Hello MiceChatters and MiceChatteers! I hope your week has been a great one. We’re winding down toward Friends of the Magic weekend, followed by the D23 EXPO, followed by recovering from the D23 EXPO. Here’s a little news for you, straight from me to you:
CHOC, Don’t Run – and Eat First!
I got this nice note from the even nicer folks at the Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC):
“Don’t miss out on the event of the summer! Join us on Thursday, August 13, 2015 as we taste and savor the flavors of fine cuisine, wine, and spirits while enjoying the unique ambiance and flair of the Downtown Disney® District. Enjoy stops at Catal Restaurant & Uva Bar, ESPN® Zone, House of Blues®, Naples Ristorante e Pizzeria, Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen®, WonderGround Gallery, Tortilla Jo’s and Earl of Sandwich. Top off the evening by indulging in decadent desserts and coffee from La Brea Bakery® Café, Starbucks, Kettle Kingdom, and Jamba Juice. Live entertainment will also be featured throughout the evening for your listening pleasure. Tickets are limited, so get your ticket today!”
General Admission tickets are $85.00, The Tortilla Joe’s VIP Experience is, sadly, sold out. Not sadly for the kids, but sadly for those of us who missed out. Maybe next year!
Registration for the 2015 CHOC Walk in the Park presented by the Disneyland® Resort is in full swing! If you haven’t done so already, register now and celebrate 25 Years Walking for Kids!… If you have any questions, please email [email protected].
Next Year: Carbonite
Today, Disney and LucasFilm rocked the Galaxy with this little gem of an announcement:
“THE STAR WARS SAGA TO BE ENSHRINED IN LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY STEELBOOKS
PLAQUES OF THE LEGENDARY HEROES AND VILLAINS IN THE TIMELESS SPACE EPIC.
Each cover looks like they’ve been airbrushed by a magic wand. The seams, the tattoo patterns, and the little cracks making their way down the skull-like forehead tell us so much without a single word accompanying them. Imperfections never looked so perfect.
As fans count down the days until the long-awaited seventh episode of the Star Wars saga, they’ll have something else to look forward to as the first six will be released as commemorative Blu-ray steelbooks for a limited time on November 10, with pre-orders beginning on August 7. Each film comes with beautiful new character packaging that include Darth Maul for The Phantom Menace, Yoda for Attack of the Clones, General Grievous for Revenge of the Sith, Darth Vader for A New Hope, an Imperial stormtrooper for The Empire Strikes Back, and Emperor Palpatine for Return of the Jedi. Star Wars: The Complete Saga will also be released in newly-repackaged artwork on October 13.
In addition to the collectible steelbook packaging, each Blu-ray disc features existing audio commentary with George Lucas and the film crew as well as audio commentary from archival interviews with the cast and crew.
The Complete Saga includes all six feature films on Blu-ray, along with three additional discs containing more than 40 hours of previously-released extensive special features.”
Not to do the stereotypical fan thing, but I wish it had been Boba Fett instead of the Stormtrooper. It’s just me. These have been released before, without as many bonuses, and in trilogical (?) three-packs instead of individually. You know, the TRILOGIES.
Cheshire I’d Like to Get One
How crazy is this piece of art?
Would you like to take this cat home, free, gratis? Click here to find out how! Main Street Art Corner is giving away one of these gorgeous triptychs to honor the D23 EXPO next weekend!
If you don’t win, don’t be too broken up about it, Michael Levey, the wonderful proprietor of Main Street Art Corner, is offering everyone reading this (and everyone you pass it along to, right?) 15% off of their first order in honor of the Expo. Just use the code D23EXPO2015 – He says: “Also, the hand-remarked Cheshire Cat giclee will retail for $895 and will be a limited edition of 51 (for Alice’s release in 1951). Regular version will be an open edition for $500.” That’s pretty sweet.
He also told me that there’s a pretty sweet Disneyland Ambassadors event happening at the Walt Disney Family Museum November 21. Can you say ROAD TRIP?!? Now where did I put my riding crop? Here’s the deets.
Dear Fabby:
(That means it’s an email that I got. Or a brick through the window with a note tied to it.)
“If you download the new “Disneyland” app (the official one) and you zoom out on the map… you will notice some of the area hotels on the map, but NOT ALL OF THEM.. As you can see also the areas that Disney “just bought” are missing from the map as well McDonalds who has a very long term relationship with Disney and DL, is not listed. … (you can see from my screen shots…) Its VERY interesting how some are listed and others are not.. Could it be something that they are working on adding later or maybe it spells out “FUTURE GROWTH AREAS”???”
He added some screen grabs:
I am very, very interested in all of your thoughts on this.
News You Can Use
Amidst the local newscasts catching up with the Disneyland expansion news that all of the fansites (like us) had up last week, there were a few gems, like this piece from the LA Times:
Six hotels that will give you a free ticket to Disneyland
Most of them are in Costa Mesa or Newport Beach. Call my Fairy Godmother. She can probably help you out.
Like I said before, it’s Friends of the Magic this weekend, and Paul Barrie and I both have our birthday tomorrow. I’m gonna find him some walking shorts, size svelte. Looking good, Barrie! Hope your weekend is fabulous!
Shelly