Disney News Round Up: SpectroMagic Burns Out, D23 Expo Scoop, 4th of July and More

Free Disneyland App HERE

SpectroMagic Destroyed and Other Disney World News
Kevin Yee brings another update from Walt Disney World, where there’s good news and shocking news to share. First Test of FASTPASS+ was mostly successful Last weekend. Disney World conducted a test of the MagicBands, that crucial that crucial piece of jewelry in the MyMagic+ system, which enables FASTPASS+.

Disneyana takes over the Disney Gallery as Disneyland kicks off Independence Week festivities
The introduction of Starbucks on Disneyland‘s Main Street, U.S.A. continues to bring some unexpected changes to the 58-year-old theme park’s main entrance. The latest change has pushed The Disney Gallery from its home at the bank.

EXCLUSIVE Behind The Scenes Interview With D23 & Disney Parks And Resorts About The Upcoming Expo
Dustysage interviews Disney Parks and Resorts and D23 about the upcoming D23 Expo. Just think about all the things that Disney is involved with: Movies, television, radio, books, consumer products, theme parks, cruise ships, destination travel, and much more – all of which must find a corner of the Expo to call home. But it’s Parks and Resorts which holds the hearts of the vast majority of our readers. Here’s what you can expect to find this year.

Join MiceChat for a Private Performance of Firecracker Follies in Silverlake!
SPECIAL EVENT ALERT: Celebrate American independence with MiceChat this weekend!  Join your MicePals for a special private performance of the hilarious Firecracker Follies, staring MiceChat’s own MOMMA! This is an intimate variety show with live singing, dancing, and occasional choreography!  You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll wet your pants with patriotic pride! It’s the most fun you can have in the basement of a Mexican restaurant in Silverlake! There are only a few seats left, so grab your ticket and join us. Arrive early and have lunch with us before the show at Casita Del Campo!

ALL NEW MICECHAT PODCAST

Is it hot enough out there for you?! We’ll help cool you off by dunking you under the sea with the voice of Ursula from the Little Mermaid, the amazing Pat Carroll. And as a surprise for Pat, Disney Imagineering legend, Bob Gurr pops on the show to discuss the creation of a HUGE Ursula animatronic for Tokyo DisneySea. Plus, some quick updates from the parks. This show is a real treat. Please be sure to share with your friends.

Direct Link |   iTunes Link

This week we have two simple but great tips for your next Vacation to the Disneyland Resort.

If you are at the park and want to see Fantasmic, World of Color or the Parade(s) during busy times of the year, it is almost always best to try for the later showings, as the first showings tend to be more popular and therefore more crowded.

However, if you’ve already seen the parades and shows or simply aren’t interested in viewing them, this is a GREAT time to hit a big attraction or two or do some serious shopping while so many other guests are out of the queues and watching the big shows. Give it a try.

Happy Independence Day!  We have some phenomenal firework photos for your enjoyment,  then we catch a glimpse of the new downsized Disney Gallery, and we also see what happened to the iconic entrance to DCA 1.0! ~ Aladdin

To Honor America: Disneyland Fireworks Photos & My Favorite Spots
WDW Figment gets us in the Patriotic spirit for Independence Day! Here are several of his spectacular fireworks photos!

Disneyland Band On Board the Mark Twain 6/29/2013
Ron W brings us photos and a video of The Disneyland Band on board the Mark Twain!

Dancin’ with Disney 2013
Ron W has an update with information and photos from this years Dancin’ with Disney.

The demise of the Disney Gallery
The Disneyana store on Main Street USA gets kicked out of its long time location, and in turn is displacing The Disney Gallery, which in turn is downsizing The Disneyland Story which in turn kissed the Walt Disney Story buh-bye. Do you remember when the Disney Gallery held exhibits including visions of Tomorrowland that never came to be? How about when the Graveyard Caretaker stood at the entrance of the Gallery, or when the figurehead of the Black Pearl was on display in the Disney Gallery Inner Courtyard? Tell us what you think about the most recent combining and downsizing of The Disney Gallery!

Halloween Season and Party Dates are out, with more parties
Disneyland has announce their Halloweentime plans for Disneyland, along with dates for Mickey;s Halloween Party. Here are the details!

DCA ‘C – A – L – I – F – O – R – N – I – A’ At State Fair Of CA
Take a peek here to see what happened to one of the iconic features of DCA 1.0!

Is the sorcerer’s hat going away at Disney Hollywood Studios? Have some ideas to improve the Disney parks? Check out the threads below. ~ Trekkie Dad

Hat Tip to Hat Removal
Every now and then it’s rumored that the sorcerer’s hat in front of the Chinese Theater is about to be removed. mark thinks he’s found a clue.

Next Mad T Party-Like Hot Spot To Be Based On Monsters University?
Not so much a question as an idea posed by Ride Warrior. Mice Chatters weigh in on what should take the place of the Mad T Party when it’s finished its run.

Disney Pixar, Planes: Soaring Over Cars Land & the U.S.A.
Ride Warrior suggests a new ride based on the movie Planes, but the thread gets diverted into a discussion of Cars 2. Will it get back on course?

How about Roger & Jessica Rabbit in Hollywoodland?
Mondo Mouse thinks Roger and Jessica Rabbit would fit nicely in Hollywoodland, especially if there were an Ink and Paint Club located there.

This week brings us into prime crowd territory in Walt Disney World for the Forth of July, and some of the most awe inspiring fireworks displays the Resort offers. In addition to the good, there’s some bad news as well: there doesn’t appear to be a Disney Parks and Resorts presentation at the D23 Expo this year. While this might not be a big deal, some people feel this expresses fear of no new announcements, especially with all the rumors circulating about Disney’s Hollywood Studios. In addition, the one part of the resort that seems to be the most stagnant is Future World. What is going on there, Walt Disney World? A lot of great topics in the forums this week. These are just the tip of the iceberg! ~ yoyoflamingo

What’s the future of Future World?
With Disney’s current trend of adding money making restaurants and shops, and tying in existing franchises, there doesn’t seem to be much of a priority to update Future World. The question is, what’s the future of this half of a great theme park?

Tom Staggs ‘future projects’ presentation cancelled
If you read the interview on MiceChat about the D23 Expo, you may have noticed there is not going to be a dedicated Parks and Resorts presentation, which is typically where big announcements about the future of Disney Parks are made. Is this a reason to temper our expectations or just a curve ball in the announcement process?

Celebrate America – A Fourth of July Concert in the Sky 2013
Disney Analyst shares the first look at the classic fireworks presentation at the Magic Kingdom for the Fourth of July, this year offered for almost a week as a part of Limited Time Magic. Join the awe inspiring fireworks that seem to thrill everyone each year they’re shown.

More news surrounding Hong Kong Disneyland this week, and a couple questions about visiting Tokyo Disneyland Resort. ~ Trekkie Dad

Night Time Parade in 2014 and mulls building 1million sq ft downtown disney
HongKongDisneyland found this report in the Singtao Daily News.

September/Halloween Crowds
LizCatMom is planning a family trip to Tokyo Disneyland in September and wants to know what to expect.

Is it too early to start planning?
… for a spring 2014 trip to Tokyo Disneyland, asks ThatBrunette. We’re guessing the answer is ‘no.’

Welcome to this week’s Communicore Weekly, where we talk about Main Street, Disneylanders, Best Expansion, and the Biggest Footprint! DISNEY HISTORY! — Have you ever walked down Main Street USA and wondered just how different it was from all the others? Find out in this weeks History segment! BOOK OF THE WEEK! — George and Jeff discuss the tween romance novel Disneylanders for the Book of the Week! DISNEY DEBATE! – Jeff and George Disney Debate the best new expansion, New Fantasyland or Cars Land! FIVE LEGGED GOAT! — And finally, the largest footprint at the Disney Parks is weeks Five Legged Goat!

Twirl n Hurl

Testing of the new Twil N Hurl spinner flat ride at Universal Studios Orlando!

Lone Ranger Premiere at DCA!

Sarah brings us some news about Lone Ranger Premiere and information on Monsters University!

Unofficial SeaWorld Podcast takes a dive into San Diego’s new Aquatica park and discusses the upcoming 50th anniversary celebration of SeaWorld parks.

Direct Link | iTunes Link

Coffee with Kurtti: Armchair Imagineering Tomorrowland – Jeff and Keith explore what’s wrong with Disneyland’s Tomorrowland and what they’d do to change it.

Direct Link

Unofficial Universal Orlando Podcast

Lee and Tracey invite Eric and James on to the show to discuss with us the two day grand opening event at Universal Studios Florida, for Transformers The Ride 3D.

Direct Link | iTunes Link

Honoring America July 4

V24 Radio will honor America this Thursday, July 1 by playing America-inspired audio all hour.

Join us at 1pm Eastern for a special hour dedicated to the United States.

We’ll be playing music from Disney’s American Adventure, Main Street USA and more.

V24 Radio honors America this Thursday, July 1, at 1pm Eastern.

Live On Location from Pirates July 5!

V24 Radio will be broadcasting live from Adventureland this Friday at 1pm Eastern!

We’ll be broadcasting live from Pirates of the Caribbean attraction and hope you can join us!

Catch V24 Radio’s Matt Tice live on location at V24Radio.com this Friday, July 5, at 1pm Eastern!

Yo ho yo ho…a pirates life for V24!

This week’s destinations include a trip to the Walt Disney Family Museum, amusement parks in Denmark and Sweden along with an experience in Mexico that you won’t find anywhere else. ~ DLandFansAZ

Walt Disney Family Museum was great!
While celebrating his anniversary, Jetlife visited the Walt Disney Family Museum and brings us a nice photo tour.

Tivoli Gardens and Skara Sommerland
TimmyTimmyTimmy provides us a tour of his homepark onh Tivoli in Copenhagen, Denmark with a nice video. Also he shares a video from another in Sweden called Skara Sommarland.

Mexican Amusement Park Offers Fake Border Crossing Attraction
An unusual amusement park attraction awaits you in the Mexican state of Hidalgo. If you don’t want to try to cross the border illegally, then you can come to Parque EcoAlberto and experience what it is like first hand.

Cabin in the Woods coming to HHN 23
imaginashton shares information on about Universal Studios Orlando bringing The Cabin in the Woods haunted house to Halloween Horror Nights 2013.

Devil Figure That Used to Be in the Marketplace
Before Ghost Rider at Knott’s there was a small devil figure that vanished from the old volcano during the remodel of 1998. Screwy Squirel is wondering what happen to this icon?

August 9th through 11th at the Anaheim Convention Center . We’ll have a magical booth in the Collector’s Forum area. Meet MiceChat staff, special guests and Disney legends whom we have scheduled throughout the three day Expo. We will also be giving away lots of great prizes, including hotel stays and an iPad Mini.

We invite you to join us on a very special MiceChat voyage to the Eastern Caribbean on the newest ship of the Disney Cruise Line, the Disney Fantasy.

Disneyana takes over the Disney Gallery as Disneyland kicks off Independence Week festivities
The introduction of Starbucks on Disneyland‘s Main Street, U.S.A. continues to bring some unexpected changes to the 58-year-old theme park’s main entrance.

1984 Walt Disney Travel Company Vacation Package
I was fortunate to stumble across a Walt Disney Travel Company vacation package from 1984. It wasn’t my vacation (sadly) but it had some amazing material in the envelope.

Season Pass Podcast joins the Micepod
Fantastic news to start your week. The Season Pass Podcast, the leading show on all things theme park, has joined the MicePod on MiceChat.com.

Cirque Dreams Splashtastic – A thoroughly entertaining show at Discovery Kingdom
This past Memorial Day Weekend, Six Flags Discovery Kingdom opened up their new show for this summer: Cirque Dreams Splashtastic.

A Stroll Through Southwick Zoo
You all know Tim Grassey from his well researched editorial articles on MiceChat, today’s we’ve got something very different from him, a trip report from the Southwick Zoo.

The Amazing Legacy of Concept Artist Eric Heschong
Alain Littaye of the Disney and more blog shares a very personal tribute to the late, great concept artist Eric Heschong.

California’s Great America Strikes Gold with new Wooden Rollercoaster
Earlier this spring, Calfornia’s Great America in Santa Clara opened Gold Striker, the “Tallest and Fastest Wooden Coaster in Northern California”.

Disneylanders by Kate Abbott
George: I’ve read (and reviewed) a few fiction-based titles that take place in a Disney theme park. By and large, most of them seem to fall short of expectations–whether it’s the plot or the characters.

Disneyland Red, White, and Blue
We have a patriotic update for you today from the Disneyland Resort. As part of Limited Time Magic, July 4th has been spread across the full week.

Dateline Disney World: Tidbits from Around the World
Dateline Disney World brings tidbits from all over the World this week, so sit back, relax, and enjoy the photos! If you’d like to support the column and shop on Amazon.com at the same time.

Celebrate Mickey: 75 InspEARations
It’s early 2005, and it’s easy to pose with Mickey because there are 75 of him. But don’t expect a hug. Each Mickey is made of polyurethane with an internal steel frame, weighs approximately 700.

Magic Kingdom: Exceptional, Acceptable, and Regrettable
Last time, I took at look at my recent trip to Epcot. This week, the focus is on the Magic Kingdom. As we now know, the Magic Kingdom is Disney World’s premier park.

Daring to do Disney Without Your Kids
I’m currently sitting at Disney’s Boardwalk Resort, watching families walk by with toddlers babbling in their Mickey-balloon decorated strollers and brothers racing each other to each lamp post.

Walt Disney World in the Rain Preparedness Guide
Rainy season has come to Orlando, and the amount of moisture coming down in the afternoons continues to increase.

SeaWorld Summer Nights Kickoff and Explosive New Shamu Rocks
As summer kicks off in Orlando, it is time once again to experience SeaWorld Summer Nights. And this year, with Antarctica, and an explosive new ending to Shamu Rocks, we have a lot to share.

Dave Goes from EPCOT to the Magic Kingdom
In this week’s From the Mouth of the Mouse, we talk to Dave, who worked at EPCOT and then moved over to the Magic Kingdom.

The MiceEars Crew can be e-mailed at: [email protected] if you have questions for Anthony our Editor he can be e-mailed at: [email protected]