Disney’s Animal Kingdom has offered a tour called Wild By Design for several years now. It focuses primarily on the onstage areas of the park including details of Anandapur in Asia, Pangani Forest Exploration Trail in Africa, Dinoland U.S.A. and Discovery Island.
This three hour walking tour is available to guests ages 14 and up and costs $60 plus tax. Some discounts such as Disney Visa Card may apply. Contact Disney’s Tour department directly at 407-939-8687 to schedule this tour before it ends on September 26th. The tour is held on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.
The tour also includes a light continental breakfast and possibly a souvenir. While focusing on design of the park and animal care, this seems like a great tour to check out while you can before it disappears.
Prepayment is required for the Wild By Design tour and it has a two day cancellation policy. Theme park admission is not included, but is required for this tour.
Walt Disney and Sean Connery on the set of Darby O’Gill and the Little People – image copyright Disney
How many of you have seen the 1959 Walt Disney Productions film Darby O’Gill and the Little People? This gem features a young Sean Connery as Michael McBride along with Janet Munro as Katie O’Gill and Albert Sharpe as the title character. If you haven’t seen this classic yet, let me tell you a bit about it.
For those who aren’t aware, I have a slight affinity (read: obsession) with Sean Connery. He is my favorite actor hands down, the celebrity I’d most like to meet, and the lock screen on my phone. He is James Bond to me, and many others. I will revisit that character in a bit. I discovered this film existed, thanks to a Disney cd box set I bought in the mid 1990s. I made it my mission to track it down and eventually got it on dvd when it was re-released a few years back. The cd had Sean Connery singing a lovely ditty from the film called Pretty Irish Girl.
Darby O’Gill is the caretaker in Ireland for Lord Fitzpatrick at the beginning of the film, but is shortly thereafter replaced by Michael McBride. Darby has a habit of spinning tall tales at the pub over several pints of whiskey, so it isn’t surprising when nobody believes him that he is friends with little people and their King Brian. Quite a bit of hilarity ensues throughout the film while O’Gill tries to convince others that he now has three wishes since he’s captured the leprechaun. There are definitely some darker elements to the story as well that younger children under 6 or 7 might find frightening. Without spoiling too much, it is safe to say this is a family friendly film that is filled with comedy, a bit of drama, action, and even romance. Peter Ellenshaw and his crew did an amazing job with the special effects of this film.
While Darby O’Gill and the Little People may not be the best known live action Disney film, it is definitely entertaining. It also helped launch Sean Connery into superstardom. It is because producer Cubby Broccoli’s wife Dana saw Sean Connery in this film that he was even considered for the role of James Bond a few years later. The dvd even includes an extra called Mr. Connery Goes to Hollywood. There are also two other fun bonus features called Little People, Big Effects showing how trick shots were used to imply the size difference, and I Captured The King of the Leprechauns, which was a segment on Walt Disney Presents the Disneyland TV show. If you are looking for a fun way to spend a couple of hours with the family, I highly recommend checking out this underrated classic. Darby O’Gill and the Little People is available through iTunes, Netflix and to rent through Amazon Instant Video.
“This film deserves to be seen as a major breakthrough for Jenny Slate who commands the kind of humor and honesty that stars possess.” – Erik Childress, FILM THREAT
Based on the 2009 short of the same name, OBVIOUS CHILD takes on the controversial topic of abortion as part of its story yet somehow manages to be as charming, humorous, and irresistible as any indie romantic comedy in recent memory. Saturday Night Live veteran Jenny Slate plays Donna Stern, a 27-year-old, Jewish, Brooklyn bookstore clerk by day and aspiring and affably lewd comedian by night who struggles to keep her spirits up, on and off the stage, after a traumatizing break-up. Turning to alcohol to drown her sorrows, Donna performs a depressing set of break-up vengeance and Holocaust jokes, and then has a one-night stand with a nice WASPy guy named Max (Jake Lacy, TV’s The Office). A few weeks later, she finds herself facing an unexpected pregnancy. Filmmaker Gillian Robespierre has crafted an honest look at abortion, which is funny and frank without being negligent of the emotional weight that comes with such a harrowing choice. And Slate is absolutely terrific here-adorable and hilarious and genuine-in a breakthrough performance that is nicely supported by Gaby Hoffman, Richard Kind, Polly Draper, and David Cross
Disney’s Animal Kingdom has offered a tour called Wild By Design for several years now. It focuses primarily on the onstage areas of the park including details of Anandapur in Asia, Pangani Forest Exploration Trail in Africa, Dinoland U.S.A. and Discovery Island.
