Main Street Gazette

Guest Post: Disney-LEGO Studios?

9 September 2011 by Ryan P. Wilson Leave a Comment

Here’s another fun post from Ryan P. Wilson of the Main St. Gazette. A truly dedicated Disney and LEGO maniac! 😉

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I’ve been working on a personal project for the past couple of years, a labor (literally) of love that combines two of my favorite passions, Walt Disney World and LEGO. For years now, LEGO has been developing building sets based off of popular franchises, the longest of these collaborations being Star Wars. In 2008, with the introduction of Indiana Jones LEGO sets I had a thought, what if I could build my own Disney’s Hollywood Studios, or a variation of, out of LEGOs?With the spark in my heart and mind I set out to create a park brick by brick. Early on I made the decision that while I could cannibalize various sets and Pick-A-Bricks (LEGO’s online service that allows you to purchase only the bricks you want) to construction spots such as the Hollywood Tower Hotel or Chinese Theatre, that I really wanted to stick to sets everyone could pick up. After years of collecting and assembling, here is the current, though I doubt final, version of LEGO Disney’s Hollywood Studios (Should I dare to call it Disney-LEGO Studios?).

: The Main Street Gazette edition of LEGO Studios!

While I may have purchased and built the entire sets, I did not always include the entire set, occasionally this was due to the fact that the entire set couldn’t be seen inside the Studios. So, what do we have? Representing Star Tours We have the Endor bunker, speeder bike and AT-AT Walker, hosted by R2-D2 and C-3PO (I will admit, Threepio came from a set not listed here, but it felt wrong not to include him). Pixar is embodied by meet and greets for Buzz and Woody, their ship and sheriff’s office respectively, the Green Army Men, and Mater and Lightning. While several scenes from Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular could be utilized, I picked the Cairo scene, for its charm and for the fact that it is the scene that extras (like myself) get to jump into the action. Last, but not least, I’ve included the Pirates of the Caribbean cannibal cage, which can be seen along the Studio Backlot Tour.There are additions or substitutions that could be made. For instance either the Indiana Jones Temple Escape or Flying Wing could be used in place of the Cairo set. Similarly, Jabba’s Sail Barge comes complete with a skiff that could also be used for the Studio Backlot Tour. Also, LEGO has just released an Ewok Attack set whose Endor trees could be used to shelter the AT-AT Walker.

Is it perfect? No. Is it a complete picture of Disney’s Hollywood Studios? Absolutely not. Does it make me smile to have found a way to combine two of my favorite things? You’d better believe it! And yes, yes I am the boy who never grew up.

Sets Utilized:
Pirates of the Caribbean The Cannibal Escape 4182
Indiana Jones Ambush in Cairo 7195
Toy Story Buzz’s Star Command Spaceship 7593
Toy Story Woody’s Round-Up 7594
Toy Story Army Men on Patrol 7595
Star Wars The Battle of Endor 8038
Star Wars AT-AT Walker 8129
Cars Classic Mater 8201
Cars Radiator Springs Lightning McQueen 8200

Supplemental Sets:
Indiana Jones Fight on the Flying Wing 7683
Indiana Jones Temple Escape 7623
Star Wars Ewok Attack 7956
Star Wars Jabba’s Sail Barge 6210

GUEST POST: Easy Living Comes Easy For Bears

30 June 2011 by Ryan P. Wilson Leave a Comment

If your childhood was anything like mine, then you spent a good deal of your allotted television time watching VHS of Walt Disney Home Videos. You know, the white plastic-cased movies sporting Sorcerer Mickey on the cover. My absolute favorite of these VHS tapes, the one I had memorized the spot of in the video rental store, was Yellowstone Cubs.

The feature followed around two bear cubs, Tuffy and Tubby, who had become separated from their mother, Necomas, after a family decides to feed the family of bears against the park’s warnings. Throughout the tale the cubs provide the comic relief, in the form of crashes, smorgasbord feedings and even a runaway motorboat. Meanwhile, the mama bear tugs on your heartstrings during her journey to find her cubs, a quest that leads her across the park and even labels her a dangerous bear. The feature also sought to inform viewers not just about the habits of bears, but also about the natural wonder that is Yellowstone. In the end, the family is reunited at Old Faithful Inn and sent on about their business.

In the incarnation of the video I watched so often, it was a double feature with the 1961 Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color segment, Flash the Teenage Otter. Flash is great in its own rights, but in my heart, it’s no Yellowstone Cubs. But the double feature concept was not new to the Yellowstone Cubs. Due to its short length, only 48 minutes, the film was paired up with Savage Sam for their June 1, 1963 debut.

Aside from the antics of the bears themselves, the narrator was one of the more memorable elements of Yellowstone Cubs. In all likelihood, that voice narrated a great deal of all of our childhoods, as it was none other than Rex Allen. Aside from narrating a selection of Walt Disney wildlife documentaries and films, he also narrated the Shaggy D.A. and Charlotte’s Web. He was well known as a singing cowboy, which came in handy for Yellowstone Cubs’ Easy Living, and often played a cowboy who may not have shared his profession, but definitely shared his name.

I hope you enjoyed wandering down the trail and reminiscing with me today, and I hope these photographs of Tubby sucking down a bottle, Necomas rummaging through a trailer, and Tuffy and Tubby stuffing themselves in the kitchen of Old Faithful Inn brought back some memories for you.

Transformation and Rebirth – The Crimson Wing Guest Review

16 November 2010 by Ryan P. Wilson 1 Comment

Great thanks to Ryan P. Wilson, Editor-in-Chief at the amazing resource that is the Main Street Gazette. I have written before about how much I love his site and am honored to have him writing a couple of guest posts here at ZannaLand. Please welcome him and enjoy his inspiring review of Disneynature’s The Crimson Wing —

Documentaries seek to tell a story, for nature documentaries that story is even more critical to advancing the story and the cause of the natural world presented within the film’s frames. The third release from Disneynature, and the first not shown on the big screen in the United States, is perfectly aware that the story is what resonates with audiences.

The Crimson Wing follows the life cycle of flamingos in Central Africa. From the journeys that bring these creatures hundreds and thousands of miles to salt saturated Lake Natron to mate in a sea of ruby feathers to the birth, hardships, and flight of fledgling flamingos, The Crimson Wing is awash with intriguing questions and relatable lessons of life. In most animal documentaries the individuals the film focuses upon are given names to assist in connecting the audience with the creature. While a single flamingo is central to the tale, no names are given in The Crimson Wing, a welcome sign that the filmmakers respect the intelligence of those viewing the narrative in front of them.

Frame for frame, I would have to say that The Crimson Wing is one of the most beautiful features ever shot. The scarlet mirror that is Lake Natron, flamingos flying across the moon and storm clouds, a single chick being encouraged to break free of its shell, red stains on a salt island, and even our heroine streaking across the top of the water and lifting off into the sky are only a few of the astounding images captured to convey the remarkable tale. The film also features the melodious narration of Mariella Frostrup, one of three women voices considered almost perfect by a study from Post Office Telecoms.

Because of the longstanding tradition of nature films associated with the Disney name, the films from Disneynature have often been compared, rightly or wrongly, to Walt Disney’s True Life Adventures. While the stories of both Earth and Oceans, Disneynature’s two previous releases, have found their own paths to tug at viewers heartstrings their expansive subject matter cannot dedicate enough screen time to the individual chapters. The Crimson Wing, with its dedicated subject matter, most accurately resembles the True Life Adventures. The narrative features an exotic locale, an unheralded but recognizable lead creature, triumph, heartbreak, and mysteries stemming from both the flamingos and their birthplace.

In its opening, The Crimson Wing relates the thread that ties flamingos to the myth of the phoenix. In a similar fashion, The Crimson Wing burns brightly with all the elements needed to make a nature documentaries rise from the ashes. While not a movie for every viewer, The Crimson Wing is a remarkable show that reminds me of features I watched as a child with my parents, making it a perfect addition for nature loving families of this generation.

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You can check out a trailer and clips of The Crimson Wing, which is available now on Blu-Ray, DVD and movie download. Ryan will be back soon with a review of Disneynature’s Oceans, so be sure to stay tuned.

The Secrets of Walt Disney World’s Tom Sawyer Island-Part 3 of 3

19 July 2010 by Suzannah Otis 9 Comments

In part one and part two of our Tom Sawyer Island pictorial review, we saw caves, mines, a fort and even a play area chock full of adventure. Today we conclude that adventure by visiting the final spots on the island.

When we left off, we were about to cross this barrel bridge to parts unknown, yes? As always, click to enlarge photos.

view from Tom Sawyer Island — First, you get this nice view of Liberty Square

Pollys Tom Sawyer Island — Then we come upon a lovely little spot, Aunt Polly's...sadly, it does not seem to be open much at all anymore.

Tom Sawyer Island – A Pictorial Review-Part 1

18 May 2010 by Suzannah Otis 4 Comments

A little while back, I was gifted with the good fortune of getting a guided tour of one of the few places I’d never stepped foot in at Walt Disney World – Tom Sawyer Island. Ryan P. Wilson, of the Main Street Gazette had planned a research trip and I made it a priority to meet this blogging idol of mine. I’d been reading the Main St. Gazette off and on for years before I even thought of writing about Disney myself. Ryan’s shared love and admiration of the parks from history to present day was something I instantly related to. I wanted to meet him just to say hello and talk about our favorite topic – the tour of Tom Sawyer’s Island was just a bonus.

Unlike me, Ryan grew up as a child of Fort Wilderness, so of course Tom Sawyer Island across the river from Frontierland was like another backyard to him during those years. When I mentioned on twitter that I’d never been, he was astounded at such a fact and wanted to remedy it. As I admitted there, I can thank Steve Birnbaum for instilling a fear of actually running into Injun Joe on the island. That was enough to keep 7-12 year old me away…okay, maybe 20 year-old me too. What can I say, I don’t like horror movies and I grew up hearing about places like Spooky World (formerly) in Berlin, Mass, where people jumped out at you so I wasn’t taking any chances even in the Magic Kingdom. I guess with three kids under my belt, I suddenly became fearless even if Injun Joe was waiting for me. (Which Ryan assured me was not the case.)

Anyway. I do not have the history or memories of this place that Ryan has and shares on his site, but it was still a marvelous place to explore and I definitely enjoyed the company along the way. As I’ve mentioned many times, one of my favorite parts about Walt Disney World is the immersion into the story. From the very basic understanding that there is only one Mickey all the way up to Mom and the cousins in the 50’s Prime Time Cafe thinking you’re using a walkie-talkie when you take out your cell phone, the whole point is to make you a part of the show. Tom Sawyer Island is a perfect example of that. The real world is already long gone, but now you leave even the fantasy land of rides and shows behind and enter another time, where you are exploring right along with Tom and Huck. While I have no doubt that the island has lost some of its original splendor and attention to detail, there are still many committed to the spirit which embodies this magical place.

As always, click the photos to enlarge.

Tom Sawyer Island welcome sign — Tom Sawyer Island "Welcum" sign from Tom himself (with some edits by Huck)