Category Archive: disneyland

Jul
31
2011

Summer 2011: Disney California Adventure under construction photos

Hey all, I just got back from my big summer trip to the San Diego Comic-Con and Disneyland. Instead of a couple of super posts here on the blog, I plan on a bunch of short ones that are maybe easier to get out to you my audience.

These photos are from last Monday 7-25-11 and are taken from the back of the Alpine Inn hotel in Anaheim. The hotel is not fancy, but it’s only a 10 min walk to the parks which is really all you need with a place to stay. What were seeing is the back side of the new area to open Summer 2012…CARS Land, based on the PIXAR movie. The area is going to be massive as it recreates the sleepy town of Radiator Springs and the surrounding mountains. Many are saying it’s the largest amount of rock work done for any theme park ever.

7-25-11 Backside of CARS land at Disney California Adventure

7-25-11 Backside of CARS land at Disney California Adventure

And here is a photo of the new entrance to DCA, based on the Pan Pacific auditorium in LA. It’s really classy and cool and at night it is all list up pretty. In fact the entrance makes the one for Disneyland across look kind of dull, especially at night.

7-25-11 Disney California Adventure entrance

Well, there is a start on the trip report(s). Stay tuned for more later this week.

Aug
13
2010

Happy 41st birthday, Haunted Mansion!

The Haunted Mansion ride at Disneyland just turned 41 and to celebrate I thought I would post some fan art inspired by the attraction.

There is an event in Anaheim held by the 1313 clube that I wished I was going too next week called the Marvelous Mechanized Magic Kingdom.  They will have on displays actual Animatronics from Disney themeparks as well as have speakers like actor Neil Patrick Harris, designer of the monorail Bob Gurr, the voice of Wendy and Alice Kathryn Beaumont, costume designer for Pirates and Small World Alice Davis, script and song writer Xavier Atencio (‘grim grinning ghosts’), animator/artist Floyd Norman, Garner Holt
who’s company does all of Disney’s ride animatronics now, ride concept artist Larry Nikolai, Chef Mayhem of DoomBuggies.com, and many more.

Find out more at: http://the1313club.com/Main_Page.html

OK, now onto the art….

First off a painting from 2003: (click for bigger image)

HitchHiking Ghosts fan art (2003)

and some of the artwork I did for the fan podcast “Story of the Haunted Mansion” that was created by Patrick Hurd. The work below is only about half of what I contributed.

To watch the final video podcast and find out more about the project, visit http://atomicbearpress.com/2009/05/01/the-story-of-the-haunted-mansion/

(click for bigger image)

art from "tales of the Huanted Mansion"

Sep
01
2009

Geeky post of Fantastmic! animatronic dragon at Disneyland

I am going to let my Geek Flag Fly and post a video clip of the premiere of the new animatronic dragon in the Disneyland show Fantasmic!. Due to technical difficulties it did not premiere at the start of summer like they wanted (like when I was there).

In the show the evil fairy Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty turns into a dragon to fight Prince Philp, but here it’s Mickey Mouse as the brave little tailor. Originally the dragon was mostly just a big head on a stick, now it’s a fully realized creature with full body and even eyes that show some expression.

I have posted a clip of the full public performance tonight and a sample video Disney released this morning.

p.s. I hope to see it in person in the future.

Video by MintCrocodile

Disney’s press video

Previous show dragon