Disney Studio and Archive Tour

I had the chance last year to attend a movie screening at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, and then to take a tour of the studios and archives this February. Here are a few pictures and a short video I put together at the end. Enjoy!

Walt Disney's first archivist! Thanks Dave for salvaging all the great Disney stuff from years past! In this picture he is holding the first ticket for entrance into Disneyland.

The gold medallion from Pirates.

This globe from Mary Poppins was found by Dave on a shelf in a janitor's closet. It was one of the things that caused him to start thinking about salvaging things from Disney movies.

Stuff from "Bednobs and Broomsticks"

These are all things from Walt or that were in his office or things about his life.

This is the hat the pirate ladies word in Blackbeard.

King Brian's crown from "Darby O'Gill and the Little People"

Me and Mr. Diva with Disney Legend, Kevin Corcoran.

This is Walt's Office -- the three windows on the end of the second floor.
It is now leased out to Shawn Cassidy of "Hardy Boys" and "Da Doo Run Run" fame.

Silly Symphony Swings

Okay, after I rode on the Orange Stinger in Disney's California Adventure, I vowed never to go on it again, but last weekend when we were down at the Disneyland Resort, Mr. Diva and I found ourselves in DCA at the rope drop, so we decided to avoid the running maniacs and head toward the quieter corner of Paradise Pier.


We happened upon the Silly Symphony Swings and Mr. Diva wanted to give it a try.


As you can see it is a swing ride, but they changed the theme from a giant orange, to "The Band Concert" short from 1935. It is supposed to mimic the tornado the band ends up getting swept into, and yet they continue to play the William Tell Overture as the spin through the air.


Band Leader Mickey is proudly ensconced on the top of the swings and leads the concert.


There is a picture of the concert on the sides of the canopy.


Mr. Diva was really looking forward to the ride.


I was a little reticent seeing as I got a little nauseous when I rode the Orange Stinger.


As you can see, Mr. Diva had a fabulous time.


I couldn't get a picture of myself without screaming...I didn't enjoy my ride as much as Mr. Diva. It's now one of his favorite rides in DCA.


In case you haven't seen "The Band Concert" here it is. The ride makes so much more sense if you have seen the short.

Festival Inspired Dining throughout the Park!

"Select from a unique menu of Festival foods created especially for Disney's California Food & Wine Festival and welcome back some of your favorites. Expertly paired wines and beer may also be available for purchase."

This sounded like a terrific thing to try, but honestly, after the delicious tapas tasting, we were so full that we decided to just take a spin around DCA and see what they were offering at the different eateries in the park. We were surprised to find so many things offered at almost every restaurant.

Award Weiners on Hollywood Blvd was offering Mangia Meatballs and two types of beer.


Mangia Meatballs - Marinara simmered meatballs with sauteed peppers and onions and shredded mozzarella in a hoagie roll. $7.99


I don't eat meatballs, mainly because they are made from ground meat and I don't eat anything ground unless I grind the meat myself at home and see what goes into the grinder. But, if you're a meatball eater, this sounds like it would be a tasty sandwich!

At the Taste Pilot's Grill in Condor Flats, they serve some great ribs and criss-cut fries, but they have added a yummy pulled-pork sandwich for the festival.


Southwest Pulled-Pork Sandwich - Slow-cooked pulled pork in a chipotle BBQ sauce with caramelized apples and onions in a toasted cornmeal bun. $9.59

In addition it looks like there are two wines and two beers available for purchase.


This one sounds pretty good. I'm not big on sweet with my savory as in apples with the pork, but I'd be game to try it!

At the Farmer's Market just past Bug's Land, they are offering a Festival Chicken Wrap.


Festival Chicken Wrap - Crispy chicken strips tossed in spicy buffalo wing sauce, wrapped in a spinach tortilla with diced celery and crumbled blue cheese. $8.19 (really? 8.19? You couldn't have just made it like 8.25? This really sent my OCD into overdrive after the 9.59 at the Taste Pilot's Grill.)


Okay I was with them on this until they got to the blue cheese part. UGH! How 'bout some nice California cheddar huh?

On to the Lucky Fortune Cookie. This has moved across the Pacific Wharf area into the smaller walk-up area where the Cocina Cucamonga used to be.

The Lucky Fortune Cookie is offering Thai Rice Spring Rolls.



Thai Rice Spring Rolls - Chewy rice noodles with julienne carrots, green onions, Thai basil and red bell peppers are rolled up in a rice paper wrapper. Served with ginger sauce. $3.99 ($3.99 - I can handle that!)


I'd be willing to give this a try. I'm not normally a big fan of the spring roll, and don't think I would like the sauce, but since it is for dipping I could adjust how much I get so it might be fun to try it, and it wouldn't break the bank. Know what I mean?

On to one of my favorite places to eat in the Pacific Wharf area, the Boudin Bakery Pacific Wharf Cafe. You can always get yummy soup and salads here, or take home a sourdough Mickey.



Wine Country Chicken Salad - A salad of chicken breast, roasted corn, carrots, artichokes, red bell peppers, and celery. Tossed in a creamy cumin mayonnaise. $8.99


This one gets a big no from me, mainly because I hate salad and especially salad dressing. I can only handle a green salad DRY. And if I am invited to some "luncheon" thing with a bunch of women, I always know that it will be a big salad fest and the place is going to stink to high heaven of vinegar and salad dressing. I will walk in and get sick to my stomach just from the smell, so all salads are on the "no go" list for me as well as salad luncheons. But if you are a salad lover, it sounds like it would be a pretty good one. Just don't order it and sit by me okay?

Across the wharf is the Cocina Cucamonga. They serve a variety of Mexican food here.


At the Cocina Cucamonga, they are serving:

Anahiem Chile Relleno - Battered local Anaheim chilis stuffed with dos quesos and served with traditional ranchero sauce and crema fresca. $9.99

Dulche de Leche Cheesecake - creamy dulche de leche drizzled on a graham cracker crusted cheesecake. $4.99

In addition it looks like three beers are available at the Cocina Cucamonga.


I've actually never had a chile relleno, so I don't know if I would like it. I don't tolerate heat well, so it would probably be too hot, but it has some things that I do love: it's battered, fried and filled with cheese! Yum! The cheesecake sounds good too. It's really tough to screw up cheesecake.

Pizza Oom Mow Mow is back in the corner of Paradise Pier by the Jumpin' Jelly Fish and Mulholland Madness (soon to be Goofy's Flight School). Just a warning, Mr. Diva loves to go to Pizza Oom Mow Mow for the atmosphere, but the food is horrible! It's just the disgusting food from Red Rocket's Pizza Port in Disneyland transported over to DCA and dressed up surferish.


Pizza Oom Mow Mow is serving Pasta di Anitpasto - Angel hair pasta with buffalo mozzarella, julienne salami, pepperoni, sundried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, green olives, and red onions. Served chilled and tossed in Apulia Extra Virgin Olive Oil vinagrette. $9.29

In addition two wines and two beers are offered for purchase.

(again with the weird pricing. yeesh! Hey DCA, how 'bout you make the chicken wraps $7.99 and this $9.75 and call it even?)


I would not eat this. First, it is a salad, secondly, it has pepperoni and salami two meat products derived from grinding up some kind of mean and packing it in a casing and then hanging it up for who knows how long, and thirdly, it is served cold. (yucky shivers!)


Two of the nicer restaurants in DCA are found here, across from the Pacific Wharf. The Wine Country Trattoria is listed as offering Festival inspired dining, but it isn't going to open until the last week of the festival due to some renovations, so I couldn't find out what their menu item would be.


We forgot to check Ariel's Grotto to see if they were offering anything special for the Festival, sorry! We like Ariel's Grotto. It has pretty good food and has a decent character meal too. I will check when we go back the last weekend of the Festival for more of the tapas in the Marketplace!