Some Tiki Room Enchantment at D23.com

Fly on over to D23.com for a just-posted article written by me about Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room, celebrating five decades of tasty tiki magic. Go here to read "The Tiki Room Celebrates 50 Years" by Jim Fanning at D23.com. (This article is a Members Only feature but now you can get a FREE D23 Membership at the website--be sure and sing up and you can visit all the Members Only fun at D23.com.) And to give Tulgey Wood a touch of D23 magic, here's a repro of the original 1963 Enchanted Tiki Room, given out to "you lucky people you" (Annual Passholders, anyhow) at Disneyland Park on June 23, 2013, the actual anniversary date.

Celebrating The Super Moon

Tonight's super-full, super-bright Super Moon puts me in the mind of Walt Disney's "Man in Space" episodes from his Disneyland TV series. The second episode of these "science factual" shows, "Man and the Moon," was first broadcast on December 28, 1955, but the first Tomorrowland episode, "Man in Space," from March 9, 1955, also dealt with a mission to the moon. The cover from the Disney comic book below gives a glimpse of one of the Disney-designed rockets (and the moon)  In the meantime, savor the sight of the Super Moon while you can—the moon won't be this close to Earth again until August 2014.

Mirth and Magic From Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room

Today, June 23, marks the 50th anniversary of the premiere of Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room at Disneyland Park in 1963. To celebrate here's a Whitman Publishing (aka Western Publishing Company) Disneyland Sticker Fun book cover from 1964 that puts one of those enchanting tiki birds front and center. (Watch for a D23.com post by me all about this Disneyland favorite.... coming soon!)

Summer Fun

To celebrate the first day of summer, here's the fun-filled cover of Tom and Jerry's Summer Fun (issue 2, 1955) featuring T&J and friends (then owned by MGM, now owned by Warner Bros.). To follow up, there's also the back cover of this sunny-time, fun-time giant funny book.

Oz Old And New

Disney's popular new Oz film, Oz The Great and Powerful, is being released to the home entertainment market on Blu-ray today. To celebrate the new Oz here is something old—from the Off To See the Wizard TV series from 1967-1968, inspired in turn by the 1939 MGM classic, The Wizard of Oz. The new film certainly emphasizes the Wizard's roots as a carnival magician, and I like the way the magic-kit premium described in this magazine ad brings things back to magic tricks. Be sure and click on the image to see the whole two-page spread—and stay tuned to Tulgey Wood for more on this mostly forgotten television program in the future.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Duck

Today is the official birthday of that wacky quack-up, Donald Duck. To celebrate, here's part of a profile of Donald I wrote for the Disney Standard Character Guidebook, which I had the honor of writing. It's used by Disney Consumer Products and Disney Licensees (Hallmark, Mattel, etc.) in creating art and stories and toys and just about anything involving Mickey and his pals—Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, let's not forget the all-too-often-forgetten Daisy, and of course the birthday boy himself—the most well-known and beloved collection of characters in the world.

Wishing Upon Winnie the Pooh's Star

Did you know that Winnie the Pooh has a star on Hollywood Boulevard? Many of this blog's readers undoubtedly are aware of this fun fact (though OMD is not). On April 11, 2006, Winnie the Pooh became the fourth animated character created by Walt Disney (in Pooh's case, by way of A.A. Milne) to be honored with a star on the Walk of Fame along Hollywood Boulevard. As wonderful as it would have been in any case, the photo below (shot by award-winning photographer Nick Ut of AP) is simply made by the little girl (identifed as two-year-old Calista Bess)

who is seen seemingly approaching Pooh and his friends for a hug (or an autograph). Speaking of Hollywood stars, don't miss my account of Snow White receiving her star at D23.com, as well as this Tulgey Wood post all about Walt Disney's own Hollywood Boulevard star(s). UPDATE: OMD amended their fun Snow White post to include Winnie the Pooh in their mention of Disney characters who have been honored with stars on Hollywood Boulevard.

More Art From The Treasure Chest Of Fun And Fact For Easter

For Easter Sunday, here's another cover from the little-known comic book entitled Treasure Chest of Fun and Fact. This cover, from the March 26, 1953 (volume 8, number 15) issue, portrays a nicely stylized artistic interpretation of the women (first witnesses to the Resurrection) being greeted by an angel at the empty tomb. Happy Easter, everyone!

More From The Treasure Chest Of Art

For Good Friday, here's another cover from the rare Treasure Chest of Fun and Fact comic book series. This cover, from the March 27, 1958 issue (Volume 12, Number 15), portrays the Way of the Cross in stylized form. I like the way it uniquely encapsulates so much of that fateful, faithful journey.

Mickey And The Wearin' Of The Grin

To celebrate St. Patrick's Day, here's a vintage photo of Mickey Mouse from a Disneyland Park parade, circa 1968. Though it's a black-and-white pic, rest assured that this Irish "mick" is wearing plenty of Emerald Isle green. It's fun to note that Mickey's Irish finery includes a shillelagh. Wonder if the parade music featured "I'll Always Be Irish"...