I will be in Milan for work from Monday to Wednesday next week. The blog will be updated again on Thursday.

Looking for a rare book

I just realized that there is a book I still do not have in my reference library. The worst side of this is that it is written by one of the Disney historians that I most like and respect: John Culhane.

The book is simply called Walt Disney and was released in 1974 by the Zagreb Film Festival. Would anyone reading this blog own a copy?

Ed Summers was kind enough to send me the beautiful little catalog of the Mickey Mouse cartoons festival organized by The Buffalo Internation Film Festival on April this year. I especially loved the homage to Mickey by Maurice Sendak and I thought you might enjoy it too.

A few items from the estate of the actor Henry Clavin (Sgt. Garcia in Zorro) are being sold at the moment on ebay, including this great drawing.

Thanks to David Lesjak for the information.

This just in from my Serbian friend Sasa Rakezik (also known as Zograf):

[Enclosed is an ad that I found. It was published in Politika daily from Belgrade, on January 25, 1941. It's announcing a "double program" for a movie show. One was obviously Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs, while the other feature is a "story of a life of the Russian emigrants in the US", titled Blood of a Kozak.

The Snow White ad was probably done by Vlasta Belkic, who did these covers for the Mika Mis magazine. As you can see, there was not even a title of a movie. It was probably so popular that just a picture of the characters would tell it all. It is actually like a REBUS, because between the drawing of a Snow White and the Dwarfs there is a Cyrillic letter "i"(which means "and"). The short description says, "The unique creation in the history of film - unlike anything before, it has no competition at all. It was only through enormous efforts that this wanderful presentation of the kingdom of beauty and magic was made true".]

This just in from Jim Korkis:

[In the course of working on an article I ran across an article in LOOK magazine from July 26, 1955. I am attaching a page that has two GREAT photos that have never been reprinted. I love the photo of Walt in a Davy Crockett coonskin cap kissing his six month old grandson Chris also in a Davy Crockett cap.]

This just in:

[By Leo N. Holzer
Friends of the Walt Disney Family Museum

Well, here’s news many of you have been waiting for: Details about the annual membership plans for the Walt Disney Family Museum.

There are three levels for basic membership — Individual, Dual and Family — and a premium “Founding Membership” with additional perks.

All memberships are annual from date the museum opens or your registration date. For example, if you sign up now, your membership would be good through Sept. 30, 2010; but if you make it a Christmas present to yourself, family or another and sign-up on Dec. 18, then the membership would be good through Dec. 18, 2010.

All memberships include admission into the museum with a timed-entry ticket, (best acquired) from the Museum’s Web site ticketing system, www.waltdisney.org once it becomes operational Aug. 1 or in person, as available.

The Web-based ticketing system will offer tickets up to 60 days in advance. During August, tickets may be obtained for any day in October, as available.

It’s possible that there may be very few, if any, tickets available at the door on some given days, especially weekends, until well after the museum’s opening.

What is a timed-entry ticket?

Well, the system has been designed to help avoid overcrowding in the galleries. Ticket-holders will have a 15-minute window for entry, 10-10:14 a.m.; 10:15-10:29, etc.

Additional basic membership benefits include: a quarterly newsletter mailed to a member’s address; a 10 percent discount in the Museum Store; a membership card and additional discounts for educational and public programs.

The price for an Individual Membership is $75; $55 for seniors over 65 and students with valid ID. It allows tickets for one person on any day of operation, as available.

Dual membership, which includes admission for two, is $125 general and $95 for seniors.

The Family Membership is $175 and includes tickets for four, as available, on any day the museum is open.

All basic memberships are fully tax deductible.

Now, let’s talk about the premium FOUNDING MEMBERSHIP plan. It’s $500 per person, of which $425 is tax deductible.

Founding Members get all the basic individual membership benefits along with an additional 5 percent discount in the Museum Store; a total of 20 admissions for guests; an exclusive membership card and pin; an autographed copy of a newly published book; a numbered certificate signed by Diane Disney Miller and Executive Director Richard Benefield; and, invitations to select events, lectures, concerts, receptions and openings.

Those 20 guest admissions may be used in one visit — with coordination with the membership office for any group larger than 8 — or the Founding Member could use six in October, four in December and hold the remaining 10 in reserve for later.

Only Founding Members who join before the end of 2009 will get the signed and autographed certificate, which will be retired.

There’s an additional charge of $25 on all International Memberships.

To receive a membership application, send ane-mail to membership@wdfmuseum.org. For questions or to process an application over the phone, call (415) 345-6810.]

Do not miss today:

- Who was Walt Disney? by Jerry Beck
- Ghostly Gracey: The Merlin of WED by Wade Sampson
- Mickey Mouse & Ginger Rogers by David Lesjak
- Happy Birthday, Phil Harris! by Pete Emslie
- The Julien Michael Jackson auction. It is session five and six that have the Disneyana items from Jackson's collection (thanks to Jim Korkis for this link)

This just in from Jim Korkis:

[One of the great joys about writing about Disney History is that sometimes out of the blue you get a response from someone you never knew about who supples a piece of information that you had never heard before despite all your research. I recently wrote an article about the Disney radio show of the 1930s entitled "Mickey Mouse Theater of the Air" and in the course of the article I talked about Felix Mills who was the musical director for the show and who created a "gadget band" with wild instruments for Donald Duck to direct on some episodes. I heard from Solo Goodspeed, the grandson of Felix Mills.

"Bless your heart for that wonderful article about the Mickey Mouse radio program. Though I was born in 1954, I grew up listening to recordings of the program given to me by my grandfather Gordon "Felix" Mills, whom you know was the orchestra leader and arranger on that and other radio shows. He was a great influence and inspiration to me in my life, and I still have those old tapes in my closet, though no way to play them presently without a r2r recorder. Thank you also for including the link to the seven radio shows, I hadn't heard those in SOOO long. Did you know that the drummer in Donald Duck's Webfoot Sextet was Spike Jones, before he founded the City Slickers? I'm going to forward your article to my mother (Felix's daughter), I'm sure she'll enjoy and appreciate the information you've posted."]

I am happy to say that Walt's People - Volume 8 was finally sent to the publisher yesterday and should be available at some point in August. The manuscript for Volume 9 is well under way.

This just in from David Lesjak:

[Hi Didier.

I am trying to locate any bits of info on Disney artist Hank Porter to add to his biography, which I am currently writing. I am particularly interested in any anecdotes, stories, or recollections that other Disney artists may have expressed about working with Hank. I am also looking for info regarding Hank's work on the Mickey Mouse Magazine, and Walt Disney's Comics and Stories comic books.

I can be reached at: hankporterresearch@yahoo.com

Thanks! David]

This press release just in thanks to Mark Sonntag:

[Boom! Lands Donald, Mickey and the Gang

“Boom! Studios has landed the license for Disney’s standard characters, which for several years found their home with us at Gemstone Publishing. I want to personally congratulate Ross Richie, Andrew Cosby, Mark Waid and their team on picking up these great characters and titles,” said Steve Geppi, President and Chief Executive Officer of Gemstone Publishing. “I think the whole industry has observed their initial successes with their Boom! Kids line with great interest, particularly the immediate sell-through on The Incredibles #1, The Muppet Show #1, and Cars #1. It would be exciting to see Walt Disney’s Comics & Stories and Mickey Mouse and Friends, as well as any subsequent titles, follow in similar form,” Geppi said. “When Gemstone took over the license, the standard characters had not appeared in American comics in four years and I firmly I believe that we paved the way back into the market for them,” he said. “We had some notable successes, both in terms of critical acclaim and sales, particularly with The Life & Times of Scrooge McDuck. While I am of course disappointed that I won’t be the one publishing these great characters anymore, I believe the future for them is still one of untapped potential.” Gemstone’s Disney back stock presently remains available from the company and from Diamond Comic Distributors.]

Do not miss today:

- I have just updated the Disney Books Network
- Making New Donald Duck Adventures: Tamers of Nonhuman Threats! (Part One) by David Gerstein

I had the pleasure of interviewing author and journalist Bob Thomas a few months ago for Walt's People - Volume 10 (which will focus entirely on his interviews with Disney artists and Disney family members). Here is what he had to say about Michael Jackson's meeting with Walt's nurse Hazel George:

[Didier Ghez: I understand that you once took the singer Michael Jackson to meet Hazel George, the Studio nurse. What was that experience like?

Bob Thomas: It was a bit bizarre. Michael was in awe of her, because she had worked with Walt so intimately over the years. I ended up asking all the questions. When we finally finished and I had got all the stories out of her, Hazel said to Michael, “Come back and see me again, and don’t bring him,” – pointing at me – “He talks too much.” Of course if I hadn’t talked as much as I did there would have been no interview.]

This just in from Are Myklebust:

[Do you remember the list of non-Disneys films with some kind of Disney reference/ connection in the film itself, posted on your blog in December 2006, including many additions/ comments?

I saw some old “episodes” of the Hal Roach Studio’s “Our Gang” short film serial on TV yesterday. Then I suddenly discovered another Disney reference in a non-Disney film. In the film “For Pete’s Sake” (1934) you see the gang’s dog attacking (!) a Mickey Mouse doll in a toy store. The doll was one of those made by Charlotte Clark.

(The film was computer colorized, and Mickey Mouse was correctly colorized with his red pants.) Interesting enough, the director of this film, Gus Meins (1893 – 1940), also directed the Laurel and Hardy film “Babes in Toyland” (also from 1934 and produced by Hal Roach), where some Disney “characters” appears. ]

And from Jim Korkis:

[To add to the Doug Fairbanks film discussion: Remember that Fairbanks was married to actress Mary Pickford who LOVED Mickey Mouse and at one time was going to star in the first Disney feature film, a combination of live action (Pickford) and animation of "Alice in Wonderland" before "Snow White". More importantly, here is the story from the 1986 book "Mickey Mouse: His Life and Times" on page 23-24: "When fellow film star Douglas Fairbanks went off on a world tour, he, apparently, showed Mickey movies to the head-hunters of the South Sea Islands" and reportedly said that doing so saved the lives and heads of those in his safari.]