This past weekend I attended the D23 Expo in Anaheim, CA to see what all of the hullabaloo was regarding the event. Turns out, said hullabaloo is well-founded.

D23 is the official fan club of all things Disney, and while the event offered a number of perks and benefits to its members, expo tickets were available to the general public (now at Disney prices!).  All were welcome to enter.

The expo featured panels, sessions and meet and greet opportunities with Disney brass, legends and stars. For instance, in a two hour period I was a few feet away from John Lasseter, Kermit the Frog (the REAL Kermit the Frog), Miss Piggy (the REAL Miss Piggy), Jason Segel, Robert Downey, Jr. (actually, all of the Avengers minus Captain America and the Hulk, yes that means the beefcake from Thor and Scarlett Johansson were also there), Billy Crystal, and the cast and artists behind a number of Disney favorites, be they parks, movies, Marvel, Muppet or Pixar. It was really impressive. Also, churros. Read More »

There’s about to be more magic in Orlando.

Universal Orlando Resort and Warner Bros. have finally revealed the “first-ever details about the incredible scope of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.”  Not the least of which is that the land will open in spring 2010.  That’s soon!
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter will be an addition to Universal’s Islands of Adventure park, which is already AWESOME (it’s all Marvel characters though, which leads me to wonder what talks are underway between Universal and Marvel’s new owner Disney).  The Spider-Man ride alone is worth the price of admission.

And the Dr. Suess stuff.

Harry Potter’s new land is obviously based upon the stories and characters of J.K. Rowling and promises to remain “faithful to the visual landscapes of the films.” Read More »