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The D23 Expo is less than three weeks away now, and all of a sudden I'm being inundated with information about what will be offered at the Expo. Will it be like Comic-Con, loaded with lots of special exhibits, exclusive merchandise, stars to meet, and lines … long, long lines?

I have a feeling, yeah. About the lines, that is (well, and you know there is going to lots of stuff to buy, don't you?). If there is anything special I want to see, I'm preparing to get there early and then wait forever. Now … I could be wrong about this, of course, since this is the first ever D23 Expo and we've yet to experience it, but I don't think I'm wrong. So just to be safe, I repeat … I'm planning on being prepared, getting there early (ugh!), and arriving armed with lots of patience.

And parking for the Expo? I don't even want to think about that. I mean, do I park in the Disneyland structure and trek all the way over to the Anaheim Convention center (because you know, if I'm that close to Disneyland, I'm going to go to Disneyland), or do I just park at the convention center and forget Disneyland? Also, what about those folks who have to work those first two weekdays, with the 9 to 5 event schedule they have put together for it?

Ahhh, too much to think about that needs thinking about! But maybe before immersing ourselves with so much Disney that week we can immerse ourselves in another unique entertainment experience in the days leading up to the Expo; The Cinerama Film Festival at the ArcLight Hollywood's Cinerama Dome, presented in the original three-strip Cinerama projection process. From the ArcLight website:

THIS IS CINERAMA - Tue, 9/8 12 pm : Wed, 9/9 7:30 pm : Thur, 9/10 12 pm
Highlights include riding the Rockaway Playland Roller Coaster, and visiting Cypress Gardens, Florida, for trick water skiing and boating scenes. The last half of Act II- "America the Beautiful"- is viewed from the nose of a low flying B-25 airplane.

DOUBLE FEATURE: THE GOLDEN HEAD / HOLIDAY IN SPAIN - Tue, 9/8 8 pm
These are the only known prints of these films and are significantly faded with the primary remaining color being magenta.

HOW THE WEST WAS WON - Tue, 9/8 3:30 pm : Wed, 9/9 1:30 pm : Thur, 9/10 3:30 pm, 8 pm
The fifty years of American westward expansion between the 1830s and 1880s are viewed through the experiences of the Prescott and Rawlings families, as they migrate by the Erie Canal, continue over the prairies from St. Louis during the California gold rush, suffer through the Civil War, and finally help build the railroads on the plains and bring law and justice to the frontier. Along the way they meet mountain men, journey by wagon train, deal with Native Americans, and face outlaws in the southwest. An all-star cast featuring Carroll Baker, Lee J. Cobb, Henry Fonda, Carolyn Jones, Stanley Livingston, Karl Malden, Gregory Peck, George Peppard, Robert Preston, Debbie Reynolds, James Stewart, Russ Tamblyn, Eli Wallach, John Wayne and Richard Widmark (with Spencer Tracy narrating) was directed by John Ford, Henry Hathaway, and George Marshall. Fully restored sound and picture.


This still from the "smileboxed" How the West was Won Blu-Ray gives you an idea of what to expect

There are only three theaters in the world left now (as I understand it) where you can see these films as they were meant to be presented, and the Dome is one of them. Of the four features screening that week How the West was Won is overall the most entertaining and dazzling, whereas the others are probably more of historical interest for film buffs. Past presentations have quickly sold out, so order tickets early via the ArcLight site. Learn more about the Cinerama process at this unique website.

Back to the Expo... Of all the D23 info coming my way, I think I'm most interested in the Live Auction scheduled to be held on September 12th at 6:30 PM. I doubt I will be spending any money (although one never knows, does one?) but … if the auction is anything like the auction held at 2001's Disneyana Convention, it promises to be very entertaining.

That 2001 auction offered a lot of interesting choices; pre-production paintings (the pre-production painting for the Disneyland LP Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of the Haunted Mansion originally released in May 1964 sold for $3000.00), Disney Store window displays (an elaborate Sorcerer's Apprentice window display from the South Coast Plaza Disney Store sold for $8,000.00), a 24-inch 24kt gold statuette of Mickey Mouse (never made its reserve of $700,000.00 and thus, did not sell), 4 used Autopia tires (sold to a Goodyear dealership for $1,200.00), one of the Jolly Trolleys from Mickey's Toontown (sold for $11,000.00), a 5-foot tall Steiff Mickey Mouse (sold for $11,000.00), a personal tour with Dave Smith of Walt's office that used to sit in the lobby of The Walt Disney Story Featuring Great Moments With Mr. Lincoln (sold for $1,800.00), a check signed by Walt Disney framed with a photo of Walt (sold for $5,500.00), among many other things.

But most notable that night was the auction for what was billed as The Matterhorn Experience. Two people engaged in a heated contest bidding against one another until one caved and one emerged victorious and $13,000 poorer. For that $13,000 the woman who won the experience got to tour the inside of the Matterhorn, got to see Harold, the Abominable Snowman up close and personal, and was presented with a photo album of the whole experience, photographed by Disneyland's chief photographer. Was that worth $13,000? Only the winning bidder can answer, but dang, it was real exciting to watch that auction and I'm hoping something like that takes place again. Although in this tough economy, one never knows, does one?

The D23 auction is offering some real interesting items and loads of "experiences" that you just never get the chance to, well … experience, so there is some promise of an exciting auction. Among the lots up for auction are: another Walt Disney-signed and framed check, an early-hours horticultural tour of Disneyland, a tour of the backstage Circle D Ranch, the chance to see the Christmas tree lighting and enjoy a dinner at the Walt Disney Studios, spending some time with retired Imagineer (and Disney Legend) Alice Davis and a tour of the Resort Costuming Department, a tour of the Walt Disney Studios and Archives with Chief Archivist Dave Smith … and on, and on. It's all way too much to list here. Read all the details of D23 Live Auction items at this link.

Oh, and one last word on the auction, should you find your purse-strings loosening and your pulse quickening over the items, you must purchase the Auctioneers Package (cost $40.00) in order to place a bid. The $40.00 tickets go on sale August 5th at 2PM Eastern time. Details available at the above link.

Before we move on from The D23 Expo, one more word, there's going to be a ton of stuff … Lots of ABC stars are scheduled to appear … although Kelsey Grammer and Patricia Heaton don't make my heart pound faster, the name Joseph Fiennes is, I admit, rather enticing. And of course, Disney Consumer Products will be there in full force with a ton of goodies tempting you to open your wallet … so, do yourself a favor, take a minute and check out the schedule at the D23 website, and start planning your D23 Expo experience.

Oh, and yeah … did I say get there early and bring your patience? Yes, make sure you include that in your D23 plans.

Ok … let's move on up north to this week's Walt Disney Family Museum preview.

Today we're going to talk about Gallery Six, covering the period from the late 1930s to the mid-1940s, a time of war, strikes, and upheaval.

This was a trying time for Walt Disney and the Disney Studio. Walt's parents both died and there was a studio strike that threatened the company's capability of continued success. But the company managed to continue on, releasing Dumbo in 1941, making training films for the military, making Public Service shorts, and allowing the US military to use part of the Disney Studio as a base.

The thing that interests me most from this period? Walt, who was a mere 39-years old at the time, took his wife Lilly, and a group of 16 artists and filmmakers on a ten-week trip to South America at the request of the American government as a part of the "Good Neighbor Policy."

When I was looking at the photos of the artwork from this gallery, there was a sweet little Mary Blair piece. "What the heck has that got to do with this time period," I muttered, "Ahhh, the trip to South America." A young Mary Blair was part of El Grupo, as the group came to be known. Mary was sketching her way through South America with Walt and the gang.

If you're planning a trip up to San Francisco to see the museum, The Walt Disney Family Museum's website is up so you can take a look for all the pertinent information including ticketing info, prices, how to get there, etc. and -- you can now order your tickets for a visit: http://www.waltdisney.org You can also follow the Walt Disney Family Museum on Facebook and Twitter for the latest scoop, and of course discuss it all to your heart's content at MiceChat's forum for it.

Which brings me to one last point and then I will leave you to your Expo assault planning …

Debuting the same week is a new documentary film from Ted Thomas (son of famed Disney animator Frank Thomas) entitled Walt & El Grupo. The film tells the tale of that South American trip and after viewing the trailer I can't wait to see it. It looks fascinating.

The film will be showing at a Downtown Disney AMC theatre so if you're coming to the D23 Expo, take a break and go see Walt & El Grupo. For full list of opening dates, theatres, and everything El Grupo, visit: www.waltandelgrupo.com

And that should do it for this week's...

If you'd like to submit something to be considered for the column, please send it to both Sue and Al at the following email addresses: [email protected] and [email protected] with the words "Pressing Matters" in the subject line. Due to our already extensive email loads we won't be able to acknowledge each submission, but those under consideration may get a note from us asking for more details. Representatives from the items chosen are invited to answer questions from readers at the forum linked at the end of each column.

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© 2009 Sue Kruse

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