Pixar is famous for inside jokes and this is especially true of the Bug City scene from A Bug's Life. When Flick arrives in the big city in search of warrior bugs, he is literally surrounded by thrown away cartons and containers whose brand names allude to family members of the film's creative team. Most notably, the names of director John Lasseter's five sons, Joey, P.J., Bennett, Sam and Jackson are represented on a soup cup, a soda bottle, a sardine can, a jar lid and a pretzel box respectively. John's wife Nancy has her maiden name Tague displayed on a wine bottle that sits in a corner of the bar.
A Bug's Life is filled with numerous other references, from Pizza Planet to Lost in Space to even the Broadway incarnation of The Lion King. But my particular favorite is the nod to Walt Disney Studios veteran Joe Grant. The Pixar folks salute Grant via the box of Casey Jr. Cookies, manufactured by the J. Grant Bakery. Casey Jr. is the circus train from Dumbo; Joe Grant is credited as one of that film's writers.
I'm going to have to watch A Bug's Life again when I get home and notice all the underlying references! Thanks for that! :)
ReplyDeleteAlso loving the new header - very funky!
Great post! I always wondered who those references were for!
ReplyDeleteP.S. Love the new logo!
I guess with Pixar this is the digital equivalent of writing your names in fresh concrete.
ReplyDeleteNothing like immortalizing your family in the work that is taking you away from them.
I love that the corner of the box says "Now More Sugar". Too cute.
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