This is the 50th anniversary of the Disney Archives so there are many special events during the exhibition, check out: https://www.bowers.org/index.php/current-exhibition/inside-the-disney-archives-50-years-of-preserving-the-magic. I was there for Story by Disney: Inside the Craft and History of Storytelling at The Walt Disney Studios with Don Hahn which was on Sunday, March 8th. The exhibition has opened and will close on August 30th so you will have some time to go. The Bowers Museum is located at 2002 N Main St., Santa Ana, down the road from Disneyland. It was the first time I’ve been to the museum and was fascinated by the water fountains and statues at the entry of the museum. Also, there were incredible historical artworks from Asia, Africa, and South America around the museum. I loved the Gemstone Carvings: The Masterworks of Harold Van Pelt. Still, let’s get to the Disney exhibition.
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| Inside The Walt Disney Archives, photo by the author. |
I have been to a previous Walt Disney Archives exhibition at the Ronald Reagan Library and seen many items from the archives over the years. It is very special to see the items from the archives so it is definitely worth the trip! The exhibition is down a hall and you can see Dumbo flying overhead which is too much fun. There is a standee of Walt before you enter the exhibition rooms. On the left is the recreated desk of Walt Disney which I saw before and actually went to Walt’s office above the firehouse in Disneyland. There is a display of Disneyland artifacts on the right including the map of Disneyland. Then, there is an animator’s desk. This leads to a hall that has faux books for the archives and a few displays. Then, a display of props from Mary Poppins, the Davy Crockett cap, and Zorro’s sword. On the left is a display of Mickey Mouse stuffies.
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| Early Disneyland map, photo by the author. |
There is a row of the prop books that opened the animated films like Sleeping Beauty. Production artwork from various films, I noted Harrison Ellenshaw’s work, and promotional posters including Batman. You face the queen from Snow White in the window displays that were on Main Street. This opens up to the rest of the exhibition; on the left displays of costumes, in front is The Haunted Mansion display, and on the right what seems like Audio-Animatronics that were retired. On the right, what interested me, was the Alien Audio-Animatronic which was in the dark hallway of the Nostromo. Now, to see it up close and in the bright light, is cool. There was also a RX-24 pilot figure from Star Tours which I’ve seen before. Then, there was the Haunted Mansion tombstones, hitchhiking ghosts, and “stretching” paintings all of which were in the previous archives exhibit, but great to see again.
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| Alien from the Great Movie Ride, photo by the author. |
What was new was the line-up of costumes; Frozen costumes from the parks, the Flynn costume from Tron: Legacy, Dick Tracy’s yellow coat, Julia Roberts’ dress from Pretty Woman, costumes from Mary Poppins Returns, and the highlight for me, The Rocketeer and his rocket pack! There was a display of hands and mask from Shape of Water. In the next room is a case with Winnie the Pooh from Christopher Robin (2018), the family puppets from What About Bob? (1991), Jack Sparrow’s compass, and the Dead Man’s Chest (with heart). Behind them was props including a life size Roger Rabbit reference, Wilson from Cast Away, props from Beauty and the Beast, and The Guide from Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. At the end of the room is the Szalinkski’s Shrinking Machine from Honey I Shrunk the Kids (1989) and the Baloo live action reference head from Jungle Book. Next door is a room of vehicles; the Model T from Absent Minded Professor (1961), the Gee Bee model from The Rocketeer (1991), and Herbie from Herbie Fully Loaded (2005).
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| GeeBee from The Rocketeer, photo by the author. |
In another room was a large case with a reference model of Pride Rock. Behind it are costumes including the wiring pyjama from Tron, the dark coat of Judge Doom from Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, costumes from Maleficient, and the sword of Mulan from the new movie. Next to it is the costume and car from Ford v Ferrari. A Disney Legend statue is shown as well as the photographs of the Legend imprints that are at Disney Studios. The lecture by Don Hahn was in a theater. He showed slides including the famous hand print on a cave and also many of the artworks that are the basis of storytellers and creativity. Hahn showed live action reference, the famous ones from Snow White, Peter Pan, and also Frozen. Also, the animals brought in to be studied by the artists, and Hahn noted the police tape that he jokingly said was to protect the artists. He was showing various corporate logos and added, “Now part of the Walt Disney Company” which was funny. The exhibit itself is impressive, you can see pics and read descriptions, but you should actually experience it yourself.
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| Producer/director/author Don Hahn, photo by the author. |
#BowersMuseum, #InsideTheWaltDisneyArchives, #TheRocketeer, #DonHahn
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