Cars 2 - Retro!

This newly unveiled movie poster for Cars 2 is circulating throughout the online Disney world, but I couldn't resist showcasing here.  Pixar loves retro and that is clearly evident in this throwback to James Bond-style 1960s era designs.  Great stuff!

EPCOT Center Retro

Imagineering Disney tipped us off to these very cool posters that very much appealed to our early EPCOT Center passions and sensibilities.  Created by Chicago-based artist and graphic designer Stephen Christ, they combine early 1980s EPCOT font, icons and graphics styles with designs reminiscent of earlier World's Fair promotional pieces.  Prints of all eleven posters can be purchased at Stephen's ImageKind Gallery.  Great stuff!

Come On In and Enjoy

I really got a kick out of this sign that was located in Tomorrowland promoting "new-fangled Air-Cooling" within the the Carousel of Progress. The attraction remains in Walt Disney World primarily due to its nostalgia qualities and historical significance, and the sign most certainly plays homage to those dynamics. It is a fun and clever design.

Desktop Tea Time

Tea time everyone!

Nick Nitsch brings us another of his fun and expertly designed desktops to conclude our celebration this week of Disney's Animal Kingdom's 10th Anniversary. Embedded in the design elements of Expedition Everest are references to the Royal Anandapur Tea Company, and Nick has extended that concept into this desktop.

(800 x 600)

(640 x 480)

Space Mountain by Greg Maletic

A year ago we happily featured the amazing faux attraction posters created by artist and graphic designer Greg Maletic that paid tribute to both 1970s era Disney World attractions and the famous Magic Kingdom entryway posters that promoted them. Greg has done it again with a stunning design that pays tribute to Space Mountain and its early NASA-esque theming.

Check out Greg's blog for details on how you can download and print a copy of the poster. Greg's amazing talent is exceeded only by his generosity--this and his earlier posters are available free of charge. Thanks, Greg.

The Animal Kingdom Anniversary Desktop

Honoring ten years of Disney's Animal Kingdom, Nick Nitsch brings us another in his series of stunning Disney desktops. Celebrate a decade of exploration and a future of discovery with this beautiful design. Thanks, Nick!

(800 x 600)

(640 x 480)

The Club 33 Desktop

Our newest resident desktop designer Nick Nitsch returns with an exclusive design inspired by a very exclusive place. I was very fortunate to have dined at Club 33 on my recent trip to Disneyland; an altogether amazing and exciting time. Nick's elegant desktop vision is a happy reminder of that wonderful experience.

(800 x 600)

(640 x 480)

Return to Sky Crown

Even though we are well into spring, we haven't quite given up the ghosts of winter as Nick Nitsch serves us up another terrific desktop inspired by Disney's unrealized Mineral King ski resort. Nick revisits the Sky Crown designs created by an uncredited 1960s-era studio artist and takes us back to a bright and shiny "what might have been." Much thanks again to Nick for all his efforts.

(800 x 600)

(640 x 480)

The Sky Crown Desktop

Prompted by our virtual souvenir of the Sky Crown license plate, 2719 Hyperion reader Nick Nitsch generously provided his own interpretation of early 1960s logo drafts of the Mineral King project. Inspired by those designs, Nick created this retro-themed desktop that pays homage to the ski resort that never came to be. Thanks, Nick!

(640x480)

(800x600)

We Tow the Stars!

It's been awhile since we featured a desktop design, so here's a bit of fun from Disney-MGM Studios at Walt Disney World.

Posts will be light over the weekend as we head to MagicMeets this Saturday in Harrisburg, PA. I very much look forward to meeting any 2719 readers who will be in attendance. I'll likely be garbed in 2719 Hyperion regalia so please say hi if you see me.

Shake a Tail With the Swamp Boys

Here's another great element from the exterior queue area of Splash Mountain at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom.

The Swamp Boys were in fact one of the featured acts in America Sings, an attraction that debuted in Disneyland in 1974. It combined the humorous show dynamic of the Country Bears with the mechanics of the Carousel of Progress building to pay homage to the history of American popular music. The Swamp Boys performed a real down home version of Polly Wolly Doodle. In fact, when the show closed in 1988, many of its animatronic characters were transplanted into the Disneyland version of Splash Mountain.

Lights, Camera . . . Muppets!

Admit it, you can never really get too tired of all the cool Muppet*Vision details. These very funny production clapboards are scattered throughout the pre-show area of the Disney-MGM Studios version of the show. As Dr. Seuss once said, "From here to there and there to here, funny things are everywhere." Wise words in context to to the Muppet*Vision 3D attraction.

Now Appearing at the Top of the Tower

Another very cool set dressing from Disney-MGM Studios. Anthony Fremont and His Orchestra were the featured performers at the Tip Top Club on that fateful night at the Hollywood Tower Hotel.

Anthony Fremont is the name of the character portrayed by Billy Mumy in The Twilight Zone episode "It's a Good Life" that originally aired on November 3, 1961.

Tomorrowland Wall Art - Part 2

As promised, here is the second Stitch-themed mural from the Merchants of Venus in Walt Disney World's Tomorrowland. The purple experiment looking down from the TTA Station is sporting a set of Mickey Ears, while the small yellow one in the plaza is clutching tightly to its own blue Mickey balloon. Fun stuff.

Tomorrowland Wall Art - Part 1

For all the Stitch fans out there (and I know there are at least a few), here is the first of two very fun murals that adorn the walls at the Merchants of Venus in Walt Disney World's Tomorrowland. Check back tomorrow for Part 2.

Goofy's Candy Co.

Move over Willy Wonka.

One of the most creatively dynamic concepts realized in recent years at Walt Disney World in my opinion is in fact, not a theme park attraction. The Goofy's Candy Co. brand, and its signature store in Downtown Disney are amazing examples of the combined talents of both Walt Disney Imagineering and the Disney Design Group.

Goofy's line of confectionery products can be found all over the Walt Disney World property, but the retail location of the same name is an adventure into all forms of sugar intoxication. While my two kids spent extended moments of indecision deciding on flavors of Goofy Glaciers (among the choices: Goofy's Glacier Green, Gawrshly Berry Blue, and Orange You Happy Orange), I busied myself taking pictures of the establishment's many colorful design elements.


From the fun product brands that adorn the walls--To the various chalkboards that feature formulas and instructions--

To perhaps my favorite design, the Periodic Table of Elements of which Goofonium takes center stage.
Goofy is certainly represented throughout, but most impressively near the main entrance where he takes on a very iced-over demeanor as he hawks the aforementioned Glacier concoctions.

Goofy's Candy Co. has proven to be successful and very popular since its debut in 2005. It has been featured in the Boo to You Parade at Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, and its products have a presence in nearly every merchandise location on property.

Willy, who?

Wanted: Brer Fox and Brer Bear

These very cool design elements featuring Brer Fox and Brer Bear can be found in the exterior queue area of Splash Mountain that winds through a whimsical landscape in the shadow of the Frontierland Train Station. The irony of these characters' prominence in the Magic Kingdom while Song of the South continues to be locked away in the mythical Disney vault continues to be a source of frustration to countless Disney fans. In that sense, these Wanted posters almost take on meaning beyond their simple association with this very popular attraction.

Robot Restrooms and Interplanetary Mail

As many readers here already know, the retro-deco designs of Tomorrowland are among my very favorite details in Walt Disney World. And as you can see here, those details extend all the way down to the restroom level.

A simple mailbox is not excluded either. And guests are clearly cautioned--NO INTERPLANETARY DELIVERIES.

The Wonderful Posters That Never Were

Simply beautiful designs from Walt Disney World's first decade.

Well, let me rephrase that. Simply beautiful designs inspired by Walt Disney World's first decade.

The fact that many folks, upon viewing these wonderful attraction posters for the first time and assume they are authentic objects of bygone days, is testament to the talent and skills of artist and graphic designer Greg Maletic. Greg created the posters as a means of teaching himself how to use Adobe Illustrator, skills he needed for another project he was working on. In a true "dreams come true" bit of synergy, Greg was contacted by a Disney executive who had discovered the posters online, and was commissioned to do actual design work for the House of Mouse!

Greg has generously allowed me to reprint the posters here, and has graciously made them available to anyone who wishes to make printed copies of their own. Check out Greg's blog for all the details. And while there, check out Greg's archive of material he has written for LaughingPlace.com. These well written, insightful articles are well worth your time and interest.

Festival de los Mariachis

While the Three Caballeros are currently being welcomed into Epcot via the new Gran Fiesta Tour attraction at Mexico's World Showcase pavilion, we are reminded of another recent theme park appearance by Donald, Jose and Panchito.

One of the lobby posters at Mickey's PhilharMagic in the Magic Kingdom promotes the Festival de los Mariachis--Una Fiesta Festival. Our three happy chappies are clearly the stars of that particular concert that never was.