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Anita Answer
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ANITA
ANSWER 8/24/09 8/17/09 8/10/09 8/3/09 7/27/09 7/13/09 7/6/09 6/1/09 5/25/09 5/18/09 5/11/09
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Hi! I'm Anita! August
10, 2009 What
Castle Served as the Inspiration For Cinderella Castle?
Hello, Anita! Enjoyed reading about your adventures in London. Our daughter and husband recently moved there and we visited them this past spring. I share your love for that city. While there, we took a side trip to Bavaria and this brings me to my question about Cinderella Castle. We took a tour of Neuschwanstein Castle and the tour guide said it was Walt Disney's inspiration for Cinderella Castle. Yet, articles that I've read since say it was Sleeping Beauty Castle. Which is it? We will take your word as final proof. Thank you for your help. Hi Joyce! Neuschwanstein Schloss was indeed the inspiration for Sleeping Beauty Castle in Disneyland. (The other Sleeping Beauty Castle, "Le Chateau de la Belle au bois Dormant" in Disneyland Paris, is quite different in design and much more resembles Florida's Cinderella Castle, by the way.) Much of Imagineer Herb Ryman's original concept for Cinderella Castle came from the French Gothic style castles like the Chateaux Chambord, Usse' and Chenonceau. The Florida castle is far more intricate and ornate than the California castle, just as these Chateaux are more ornate than Neuschwanstein is. That's not the only difference either. The Florida castle is over 100 feet taller than the California castle! Thanks for writing! A.A.
I was wondering if you could tell me if the building in Epcot in the Canada Pavilion called "Hotel du Canada" is really a hotel? If not what is it used for? It does not appear to be open to the public. Hi Theresa! The Hotel du Canada in the Canada Pavilion is not a real hotel. It houses storage and offices, and is meant to be representative of a certain style of Canadian architecture, like the other buildings in the pavilion. It closely resembles a well known Canadian hotel, however: Ottawa's Chateau Laurier. The building itself is actually very small, and was built using the same kind of forced perspective that makes Cinderella Castle appear much larger than it really is. By placing the "hotel" high above the promenade and clever use of design, the "hotel" looks to be at least six stories tall, when in reality it is only about three stories. So far, no real hotels have been built inside of any of the Florida theme parks. A.A.
Here is a follow-up question to your answer regarding the Backlot Tour. When were the water tank shows and the Backlot Tour combined into the same attraction? I recall the entrance to the Backlot Tour used to be near where the Animation Tour is. I think the original queue is still there but not used. The water tank show was the beginning of a walking tour through various buildings. I forget exactly what they did but remember going through with a guide who would explain and point out various things along the way. Hi Steve! The Backlot Tour in the Studios has evolved (or should I say "devolved?") quite a bit over the years to become what it is now. Back in the early days of the Studios, the Backlot Tour was an expansive, half-day affair. It was both a walking tour and a tram tour. Pull up a chair, brew some coffee and settle in, because explaining it is going to take almost as long as it took to experience it! The original Backlot Tour started life as the Backstage Studio Tour. The queue started in the rear of the Animation building (and yes, it is still there) and guests wandered through the switchbacks looking at various bits of Disney movie memorabilia. This 25-45 minute queue led to the tram loading area. Once on the tram, guests were driven through the real backlot area where bungalows and offices housed various productions being completed at the Studios. I was once lucky enough to briefly do some work on a production back there. Talk about an odd feeling --working away while there was a theme park steps away! But I digress; you want to hear about the tour, not about me. So anyway, next the tram drove through the wardrobe, camera, props and lighting areas, and then turned onto Residential Street, which I discussed last week. The tram drove on into Catastrophe Canyon, and then behind the set to see how the fire and water effects are done. From there, the tram headed down New York Street, then past vehicles from 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit,' and that was all just Part One of the tour! Part Two was the walking portion of the tour, which luckily started off near the Studios Catering Company so guests could fortify themselves for the walk, which started with another 20 minute queue. The first stop was the water tank, where guests were and are still allowed to participate in "filming," and then a stroll through the prop room. We're walking, we're walking, we're walking... and now we're in the blue screen room with a giant bee from 'Honey I Shrunk the Kids.' A few lucky children got to be filmed riding the bee. Next, guests were led past the three soundstages on a series of catwalks, and sometimes even witnessed a production in action. The next portion of the tour involved viewing the hilarious Bette Midler short film, 'The Lottery' which was filmed entirely at the Studios, and then into a warehouse where the film's special effects were explained. After that, another film explaining editing and sound effects, and finally, our tour ended in the Walt Disney Theatre with a film hosted by Michael Eisner. Whew! I'm exhausted! The tour changed in bits and pieces over time, and in more recent years, especially since production ceased at the park, the Backlot Tour has shrunk down to a much shorter experience. The current tour is a mere 25 minutes, the same length as one of the queues in the original attraction! The RUMOR MILL has been whispering that what is left of the Backlot Tour is on life support and the plug is about to be pulled on it to make way for expansion of Pixar Place. Remember this is only a RUMOR and nothing has been announced or verified by the Walt Disney Company. TRIVIA question: Who directed 'The Lottery?' Answer in next week's column! A.A.
Well, it's been quite a week! It started out on the highest of notes with my meeting of David Tennant last Sunday, and it got better mid-week when a dear friend of mine got the "all clear" on her pathology reports after undergoing recent cancer surgery. The lesson this has taught me is that life is good and life is short --live it to the fullest. Do whatever it is you're planning to do now because we never know what is around the next corner. On a low-ish note, my friend Bill's computer crashed this week and I've missed our daily chats about stuff in general. Good thing it stayed working long enough for me to taunt him with a picture of DT and me. Kidding! Hope it gets fixed soon, Bill! Which brings me to my next subject: I received three more complaints this week about straying off topic in my column. I thought about this for a long while, and the conclusion I came to is that I am my column and my column is me. There's no separating us and you can't have one without the other. When I'm writing this column, I feel like I'm writing to my friends, and I like to include personal opinions, ideas, and experiences just as I would with my real life friends. The Subject I've Been Asked Not to Speak Of by those three people is a part of me too. Just how dry would this column be if I stuck only to the Disney facts? I reckon it would be duller than Pleasure Island on a Monday night (or any other night of the week lately!). "What time is the three o'clock parade?"-- that's the sort of stuff I'd be writing about. By the way, the answer to that question is "It depends on where you're standing." Truthfully, if there was actually anything much of interest going on at WDW right now, I'd be writing more about that instead of TSIBANTSO. Trouble is, there is nothing of note happening right now and there hasn't been for months. That's why this week, the column is all history-related. It's either that or the dreaded Dining Plan, Pool Hopping and Refillable Mugs... again. I'll spare you and myself that particular drudge. Oh, yeah, before I go... did I forget to mention that in addition to the three complaints, I also received about thirty positive messages about this column, including TSIBANTSO? I don't have room to thank you all, but please know those notes were most appreciated! And finally, Robert, using the TARDIS translation circuit, I deciphered your secret encoded message and my reply is: "Clom? Who'd want Clom?" Until next week... Anita
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