Saving Mr. Banks Free Behind-The-Scenes iBook

Disney’s Saving Mr. Banks iBook gives fans

a behind-the-scenes look

at the making of the timeless classic Mary Poppins

Saving Mr. Banks

Featuring Rare and Exclusive Archival Treasures, Recording Sessions from the Academy Award®–Winning Composers, an Interactive Timeline of Historic Walt Disney Studios Milestones, Storyboards, Video and More

 

Walt Disney Studios announces the release of SAVING MR. BANKS: The Official Multi-touch Book, based on Disney’s highly anticipated film “Saving Mr. Banks,” in theaters December 20, 2013. Exploring the previously untold story of how Walt Disney worked his magic on author P.L. Travers to secure the rights to her book, “Mary Poppins,” the book includes a foreword by Academy Award®-winning composer Richard Sherman; never-before-seen correspondence between Walt Disney and P.L. Travers; rare storyboards and scripts from the Disney archives; an interactive timeline of historic Walt Disney Studios milestones; original recordings of the Sherman Brothers, performing their “Mary Poppins” hit songs; facts and profiles on the key characters in “Saving Mr. Banks”—all created by Apple’s  digital book creation app, iBooks Author.

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The Saving Mr. Banks book is available for free, exclusively on iBooks at www.iTunes.com/SavingMrBanks.

 Saving Mr. Banks iBook PL Travers

Using Apple’s iBooks Author, the UK digital agency, Brandwidth was able to include video, audio and multi-touch interaction to create a robust storytelling experience. Readers can watch interviews featuring the cast and filmmakers, browse extensive photo galleries and explore the original storyboards and concept art—all in full retina detail. ‘Mary Popovers’ deliver fascinating facts throughout the book.

Saving Mr. Banks

Two-time Academy Award®–winner Emma Thompson and fellow double Oscar®-winner Tom Hanks topline Disney’s Saving Mr. Banks, inspired by the extraordinary, untold backstory of how Disney’s classic “Mary Poppins” made it to the screen.

When Walt Disney’s daughters begged him to make a movie of their favorite book, P.L. Travers’ Mary Poppins, he made them a promise—one that he didn’t realize would take 20 years to keep. In his quest to obtain the rights, Walt comes up against a curmudgeonly, uncompromising writer who has absolutely no intention of letting her beloved magical nanny get mauled by the Hollywood machine. But, as the books stop selling and money grows short, Travers reluctantly agrees to go to Los Angeles to hear Disney’s plans for the adaptation.

 Saving Mr. Banks

For those two short weeks in 1961, Walt Disney pulls out all the stops. Armed with imaginative storyboards and chirpy songs from the talented Sherman brothers, Walt launches an all-out onslaught on P.L. Travers, but the prickly author doesn’t budge.  He soon begins to watch helplessly as Travers becomes increasingly immovable and the rights begin to move further away from his grasp.

It is only when he reaches into his own childhood that Walt discovers the truth about the ghosts that haunt her, and together they set Mary Poppins free to ultimately make one of the most endearing films in cinematic history.

Disney presents Saving Mr. Banks, directed by John Lee Hancock, produced by Alison Owen, Ian Collie and Philip Steuer, and written by Kelly Marcel and Sue Smith. Executive producers are Paul Trijbits, Christine Langan, Andrew Mason and Troy Lum.

 

Download book here:

www.iTunes.com/SavingMrBanks

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A Spoonful Review Of Saving Mr. Banks

savingmrbanks1

For the past few years Disney and Mary Poppins fans have been anticipating the arrival of the movie Saving Mr. Banks.  There is a tremendous amount of words being set to page about this movie right now, and it is generally well liked – though it does have its detractors.  I can’t begin to tell you how good that is for a film like this.  I’ve seen Mary Poppins countless times (Star Wars: A New Hope being the only movie I’ve seen more), read the book (though not in some time, that needs to change), and even read some works about P. L. Travers herself.  That said, this isn’t a movie about Mary Poppins and if you think it is before having seen it, then you’re going to see quite a different movie then you’re expecting.

This is not a subtle movie in any way.  It will beat you senseless with its message while trying to mask itself with the appearance of subtlety.  Don’t get me wrong that doesn’t make it a bad movie at all.  In fact, I think it’s a fantastic movie.  One third of the movie is told in flashbacks to the life of P. L. Travers growing up as Helen Goff in Australia.  They are portrayed as wispy and almost dreamlike – thanks in part to the filter used on the camera.  Much like a dream.  Combine that with the way the relationship between Walt Disney and Travers is told and you can begin to see the magic of this film.

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As my brain groked what I’ve seen on the screen I realized that the story itself is an illusion.  It’s a dream.  And, as with most dreams, the roles that you see people portraying are not necessarily the people they represent.  Shift around the roles of the players a bit and you’ll realize that the more correct title for this film is Saving Mrs. Travers.

Saving Mr. Banks

Getting two actors who are well known character actors and setting them against each other was a stroke of genius.  Tom Hanks as Walt Disney is by no means perfect, but his mannerisms, stance, and appeal are all captured and I do not think another actor could have done as well a job with such a beloved individual.  Emma Thompson does an amazing job as Travers. Having spent numerous hours listening to the archival studio session tapes of meetings between Travers and various Disney employees, she tried to capture the emotional distress of Travers.  She even had her own hair styled to match Travers rather than using a wig.

Saving Mr. Banks

What really brought it all home for me though was listening to an interview with Jason Schwartzman and Richard Sherman.  Unlike Hanks and Thompson who had to study their roles by studying the past, Schwartzman was able to sit down and talk with the man he’d be portraying.  The two had spent countless hours together throughout the making of this film.  In the studio, Sherman was a consultant for all the “script room” scenes in the movie.  He has talked about how surreal and emotional many of the scenes were for him – seeing moments from his own life recreated.

Like is so often true for movies about topics and historical moments that have already been picked to pieces extensively, this film will not be for everyone.  In fact, it’s probably not a movie for the most hard core of fans – they’re not even the target audience.  Saving Mr. Banks is meant to tell the tale of how Mary Poppins almost didn’t get made in a way that is meant to appeal to the most general of audiences.  Keep in mind that this is not a family movie by any means, and you probably do not want to bring your small children to see it as there’s little in it for them – hence the PG-13 rating.

Saving Mr. Banks

In addition to doing the web design and programming for the On the Go in MCO website, Todd Perlmutter is a host for the Disney Film Project Podcast. You can join him and his fellow hosts for Episode 156 where they will discuss the movie Saving Mr. Banks.

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Wordless Wednesday: Where It All Began

Wordless Wednesday: September 25, 2013

Wordless Wednesday

This week’s Wordless Wednesday takes us to the coolest thing at Disneyland! It looks like an old, green park bench, but it is where the idea of Disneyland began, This is the park bench where Walt sat and watched his daughters ride the carousel in Griffith Park and thought about creating a place where they could spend time and have fun together.

Well it came about when my daughters were very young and Saturday was always Daddy’s Day with his two daughters. So we’d start out and I’d take them to the merry-go-round and take them to different places. And as I sit there while they rode the merry-go-round, did all these kind of things, sit on a bench and eating peanuts. I felt that there should be something big, some kind of amusement enterprise where the parents and children could have fun together.

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D23 Relaunches Website With New Content And Free Membership Level

Never-Before-Released Photos From Walt Disney’s Camera Highlight the

Reimagined D23 Website

D23
This never-before-released photo, taken with Walt’s personal camera, show Walt and his family visited Denmark in June 1951, where this photograph was taken. From the “D’scovered” feature exclusively on D23.com.

D23: The Official Disney Fan Club relaunches their website with member-exclusive content and a new free level of membership.

Many Disney fans have heard Walt Disney tell the story of how watching his daughter’s on the carousel at Griffith Parkin Los Angeles served as inspiration to build Disneyland. But images from that fateful day have never been shown to the public… Until today. D23: The Official Disney Fan Club is launching their reimagined website with thousands of pages of new content, including a story that features photographs of Walt’s daughters Diane and Sharon on the merry-go-round on that fateful day that ultimately changed how Americans — and people around the world — vacation. The Walt Disney Archives recently discovered rolls of film from Walt’s personal camera with hundreds of images, just a few of which are showcased today on D23.com in their new member-exclusive section. Other photos include a young Roy E. Disney on the same carousel, as well as candid moments from Walt’s life and travels around the world.

D23
This never-before-released photo, taken with Walt’s personal camera, show Walt and his family visited Denmark in June 1951, where this photograph was taken. From the “D’scovered” feature exclusively on D23.com.

In addition, visitors to  www.D23.com will find:

  • Exclusive Audiocast Interviews with Ginnifer Goodwin of Once Upon A Time and the evil Dr. Doofenshmirtz of Phineas and Ferb
  • Disney A to Z – A complete and newly-updated electronic version of the definitive Disney encyclopedia with more than 7,000 entries written by Dave Smith, founder and Chief Archivist Emeritus of the Walt Disney Archives
  • A selection of new member-exclusive discounts and special events
  • Disney Legends and the Walt Disney Archives – Two new microsites; Disney Legends will provide a deeper look at those who’ve made significant contributions to the Disney legacy, and the Archives site will open up the doors of this venerable institution so D23 can share more of The Walt Disney Company’s expansive collections.
  • And much, much more!!

D23 disney twenty-three

At D23.com fans can sign up for a free membership to unlock even more Disney content that is only available for D23 Members.

 

 

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Wordless Wednesday: Lunch With Walt

Wordless Wednesday – April 10, 2013

Wordless Wednesday
This week’s Wordless Wednesday takes us to the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater at Disney’s Hollywood Studios for lunch with Walt and Garco. I love all the old cartoons and clips that play while we have a fun lunch!
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Marvel Studios Begins Production On Third Installment Of The Blockbuster Franchise “Iron Man”!!!

From the Desk of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures:

 

 

MARVEL STUDIOS BEGINS PRODUCTION ON THIRD INSTALLMENT OF THE BLOCKBUSTER FRANCHISE “IRON MAN”

Marvel’s “Iron Man 3” Commences Principal Photography
In Preparation for May 3, 2013 Film Release

BURBANK, Calif. (June 4, 2012) – Following in the footsteps of the record-breaking Marvel Studios’ release “Marvel’s The Avengers,” production on the highly anticipated film “Iron Man 3,” directed by Shane Black, has commenced production in Wilmington, North Carolina. The production schedule will also include locations in Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina, Miami, Florida and China.

Based on the ever-popular Marvel comic book series, first published in 1963, “Iron Man 3” returns Robert Downey Jr. (“Iron Man,” “Marvel’s The Avengers”) as the iconic Super Hero character Tony Stark/Iron Man along with Gwyneth Paltrow (“Iron Man,” “Iron Man 2,”) as Pepper Potts, Don Cheadle (“Iron Man 2”) as James “Rhodey” Rhodes and Jon Favreau (“Iron Man,” “Iron Man 2”) as Happy Hogan. Set for release in the U.S. on May 3, 2013, Marvel’s “Iron Man 3” marks the second feature to be fully owned, marketed and distributed by Disney, which acquired Marvel in 2009.

“Iron Man 3” continues the epic, big-screen adventures of the world’s favorite billionaire inventor/Super Hero, Tony Stark aka “Iron Man.”  Marvel Studios’ President Kevin Feige is producing the film. Executive producers on the project include Jon Favreau, Louis D’Esposito, Alan Fine, Stan Lee, Charles Newirth, Victoria Alonso, Stephen Broussard and Dan Mintz.

The creative production team on the film includes two-time Oscar®-winning director of photography John Toll, ASC (“Braveheart,” “Legends of the Fall”), production designer Bill Brzeski (“The Hangover,” “Due Date”), editors Jeffrey Ford, A.C.E. (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” “Captain America: The First Avenger”) and Peter S. Elliot (“Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer”), and costume designer Louise Frogley (“Quantum of Solace,” “Contagion”).

Marvel Studios most recently produced the critically acclaimed “Marvel’s The Avengers,” which set the all-time, domestic 3-day weekend box office record at $207.4 million. The film, which is currently in release, continues to shatter box office records and is The Walt Disney Studios’ highest-grossing global and domestic release of all time and marks the studios’ fifth film to gross more than $1 billion worldwide.

In the summer of 2011, Marvel successfully launched two new franchises with “Thor,” starring Chris Hemsworth, and “Captain America: The First Avenger,” starring Chris Evans. Both films opened #1 at the box office and have grossed over $800 million worldwide combined. In 2010 “Iron Man 2,” starring Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Scarlett Johansson and Mickey Rourke, took the #1 spot in its first weekend with a domestic box office gross of $128.1 million.

In the summer of 2008, Marvel produced the summer blockbuster movies “Iron Man” and “The Incredible Hulk.”  “Iron Man,” in which Robert Downey Jr. originally dons the Super Hero’s powerful armor and stars alongside co-stars Terrence Howard, Jeff Bridges and Gwyneth Paltrow, was released May 2, 2008, and was an immediate box office success.  Garnering the number one position for two weeks in a row, the film brought in over $100 million in its opening weekend.  On June 13, 2008, Marvel released “The Incredible Hulk,” marking its second number one opener of that summer.

 

ABOUT MARVEL ENTERTAINMENT:
Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of over 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy years.  Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing and publishing. For more information visit www.marvel.com.

 

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One Man’s Dream: Minature Diorama Of “So Dear To My Heart”

Every time I venture into One Man’s Dream at Disney’s Hollywood Studios I always take a lot of time to take in the So Dear to my Heart Minature Diorama.

Last September, The Walt Disney Family museum did a blog post on why So Dear to my Heart was one of Walt’s favorite movies, and all this did was heighten my appreciation for this model!!!

What I geek out about is the fact that all the pencil marks and details were made by Walt. It is his handiwork, his point-of-view, and his passion for exploration & creation.

I hope that you enjoy this geek’s look at a little piece of Walt!!!

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A Different Perspective on Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream

One of the most common questions that I have been asked is “Do you ever get bored of going to the parks all of the time?”, and I can honestly answer that I don’t. I do get in ruts where I visit one park more than others (sorry Animal Kingdom), and I love finding new ways to visit and enjoy my favorite attractions.

Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream at Disney’s Hollywood Studios is one of those attractions that I could explore for hours!!! It is such an amazing look into the history and legacy of Walt Disney.

On one of my visits I decided that I would take some time to view it from a slightly different perspective, and this is what I found!

I hope you enjoy my journey through the exhibits!!!

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The Carolwood Pacific: Fair Weather Route to host a ‘Conversation with a Magic Kingdom Steam Train Specialist’

Nestled inside the The Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, is a true Hidden Gem…The Carolwood Pacific: Fair Weather Route.

Now I am sure that the person who showed me this spot is going to KILL me for sharing, but I can’t help it!!!

This quiet and peaceful room is filled with comfy chairs, game tables, and tons of Steam Train Memorabilia!

This was my favorite Oil Painting!!!
This model of the Lilly Belle was made in celebration of Walt Disney's 100th Birthday, and was absolutely amazing!!!

But by far the most amazing thing inside of this space is two actual freight cars from The Carolwood Pacific!!! (I absolutely apologize for the the quality of these pictures. My enthusiasm is greater than my skill for taking photos!)

What I found to be super cool, is that this lounge will be playing host to a ‘Conversation with a Magic Kingdom® Steam Train Specialist’ September 13th and 27th at 11:30 am.

Learn how Walt Disney’s lifetime love of steam trains led to their becoming an integral part of the Magic Kingdom® in this opportunity to talk one on one with a knowledgeable Steam Train Specialist from the Magic Behind Our Steam Trains Tour. Hear the history of how the Magic Kingdom® Steam Trains came to be the magnificent and massive steam locomotives they are today. We’ll See you in the Carolwood Pacific Room at The Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge. All Aboard!

It never ceases to amaze me what you are able to find when you slow down and go off the beaten path during your visit to Walt Disney World!!!

If you are visiting the Wilderness Lodge, I absolutely suggest taking a moment to walk down to the Villas to visit this room that pays homage to such an important part of Walt Disney World’s history.

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