Category: Outside the Land

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Frankenweenie (1984)

I know I am behind the times but I only just watched the original live-action black and white Tim Burton production of Frankenweenie from 1984 and I absolutely LOVED it!  It’s available on your “Nightmare Before Christmas” DVD, if you own it.

If not, check it out below!  It is seriously one of his best films and really shows his love of monster movies of the 30s and 40s as well as his potential as a blossoming director.  Unfortunately, he was fired from Disney soon after this film in an almost Ed-Wood-ian fashion for wasting the studio’s time and resources.  For a long time, it had only been screened in the UK before “The Neverending Story” as both films starred Barret Oliver.  It was later released in a re-edited and censored form to try to recoup some money most likely.  Then, after being shelved for a long time and Tim Burton’s enormous success, it was released in its original uncensored form with the “Nightmare…” DVD.

After seeing the extended preview now playing at DCA, I can say that the new film seems to stay pretty true to the original down to the tiniest details!  So, if you have not seen this original masterpiece and want to be surprised by the 2012 feature-length remake, I would suggest steering clear.  I cannot confirm that the ending is in any way similar in the 2012 version but I want to give fair warning that this version has an ending that I was very happy with and would be excited to see in a stop-motion remake.

And now, sit back, grab some cocoa and enjoy Frankenweenie (1984):

What did you think of the film?!  Leave your impressions below or, obviously, in the YouTube comments page!  I would have to say that this film has shot up into my top 5 of Burton’s films.

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If the Haunted Mansion Were Being Built Today…

I was moving some files at work last week and one of the moves was from this timelapse camera we have set up at a construction site.  The timelapse camera shoots as many pictures as can fit on the card but splits them into folders with 999 files each so as to not have duplicate file names, etc.  I thought it would be funny to see the Mac file transfer window moving 999 files into a folder called “Haunted Mansion.”

I had a pretty bad day today and was cleaning up my desktop and came across this and it made me laugh a week later after I had forgotten about it completely.  Thought I would share.

"There's room for 1,000. Any volunteers?"

What do you do when bored or stressed at work to remind you of happier times or Disneyland?

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Pre-Disneyland Amusement Parks: Coney Island

Here comes the beginning for a series of great videos I came across while researching stock footage at work. I will post some of the best video footage of these pre-Disneyland theme parks here for your enjoyment. See what inspired some of our favorite Disney attractions!

First up: Coney Island

Coney Island was probably the most well-known amusement park in the world in the first half of the 20th century. Here’s a look at what came before the magic kingdom:

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A Halloween Yard Display with a Disney Influence

I love Halloween so much and one of my favorite things to do is drive around and find different houses with Halloween decorations.  Well, while driving through Hollywood a couple of weeks ago, I found a house, which was decorated with a heavy Disneyland influence.

The left side of the yard had a great replica of the Skeletal helmsman scene from Pirates of the Caribbean.

Forever the Captain of his Ship

 

Great detail on the Skeleton.

 

The opposite side of the yard had a basic cemetery scene, but one tombstone looked familiar…

A Mansion Tombstone?

 

Right away, I knew that this tombstone was sculpted to resemble the tombstones found in the Haunted Mansion.  Take a look below at the tombstone’s influence found in Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion:

Photo by Daveland

 

People that put care and energy into the Halloween decorations displayed in their yards really make Halloween what it is.  It is such a wonderful thing to find a great haunted house, especially with scenes from different Disney attractions.  I will keep a whether eye open for more Disney Halloween Houses in the future.

Have a Happy Halloween Everyone!

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It Really is a Small World

Disneyland shows up in my daily life all the time.  While driving through Hollywood, I passed by Amoeba Music and noticed that they have a new display in the window.

Display Window at Amoeba Records

 

Look at that sun!  Does it look familiar?

One Golden Sun

 

Obviously the designer of this window display was influenced by Disneyland’s It’s a Small World.  The sun looks very similar to the giant clock on the attraction’s facade.  I love finding things like this.  It makes the real world seem a little more magical.

The Influence
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Floor Fridays #13

Hey all!

Here’s another in our ongoing series, but first, where was last week’s photo taken?

Disney California Adventure: Paradise Pier - Ariel's Undersea Adventure

And a hearty congratulations to Sarah — She has won our very first contest!  Thank you all to those that entered.  We will be doing more contests in the future and they won’t be about guess where a floor is.  Thanks for playing, Sarah and we look forward to seeing you at the world-famous Magic Castle soon!

And now for this week’s floor.  Hint:  We have posted several floors from this location but as it’s the 13th Floor Friday, we thought we would throw it in again!

Where Am I?

Good Luck!

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Floor Fridays #12

Hey all!

Here’s another in our ongoing series, but first, where was last week’s photo taken?

Disney California Adventure: Hollywood Backlot - Twilight Zone® Tower of Terror lobby entrance!

And this concludes our very first contest entry period!  Thank you all to those that entered.  We will be doing a drawing this week and the winner will be announced next week on Floor Fridays #13.  Thanks for playing, and now for this week’s floor:

Where Am I?

Good Luck!

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Floor Fridays #11

Hey all!

Here’s another in our ongoing series, but first, where was last week’s photo taken?

Disneyland: Main Street U.S.A.: Firehouse Floor

And now for this week’s floor AND CONTEST CONTINUATION!:

Where Am I?

Since last week’s floor seemed too difficult, there were no winners — but that doesn’t mean there are any losers either and we still have passes to give away.  To make this more fun, we have made this week’s floor incredibly simple so as to give everyone a chance to enter the drawing and win 2 passes to the world famous Magic Castle in Hollywood!

You have until midnight next Friday morning (August 26, 2011) to submit your answers in the comments below.  We will tally all of the correct answers and you will be entered into a drawing and the winner will be announce the following week (September 2, 2011).

Full details here.  Good luck!

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Floor Fridays #10

Hey all!

Here’s another (and the 10th) in our ongoing series, but first, where was last week’s photo taken?

Disney California Adventure: "Ariel's Undersea Adventures" Queue

And now for this week’s floor AND CONTEST!:

Where Am I?

You have until midnight next Friday morning (August 19, 2011) to submit your answers in the comments below.  We will tally all of the correct answers and you will be entered into a drawing and the winner will be announce the following week.

Full details here.  Good luck!

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Our First Contest!

Okay everyone! We are proud to announce that we have our first contest FAST approaching! Next Friday, we will, as always, have a ‘Floor Friday’ but it will be our 10th in that series. We want to make it fun for everyone by having a contest but because there is a prize involved, it will be more difficult than the previous entries. CLICK HERE to study up on the previous entries!

How to enter? Just play the game! At midnight on Friday morning (August 12, 2011), we will post the floor for that week and you will have ONE WEEK to answer in the comment section below the post. PLEASE DO NOT POST YOUR ANSWERS TO OUR FACEBOOK OR TWITTER PAGES. Your entry will only be valid if included in the comments of the 10th ‘Floor Fridays’ post. At midnight on the following Friday (August 19, 2011), the contest will end and we will take all of the correct answers and enter those names into a drawing. Robert and I will then conduct a drawing the following week and the winner will be announced with the 12th edition of the ‘Floor Friday’ series on August 26, 2011. We will also send the winner an email with instructions on how to claim the prize.

The prize, you might ask? I happen to be a member of the Magic Castle in Hollywood. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s like Club 33 — with magic! Super exclusive, members-only, and a strict dress code, the Magic Castle was founded in 1963 by Milt Larsen (a huge Walt Disney fan and personal friend and collaborator with the Sherman brothers) and now hosts the world’s best and brightest magicians performing for each other as well as members and their guests. The winner will have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take a party of 2 (him or her-self and a guest) to the castle on any evening of their choosing!

The recommendation is to go on a week night as there are less crowds, much like Disneyland, and you have a higher chance of seeing all of the performers of the night (as many as 10) in close and intimate settings. THE MAGIC CASTLE IS A 21+ CLUB SO PLEASE KEEP THAT IN MIND WHEN ENTERING AND CHOOSING A GUEST.

To find out more about the Magic Castle, click here! Again, there is a strict cocktail attire dress code so only enter if you own such attire or plan on purchasing or renting said attire. Men are required to wear jackets and ties and women are required to wear evening cocktail dresses or pant suits with a matching blazer. Formal shoes, as well.

This is very exciting for us here at ‘Remain Seated, Please’ and we look forward to seeing all of the entries as they come in and meeting up with the winner and his or her guest. If you have any questions, feel free to comment below and we will read and answer any and all of your questions as best we can. Let’s make this fun and exciting for everyone!

Thanks and good luck!

*food and drinks will not be included.