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Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Walt_Disney_Company) | Disney Parks Blog (http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/) | The Disney Thread (the films)@JPH!P (http://forum.jphip.com/index.php?topic=20510.0)
Sure, we all love Disney for their animations and feature films... but Disney is so much more!
The first Disney park was opened in Anaheim, California in 1955.
"To all who come to this happy place: -Welcome- Disneyland is your land. Here age relives fond memories of the past ... and here youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future. Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams, and the hard facts that have created America ... with the hope that it will be a source of joy and inspiration to all the world."
—Walter E. Disney, July 17, 1955 4:43pm
Disney's source of joy and inspiration has since then indeed been spread to all the world. There are currently five Disney resorts spread across the world;
- Magic Kingdom (Disneyland) in Anaheim, California (USA)
- Walt Disney World Resort (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studios, Disney's Animal Kingdom) in Orlando, Florida (USA)
- Tokyo Disney Resort (Tokyo Disneyland, Tokyo DisneySea) in Urayasu, Chiba (Japan)
- Disneyland Paris (Disneyland Park, Walt Disney Studios Park) in Marne-la-Vallée, Paris (France)
- Hong Kong Disneyland Resort (Hong Kong Disneyland) in Penny's Bay, Lantau Island (Hong Kong)
In addition to the parks there's also the Disney Vacation Club, where members buy real estate interest and stay in deluxe accommodations at over 500 Disney destinations.
There's also the Disney Cruise Line with a wide selection of destinations. They've got cruises in Europe, Alaska & Pacific Coast, the Bahamas, the Caribbean, the Mexican Riviera, the Panama Canal, and even a transatlantic cruise!
Imagineering!
The imagineers are the people who bring you the magic. Walt Disney Imagineering (also known as WDI or simply Imagineering) is the design and development arm of The Walt Disney Company, responsible for the creation and construction of Disney theme parks worldwide. The department was founded by Walt Disney in 1952 to oversee the production of Disneyland Park.
The term Imagineering comes from Walt Disney’s blending of the words imagination and engineering, representing the skill set embodied by the employees of WDI. These employees, known as Imagineers, are renowned for their ability to blend creativity, expertise, and technological advancements like Audio-Animatronics to create “distinctive experiential storytelling”.
The Imagineers often add their own personal signatures to the rides they create, and they place out so-called hidden Mickeys for fans to look for!
A hidden Mickey is a partial or complete impression of Mickey Mouse placed by the Imagineers and artists to blend into the designs of Disney attractions, hotels, restaurants, and other areas.
The most common Hidden Mickey form is the tri-circle Mickey frontal silhouette: three circles that form Mickey’s round head and adjoining round ears.
Other images include a side or oblique (usually three-quarter) profile of Mickey’s face and head, a side profile of his entire body, a full-body frontal silhouette, a detailed picture of his face or body, or a three-dimensional Mickey. Sometimes, just his gloves, handprints, shoes or ears appear. Even his name or initials in unusual places may qualify as Hidden Mickeys. And don’t forget other characters such as Hidden Minnies, Donald Ducks, Goofys, etc.
... I really hope I'm not the only Disney dork here :nervous.
Let's discuss Imagineering and other random things relating to Disney that isn't necessarily to do with their films (let's try and keep those discussions for the Disney films (http://forum.jphip.com/index.php?topic=20510.0) thread)!
Let's enjoy Imagineering from today! (... I've been studying and reading too much Japanese lately. Halp).