This animation sequence was released as the “Blue Bayou” segment in Walt Disney’s Make Mine Music (1946), one of several Walt Disney “composite” releases of the mid-late 1940s. Originally, however, it was created to accompany Claude Debussy’s Clair de Lune as an additional segment for Fantasia. Initially, Mr. Disney had intended Fantasia to be a fluid, changing concept, to which new pieces would be added with each re-release. For a number of reasons (the 1941 animators’ strike, WW2,…), that concept didn’t pan out (at least, not until Fantasia 2000…kind of). In 1998, the original version of Clair de Lune was restored and screened at the London Film Festival.
More Corona Park Pictures
Kali does Corona Park…
I’m a huge, huge, huge 1964-65 New York World’s Fair fan. And on May 23, I finally got to visit the Mecca of NYWF fandom – CORONA PARK at Flushing Meadows in Queens! My good-natured friend Dasha accompanied me. In fact, she assisted me greatly by taking a few photos (See a galleryful of my Corona Park images here).
Here are a few pics of the Unisphere, the fair’s official symbol and the embodiment of the fair’s aim: Peace through [global] understanding.
“It will remain as a permanent reminder of man’s aspirations for peace through understanding, and a symbol of his achievements in an expanding universe. Unisphere is truly the miracle in the meadow.”
This 900,000 pound stainless steel structure was designed by Gilmore Clark and engineered/constructed by United States Steel’s American Bridge Division.
You can learn more about the Unisphere, the NYS Pavilion, and the rest of the fair at NYWF64.com, an excellent resource for NYWF enthusiasts.
Bunny Costume, ca. 1966…
From the CBC archives, a look at life in the Playboy Bunny outfit…
Man on Wire
Here’s a trailer for a crazy documentary about tightrope phenomenon Philippe Petit and his successful 1974 attempt to cross the span between WTC 1 & 2 on a wire. The film is streaming on Netflix!
Disney Theme Park Audio: Adventureland Veranda and George Bruns
Updated: See part two of this saga here!
Okay kids.
Awhile ago I bought an old, rare-ish LP of Hawaiian string exotica arranged by famed Disney composer (and traditional jazz trombonist and tubaist) George Bruns. This is the guy who wrote the tune part of “Pirates Life for Me” (X Atencio wrote the lyrics). The album’s called “Moonlight Time in Old Hawaii,” and it includes several tracks from the later Adventureland Veranda restaurant area loop at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom (I know of two different loops playing in that location; this material is from the second incarnation, ca. 1980s-1993). The title track – “Moonlight Time in Old Hawaii,” one of three tracks on the album that are original Bruns compositions – was actually featured in the International Gardens area loop at the 1964-65 World’s Fair’s Ford Pavilion (You can buy a copy of the “Walt Disney at the World’s Fair” CD set, which includes the fair version of the piece, here).
I’m not sure if the “Moonlight Time” track actually made the Adventureland Veranda (update: it did), but if you remember hearing it playing in situ, please tell me. So far, I’ve IDed a grand total of three songs from the album as AV area loop definites. If you know more, TELL ME. 😀 If you have even crappy snippets of live audio from your vaycay videos, pleeeease let me know!
I’ve bolded the three tracks that I know were used. Side one, tracks 2 and 3 apparently ran in order in the AV loop.
Side One:
1. South Sea Island Magic
2. Hawaiian Paradise (the tailend of this track shows up at the beginning of http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkYXoCgXqwA)
3. Moonlight and Shadows (it’s the track that comprises the bulk of this clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkYXoCgXqwA)
4. To You, Sweetheart, Aloha
5. Paradise Isle
6. Song of Old Hawaii
Side Two:
1. Blue Hawaii (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZEBkZUb0uw – the piece in the video is obviously Blue Hawaii, even if it doesn’t match the album version…but it seems to)
2. Moonlight Time in Old Hawaii (seems identical to the Ford Pavilion/International Gardens version released on the WF box set…no clue if the track was ever part of the AV loop)
3. Sweet Leilani
4. Aloha Nui Hawaii
5. My Tane
6. Ka Pua (The Flower)
Anyway, you can download my full album rip as a torrent via Mousebits.com, here. For individual tracks, see this torrent.
Groovy Adventureland Veranda area loop links:
- Kali’s/AprilDecember’s Moonlight Time in Old Hawaii album adventure, Part 2
- Michael Sweeney’s Adventureland Veranda area loop v.2 tracklist
- Mike Lee’s Adventureland Veranda page, including a live recording of the v.2 area loop in situ
- Full “Moonlight Time” album on Youtube care of Foxxy
- Kali’s rip of of Moonlight Time in Old Hawaii (split track torrent) at Mousebits.com
- Kali’s rip of Moonlight Time in Old Hawaii (full album file torrent) at Mousebits.com
Have fun!
Fortuosity, that’s me byword!
This weekend, I partook of two Disney classics from the 1960s: The Happiest Millionaire (1967) and Bon Voyage (1962). Both star Fred MacMurray. The latter also stars the S.S. United States, upon which the fictional Willard family of Terre Haute travels to France! There’s a cute scene during which MacMurray’s character remarks about five carefree days at sea, which spurred this immediate response from me: “But she could do it in three-and-a-half!”
Speaking of the Big U, the SSUS Conservancy blog linked us for linking them. 😀
But I digress!
According to Disneyland lore, some of the stained glass from the “Let’s Have a Drink on It” set of Millionaire found its way into Cafe Orleans in New Orleans Square. This makes sense, as the film and the cafe opened around the same time. Further, the glass in situ at Cafe O appears to be a match!
For the sake of completeness, I should also mention that Mr. Drexel Biddle’s home phone booth – also featured in the film – is now located in Club 33. If it’s not the original from the Millionaire set, then it’s a very good copy!
Yay, KOFY!!!
So while the whole SS United States thing is pissing me off, KOFY IS BACK AND IT’S MAKING ME HAPPY!
Back in October, Channel 20 reinstated the KOFY call letters and brought back a lot of the cool, local features and fluff that made the channel FUN! The dog bumpers, the Yule Log, and even the old DANCE PARTY segments (albeit the taped ones from the 80s and early 90s) are back!