The Fabulous Disney Babe
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John Lasseter (second from left) and the cast of
Monsters, Inc.
(c) Disney/Pixar
A Bug's Land Coming to DCA
John Lasseter described the new land and its attractions at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, which paid tribute to him and his career last night. Lasseter, who started his Disney career as a skipper on Disneyland's Jungle Cruise, says that now, with every new feature Pixar develops, he'll be ready to pitch the matching ride, land, or even hotel to WDI!
He described working on the Buzz Lightyear and Tough to be a Bug attractions as "a lot of fun" and was a prime mover behind the idea for the new section of the Golden State, replacing part of Bountiful Valley Farm. He suggested that they get some off the shelf rides, but transform them into bugs. The results were even better than he imagined:
Guests enter the area through a cereal box, and are surrounded by all sorts of giant clovers, transparent, like those in the film A Bug's Life. "There's one four-leaf clover, and I got to choose where it went." he added. "and no, I'm not going to tell you where."
The four attractions he described were:
Heimlich's Chew-Chew Train: a miniature train with the engine shaped like our favorite caterpillar, except that he "eats" and makes comments on the trip.
A Flik Contraption-themed Balloon-type ride
A Francis-themed figure-8 teacup-style ride
"and, my favorite," he says: Tuck and Roll Bumper Cars. The bumper cars are under P.T.Flea's circus tent, which is a beach umbrella, and wonderfully themed.
Heimlich and the Bug's Life gang
(c) Disney/Pixar
I'll have the rest of his presentation early next week; visit the LACMA website for more information; they've got something Disney going on every couple of months or so, and coming up, they're having a 100-year retrospective of Disney Animation, including guest speakers, kids' matinees, and a rare chance to see some classic Disney animated films - and, more rare than that, a few classic Disney animated shorts on the big screen.
• • •
Steve Lee of HollywoodLostandFound.net has a sad "Hollywood Lost" story: the U.S.S. Cygnus (from the Disney film The Black Hole) is no more. The prop was shuffled from place to place, and left out in the boneyard to the mercy of the elements, when a forklift accidentally crushed it. People picked up whatever recognizable bits of it they could as mementos, but part of movie history, even if it is cheesy movie history, is gone forever.
With the appearance on eBay of Dreamfinder and Figment aboard the Dream Mobile, Disney fans may worry that that particular piece of Disney history is gone as well. Remember how the ride operated, on a turntable? There were three entire Dreamfinder/One Little Spark sets. One is now on eBay, one is safely packed away at a Disney warehouse next to the Ark of the Covenant, and the third -- well, let's just say that Dreamfinder and Figment are enjoying their "retirement" with a family member here in sunny Southern California, and that there's no one else on earth who would treat them with more love and care.
-- Fab
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-- Michelle Smith
Michelle Smith can be reached using the Talkback form below or by emailing her at [email protected].
The Fabulous Disney Babe's column is posted every Friday and when ever else she has something to say. For more on Michelle's background, see her first column. She also offers The Fabulous Tour: Disneyland Secrets and Stories. Click here for more information.
The opinions expressed by our Michelle Smith, and all of our columnists, do not necessarily represent the feelings of LaughingPlace.com or any of its employees or advertisers. All speculation and rumors about the future plans of the Walt Disney Company are just that - speculation and rumors - and should be treated as such.
-- Posted January 11, 2002