Walt Disney Art Classics Convention 2004 - Part 2
Page 31 of 33

The next question was about pranksters on the Mouse Club set. Bobby immediately recalled that Paul Peterson was up in the cat walks, which led to his eventual release.

Paul Peterson would go from being fired as a Mouseketeer to a regular role on The Donna Reed Show.)

Sherry told about Mickey Rooney’s boys’ adventure in the Paint Lab, where they mixed all the paint together. Even their step-father, studio composer Buddy Baker, couldn’t bail them out. Bobby laughed that even a few of the stage mothers were “fired.�?

A photo of the school house was shown, and O’Day asked if there were any further thoughts about it. Bobby offered that in addition to the Mouseketeers, students also came from the studio’s feature films. This led O’Day to ask about life at the studio.

Bobby said he liked the commissary. He remembered the great food, including breaded veal cutlets for lunch. Sherry’s eyes sparkled as she said that they loved to sing and dance and perform. And, Bobby added, they got special passes for Disneyland that let them go to the front of the lines!

O’Day then asked Bobby if something rather special had happened to him in Disneyland. Bobby promptly replied that, yes, he proposed to his future wife on the Skyway. He figured that as the bucket passed through the Matterhorn, she couldn’t get out.

Sherry offered a personal memory of Disneyland. Her daughter played the role of Snow White for two years there. Sherry admitted that she became quite a stage mother, following her around and taking many, many photos. She would ask people if they didn’t think that Snow White was cute. To her chagrin, Security finally called and reported that she was a “Snow Stalker.�?

Bobby then announced that they had just recently completed work on a new project for the Disney Treasures DVD series. A set of Mickey Mouse Club programs would be released. Several of the Mouseketeers had gone all over the Disney Studio lot, taping material for the video. There was a hearty round of applause when O’Day asked if there were any fans of the Disney treasures series in the house. Bobby wondered aloud about what material would be included and what would be cut.

Bobby shares about the new Disney Treasures DVD.

O’Day then mentioned the Fourth Anniversary program, and asked about the elaborate production number built around “The Rainbow Road to Oz.�? Bobby provided details. The Disney Studio owned the rights to the later “Oz�? books, written by L. Frank Baum. There was to be a live film version, using the Mouseketeers. Jimmie Dodd would have been the Cowardly Lion, Bobby the Scarecrow, and Doreen Tracey the Patchwork Girl. Sadly, the project was abandoned.