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Hi! I'm Anita!
 Got
a question about Walt Disney World? I probably have the answer! Deb's
Unofficial Walt Disney World Information Guide is the most comprehensive
guide to the World on the Web, but if you still can't find the information
you're looking for by using the Site Map,
the Search
Function, or the Anita Answer Archives, drop
me a line and I'll do my best to find the answer for you. Since
there are only 24 hours in a day, I can't answer every email I receive
- however, I do read every one and try to answer as many as possible.
Check back weekly and see if your answer is waiting, and be sure to check
out my blog, Anita Talk. Meanwhile,
I'm All Ears!
Christina
writes:
In all
of the literature referring to the Disneyland Dream Suite above New
Orleans Square, it indicates that Walt Disney had planned to
build an apartment for himself, and had drawn up the plans but didn't
live to see it built.
To my understanding,
Walt did have an apartment (which he used frequently) located over the
fire station and that Club 33 was the unrealized (in his lifetime) entertainment
venue for his special guests.
Is the
Dream Suite a reproduction of the closed off apartment over the fire
station, or was it based on plans for a different apartment, or is the
whole thing marketing magic? Is the original apartment over the fire
station still used by Disney family members or has it been converted
to another use?
Thanks
for any information you can give me on this topic, and thank you for
all the information you give out each week!
Hi
Christina!
The apartment
over Disneyland's firehouse was
the one Walt Disney used while he was building and expanding Disneyland,
so that he didn't have to make the very long drive home every night.
It's a small (approximately 500 sq. feet) studio apartment, and not
large enough to accommodate more than one or two people. For this reason,
design and construction of the much larger (approx. 2200 sq. ft.) family
apartment was begun above the Pirates
of the Caribbean ride. The apartment above the firehouse, to
my knowledge, is not used for anything other than the occasional special
event, but is more or less preserved as it was in Walt Disney's day.
The light in the window remains burning at all times to signify that
Disney's spirit is still in residence there.
But I digress
-- back to the family apartment over Pirates: As I said, design and
construction had already begun. The apartment connected to Club 33,
which you correctly heard was intended to entertain the Disneys' special
guests. Walt Disney unfortunately died before the apartment and Club
33 were completed. Although construction of Club 33 later continued,
Disney's wife Lillian and his brother Roy didn't have the heart to finish
the family apartment, let alone stay in it without Walt, so it was never
finished in their lifetimes.
Over the
next decades, the apartment space was used for various things, and eventually
became the Disney Gallery. If you chanced to visit the Gallery, you
might have noticed certain touches, such as an ornate fireplace and
a private patio that gave away its original design as a private dwelling.
A couple
of years ago, it was decided to finally carry on with the finish-out
of the apartment according to Dorothea Redmond's original designs. As
you know, overnight stays in the Dream Suite, as it's now known, are
awarded as prizes in the Year of a Million Dreams celebration.
After the
YoMD ends on 12/31/08, it's not yet been announced what will happen
to the Dream Suite, or the Cinderella Suite
in the Magic Kingdom. Since quite
a bit of money was poured into finishing these two apartments, I'm willing
to bet they won't just be boarded up once the current celebration ends.
My guess is that they will either be rented to VIPs or will remain as
prizes in the next big celebration, which is rumored to be... well,
that's an answer for another question entirely!
A.A.
Jason
writes:
Where is
Pam Brody? We have been to Epcot quite a bit over the past year and
never see her in the Rose and Crown anymore, and her piano cover is
nowhere to be found. Did she retire?
Hi Jason!
Pam Brody
only performs on Sunday and Thursday evenings at the Rose
and Crown Pub at the United Kingdom
pavilion in Epcot. Perhaps
you've been visiting on the wrong evenings. Now that you know her schedule,
hopefully you can catch up with her next time you're there!
A.A
Kristen
writes:
I love
the column, Anita! It brightens my Mondays.
My question
is about the man himself, Mr. Walt Disney. I read that he was one of
the many Hollywood stars to be accused during the Red Scare but I haven't
found what they based this accusation on. Do you have any other information
on this?
Thanks
again for cheering me up on Monday!
Hi Kristen!
Before
I answer, I need to do some explaining. It is not the policy of this
column or this website to give political opinions or to talk about political
situations. For this reason, I will keep my answer shorter than it should
be, without going into the complicated reasons behind Walt Disney's
motivation and actions, which would take pages and pages to explain.
For an in-depth account of what happened in Hollywood and at the Walt
Disney Studios in the late 1930s and into the 1940s, I would suggest
reading Neal Gabler's definitive biography of Disney, "WALT DISNEY
-- The Triumph of the American Imagination"--Vintage Books, 2007.
Gabler devotes a few chapters to this very subject.
Anyway,
that said, the [short] answer is: On the second day of hearings, October
24, 1947, Walt Disney appeared before the HUAC (House Committee on Un-American
Activities) albeit as what was called a "friendly witness."
A "friendly witness" was one that was friendly toward the
government of the United States. He was never accused of being a Communist;
actually quite the opposite.
Taken out
of context, this isn't a very flattering revelation, so I strongly suggest
reading the book to get the necessary background information and an
account of the events that led up to this event. Walt Disney was among
some impressive company during that hearing, as both Ronald Reagan and
Gary Cooper, among other Hollywood luminaries, had also appeared as
friendly witnesses. 1947 was a very different world from the one we
know in 2008, and the situation, as I mentioned, was extremely complicated.
I hope this goes at least a little way toward answering your question.
A.A.
Kaliene
and a few others write:
Hi Anita.
Thanks for the amazingly wonderful column.
Any idea
what the celebration for 2009 will be after the Year of a Million Dreams
(YoMD) is over? I have heard rumors and have read on Disney fan sites
that Disney intends to extend YoMD to 2010. On the flip-side, I have
read by somebody who claims to be a cast member that Disney will end
YoMD this year and take a few years off from having a celebration. Any
truth to any of this?
Hi Everyone!
OFFICIAL
DISCLAIMER: The information below is hearsay, rumor, idle talk, etc.,
and has not been officially verified by anyone at the Walt Disney Company.
Here's
what I've heard the RUMOR MILL saying: The next promotion after
the Years and Years of a Million Dreams Celebration (kidding!) is rumored
to be (drum roll, please) something called "Magical Celebrations."
According
to the Rumor Mill, the emphasis will be on marketing the Disney
parks and resorts worldwide to guests celebrating special occasions
like birthdays, anniversaries, reunions, graduations and the like. It
supposedly will be a scaled-down version of the YoMD promotion, with
fewer prizes.
Personal
Speculation: It sounds to me like a cross between the Magical Gatherings
promotion and the YoMD promotion. As I've heard it, this will be a smaller
scale placeholder celebration until the launch of Walt Disney World's
40th celebration in 2011. Since none of this has been confirmed by
the Walt Disney Company yet, take this information with a big ol'
grain of salt. Some Rumor Mill members are saying to expect an announcement
later this summer, probably just prior to the release of the 2009 prices
and packages.
Remember,
I can verify none of the above information. The current economic climate
may change everything, if there is a downturn in tourism (and signs
are pointing to that already happening). We will all (including me)
need to wait and see what actually happens.
A.A.
David
writes:
Hi, we
just came back from WDW. Where are all the seagulls? I didn't see any
in the parks. They know where the food is, but no birds. How does Disney
keep them away?
Hi
David!
While the
World does employ certain methods to try and keep the seagulls and other
birds away (fishing line grids over certain dining areas, piping in
the sounds of predator birds, etc.) it's becoming increasingly difficult
to keep them away. Guests insist on feeding them, making them very aggressive.
I've actually been bitten by one trying to steal food!
The reason
you didn't see any during your recent trip is because of the weather.
During cold snaps, the seagulls come inland where the people are, and
therefore, where food is plentiful. When the weather is warm, they go
back to the beach, their favored habitat, where there are plenty of
tourists, and of course, plenty of food.
Please
indulge me as I ascend my soapbox now to take this opportunity to ask
all of you readers to please, please, please spread the word to not
feed the gulls or other birds and animals. A diet of junk food isn't
good for humans, and it certainly isn't good for birds. In addition,
by hand-feeding these birds, people are removing their natural fear
of humans, while corrupting their natural diets. People may think they're
helping the birds by feeding them, but in reality they're not. In the
process of "helping" they're making it extremely difficult
for all guests to enjoy outdoor spaces with these aggressive birds constantly
dive bombing anyone carrying food and then leaving piles of bird poop
everywhere. Not feeding the birds will help keep the birds healthier,
and keep outdoor spaces safer and cleaner for both guests and wildlife.
<Speech Over>
I'll be
climbing down from my soapbox now before I fall off and can't answer
the next question!
A.A.
Tony
writes:
I am another
devoted weekly fan. While I was reading your information about Marco
Polo Land it brought back a memory I had about a billboard I saw about
20-25 years ago. This billboard was a pre-announcement for a China Theme
Park. If I remember correctly the billboard had the Great Wall and other
China themes. Did this park ever open and if so did you ever visit?
Hi Tony!
Yes, that
park, Florida Splendid China, did open, and was open for about 10 years.
A copy of a Splendid China park that is still open in China, the Florida
version consisted of exquisite miniatures of Chinese historical and
natural landmarks, and Chinese-themed shows. The park did not feature
any rides, however, and as such, it never could compete with the other
Orlando-area theme parks. Even during crazy busy times like Christmas
week, this park would be empty. I never did get to visit it, although
I always intended to. I suspect many other people also always planned
to get to it someday and never did.
Besides
poor attendance, Splendid China was plagued with protesters claiming
that the park, which was partly owned and operated by the Chinese Government,
tended to gloss over political problems like Tibet in favor of a sanitized
version of China.
Park management
finally gave up the ghost after a dismal 2003 holiday season. It closed
forever on 12/31/03 after a decade-long financial struggle. After that,
most of the fixtures were sold at auction, and whatever was left of
the abandoned park fell victim to vandals. From what I understand, the
land has been sold to developers, but I haven't been out there to see
whether or not any of the park is still there or has already been bulldozed
and built over.
A.A.
That's
it for this edition!
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