Are we still recovering from the D23 EXPO? I’m recovering from whatever I caught there. Totally worth it. Let’s take a look at some of the good and the bad from the past week – including a really swell giveaway!

Health: CHOC Walk Taste of Downtown Disney

Thursday night, Downtown Disney opened up to CHOC donors for the Taste of Downtown Disney, a celebration of food and spirits to benefit the Children’s Hospital of Orange County. Groups of donors, about 20-25 per group, donned color-coordinating lanyards (Jim Hill and I were Princess Pink) and set off to sample different tastes at most of Downtown Disney’s eateries.

Because of the Archives Event at the D23 EXPO (see below) we missed the first half of our stops, but learned that Ralph Brennan had been in attendance at his Jazz Kitchen, we met up with our group just as they got to Catal’s Uva bar, where we had endless tiny cups of ice-cold, spicy gazpacho and little triangles of grilled cheese sandwiches while we chatted with some of the other attendees. Downtown Disney was a little crowded that night, and I was surprised – I’d never been to a “taste of…” event where it was still open to the general public. Nobody crashed the party until dessert, though.

Next was the ESPN Zone, with limeade, citrus water, caramel corn, then around the corner, garlic fries, snow white grits with pulled pork and complimentary bourbon and whisky tasting. It was fantastic, even for this tea-totaler. Tortilla Joe’s was serving actual, authentic tacos al pastor and complimentary margaritas, with servers going from table to table offering free samples of high-end sipping tequilas. Naples was the last stop, with some lovely wines, pizzas, and a nice spread of antipasti. (Hope I got the term right, Andrea.) Finally, we found ourselves in the courtyard between Tortilla Joe’s and the House of Blues, with Jamba Juice and Starbucks, along with cookies and bread pudding from La Brea Bakery. The package we did cost 85.00; there was a VIP package available for 200.00 that included a private lounge upstairs at Tortilla Joe’s with a cigar lounge as well. It smelled delightful, and all for a fantastic cause. The evening before the walk in October, they’ll be holding a luau! I’ll have more details on that later. I hope if you’re on the fence about doing this annual event next year, this helped you make up your mind.

Safety: Some Scary Goings-On in the Disneyland Esplanade

On July 9, a man named Percival Agoncillo was arrested for being in possession of a firearm in the Disneyland Esplanade. He was on probation, and forbidden from having a firearm on him, plus guests are not allowed to bring guns into the parks. A sharp-eyed Disneyland Security Cast Member spotted him and he was arrested; he was later released on 20,000 dollars bail. This is all we know. Unfortunately, there’s wild speculation out there. These things happen every day at Disneyland! Everybody panic!

How about we don’t? It’s been sixty years, and so far the number of murders inside the parks has been zero. That’s a pretty good record. The police and Disney are not allowed to run to the media with the story because it would interfere with the legal case regarding the incident. If, indeed, Mr. Agoncillo was in a severely disabled mental state at the time of the incident, spilling his personal details would also be a violation of his civil rights.

He’s got a hearing in a week or so. If there’s more to learn, we should hear more then. But until then, there is this question: What level of increased security would you be willing to endure at Disneyland? Would you be willing to go through a metal detector at bag check? What if Disney themed it like Castle gates, or Frontierland fort walls, or Tomorrowland whatevers, so that it wasn’t as intrusive? Would that make a difference? Would it ruin the magic for you any more than the bag check already does? Would TSA-style screening of guests make enough of a difference to justify the pain? Does hearing about this incident make you more cautious about visiting Disneyland? Please let us know your thoughts on this situation in the comments below.

Preservation: Walt Disney Archives – Disneyland the Exhibit Preview

My favorite part of today’s update: Thursday night at a preview event at the D23 EXPO, a very small group of what appeared to be mostly print media and Disney fan sites got an advance look at the Walt Disney Archives’ exhibit on the D23 EXPO show floor.

First off, moving the exhibit to the show floor was genius in itself; it makes these treasures much more accessible to attendees, and as I’ve noted in the past, it kind of seems to be Archivist Rebecca Cline’s modus operandi: sharing with the world what Dave Smith so lovingly built and curated. The treasures of the archives are preserved, yes, but for what purpose? So that future generations can see them, admire them, and maybe even learn from them. Cline made this apparent purpose even more clear by making the walls around the edges of the exhibit very low; if for some reason you could not get in line, you could still access views of many of the treasures from the edges of the exhibit. The Walt Disney Archives is not some dusty vault inside a building in Burbank. It is a living, growing part of the lives of every Disney fan, and with things like Walt Disney Archives: Disneyland the Exhibit, it’s accessible to every Disney fan.

Just inside the entrance, we found Former Head of Imagineering Marty Sklar! What a fantastic surprise! We had a quick chat – it was a little noisy. I only asked one question: “What do you miss the most about a normal day at work?” He started to say that there was no such thing as a normal day, but stopped himself. “The people.” he said. “Now, I don’t mean just Walt,” he added. “I worked with the greatest bunch of people ever. Every day I would come in to work and there would be a line of people at my door, and each and every one of them would come in and tell me a great new idea. I couldn’t have gotten that anywhere else. It was great. It was the best.” You’re the best, Marty.

Just around the corner, by Roy E. Disney’s Disneyland ticket, I ran into Bob Weis, the Imagineer in charge of Shanghai Disneyland. We talked a little about how beautiful it’s going to be, especially since Maggie Parr’s going to be designing the carousel; she’s one of Noe’s and my favorite artists. I really want to go to the opening. I took two years of Chinese language and culture in college, but it’s been four years since I studied. I have to brush up.

Did you do the full tour of the Walt Disney Archives – Disneyland the Exhibit at Dateline Disneyland? Go do it! I’ll wait. While you’re gone, I’ll show everyone else the picture of Tony Baxter that Andy took.

Okay, are you back/ Wasn’t that fantastic? It was about a zillion times better in person! There were a few things there that made me laugh, and a few things there that made me teary. There was even a thing or two that made me go YUCK!

There was an opening ceremony! President of D23 Adam Sanderson was there! John Lasseter was there! Thank goodness, he found something else to wear, even though all of his shirts we on display a few yards away. The Dapper Dans performed! Sorcerer Mickey showed up! It was very, very magical.

Oh, hey – on display, they had a book that also went back into print this year: The Little Man of Disneyland. Way, way back in the early 2000s, before everyone split off and whatever, I did an article about him. In the mid-2000s, his tree got sick and had to go away, much to everyone’s sadness. Be sad no more. Last Friday, some intrepid Imagineers discovered that he’s moved back in (and apparently shrunk somewhat) not too far from his old digs, still in Adventureland. Werner Weiss of Yesterland helped me find it Tuesday. Go to the Indiana Jones Adventure sign and look at the bottom of the tree. You’ll see a little iron chimney, window and door, footprints, and even a welcome mat with his initials, PB for Patrick Begorah:

Fortunately for you and I, the D23 Expo isn’t the only shindig that D23 throws all year. Go to D23’s Upcoming Events Page. Seriously, there’s a ton of stuff going on. You should join!

Infinity: Or Should I Say WINfinity?

Disney Infinity 3.0 comes out in a week and a half, with some amazing new worlds and characters. Star Wars! Inside Out! Olaf! Boba Fett! And yes, Mickey Mouse, non-Sorcerer version. Also, Toy Box favorite Peter Pan! Peter Pan, huh? Hm. I thought maybe Uncle Scrooge, ’cause of his cane action in the Ducktales game. Maybe later, hm? Anyway…

Would you like to have one in your hands FREE, a few days early? A Mickey Infinity 3.0 figure, that is?

Just comment below on what character and/or world you’d like to see in Disney Infinity next. As for me: Kingdom Hearts, Oswald/Ortensia. The contest ends at midnight PST Friday, August 21 2015. Each entrant will be assigned a number according to entry time and the winner decided by random.org. (we can only ship in the United States and where allowable by law)

I’ll have more on the D23 EXPO as the week progresses, actually looking at some of the sessions as well as exhibits and a couple off-site events as well.

Don’t forget to enter the contest to win a free Disney Infinity 3.0 figure. Just comment below with what characters and worlds you’d like to see added to the play sets.

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