License Plate of the Day: Disney Nerd Edition

OK, Disney nerd, we get it, you're living up to your name.

The Walt Disney Diet: Spam, A Lot of Gravy and Light on the Veggies

In November we visited the Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco; it's worth a visit, and the Blogger Kids enjoyed making an stop-motion movie and also seeing features like a huge model replica of Disneyland.

One of the random interesting items I spied was a sheet written by Walt Disney, who was asked to jot down his favorite foods. Here they are:

Chicken fry cube steak
Roast lamb — potatoes and gravy
Pan fried chicken with potatoes and gravy
Roast chicken with dressing and gravy
Spam and eggs with biscuits and honey
Oyster stew with crackers and cheese
Breaded veal cutlets with bread and gravy
Chasen’s chili and beans

Note: Only one vegetable with meals — corn, canned peas, leaf spimach, stewed tomatoes, etc.

Salads:
Carrot and raisins
Waldorf
Tomatoes and cucumber
Chef’s salad

Desserts:
Jello — all flavors, with pieces of fruit
Diet custards
Pineapple — fresh or canned
Fruit — fresh or canned

Spam! And wow, did that guy like gravy. Below, here's that Disneyland scale model:

Re-Animated: Mickey Mouse, Miss Piggy, "Gravity Falls" and More Get Zombie-fied

The creative minds at Disney TV Animation -- now celebrating its 30th anniversary -- do great work. "Phineas and Ferb," "Gravity Falls," "Fish Hooks" and so many more, have been favorites of the Blogger Kids for years. But in their down time, the animators are just as creative, and every once in a while they showcase their talents via a gallery inside their Glendale headquarters.

On Tuesday night, the Disney Television Animation crew unveiled their latest display: "Re-Animated: The Zombie Show." A mix of beloved Disney characters zombified, and some original creations (and mashups) as well. Disney TV Animation opened the event -- doubling as a celebration of their 30th anniversary -- with a cocktail reception. Here are some highlights from the show:


(It's hard to tell in this photo, but Zombie Mickey is devouring another Mickey.)


(Oh, Miss Piggy, what happened?)


(The "Gravity Falls" kids do the "Thriller" with a new friend!)


("Gravity Falls" has tackled zombies on the show, so it only makes sense it would be a popular subject at this display.)


(You always knew this was how Scrooge McDuck would end up.)


(Zombie-fied "Phineas & Ferb" characters, as drawn on sandwich napkins!)


(This may be my favorite of all, and I hope they turn it into a real book. A twisted take on "Winnie the Pooh.")

MIKE ON RADIO: Bantering About the Murdoch Family, CinemaCon and Disney's Maker Purchase on KCRW's "The Business"

Kim Masters was back on this week's edition of KCRW's "The Business," but her banter buddy John Horn was out, so I'm once again bacl this week to chat about the week's entertainment news. Here's what we touched on:

- News out of CinemaCon, the annual trade show for theater owners, is that global box office is strong except among the youth in the US.

- More Murdoch family drama and news of a succession plan to run the various companies of News Corp.

- Disney news: Anne Sweeney has been replaced by Ben Sherwood to run ABC and the other Disney-owned TV channels. What will his news background bring to the job?

- Disney plans to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to buy the online studio Maker Studios.

Listen today at 2:30 p.m. (PT) on KCRW 89.9, or listen now below!

MIKE ON RADIO: Breaking Down Anne Sweeney's Disney/ABC Exit

On Friday's edition of KCRW's Hollywood Breakdown, I chat with John Horn about the surprise exit of Disney/ABC Television president Anne Sweeney... and her unusual reason why. Listen:

Glendale Plays Chicago: The "Shake It Up" Hospital

So I was watching the series finale of Disney Channel's "Shake It Up" (yes, I was watching the series finale of Disney Channel's "Shake It Up" -- DON'T JUDGE ME I HAVE KIDS) when one of the girls on the show is rushed to the hospital -- the rather generically named "Chicago Hospital," to be exact.

"Hmm," I think to myself. "That hospital sure looks familiar. And hey, that bus looks like the Glendale Beeline bus, with the wording digitally painted out." Oh yeah, it's Glendale Memorial Hospital, which I drive past every single day of my life:

"Some Kind of Monster": Spooky Art by Disney TV Animation Artists

(DISNEY CHANNEL/RICK ROWELL)

Not too far from the Blogger Kid's school, the newly Disney Television Animation building in Glendale houses some extremely creative folks -- so creative, in fact, that when they're not creating the shows seen on Disney Channel, Disney XD and Disney Junior, these artists and producers are busy creating more art.

That's the basis for "Some Kind of Monster," a fall art gallery at the Disney TV Animation building, spotlighting art from artists, execs and staff on shows like "Phineas and Ferb," "Gravity Falls," "Fish Hooks" and "TRON: Uprising."

The Blogger Kid and I had an opportunity last week to visit the Disney TV Animation offices and take a look at the spooky-inspired art during a reception for "Some Kind of Monster." Among the items were works by the creators of our two favorite animated shows: "Phineas and Ferb's" Dan Povenmire and Jeff “Swampy” Marsh, as well as "Gravity Falls'" Alex Hirsh. Some pics:


Alex Hirsh of "Gravity Falls" shows off a piece inspired by his show, "The Most Terrifying Monster of All." (DISNEY CHANNEL/RICK ROWELL)


Povenmire and Marsh of "Phineas and Ferb." (DISNEY CHANNEL/RICK ROWELL)


Mitt Romney as Roger Doofenshmirtz, by Dan Povenmire.


"Little Monster," a tribute to Lady Gaga.



"Shut Up. Everything Is Fine," by Matt Chapman. (That's a variation of Zeus, Dipper and Mabel from 'Gravity Falls.')



"B. Flores," by Josh Parpan


"2 Ghouls for 1 Buoy."


"Sick in the Head," by Lauren Rondou.

Retro Friday: Disneyland Edition

Above, from 1977, an ad for Disneyland's brand new Space Mountain coaster. And below, the 1979 spot marking the opening of Big Thunder Railroad.



And from 1983, when the "New Fantasyland" opened:

Preschooler Movie Review: "Bolt"

It was a big movie weekend for the Blogger Preschooler, who couldn't get enough this past weekend of "Wall-E" and "Cars" on DVD. The beautifully made "Wall-E," in particular, made a big impression on Evan -- and me too.

That led to our Sunday visit to the AMC Burbank Media Center 6, where we caught an early matinee of the new Disney animated feature "Bolt." (FYI, the AMC Burbank Media Center 6 costs just $6 for all shows before noon on the weekend and holidays.)

This was big: Evan's first official theatrical movie experience. We took him to a children's short movie festival at the REDCAT earlier this year, and before that took him to a premiere screening of "Handy Manny" at the Arclight when he was a 2-year-old.

Until now, however, the Preschooler wasn't high on spending a long time in a dark theater. Also, some of the Disney and Pixar animated features weren't his cup of tea -- those villains (such as the sharks in "Finding Nemo") can be pretty scary.

But the relative tameness of "Wall-E" and "Cars" gave Evan the confidence to tag along as we took him to the movie theater.

Verdict? He managed to watch the entire thing -- not a foregone conclusion, and there were moments where he told us he was ready to go. (Now, of course, he is raving about his first movie experience -- forgetting how he tried to talk us into leaving!)

The movie itself? Decent, better than many animated features. As the first animated Disney film under Pixar's John Lasseter -- who now serves as Chief Creative Officer of both Pixar's and Disney's animated studios -- "Bolt" retains some of the look, story and heart of a Pixar pic.

But it's no "Wall-E." Or, for that matter, "Cars" or "Finding Nemo."

The story is simple: "Bolt" is the most famous pup on TV, saving his master -- a pre-teen girl named Penny -- from evil. The rub: The real-life Bolt has been led to believe he really is a superhero canine, and not a modern-day Lassie. He somehow escapes and, while making his way back to Hollywood, slowly realizes that he's an ordinary dog. John Travolta is fine as Bolt, while Miley Cyrus -- and her husky, Brenda Vacarro voice -- seems like an unusual choice for Penny.

Meanwhile, it's Disney employee Mark Walton who steals the movie as Rhino, the fan boy hamster whose Comic-Con-style adoration of Bolt is the highlight.

Revealed: The Long-Lost Fourth Jonas Brother!

Teenage heartthrobs Kevin Jonas, Joe Jonas, Antonio Jonasraigosa and Nick Jonas participate in Earth Day festivities thrown by Disney. (Photo via Disney press release.)