The Fabulous Disney Babe
Page 1 of 3

According to the Old Saying, March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. If you're not in Southern California this week, you're missing out on some honest-to-goodness Weather. Black skies, thunder and lightning, and a semi-flooded Main Street, U.S.A. that you could shoot a cannon down without hitting anyone. Now is the time to don your ugly ponchos and electric socks and head off to the parks for the no-line paradise we'll all miss this July. 

Disney and Lions have gone back a long way, actually (for Lambs, I'm doing a piece on So Dear To My Heart at the end of the month.) "The African Lion" was one of the most successful True-Life Adventures. King Leonidas from Bedknobs and Broomsticks was just about the only part of the Main Street Electrical Parade that I liked. I remember when Alice was just a little bald sack of mush and we were at Epcot. A huge group of people surged around King Leonidas: "El Rey Leon! El Rey Leon!" they yelled. Close enough.

The film was originally called "King of the Jungle" and had a more Hamlet-ty feel; there was no Timon and Pumbaa until Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella, fresh from Guys and Dolls on Broadway, auditioned for the roles of two of the hyenas. Muffs sang a song about being King. The chorus: "Head Honcho/Top Banana/The Head of the Savannah..." I think it turned out better the way it is now.  

The Lion King was the second Disney show to hit the stage; Disney's Beauty and the Beast was first, and Aida and The Hunchback of Notre Dame followed. Mary Poppins is a strong possibility for the next one, as well as the semi-problematic The Little Mermaid. If you're traveling to New York City to see The Lion King, don't miss out on Doug Muth's incredible FAQ, which not only tells you where and when for the shows, but how to meet the actors (or get a private audience for your group with the entire cast!) and where to find a decent sandwich nearby. I'm waiting until Alice is ready to see the show out here; she'll let me know. Man, Doug, I wish you'd do one of these for us Left Coasters! The FAQ is accessible at http://www.claws-and-paws.com/tlkob-faq/

Peter Pan is one of the most popular non-Disney stage shows. When I was a Theatre Arts minor, I put together an incredibly cool fifties-era staging of the musical for my set design class. It's on my Someday List to do for real. I saw part of the sequel to Disney's Peter Pan about a year back but couldn't talk much about it because I promised I wouldn't spill all of the details until it was announced. It was very quietly announced earlier this week, and there's a change: instead of Direct-to-Video, it will be released as a Feature. From what I saw, and to be honest, I saw less than ten minutes of finished product (color, with some sound), it looks like it will hold it's own on the Big Screen. Wendy's daughter, whom Captain Hook and his crew kidnap with the flying Jolly Roger because they think she's Wendy, is an appealing, Bluth-esque mop top of a girl, spunkier than her mother. The scene where the ship docks at the roof of the Darling home is partial CGI, but the blend is almost seamless. Look for this in February of next year. The ad blitz should start shortly after Christmas.

I mentioned earlier that the parks at the Disneyland Resort are pretty much empty. There were a few people, and I'd be looking toward Burbank about now if I were you, who had set their hearts on tons of people leaving their schools and jobs and braving the foul weather to experience a Disneyland Resort Park Hopping Extravaganza Vacation. It's not happening. I'd go if I could, kids, but I have work, my daughter has school, and you won't sell me an annual pass to the new park. The rules they have for the upgrades are admirable. If anyone in your family has a two-park pass or higher level pass, you can upgrade to their level. To heck with Green Cards; any of you single guys with two-park passes out there wanna make an honest Passholder out of me?  Now THAT, the Register would print!