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By Michael - December 1st, 2010 
When veteran actor Leslie Nielsen passed away last weekend, most tributes focused on his later career in a series of spoofs and slapstick comedies. Some mentioned his earlier career as a dramatic actor and leading man, but none that I saw covered his connection to Walt Disney. My first thought upon hearing the news was of The Swamp Fox, the eight-part serial that aired on the Disney anthology television program between 1959 and 1961. Having grown up in the age of Airplane! and The Naked Gun, it was surreal to discover that Nielsen had once portrayed the very serious Revolutionary War hero Francis Marion – and even crooned a bit on the theme song!
Any rundown of Nielsen’s career that I could provide would pale in comparison to the story by Jeff Kurtti on the Walt Disney Family Museum’s Storyboard blog. Kurtti covers not only Nielsen but also the other Frontierland heroes that Disney filmed in an attempt to re-capture the Davy Crockett magic. I encourage you all to check it out and to leave a comment – we could use more scholarship about this era in the Disney canon.
For those of you who have missed out over the years, some of Nielsen’s Tory-fighting antics can be found on YouTube.
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By Michael - November 30th, 2010  Walt sketches a friend in Miami Beach, August 13th, 1941 (AP Photo) Perhaps it’s fitting that, with Walt & El Grupo now out on DVD, we pause before we head South America-way to make a stop in Miami Beach, just like Walt did in 1941.
The above photo was taken at the Pancoast Hotel in Miami Beach on August 13th, 1941. That day, nine of the Disney staff would head off for Brazil, with Walt and his party following on Friday the 15th. Maybe our high-waisted mogul was working the rust off of his sketching skills as he prepared to draw Mickey and other characters for adoring audiences in South America?
 The Pancoast Hotel, in better days The Pancoast Hotel, designed in the then-popular Mediterranean Revival style by architect Martin L. Hampton, was built in 1923 and catered primarily to the wealthy. During World War II it, and the other large oceanfront hotels in Miami Beach, would be taken over by the government to serve as barracks for the Army Air Corps. After returning to civilian use in 1945, and having fallen out of architectural vogue, it was demolished in 1953 and replaced by the Seville Hotel.
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By Michael - November 30th, 2010 Our neighbor in urban planning, Sam Gennawey at Samland, is holding a holiday fundraiser for a worthy cause. Check it out…
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By Michael - November 29th, 2010 
A trio of must-see Disney related documentaries hit stores tomorrow, and I consider them to all be mandatory purchases for those interested in the company’s history and art. Over the next couple of days I’ll be providing full reviews for each, but I wanted to encourage everyone to check them out immediately (that’s the short review). See them however you can, but I will note that if you order through my links I get a tiny kickback. The documentaries are:
Walt & El Grupo – Directed by Ted Thomas, this is the story of Walt Disney and a band of artists and filmmakers from his studio as they travel to South America in 1941 to battle Nazis. Figuratively speaking. There’s lots of archival film and audio, and as a bonus the DVD features the entire uncensored version of Saludos Amigos (on DVD for the first time).
the boys: the sherman brothers' story – Directed by cousins Jeff and Gregg Sherman, this documentary details the secretly contentious relationship and career of Richard and Robert Sherman, the most prolific and successful Disney songwriters of all time. Shocking and intimate, the film is full of Disney luminaries and reminds one just how much amazing work these two men produced.
Waking Sleeping Beauty – Directed by veteran Disney producer Don Hahn, this acclaimed documentary chronicles the rise of Walt Disney Feature Animation in the 1980s and early 1990s. Told with archival video, interviews, and shockingly candid participation by Michael Eisner and Jeff Katzenberg, this is the tale of how Disney animation rose from near-collapse to glory, only to run apart at the seams in an explosion of ego.
So that’s your mandatory viewing for the rest of the week. You shall not regret it. And don’t forget that also arriving tomorrow are Fantasia and Fantasia 2000 on Blu-ray and DVD, as well as Warren Spector’s long-waited Epic Mickey for the Nintendo Wii.
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By Michael - November 24th, 2010
1) This is a pretty neat video.
2) I kinda wish it was longer, with more clips.
3) One of these things is not like the others.
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The Progress City Primer
 From the Progress City archives comes this collection of 33 tall tales and true from Disney history. Available in paperback, hardback, and ebook formats. |
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