Quick reminder about the great auction by Van Eaton Galleries coming up this weekend. Some real treasures in there.

I have always been interested in the historical events which inspired Disney's musical Newsies. Which is why I had the pleasure of picking up this excellent new book by Ashley Varela, recently released by Theme Park Press. Some of you will be interested to know that it exists.

Now that D23 Expo is over, I am finally allowed to write about the Disney history book of the century, Marc Davis In His Own Words: Imagineering the Disney Theme Parks by Chris Merritt and Pete Docter.



In short: this book is mind-blowing. It is the best Disney history art book I have ever seen. It is 750-pages long, 95% of which are focused on Marc Davis' contributions to WED (now Walt Disney Imagineering). In his research, Chris has left no stone un-turned and has focused, on purpose, on artwork that has never been seen or has rarely been seen before. He also covers all of the abandoned projects that Marc tackled.


Spectacular does not even start to describe this book. This is the definition of a "must have" from my standpoint. How will anyone be able to top what has been achieved here is beyond me.

Run to get this book.

PRE-ORDER AT STUART NG BOOKS

All the copies of the new "Making of Walt Disney's Fun and Fancy Free" monograph that we had available for the D23 Expo sold out!!! We are off to a great start.

More copies will arrive soon and you can pre-order them at this link.

The monograph will also become available on Amazon towards the end of the month.

The new "babies" just arrived, they are beautiful and they are on their way to the D23 Expo.

See you all in a few days on the Ryman Arts / Hyperion Historical Alliance booth!

 D23 EXPO - BOOK LAUNCHES AND AUTOGRAPH SESSIONS

This will be my last post before the D23 Expo. I am really looking forward to seeing many of you there.

Two important publications will be launched at the Expo: The Making of Walt Disney's Fun and Fancy Free monograph by J.B. Kaufman and the fifth volume of They Drew as They Pleased, which focuses on the art and career of Ken Anderson and Mel Shaw!

On the Hyperion Historical Alliance / Ryman Arts booth at the D23 Emporium in Hall A (located on the first floor, not far from Mickey Avenue) we are organizing autograph sessions.

A limited number of The Making of Walt Disney's Fun and Fancy Free monograph will be available for sale on the booth, as well as a limited number of 2019 HHA Annual and a very limited number of the 5th volume of They Drew as They Pleased.

Here is the schedule of the autograph sessions on the booth:

FRIDAY, AUGUST 23

Didier Ghez: 3:00PM to 4:00PM
JB Kaufman: 5:00PM to 6:00PM

SATURDAY, AUGUST 24
     
Todd James Pierce and Didier Ghez: 11:30PM to 12:30PM
JB Kaufman: 4:00PM to 5:00PM
Didier Ghez: 5:00PM to 6:00PM
Mindy Johnson: 6:00PM to 7:00PM

SUNDAY, AUGUST 25
     
Todd James Pierce: 12:00PM to 1:00PM
Mindy Johnson: 2:00PM to 3:00PM
JB Kaufman: 4:00PM to 5:00PM
Didier Ghez: 5:00PM to 6:00PM

Please spread the word.

Please note that only the new Fun and Fancy Free monograph, the 2019 HHA Annual and the 5th volume of They Drew as They Pleased will be sold on the booth. For all other publications that you want the authors to sign, please bring your own books.

I thought you would all enjoy those drawings by Virgil Partch about the early days of his Disney career, courtesy of Richard Shaw, Lucas Seastrom and Jenna Benton.

R.I.P. Richard Williams (1933 - 2019).

D23 EXPO REMINDER - ARCHIVES STAGE

Several Hyperion Historical Alliance members will be giving presentations on the Disney Archives stage during the D23 Expo.

Here is the schedule for just a few of those presentations:

Laurie Algar will talk about her father James Algar on Friday, August 23 from 12:00PM to 1:00PM.

Paula Sigman-Lowery, Mindy Johnson and myself will be presenting the work of the HHA and some of its most exciting discoveries on Saturday, August 24 from 10:00AM to 11:00AM.

JB Kaufman will discuss the making of Fun and Fancy Free on Saturday, August 24 from 1:30PM to 2:30PM.

Jeremy Marx will talk about Ken Anderson's 1957 Haunted House on Saturday, August 24 from 3:00PM to 4:00PM.

Stacia Martin will present about vintage vinyl recordings on Sunday, August 25 from 10:30AM to 11:30AM.

Todd James Pierce and Joe Campana will discuss Disneyland '59 on Sunday, August 25 from 5:30PM to 6:30PM.

PRE-ORDER AVAILABLE AND D23 EXPO REMINDER

If you are not planning to attend D23 Expo, you can now pre-order "The Making of Walt Disney's Fun and Fancy Free" monograph at this link. Stuart Ng Books ship abroad too.

For those of you who will attend the D23 Expo: During D23 Expo, on the Hyperion Historical Alliance / Ryman Arts booth at the D23 Emporium in Hall A we are organizing autograph sessions.

A limited number of The Making of Walt Disney's Fun and Fancy Free monograph will be available for sale, as well as a limited number of 2019 HHA Annual and a very limited number of the 5th volume of They Drew as They Pleased.

Here is the schedule of the autograph sessions on the booth:

FRIDAY, AUGUST 23

Didier Ghez: 3:00PM to 4:00PM
JB Kaufman: 5:00PM to 6:00PM

SATURDAY, AUGUST 24
      
Todd James Pierce and Didier Ghez: 11:30PM to 12:30PM
JB Kaufman: 4:00PM to 5:00PM
Didier Ghez: 5:00PM to 6:00PM
Mindy Johnson: 6:00PM to 7:00PM

SUNDAY, AUGUST 25
      
Todd James Pierce and Didier Ghez: 12:00PM to 1:00PM
Mindy Johnson: 2:00PM to 3:00PM
JB Kaufman: 4:00PM to 5:00PM
Didier Ghez: 5:00PM to 6:00PM

Please spread the word.

Please note that only the new Fun and Fancy Free monograph, the 2019 HHA Annual and the 5th volume of They Drew as They Pleased will be sold on the booth. For all other publications that you want the authors to sign, please bring your own books.

As you probably know by now, I have always been fascinated by Disney's abandoned projects, so I can't wait to read Jim Korkis' new book!

This just in from Are Myklebust:

[On a trip to London two weeks ago I came across this book.

It is one of many books (or booklets) made by BFI (British Film Institute) about classic and important films through the history. 

Not the best book about Snow White, but interesting enough, and with some – at least for me – new information.]

D23 EXPO REMINDERS - PART 1

As the D23 Expo is getting closer, I will be posting a few important reminders, starting with this one.

As you know, a few months ago an official non-profit association dedicated to the preservation of Disney History, the Hyperion Historical Alliance (HHA), released its first publication, the 2019 Hyperion Historical Alliance Annual. I serve as president of the HHA.

I am glad to announce that the HHA is now ready to launch its hard-cover monograph series.

The first volume in the series will be released in exclusivity at D23 Expo (it will become available on Amazon.com and at StuartNgBooks.com a month later). This first monograph is a hard-cover, 148-page-long, full-color, heavily-illustrated publication written by JB Kaufman about The Making of Walt Disney's Fun and Fancy Free and released with the authorization of The Walt Disney Company. You are seeing its cover for the very first time!

Most of the illustrations that this monograph contains have never been seen before in book form. I have a feeling that most of you will be blown away by it. And at $30, we have kept the cost very low (this is the beauty of being a non-profit).

It took close to ten years to make this monograph project a reality. This is really a major achievement.

The HHA will have a booth at D23 Expo, shared with Ryman Arts. The first monograph as well as the 2019 Annual will be available for all of you to purchase on the booth. Only a few limited copies will be available at the Expo.

There is a lot more to share regarding HHA's presence at the Expo, by the way: our members will give talks on the Disney Archives stage, we are planning some autograph sessions at the booth, etc.

I will mention all of this in upcoming announcements.

In the meantime, just remember: The booth is the Hyperion Historical Alliance / Ryman Arts booth at the D23 Emporium in Hall A and if you want to support the HHA and its efforts or keep updated about future publications, check out HHAPress.org. More soon. 

Today marks the release of my new book, They Drew as They Pleased - The Hidden Art of Disney's Early Renaissance. Check out Michael Barrier's review at this link.

Upcoming auction just announced by Van Easton Galleries.

[NOTE: The schedule for the autograph sessions has been updated.]

Only 4 days to go until the release of They Drew as They Pleased - The Hidden Art of Disney's Early Renaissance, which is available at a 30% discount on Amazon!

As a reminder: During D23 Expo, on the Hyperion Historical Alliance / Ryman Arts booth at the D23 Emporium in Hall A we are organizing autograph sessions.

A limited number of The Making of Walt Disney's Fun and Fancy Free monograph will be available for sale, as well as a limited number of 2019 HHA Annual and a very limited number of the 5th volume of They Drew as They Pleased.

Here is the schedule of the autograph sessions on the booth:

FRIDAY, AUGUST 23

Didier Ghez: 3:00PM to 4:00PM
JB Kaufman: 5:00PM to 6:00PM

SATURDAY, AUGUST 24
      
Todd James Pierce and Didier Ghez: 11:30PM to 12:30PM
JB Kaufman: 4:00PM to 5:00PM
Didier Ghez: 5:00PM to 6:00PM
Mindy Johnson: 6:00PM to 7:00PM

SUNDAY, AUGUST 25
      
Todd James Pierce and Didier Ghez: 12:00PM to 1:00PM
Mindy Johnson: 2:00PM to 3:00PM
JB Kaufman: 4:00PM to 5:00PM
Didier Ghez: 5:00PM to 6:00PM

Please spread the word.

Please note that only the new Fun and Fancy Free monograph, the 2019 HHA Annual and the 5th volume of They Drew as They Pleased will be sold on the booth. For all other publications that you want the authors to sign, please bring your own books.

Among the advance copies that I received a few days ago are two books about Disney history aimed at younger readers.

The first one, Pencils, Pens & Brushes: A Great Girls' Guide to Disney Animation by my good friend Mindy Johnson, is a way for her to introduce teens to the groundbreaking research she conducted for her masterpiece, Ink and Paint - The Women of Disney Animation. This new book achieves this beautifully... and I do mean beautifully, since, in addition to Mindy's text, it is illustrated by one of my favorite Disney concept artists: Lorelay Bove.

The second volume, Mary Blair's Unique Flair, is also a feast for the eyes, thanks to the work of Brittney Lee.

Those two books are real winners and excellent gifts for yourself or for kids you believe have the potential to become future Disney historians.