Press Release: National Pie Championships returning April 26-28

ORLANDO, Fla. (Feb. 27, 2013) - The 19^th Annual American Pie Council® (APC)/Crisco® National Pie Championships scheduled for April 26-28, 2013 in Orlando will soon overflow with even more heavenly flavors as Pinnacle Foods Group LLC's Duncan Hines® Comstock^® & Wilderness^® Fruit Pie Fillings joins the competition as a new Amateur division sponsor.

With this new sponsor, five new competition categories are introduced for amateur bakers may: Apple, Blueberry, Cherry, Peach and Strawberry. Participants in the five categories will start with Comstock^® & Wilderness^® brand canned fruit pie fillings and they must make the pies their own by adding at least four other ingredients in their filling. Competition entry forms are available at www.piecouncil.org.

Comstock^® & Wilderness^® joins a distinguished list of competition sponsors, including Crisco® and the California Raisin Marketing Board.

A first prize winner will be chosen in each of the five Comstock^® & Wilderness^® fruit categories and will win $100 as well as bragging rights. Among the winners of the five flavor categories winners, an overall Comstock^® & Wilderness^® winner will be selected, who will win a trip to the Comstock^® & Wilderness® headquarters in Parsippany, NJ to spend a day with the company's corporate chef. The overall Comstock^® & Wilderness^® winner will also go on to compete for the title of "Best in Show" in the 19^th Annual APC ^®/Crisco^® National Pie Championships. Throughout the National Pie Championships and corresponding Great American Pie Festival on April 27^th and 28^th in nearby Celebration, representatives from Comstock^® & Wilderness^® Pie Fillings will conduct live product demonstrations.

The addition of five Duncan Hines^® Comstock^® & Wilderness^® Fruit Pie Filling categories brings the total number of Amateur categories to 19, including Apple, Cherry, Crisco^®

Classic Chocolate Cream, Citrus, Cream, Fruit & Berry, Innovation, Nut, Open, Peanut Butter, Cream Cheese, Pumpkin, Raisin (sponsored by the California Raisin Marketing Board).  

"We are absolutely bubbling with excitement to add Comstock^® & Wilderness^® Fruit Pie Fillings as a sponsor of the APC ^®/Crisco^® National Pie Championships," said Linda Hoskins, APC's executive director, "The addition of five new fruit flavor categories in our Amateur division - Apple, Blueberry, Cherry, Peach and Strawberry - is sure to make the competition more even more enticing to participants as we seek out the upper crust of pie baking hobbyists."

Of last year's total 801 entries in Commercial, Professional, Amateur and Junior Chef divisions, 237 were from amateur bakers. The pies were judged by 195 pre-qualified volunteer chefs, bakers and assorted pie aficionados.

Each year, the National Pie Championships are held in conjunction with the free-admission Great American Pie Festival, which features the Never Ending Pie Buffet. The 2012 festival was attended by close to 39,000 pie lovers, up from 32,000 in 2011, and featured an even more endless pie buffet with a mind-boggling 90,000 slices.

The American Pie Council offers individual membership for amateurs as well as professionals and commercial bakers. Pie lovers receive multiple benefits including the "Pie Times" e-newsletter, membership directory and member-only online "pie talk" access for idea exchange, pie recipes, coupons and discounted entry into the annual APC/Crisco^® National Pie Championships. For more details, to become a member of the APC or to register for the National Pie Championships, visit www.piecouncil.org.

Crisco^® is a registered trademark of The J. M. Smucker Company. For more information, visit www.crisco.com.

The American Pie Council^® is the only organization committed to maintaining America's pie heritage, passing on the tradition of pie-making and promoting America's love affair with pie. The APC offers personal, professional and commercial memberships. For more information, please visit  www.piecouncil.org. 

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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

Press Release: D23 Expo going to Japan in October

FIRST-EVER D23 EXPO JAPAN TO BE HELD OCTOBER 12–14, 2013

The Official Disney Fan Club’s Signature Event Makes Its International Debut

Meguro-ku, Tokyo, February 25, 2012—The Walt Disney Company Japan announced today that it will stage the first-ever D23 Expo Japan, a special event for Disney fans created by D23: The Official Disney Fan Club. D23 Expo Japan, the first Expo to be held outside the U.S., will feature an array of engaging presentations, hosted by senior Disney creative executives, showcasing what’s on the horizon from across The Walt Disney Company, including theme parks, movies, television, music, and interactive gaming. Fans will enjoy unique experiences; have the opportunity to purchase one-of-a-kind merchandise and collectibles; meet many of their favorite Disney characters; and delight in countless other surprises. D23 Expo Japan will take place October 12–14, 2013, at the Tokyo Disney Resort^® in the Maihama area. Expo ticketing and program information will be announced in March.

D23 Expo Japan will also feature two special exhibitions celebrating landmark Disney milestones. First, to pay homage to The Walt Disney Company’s 90th Anniversary, D23 and the Walt Disney Archives will present Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives, featuring nine decades of treasures from the Archives’ vast collection. Plus, the Tokyo Disney Resort will celebrate its 30th year with a special retrospective exhibit.　This special exhibition, presented by Oriental Land, operator of Tokyo Disney Resort, celebrates this milestone year by making D23 Expo Japan possible. Further details will be posted at http://disney.jp/D23 as they become available.

“We are thrilled to host this extraordinary, three-day event where all the wonderful worlds of Disney come together,” said Paul Candland, president, The Walt Disney Company Japan. “2013 marks The Walt Disney Company’s 90th anniversary, Disney Channel’s 10th, Disney Mobile’s fifth, the Disney–JCB Card’s fifth, Dlife’s first, and Tokyo Disney Resort’s 30th! The D23 Expo Japan allows us to show Disney’s tremendous appreciation to its fans.”

This event is supported by JCB Co., Ltd, and The Dai-ichi Life Insurance Company, Limited as official sponsors.

Disney fans from around the globe flocked to Anaheim, Calif., for the first D23 Expo: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event, in September 2009, followed by a second in August 2011. The next D23 Expo will take place August 9–11, 2013, at the Anaheim Convention Center and will feature: the 2013 Disney Legends Ceremony; a special exhibit from the Walt Disney Archives; the Collectors Forum, where Disney fans can buy, sell, and trade Disney collectibles, memorabilia, and merchandise; an all-new Fan Art Contest themed to the upcoming 50th anniversary of Mary Poppins, and a massive show floor full of special opportunities to see what’s on the horizon for Disney around the world.

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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

True Love decorations at Magic Kingdom (pics)

Here are the decorations up for True Love week. We didn't chase characters or wait in lines - it was brutal busy this weekend! 

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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

New Fantasyland First Removals - Character Shields

Back in September 2012, New Fantasyland was still behind construction walls. If you peeked over, you might have seen a few show elements.

One such element was the castle wall, meant to form a bookend with Cinderella Castle. Today, those walls have no colorful signs on them. But while everything was under construction, there WERE colorful shields put on the walls. They were gone by the time the land debuted, so someone must have thought better about them and just removed them.

As you can see, they were themed to the main characters to be found in the land: Snow White, Aurora, Belle, and Ariel.

Wait, Aurora?!

She was part of the original plans here in the Fantasy Forest (we were to help her celebrate her birthday in the forest cottage), but not the plans actually built. I wonder if the shields were part of the original castle wall designs as a result... and thus removed once someone realized it wouldn't fit.

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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

Infographic: travelers to WDW

A travel and vacation company called FlipKey.com recently sent me the attached infographic about Orlando travel. Be sure to click to see the larger version. 

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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

Press Release: Madagascar show coming to Busch Gardens Tampa

Orlando, Fla. (February 12, 2013) – SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment today announced it will premiere “Madagascar Live! Operation: Vacation,” an original live musical show featuring the characters from DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc.’s (Nasdaq: DWA) beloved Madagascar franchise, at two of the company’s parks this summer.

Celebrating the box office success of Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted, which has grossed more than $740 million at the worldwide box office, Alex the Lion and friends will party while on vacation with guests at Busch Gardens Tampa^® and SeaWorld^® throughout 2013.

The 20-minute musical show follows the antics of Alex the Lion, Gloria the Hippo, King Julien, Mort and the Penguins during a vacation adventure. The show will feature rock/pop music performed by a live band and include both classic and original songs. The characters also will conduct meet and greets with park guests. Additionally, special co-branded merchandise exclusive to the parks, will be available.

These two locations will be the only theme parks in the U.S. where fans can see the characters of Madagascar live. The new show “Madagascar Live! Operation: Vacation” premieres in the following locations:

·        Busch Gardens Tampa^® May 18, 2013.

·        SeaWorld San Diego June 15, 2013.

The company also has the opportunity to expand the show to other parks in the SeaWorld family in the future.

“Audiences around the world have embraced the characters of Madagascar, and SeaWorld and Busch Gardens parks are the ideal places for families to enjoy this immersive live entertainment experience,” said DreamWorks Animation’s Head of Worldwide Licensing & Consumer Products, Kerry Phelan.  “The entire creative team behind this uniquely original version of “Madagascar Live!” has done an impressive job of translating the beloved world from screen to stage, bringing it to life for young park guests and family audiences alike.”

“Our parks both entertain and inspire guests to care about animals,” said Scott Helmstedter, Chief Creative Officer of SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment. “Likewise, the Madagascar movies also inspire animal lovers, but in a different way with their inimitable charm and humor. We welcome these characters to our family with open arms and look forward to working with DreamWorks Animation on this incredibly funny and engaging new show.”

Madagascar is one of the most successful CG animated movie franchises of all time, grossing more than $1.8 billion at the worldwide box office. In 2012 “Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted,” grossed over $740 million at the global box office, becoming the highest grossing film of the series.

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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

3500 Visits to Snow White: An Autistic Boy's Journey as a Book

Benjamin was an autistic child who rode Snow White's Scary Adventures literally thousands of times before it closed for good. It was the ride that brought him out of his autistic shell more than any other experience - and his father has written a book telling the story about Ben's relationship with this ride, since closed forever. And it's a good book, the kind all of us should be reading. It's the kind of book that transcends its supposed subject matter and becomes about everything else that matters in life and love; the kind of book that makes you better for having read it. Above all, it's a book that addresses emotions straight on. The father's emotions, Ben's emotions, and even our own emotions as readers. 

If you don't mist up reading the chapter about Ben coming alive when stepping into the Magic Kingdom for the first time, then you may not have emotions. On Main Street, his cautious steps turned energetic, his spirit loosened and his joy unbuckled for perhaps the first truly freeing moment of his young life, and the reader is swept along, helpless, and all but right there alongside Ben. It reminds us what we love about the Disney parks, and in that, Ben's story is the story of all of us when we interact with these magical creations seen in three dimensional reality only a few places on earth.

Not all elements of the story have to do with Ben; there are sections about his birth, job hunting, a move across country, and other necessary components of the narrative that is being told. They may contribute to the logic of what was done and why, but they don't resonate the same way as Disney-focused chapters do. The prose springs to life most vividly when Ben is center stage. His second trip to WDW is just as hypnotic as his first, and darned if his 1,000th ride (as well as the 2000th ride) didn't foreshadow much of what would happen on his very last ride (indeed, the very last ride for ANYBODY) on the attraction when it shut down for good. For someone who was present at the very last night like myself, this was compelling reading indeed.

Every reader will be gripped by the drama of that final night and Ben's final ride. Would he make it to 3,500 rides? What would the very last ride be like? The fact that it was a public drama, played out in Internet message boards and twitter, made it somehow all the more like it belonged to all of us in some tangential way. I even contributed a photo of the day to the father, and it ended up in the finished book.

Ben's final ride is a touching one that resonates deeply of parental anguish and reward. I won't spoil the details for you, but you should seek it out. It's cathartic for all of us readers, too.

Buy the book from the author's site (http://shmoolok.com/book) or Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/3500-Autistic-Ten-Year-Romance-White/dp/1482093308) or Kindle (http://www.amazon.com/3500-Autistic-Ten-Year-Romance-ebook/dp/B00BFTDHV4).

Disclosure: I was given early access to a PDF version of the book.
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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

Review: La Nouba Cirque du Soleil at DtD

I was recently offered the chance to see La Nouba with complimentary admission, and I was happy to accept since I wanted to compare its performance today to the one I hold in my memory.

I'd seen the show maybe six years ago, with a toddler in tow, and he was a cranky terror so we have hesitated to go back. In the meantime, I'd also taken in my second Cirque du Soleil show--Mystere in Las Vegas. My impressions of Mystere were far less positive than what I'd thought of La Nouba. After a few years, I started to wonder if La Nouba was as good as I'd thought. Or was it just memory playing tricks on me?

No tricks. The show stands up these years later and reconfirmed for me that my initial reaction was appropriate. It's just a good show. I normally do not consider myself a circus kind of person; in fact, quite the opposite. But this show--with trapeze acts, trampoline work, tightrope walking, BMX bikes, jugglers, and all sorts of clown tomfoolery--is enjoyable for pretty much any audience I can imagine. There's something uniquely odd and yet endearing about the humor of a show like this. It's chock full of random set decorations and costumes that channel Orwell at the same time as Charlie Chaplin. The juxtapositions are jarring, but somehow it all works together.

A few sequences were different. Most of the first twenty minutes looked unfamiliar to me (though maybe that was memory playing tricks again). The crowd favorite, and my own as well, was still the four little Chinese girls who twirled their diabolos (Chinese yo-yos) in an amazing feat, made all the more improbable by their impossibly young ages. The crowd always loves them.

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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

Flying Trapeze attraction opens in Orlando Feb 15

Press Release:

TAKE THE LEAP AND LEARN TO FLY

Flying Trapeze Lessons Open in Orlando

Opening on Friday February 15^th, Trapeze Federation offers flying trapeze instructional classes to participants of all levels, ages five years and older. This thrilling recreational activity is safe, fun, and leaves those who partake in it with an unparalleled sense of accomplishment.

In recent years, recreational Flying Trapeze has seen a spike in interest and media due in part to its pop-culture integration. There are approximately two hundred trapeze set-ups in the US with an estimated one million participants last year.  The activity has recently been featured in Modern Family, Sex & the City, Water for Elephants, This Means War, and as the center of both Louis Vuitton and Chanel’s 2012 advertising campaigns. Celebrity fans include P!nk, Hugh Jackman, Bar Refaeli, Neil Patrick Harris, Kelly Ripa, and Mario Lopez.

Trapeze Federation is located in an open lot just south of International Drive at 7032 South Kirkman Road Orlando,FL 32819. Classes are offered Wednesday and Thursday at 4:15PM, Friday at 2PM and 4:15PM, Saturday and Sunday at 10AM, 1:30PM, and 4PM. Classes are available for children’s birthday parties, corporate functions, and private lessons.

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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

Book Review: Who's Afraid of the Song of the South (Jim Korkis)

Jim Korkis has long been on the Internet scene. For many years he's written articles for websites that probe the rich backstories of the Disney company history (animation as much as anything else). Jim's stories are always about the casual interactions; the sorts of things NOT found in other books, and the kinds of anecdotes that surface only in oral interviews, long conversations, and even longer friendships with those who lived and breathed the history in question.

People like Jim's stories and always tell him how happy they are to hear them, since they never hear anything like it elsewhere. As Jim says, this always frightens him. What happens if someday Jim is gone--are these stories gone too? So he resolved the write them down. First came The Vault of Walt, a loose collection of stories united only by the thread of Walt Disney himself who shows up as a character in these ditties about the studio, about the park, and about the company history. The book is eminently readable, either in small doses (since they are short stories) or inhaled whole like your favorite entree.

That book came out a few years ago, but there was a revised edition in 2012, which included new stories:

• The perilous four-month stint of famed Warner Bros. animator Chuck Jones at the Disney Studios
• Why two women you've never heard of were among Walt's most important influences
• Walt's admiration for and brief collaboration with legendary artist Salvador Dali
• Walt and Lillian Disney's raucous 30th wedding anniversary celebration in Frontierland
• How Walt's early infatuation with polo led to an injury that plagued him for the rest of his life
• The story of Cinderella's Golden Carrousel and the Disney craftswoman who tended it for decades
• Walt's fondness for chili and cold weenies, with authentic recipes to create his favorite dishes

In typical Jim Korkis fashion, the stories all told in a kind of "fly on the wall" narrative, as if we were right next to the action as it unfolded. The result is layers of details that you never knew, even if you had heard the gist of a particular story before. Jim definitely does his homework.

But what's really motivating today's post is another book. More recently, Jim has penned Who's Afraid of the Song of the South, a book that is somewhat unique and calls for a different kind of introduction. The first 80 pages are a thesis about the creation and history of this seldom-seen Disney movie. In typical Jim Korkis fashion, the author dwells on minutiae when he can (again: this is where the research shines through and the readability comes from).

There follows several short snippets that were obviously gleaned and gathered during Jim's research, but could not fit into the "thesis" of the first 80 pages, so he includes them anyway, as standalone ditties. I found the choice brave, and I'm happy they are there for posterity. I'm not sure every reader will devour these as readily (and if they do, they will find the reading experience a bit disjointed), but that's OK. I'm glad they are there.

Then, as long as he was writing about controversial Disney subjects, Jim apparently thought he might as well include the proverbial kitchen sink. This last section is meaty (150 pages) and it bounces around all over the place, without even the anchor of Walt Disney the man to tie them together, but that's OK, because the subject matter is likely to interest you. Jim tackles the dark underbelly of the company. There are stories here about Walt Disney's last (written) words, the Sweatbox documentary, the Jessica Rabbit over-sexiness controversy, the Disneyland character orgy poster from many decades ago, and even Ward Kimball's fascination with UFOs. These stories will fascinate you if you've not heard of them before. If you're a longtime follower of the Disney product and know of the topics mentioned above already, you are less likely to learn new facts with these. The final essays in the book rely heavily on already-published sources, so they have a different character than the earlier parts of the book (and the earlier Walt book). They are still highly readable, though, and folks without that deep knowledge or full backlog of E-Ticket magazines will find the collection of stories invaluable.

Disclosure: I received review copies of both books from the author.


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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

Review of Brews, Bands, and BBQ at SeaWorld

SeaWorld began its late-winter festival this past weekend (disclosure: I was invited as press and received a free meal, though no free alcohol). Since this is Central Florida here, late winter means 79 degree temperatures, outdoor bands, and a search for shade even in February. Amazing.

I'd not seen this exact event before, though it's at least more than one year old (my fellow bloggers assure me). What I have done is attend beer and food/wine type events before from SeaWorld. There are differences and variations each time, but they usually take place in the pathway from the Bayside Stadium back toward the dolphin nursery, with shacks and stands scattered about on the way. That held true this time as well. With the decorations around and a few theme additions (Harley Davidson motorcycles), the area took on a character of its own that reminds me of the Christmastown stuff they do in the same spot, but with enough color changes that it has its own tenor and rhythm. If nothing else, the blaring rock (or country) music sees to a different vibe than you saw here in Christmas.

There are numerous local vendors here with BBQ foods--Tony Roma's, Cecil's, and Sonny's leap to mind. SeaWorld also has its own booth. I had pulled pork from both Cecil's and SeaWorld (the latter one had more spice and added flavors), and I sampled other things from the SeaWorld booth: grilled chicken (moist and tender, but not overly meaty) and sausage (spicy and my favorite).

If you're not here for the food, maybe it's the bands. Many of them are big-name bands: Beach Boys, Third Eye Blind, Hall and Oates, Sheryl Crow, that sort of thing. The complete list of bands is on the official site. The concerts are included with admission, so that's a pretty big draw.

If you're like me, though, you may show up here for the beer. The booths sell individual brewski (for almost $8) but what you really want is the $21 sampler, giving you ten cups of beer (or cider) for a total of about 70 ounces of beer. That's essentially half off the price of the drinks! There were about 25 kinds of beer to choose from, all of them craft beer (rather than mass produced giants you already know well). It seemed to me that the event was heavy on the ales, pale ales, and Indian pale ales this year. I saw a few stouts here and there, but lagers and ambers seemed more rare. The pricing and portions seemed just about right to me--this is a good event and we left feeling like we had paid fairly for good quality.

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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

2012 Unofficial Walt Disney World Earbook - $9.99

Living in Central Florida (since 2004) and visiting WDW every weekend as I do, it becomes easy after a while to see just how much the place changes.

So I started chronicling those changes with an eye toward history into a book series. Since these are like yearbooks you knew from high school, I called them 'Earbooks and stuffed them full of my own photographs snapped that year. I made a first book in 2010, which was probably priced a little bit too high. The second year, 2011, was even longer and so it had to be priced even higher. It's clear now that this was not the best strategy.

I've changed a few things for 2012. The format changed from 8.5 inches x 5.5 inches to a larger format, now 10 inches by 8 inches. That enabled me to keep the page count down, so the book could be cheaper. I also removed a few sections and stopped trying to include EVERY last change of decorations, walkways, and planters, which also kept the book shorter. Instead, I've focused on the events, the new additions (rides, shows, shops, and restaurants), and any removals.

The result is that it's now 62 pages, and I'm able to offer it for sale for $9.99 -- significantly cheaper than previous years. I really think this it the right formula: much more affordable, but still in color and still long enough that it's much more than a simple brochure.

As before, we chronicle in photos those things which are NEW during the year, and those things which were REMOVED at some point in those twelve months.

Like all other years, there is careful attention paid to dates and details, the idea being to give future historians something meaty and accurate to refer to. For similar reasons of posterity, the book includes a few prices of events, tickets, room reservations, and food items as recorded in 2012. There's a full accounting of the entertainment and shows of a single Saturday in the summer season, as well.

An index in the back of the book makes it simple to find what you're looking for. One thing that HAS changed is that the organizing structure of the book is no longer "additions" and "subtractions," followed by a chapter on timeline. Instead, the timeline *is* the organizing principle. Everything that happened in March, for instance, is grouped together in that chapter, and the timeline for the month is included here as well.

I dearly love writing Earbooks each cycle, partly because I exult in simply owning them. I look forward to having twenty years of these volumes on my bookshelf, ready for me to take a trip down memory lane whenever the whim strikes me. And now you can too!

In previous years, I also distributed Kindle versions of the Earbook, but the process is manual, lengthy, irritating... and seems to have not satisfied all readers at the end of the day. The "jumbled pictures" format of the print version doesn't port over to Kindle, and the workaround - a straight scroll of pictures - doesn't end up feeling much like a book. For now, therefore, this volume will be available only as a print book.

Check out the book at Amazon (or, if you would like to maximize the author's royalty, you can buy it from CreateSpace, which is a subsidiary of Amazon).

For anyone in Europe, here are a few helpful links:
Amazon.co.uk color edition
Amazon.de color edition
Amazon.fr color edition

Check out the sample images below (click for larger version).

 

 

 

You may already be aware that I am the author of a number of Disney-related books, including several detailing Disney parks around the planet. Click here to read more about my published books.


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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

Original Tuskegee Airmen at Fantasy of Flight Feb 7-9

It's Black History Month, and as part of their celebration, Fantasy of Flight is hosting a panel of the original Tuskegee Airmen in the first installment of its "Legends & Legacies Symposium Series." Each year they get older, so grab this chance while you can!

Event Name	Fantasy of Flight's "Legends & Legacies: They Dared to Fly: Tuskegee Airmen"
Date	February 7-9, 2013
Start Time	10 a.m.
End Time	3 p.m.
Location	1400 Broadway Blvd. S.E.                                                        Polk City, FL  33868
Description	Fantasy of Flight’s Legends & Legacies Symposium Series kicks off with "They Dared to Fly" in honor of Black History Month. Join several of the original Tuskegee Airmen as they share their personal experiences of wartime military service during segregated America. This event features open-forum/question-and-answer sessions. Fantasy of Flight's permanent multi-media Tuskegee Airmen exhibit and vintage aircraft collection, including the P-51C Mustang, provides the perfect backdrop for this once in a lifetime opportunity to meet these brave men.
Cost	Event is included in the price of general admission which is $29.95 for adults, $27.95 for seniors ages 55 and over and $15.95 for children, ages 6-15, plus 7 percent sales tax.
Contact	Stephanie Conner
Telephone	863-984-3500
Email	info@fantasyofflight.com
URL	http://www.fantasyofflight.com/livinghistory/
For More Information	863-984-3500

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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

Upcoming Interactive Element (Game?) in Muppets Queue

Something new has appeared in the big queue room for MuppetVision. It's tall, it's lit up, and at the moment it's a mirror.

It's no great leap of logic to assume the mirror may melt away into a one-way mirror or even a screen. After all, it's extremely uncommon to add props for no reason to a really old attraction - especially when you're adding just one. And spending money to wire it for power.

Disney hasn't ANNOUNCED anything here whatsoever. Nor have I heard any rumors about a Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom style game in DHS. But this one prop is certainly suggestive, isn't it?

That said, it's probably more likely that this is a refresh simply because they had to change the queue anyway. The movie shows Kodak prominently as sponsor, and since that ended, Disney will want to change the preshow movie. I guess they might as well add new interactive props when they do it?

Speaking of power, there's a lot of cables here. More than you'd need for just the dresser lights, I think.

I've turned these pics sideways so you can read what's on the "trunk" below it and the mirror "trunk" itself. It's the new Muppet Walter from the movie! (would you believe I never made the connection to Walter Disney before? I'm really dense sometimes).

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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.

Press Release: D23 Road Show Tickets on sale tomorrow

Tickets go on sale this week: http://d23.disney.go.com/events/2013/01/23/d23s-disney-fanniversary-celebration-2013/

D23: The Official Disney Fan Club is hitting the road with D23′s Disney Fanniversary Celebration, commemorating dozens of unforgettable Disney milestones celebrating landmark anniversaries in 2013!

Each show will be hosted by a Disney archivist and D23 Team member and will highlight the rich behind-the-scenes stories of these magical moments through rarely or never-before-seen film footage, concept art, photography, and exclusive interviews with many of your favorite Disney Legends and luminaries.

D23 will lead guests on a journey through dozens of unforgettable Disney moments that have delighted generations of Disney fans, including beloved movies like Peter Pan, Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, and the first Pirates of the Caribbean film; classic characters like Mickey Mouse and Chip ‘n’ Dale; favorite attractions and entertainment spectaculars at Disney parks such as Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room, Horizons, and Mickey’s Toontown; the openings of Disney’s Animal Kingdom and Tokyo Disneyland, the launch of The Disney Channel; the first voyage of Disney Cruise Line; and the momentous founding of The Walt Disney Company in, of course, 1923.

Following each presentation, guests will have the opportunity to briefly mix and mingle with presenters and fellow Disney fans. Plus, we will have a special treasure from the Walt Disney Archives available on display!
D23′s Disney Fanniversary Celebration events will be held in Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Newark, Orlando, Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, D.C so we can “Unlock the Magic” of Disney and D23 from coast to coast!


Los Angeles
Date: Friday, March 1
Location: The Studio Theatre, The Walt Disney Studios (500 S. Buena Vista Street, Burbank, California)
Time: 5 and 8 p.m. (Please do not arrive more than 30 minutes prior to the show.)

San Diego
Date: Saturday, March 2
Location: San Diego MOPA-Joan and Irwin Jacobs Theater (1649 El Prado, San Diego, California)
Time: 2 p.m. (Please do not arrive more than 30 minutes prior to the show.)

Phoenix
Date: Sunday, March 3
Location: Phoenix Center for the Arts (1202 North 3rd Street, Phoenix, Arizona)
Time: 2:30 p.m. (Please do not arrive more than 30 minutes prior to the show.)

Orlando
Date: Friday, March 8
Location: Atlantic Dance Hall, Walt Disney’s BoardWalk Resort, Walt Disney World
Time: 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. (Please do not arrive more than 30 minutes prior to the show.)

Chicago
Date: Sunday, March 10
Location: Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago (220 East Chicago Avenue, Chicago, Illinois
Time: 2 and 5 p.m. (Please do not arrive more than 30 minutes prior to the show.)

Washington, D.C.
Date: Thursday, March 21
Location: U.S. Navy Memorial (701 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, D.C.)
Time: 7 p.m. (Please do not arrive more than 30 minutes prior to the show.)

Newark
Date: Saturday, March 23
Location: Newark Museum, Billy Johnson Auditorium (49 Washington Street, Newark, New Jersey)
Time: 2:30 p.m. (Please do not arrive more than 30 minutes prior to the show.)

Boston
Date: Sunday, March 24
Location: Boston Theatre 1 at the Revere Hotel (200 Stuart St., Boston, Massachusetts)
Time: 2 and 5 p.m. Please do not arrive more than 30 minutes prior to the show.)

Seattle
Date: Friday, April 5
Location: Seattle Public Library in the Microsoft Auditorium on level 1 (1000 Fourth Ave, Seattle, WA; Access to the building for the event will be through the 4th Avenue entrance.)
Time: 7 p.m. (Please do not arrive more than 30 minutes prior to the show.)

San Francisco
Date: Sunday, April 7
Location: Walt Disney Family Museum, (104 Montgomery Street, The Presidio of San Francisco, California)
Time: 2 and 5 p.m. (Please do not arrive more than 30 minutes prior to the show.)

Break out the noisemakers, because this is one party you won’t want to miss!

NOTE: Available only to D23 Members in good standing. Members may reserve a ticket for themselves and one (1) guest. There are a limited number of tickets available. D23 Members will be required to provide their membership number when reserving tickets. Tickets may be picked up only with a valid photo ID AND D23 MEMBERSHIP CARD. D23 Members who do not bring their membership card may not be admitted to the event. General admission tickets will be available only if additional seats remain. Ticketed Members who do not attend the event forfeit their place as well as all experiences, benefits, and gifts associated with the event. If you wish to request for sign language interpreting services for this event, please submit your request to d23.guestservices@disneystore.com at least two weeks prior to the event date. All D23 Special Events are subject to change without notice. There are no cancellations or refunds, tickets are not transferrable.


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Kevin Yee is the author of numerous independent Disney books, including the popular Walt Disney World Earbook series and Walt Disney World Hidden History.