Just as “Steamboat Willie” was gaining steam at the box office and launching Mickey Mouse to superstardom, Carl Stalling was scoring the first two Mickey Mouse cartoons: “Plane Crazy” and “Gallopin’ Gaucho.” After some correspondence with Walt Disney, Stalling ended up as the studios first musical director. Because it was complicated to synchronize sound with animations, Walt and Stalling had to work closely with one another to get the two disciplines to work together before they could begin production on the drawings. Walt and Stalling would often argue over what should take precedence in the animated film. Stalling wanted the music to be the first thing to considered; Disney wanted the action and gags to take precedence.
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Spotlight Saturday: The Disney Gallery
Back before Disneyland changed Walt and Roy’s apartment above Pirates of the Caribbean into the Dream Suite, it housed one of the most magical places in the kingdom: The Disney Gallery. A trip up the stairs above the entrance to the PotC would allow you to explore the magic of Disney, and if you had enough money, you could take some of that magic home. For better or worse, I rarely had enough money, but that was okay because dreams, wishes, and imagination were free.
Continue reading‘Once Upon a Time’: A Treatment of Jekyll and Hyde
Spoiler alert: The following article contains spoilers for Season 6 Episode 4 for “Once Upon a Time.” If you plan on watching the series, book mark this page and come back to it when you get through that episode. Or read on and discover the spoilers after the trailer.
Continue reading‘Stargirl’ Shines for DisneyPlus
As we let our light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence actually liberates others.
– Marianne Wilson
In the town of Mica, nothing ever happens. The high school doesn’t have any trophies in its case to prove that nothing happens. When Leo Borlock moves to Mica, he wears his deceased father’s tie to elementary school and is promptly beat up. The bullies cut the tie in half, and Leo realizes he was going to have to fit in if he didn’t want any trouble. Flash forward to high school. Stargirl, her real name, shows up for high school in Mica wearing her non-conforming clothes and playing a ukulele. She sings to Leo on his birthday, and her charm starts to win over the school.
At a football game halftime show, Stargirl shows up with her ukulele and sings. The football team is inspired and goes on to win the game with her as its good luck charm. Stargirl exerts a force of change over the entire community. Like the rain in desert waking up the mud frogs, her style and uniqueness allow the other students to wake up and become more than they have been. However, she faces pressure to conform, especially after she helps an injured player for the other team and Mica loses the championship game.
By subverting her natural inclinations, Stargirl becomes an unhappy shell of who she was, even when she appears to be happy-ish. When she learns her lesson and remembers who she is, she reminds Leo of who he is. While not every problem is resolved, “Stargirl” offers a look at who we can become if we choose to set ourselves free. More importantly, it shows how one person can make a difference for better or worse. Let your creativity shine and help others to explore theirs.
This review is part of our Disneycember coverage. Disneycember appears to have been coined by Doug Walker, the Nostalgia Critic, and Channel Awesome. Come back every day during December and read a new Disney article.
If you want to read more about Disney and creativity, check out “Disneyland Is Creativity” and “The Haunted Mansion Is Creativity.” Read more about the Disney Company in “Penguinate! The Disney Company.” Check out other Disney stories at www.penguinate.weebly.com.
‘Poster Art of Disney the Parks’: Informative and Beautiful
When Disneyland was built, it was done so in the style of a movie. The Mickey Mouse in front of the train station at the entrance to the park is the title card. The tunnel creates a dissolve as you enter a new immersive experience – Main Street, U.S.A. But where would you go, what would you do, and what would you see in this movie? Posters helped visitors understand what was offered in the park and what they could expect. “Poster Art of the Disney Parks” (affiliate link) shows the process of making posters with beautiful full color examples of what you would find in the Disney Parks.
Continue readingMickey Mouse Ice Cream Sandwich Deal, Disneyland Comes to Grocery Outlet
In the Salem/Dallas area, Grocery Outlet is consistently less expensive than the other grocery stores. You still want to be on the look out for deals at Safeway, but if in doubt going to the outlet is your best bet for a reduced food bill. While there are a lot of bargains on the floor, there is one thing that Disney fans should look for because Disneyland has come to the Grocery Outlet stores: the iconic (and tasty) Mickey Mouse ice cream sandwich bars.
Continue readingGet Your Free Halloween Surprise! Save Halloween, Save USPS. 31 Days of Halloween
Trick or treating may be out for this Halloween, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get a surprise in the mail. Here, at Penguinate.com, we have come up with a way to get a treat to you and your family if you’re one of the first 25 people in the U.S. to order with the correct coupon code. All you have to do is watch this video, find out the code and use it for a free Halloween comic book!
Continue readingWould You Stay a Night in a Haunted House? 31 Days of Halloween
You remember as a kid how brave everyone was? Standing outside the gate of a home where the witch lived or one that had been abandoned because it was haunted, each child would brag about what he or she would do if they met a ghost or the witch.
Continue readingDisney Paper Parks Online Magic for You to Color
The Disney Parks Blog has been releasing Paper Parks during the quarantine. These templates are drawn by Disney artists. You can download them, print them, color them and then assemble them into your very own Disneyland. (Part 3 is Sleeping Beauty Castle in Disneyland.) For Disney fans, this is an amazing opportunity to build their own parks in real life. (Disney Magic Kingdoms allows them to build one in virtual life.)
Continue readingMickey Mouse Micro-Brick Build
I’ve had a couple of people ask for the directions to building the Mickey Mouse micro-brick figure. I have photographed them and put them in a gallery. I’m in the process of moving, and I’m not able to add them to the video. Hopefully these photos will work just as well. Let me know if you make use of them. Thanks!
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Penguinate! Positive Creativity 