb and wept at how beautiful it was. After reading this book, I now know why. John Debney was – literally! – born to compose for Disney. Don’t take my word for it. Let him tell you himself: (click on each photo to enlarge).

Go on the rides in Fantasyland. He’s there. Part of his original stuff from HMH is still there. (Al Lutz gave me a copy of the original soundtrack, and I listen to it gratefully every year!) Phantom Manor Suite is gorgeous. I was just at the Emperor’s New Groove screening a few months ago with Oh My Disney and Don Hahn at the El Capitan. The Hocus Pocus Show at Mickey’s Halloween Party at Walt Disney World is a monster hit. If you have Disney in your blood, you have Debney in it, too. It’s just part of it. So take Mr. Hamilton to the theater this weekend and see – and especially, LISTEN – to The Jungle Book. It makes all the difference when you have a guide who knows the terrain like the back of his hand. Trust me on this one.

Just to put this out there: I did not get free tickets or any other promotional items or invitations. I did not see anything ahead of time, I did not get so much as an email from Disney about the film. Not a single friend asked me for a favor on this. I saw this book in January when I was helping a friend on a project and even if it hadn’t been my favorite composer in the entire universe, I was so touched and floored by it, I kept it in the back of my mind that I wanted to share it with you when it was time for the movie to come out. I got permission, and here it is. That’s it. So, what do we take from this? Even the greatest, most talented people don’t rest on their laurels. They keep striving for what they want. Would he have gotten the gig had he just had his agent take care of it? Prooooobably. But maybe that extra mile sealed the deal. I don’t know. I do know that the book exists, it’s beautiful, and he got the job. Think about that next time you want something.

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Team IronMan on Kimmel

Robert Downey Jr., Don Cheadle, Emily Van Camp and Paul Bettany appeared on Jimmy Kimmel last night to promote Captain America:Civil War:

Tuesday night, he had Clark Gregg (Agent Coulson) and Doctor Strange’s Benedict Cumberbatch, with…I’m not going to even begin to explain this.

 

Sofia and Merida and Olaf…and Aunt Tilly!

If you have little ones that are crazy about Sofia the First, you will want to know about this. Sofia’s wonderful Aunt Tilly is back, and is showing her a fantastic secret library! (I’m kind of glad they didn’t go with Belle for this, that would have been too easy). Tilly is a fun character, and they’ve also found a way to bring in Olaf and Merida, really popular characters with the sippy-cup set.

The star-studded cast includes Josh Gad, reprising his role as Olaf, Supernatural’s Ruth Connell as Merida, and Bonnie Hunt as Aunt Tillie, as well as turns by Eric Stonestreet, Cary Elwes, Dean Norris, Megan Mullally and an appearance by Downton Abbey’s Hugh Bonneville as the Narrator.

The DVD will be released on June 7th, and will include a FREE Sophia necklace inside. 

The Art is Fine at Food & Wine

Two of the nicest people ever, who also happen to be two of the best Disney artists working today, will be making an appearance this coming weekend at the DCA Food & Wine Festival at Off The Page!

Mike and Patty Peraza are appearing, with Patty’s Hat Box Ghost Cloth Creation available as a giclee, deluxe print, and, I’m assuming, at least one cloth version. I’ve seen photos of these being created by their inssanely talented artist (check out her bio here)

Mike will be offering an Ariel paper portrait:

and Villainy Magazine with cover girl Disney Fairy Maleficent:

Plus (sorry, I could only find a little one) Disney Day:

Remember: you can buy pieces as soon as the store opens and come back to get it signed when the artists get there, if you really want to make sure you get the pieces you want/numbers you want!

Stained glass artist David Bird will also be appearing; it’s his first public appearance after major surgery so take it easy on him and be gentle with the hugs when posing for photos with the cool art you buy.

Like:

Take a closer look:

Stephen Cargile is super-interesting to me in that his first work stems from Fair Murals, and you know how I am about fairs and expos and their public art. His bio says he takes an architectural approach to drawing because he learned draftsmanship from his father. The work is really clean and has a throwback feel, but not in hipster retro way; it’s really fresh. He’s worked with Consumer Products and is an Imagineer now.

I couldn’t find acceptable images of the work he will have at the Festival.

Kurt Raymond did the murals for Alice in Wonderland, Pinocchio’s Daring Journey and Snow White’s Scary Adventures. His work is nothing less than amazing and if you run out of things to talk about, there’s always Oz. He’s got the Alice and Pinocchio murals, plus this lovely gal with a delicious snack to go with a glass of vino at the fest:

How Did C-3PO Get His Red Arm?

Yesterday, the world let out a collective sigh of relief as they finally learned how and why – and since the one-shot comic “C-3PO #1: The Phantom Limb” just hit the shelves, I won’t spoil it here. But it’s full of robotic feels! Commicvine sez:”You may be fluent in over six million forms of communication…but this book is a must have in any language!”

The ish comes along with a whole passel of fantastic variant covers:
Regular Cover – Tony Harris

Action Figure Variant Cover – John Tyler Christopher

Variant Cover – Reilly Brown

Classic Variant Cover – Todd Nauck

Movie Variant Cover

Fried Pie Exclusive Variant Cover – Dave Dorman

Fab and Jon and Jon’s Son’s Movie Studio Adventures Continue

Jon’s second part is huge, so it’s going to be posted in its own post Friday or Saturday. Keep an eye out for it. Until then, here are some of the photos I took on our second day at Universal Studios. Jon’s are much better; he writes for professional photography websites and such. I occasionally manage to remember to take my thumb off the lens.

This was all with my iPhone, and I can actually see the improvements I made through the day as Jon was teaching me how to shoot pictures properly.

He took a couple of me with his camera. I had some reservations about putting these up because I’m so puffy from the steroids and have no makeup on, and I look tired and and and and … here I am, having fun in a beautifully-designed theme park I love with people I love. And then I didn’t have to take the train home because Noe drove all the way up there to get me, because he’s the best husband on earth.

 

The World-Famous Gumball Rally is Rolling Your Way

The Gumball Rally is a competition to see who can ride the most attractions at Disneyland in a single day. Sign me up! Seriously, this is amazing and I’ve always wanted to do it. This is the 10th anniversary of the event and the perfect opportunity for everyone who has ever participated in the event to return and everyone who has ever wanted to play to do so for the first time.  More information and tickets HERE.

Don’t Miss Out – Sign Up Today!

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FTC-Mandated Disclosure: Sponsorship for this edition of Fab News was provided by DVC Resale Market.

 

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