9 of Our Favorite Felines from Disney Animation

October 29, 2020

By Jocelyn Buhlman

On National Cat Day, we honor our favorite feline friends and the joy they’ve brought into our lives—and that includes the cartoon cats who’ve stolen our hearts. To celebrate the day’s feline festivities, we’ve rounded up nine animated Disney cats who deserve a round of a-paw-se for the joy and entertainment they’ve provided in their animated adventures.

1. Marie, Toulouse, and Berlioz (The Aristocats)
These purr-fect Parisian kitten siblings stole our hearts with their feisty purr-sonalities and talent for song. (And mischief!) Whether your favorite is artistic Toulouse, classy Marie, or shy Berlioz, one of these three silly siblings is sure to make you smile and have you practicing your scales and arpeggios.

2. The Cheshire Cat (Alice in Wonderland)
With his wide grin and bright color scheme, this funny feline can only be from Wonderland! While other cats may chase a ball of yarn or snooze in a sunbeam, the Cheshire Cat has a habit of disappearing and reappearing before your very eyes. Are you going mad? To be fair, most cat owners feel a little kooky dealing with their kitten’s mischief—but only the Cheshire Cat specializes in curious and curiouser activities of nonsense.

3. Figaro (Pinocchio)
This classic cat got his start as Geppetto’s companion in 1940’s Pinocchio, but has appeared in many animated shorts afterwards, including as the pet of Minnie Mouse! While he can be a little immature, Figaro’s cuddly design and amusing demeanor have made him a top pick in the cat-egory of favorite felines.

4. Mochi (Big Hero 6)
While we don’t see a lot of the extremely round and perfectly adorable Mochi during the events of Big Hero 6, he still managed to capture our attention. Like Baymax, we love this “hairy baby”—he may not be able to save the day like his owners can, but he can still warm our hearts.

5. Sergeant Tibbs (101 Dalmatians)
Sure, he’s in a movie called 101 Dalmatians, but on National Cat Day, it’s all about Sergeant Tibbs! Although he’s a cat in a dog’s world, that doesn’t stop Sergeant Tibbs from courageously assisting in rescuing Pongo and Perdita’s pups from the likes of Cruella and her henchmen.

6. Lucifer (Cinderella)
Does Lucifer spend most of his time doing Lady Tremaine’s bidding and making Cinderella’s life harder? Yes. Is he still a fuzzy kitty cat, despite possibly being evil (or at least not very nice)? Also yes. Everyone loves to hate a villain, so why should it be any different in the world of cats? While we may not agree with Lucifer’s habits, his bad behavior only makes it more satisfying when Cinderella succeeds!

7. Mittens (Bolt)
This sassy street cat is in for an adventure of a lifetime when she meets Bolt—and while she’s cynical at first about Bolt’s quest to be reunited with his owner, Penny, her journey with Bolt and Rhino helps her discover that even though she’s been hurt in the past, it’s OK for her to let her guard down and find new friendships in life.

8. Oliver (Oliver & Company)
Although he may have an adorable exterior, Oliver has to learn how to be tough on the inside while living with Dodger and his dog friends. The tiny kitten has a lot of courage—and his bravery helps him defeat Sykes and get back to his beloved owner, Jenny.

9. Yzma (The Emperor’s New Groove)
Don’t be fooled by her adorable exterior and squeaky voice—this cat doesn’t just have claws, but also a knowledge of magical potions and, more important, a maniacal urge to kill Emperor Kuzco and take the throne for herself! …OK, well, even if we know she’s evil, she’s still really cute… And with her future as a Junior Chipmunk, purr-haps she’s on the path to good?

Exclusive Q&A with The Mandalorian Composer Ludwig Göransson

October 29, 2020October 29, 2020

By Zach Johnson

How does one even begin reimagine the sound of Star Wars?

If you’re Ludwig Göransson—the Academy Award®-, Emmy® Award-, and Grammy® Award-winning composer and record producer—it starts with some sonic subversion. And this Friday, Göransson will take Star Wars fans deeper inside the world of The Mandalorian via the new music he has written and recorded for season two, streaming exclusively on Disney+. “In the first season, everything was new. People didn’t know the theme. People had never heard those sounds before. So, they weren’t sure about what to think or what to feel when they heard it the first time. It wasn’t until the last two or three episodes where people started to instantly recognize the music and it started to have an effect on them,” Göransson recalls. “For season two, they’re now used to that theme and they have it in the back of their minds. It can pay off in different ways. And depending on how you play it, or where you play it, people will immediately latch on. It was really fun and I’m excited to see if it works! I think people will be very excited and will also feel good when they watch this.”

Fresh off his Emmy win for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series—and before season two of The Mandalorian premieres on October 30—D23: The Official Disney Fan Club talked to Ludwig about his inspirations, his greatest achievements, and much more:

D23: The Official Disney Fan Club: John Williams’ Star Wars score is iconic. What approach did you take in redefining the sound for Star Wars’ first-ever live-action series?

Ludwig Göransson (LG): I constantly reminded myself how I felt watching Star Wars for the first time—or hearing the music of Star Wars for the first time. I was about 8, 9, or 10 years old; I think I heard the music before I saw the movie. It was the music that drew me into the universe and that made me fall in love with it, and the music transferred me to feeling like I was on a different planet or in a different universe. That was the feeling that I tried to reconnect to when I started on this journey to write the music for The Mandalorian.

D23: Season two follows The Mandalorian and The Child as they travel to new planets throughout the galaxy. What did you want to convey with the music and sounds for each of the new characters and settings? And how do you ensure they’re cohesive within the series?

LG: For season one of The Mandalorian, there were no rules. There were no boundaries. The music could be any type of instrument and it could be any type of genre. It’s the production and the use of the orchestra that glues all the instrumentations together. That’s why it was important to me that on every episode we still used a full 75-piece orchestra, which is very unique for a TV show… It’s that combination that makes all these different instruments and sounds work. It feels like it’s all part of the same universe, even though musically it’s from all around the world. I remember in season one, people reacted differently to what they heard. I would get questions from people like, ‘Is that a South American flute?’ People weren’t really sure what they were listening to. In fact, it was a recorder from the baroque era. The way you can manipulate sounds today is so interesting.

D23: What can you tease about the new music you wrote for The Mandalorian?

LG: There are so many different places we go to and so many new characters we meet. They all have different sounds and instruments tied to them. There is a lot we’re going to go through. Every episode is kind of its own journey, like it was in season one, so there’s going to be a lot of new material incorporated. There are also going to be lots of themes people recognize and feel warm at heart with, but you’ll hear different iterations of them.

D23: How does it feel to be so embraced by both critics and the Star Wars community?

LG: I’m really humbled for all the positive feedback the show’s been getting from people as Disney+ opens up throughout the world. Sweden just got it last month. It’s been interesting, because I’ve been hearing from different people all over the world whenever Disney+ comes out in their country. Even though the season ended, I never felt like people stopped watching it. That’s kind of a new feeling for me. It builds. It’s a wonderful thing to be a part of. This is definitely something that I think is going to bring a lot of joy to a lot of households. Hopefully we’ll keep going and hopefully I’ll be on this journey for a long time.

5 Fantastic Things to Watch This Weekend

October 29, 2020October 28, 2020

By Zach Johnson

Lift your spirits this weekend with some fang-tastic Halloween programming. Freeform’s “31 Nights of Halloween” concludes Saturday with a full day of movies, including three of our favorites: Halloweentown, Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, and Hocus Pocus. On Friday, Disney+ puts another cast member center stage with a One Day at Disney short highlighting one man’s contributions to Disney Theatrical Group. And on Sunday, make sure to tune in for another exciting, nail-biting episode of Who Wants to be a Millionaire on ABC. Who knows? It just might be the night someone walks away with the $1 million prize…

One Day at Disney—Friday, October 30, on Disney+
Meet Dana Amendola, VP of Operations at Disney Theatrical Group, who restores and preserves history every day at The New Amsterdam Theatre in New York City. After years of neglect, Disney restored the 100-year-old theatre to its original glory. Discover what goes into maintaining the home to Broadway’s Aladdin, The Lion King, and Mary Poppins.

Halloweentown—Saturday, October 31, at 11 a.m. ET on Freeform
Freeform’s “31 Nights of Halloween” continues with this classic Disney Channel Original Movie. Marnie (Kimberly J. Brown) and her younger siblings follow their estranged grandmother, Aggie (Debbie Reynolds), to her home in Halloweentown—a place where witches, goblins, vampires, and other monsters lead normal lives. On her 13th birthday, Marnie learns she comes from a long line of witches. With a mysterious evil force plotting to take over Halloweentown, it’s up to Marnie and her family to team up and save the day.

Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge Saturday, October 31, at 1 p.m. ET on Freeform
In this spook-tacular sequel, Aggie (Reynolds) calls on her granddaughters, Marnie (Brown) and Sophie (Emily Roeske), to help her investigate a series of strange occurrences in Halloweentown. When the sisters arrive, the vibrant community seems to have lost its magic, and its once-colorful citizens have become gray… literally. All the while, an angry warlock is planning to permanently turn every mortal into whatever costume they are wearing at midnight on Halloween! It’s a race against time, as Marnie must use her newly honed skills to defeat the young warlock threatening to change Halloweentown for good.

Hocus Pocus—Saturday, October 31, at 3 p.m. ET on Freeform
Not long after arriving in Salem, Massachusetts, Max Dennison (Omri Katz) spends Halloween night exploring an abandoned house with his sister, Dani (Thora Birch), and his crush, Allison (Vinessa Shaw). Suspicious and not superstitious, Max lights a black flame candle, accidentally freeing a coven of evil witches—Winifred (Disney Legend Bette Midler), Sarah (Sarah Jessica Parker), and Mary (Kathy Najimy)—who lived in the house 300 years ago. With the help of a magical cat named Thackery Binx (voice of Jason Marsden), they must steal the witches’ spell book to stop them from becoming immortal.

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire—Sunday, November 1, at 9 p.m. ET on ABC
Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, this season features celebrity contestants playing for the charity of their choice, as well as frontline heroes and others affected by COVID-19. Continuing her hot streak, Modern Family’s Julie Bowen wins big for Baby2Baby. Then, Card Sharks’ Joel McHale competes for Groundswell and bus driver Eric Bailey plays for the $1 million prize.

Where We Left Off After The Mandalorian Season One

October 29, 2020October 28, 2020

By Zach Johnson

The Mandalorian covered a lot of ground in season one—like, five planets’ worth! Before the second season begins streaming exclusively on Disney+ on Friday, October 30, we’re retracing Mando’s footsteps to ensure you’re all caught up on the out-of-this-world series.

This article contains spoilers for the first season of The Mandalorian.

This is the way:

Destination Unknown

At the end of season one, the Mandalorian armorer deemed The Child a foundling and instructed the titular Mandalorian, Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal), to reunite it with others of its kind. She also branded a mudhorn signet on Din’s pauldron to signify that he and the child are now a “Clan of Two.” Season one took Din to a number of planets—including Arvala-7, Maldo Kreis, Nevarro, Sorgan, and Tatooine—and you can bet season two will find him exploring more corners of the galaxy as he searches for The Child’s mysterious species.

The armorer also spoke of “sorcerers” known as Jedi, an order of people who have since become legend five years after the Empire’s defeat. Finding them could prove especially challenging for Din, as most of them were murdered after the Empire had risen to power.

Friends in Low Places

Despite being double-crossed—sometimes even triple-crossed—Din found a few allies in season one. Among them are Greef Karga (Carl Weathers), leader of the Bounty Hunters’ Guild, and former Rebel shock trooper turned mercenary Cara Dune (Gina Carano), both of whom will join his adventures in season two. (The circumstances and details, of course, are being kept tightly under wraps.) Sadly, Din also lost some friends, including Kuiil (voice of Nick Nolte), who died in vain to protect The Child, and IG-11 (voice of Emmy® Award nominee Taika Waititi), whose self-sacrifice forced Din to reconsider his stance on droids.

The season finale also revealed Cara is from Alderaan, the home planet of Leia Organa (Disney Legend Carrie Fisher)… which the Death Star decimated in Star Wars: A New Hope. And while we learned Greef is a “disgraced magistrate,” much is his past remains a mystery.

Enemies and frenemies—including Toro Calican (Jake Cannavale), The Client (Werner Herzog), and Ranzar Malk (Mark Boone Junior)—met their demise in season one, while a few others—including Mayfeld (Bill Burr) and Peli Motto (Amy Sedaris)—remain very much alive. And one of the biggest questions fans have been asking is who mysterious figure seen approaching Fennec Shand’s (Disney Legend Ming-Na Wen) body might be…

The Real Big Bad

Prior to being blasted to bits, it seemed as if The Client would stop at nothing to secure “the asset”—aka, The Child. And that was true. But it turned out The Client was small potatoes compared to by Moff Gideon (Emmy® Award nominee Giancarlo Esposito), whose ambush on Navarro resulted in The Client’s quick death. After trapping the Mandalorian and his allies, he revealed secret details about each of them—including the Mandalorian’s birth name, which hinted that he was somehow involved in the great “Purge of Mandalore.”

Gideon is not a patient man—he killed several of his own troopers just to make a point—but he is a persistent man. After Din and his allies managed to escape through the lava tunnels, Gideon encircled them in an Outland TIE fighter, firing with abandon. Luckily, Din was able to plant two detonators on Gideon’s ship, causing it to spiral out of control and crash… but that wasn’t the last we’d see of him. Gideon later carved his way out of the wreckage using the Darksaber, a black-bladed lightsaber and the Mandalorian symbol of leadership. How he came to wield this weapon is unclear, but it is clear the war is not over!

What will happen next? The adventure continues when The Mandalorian season two debuts on Disney+ on October 30.

A Haunted Mansion Tale

October 28, 2020October 1, 2021

Original Story by: Ken Anderson

Compiled and Edited By: Amy Opoka, Walt Disney Archives

In early 1957, Walt Disney asked Imagineer and story artist Ken Anderson to come up with a haunted house experience for Disneyland. Ken conceived multiple early concepts for what would become the Haunted Mansion attraction, and pitched them to Walt Disney. Getting into the spooky spirit of the Halloween season, we wanted to share one of Ken’s early original story ideas alongside a few original and corresponding story sketches, straight out of our art collections here in the Walt Disney Archives. Proceed if you dare…

Scene I – The Picture Gallery

(A group assembles to listen to the tale of “The Haunted House.”)

Beauregarde: Welcome to the Old Gore Mansion. I am Beauregarde, the Butler. I have been with the family for many, many years. This was what we called the Picture Gallery. Of course, it’s not what it was around 1810, when Captain Bartholomew Gore brought his young bride here to live.

This is a portrait of Captain Gore, a wealthy sea-faring man, and this is Priscilla, his wife. Captain Gore was a brooding man who knew no fear… Given to fits of jealousy and rage. Some say he had an evil eye… “The Devil’s eye,” they called it. A thing his bride was to learn about later… much to her sorrow!

Scene II – Priscilla in Rocking Chair

Beauregarde: We are now in the hall outside Miss Priscilla’s room. Let us try and imagine the terrible thing that happened here over a hundred and fifty years ago. Perhaps Miss Priscilla will come back from the spirit world and tell us about it.

Priscilla: “Bar-thol-o-mew—Bar-thol-o-mew—Where are you, Bartholomew?”

It happened the night that Captain Gore was away on a sea voyage… Or so I thought! I had found an old journal tucked away in his desk… And a curious sort of skeleton key. The journal told of the murderous deeds of Black Bart, the pirate who plundered the Caribbean… The dates and certain incidents aroused my suspicions… I thought of the sea chest in my husband’s study… Why was it always locked?… Although I feared my husband’s terrible secret!

Scene III – The Captain’s Room

Beauregarde: This was the Captain’s study. If only Miss Priscilla had not been so curious…

Priscilla: Yes, Beauregarde, I fear my curiosity was greater than my discretion… How well I remember—My hands trembled as I fitted the key into the lock of the chest. Slowly I turned the key, (click) the lock opened…

I gasped in horror at the evidence of my husband’s true identity, and then… (Gasp!)

[Priscilla screams]

Scene IV – Hallway (Priscilla’s Ghost)

Beauregarde: No one knows what happened to poor Priscilla on that horrifying night—But we’re certain of this—She was never seen again—ALIVE, that is!

Priscilla: “Bartholomew, where are you, Bartholomew?”

Scene V – Captain’s Bedroom

Beauregarde: After that ghastly night, Captain Gore knew no peace. Every unearthly sound struck terror in his heart. And the last time he was seen on Earth was in this very room!

Priscilla: He would have run away, but there was no place for him to hide… For he knew that I would search for him no matter where he might be… That I would haunt him to the end of his days!…

“Bartholomew, where are you, Bartholomew?”

Scene VI – The Attic Scene

[It starts raining outside.]

Beauregarde: This is called the mystery room, because there is a strange magnetic force that draws you here… As if it had some connection with the mystery of Captain Gore!

[The wind is moaning outside]

Priscilla: “Bartholomew—Bartholomew—“

Beauregarde: Well, that’s the end of the story. Some say Priscilla had her revenge—that she drove him mad. Maybe someday we’ll know what happened to Captain Bartholomew Gore.

[Thunder crashes]

Priscilla: “HA HA HA HA HA…”

While a different experience than what ultimately was realized with the final Haunted Mansion, our staff has always marveled at how such similar gags eventually made their way into the attraction. From all of us here at the Walt Disney Archives, we hope you have a surprisingly spooky, safe, and fun Halloween.

7 Out-of-This-Galaxy Secrets and Facts We Learned from Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian

October 26, 2020

By Jocelyn Buhlman

We’re only days away from the debut of season two of The Mandalorian on Disney+, although we wish we could make the lightspeed jump to October 30 and start watching right now! It might take a Jedi-like level of discipline to wait until the end of the week… Or, we can bide our time with a Disney+ marathon or two. Beyond reliving the excitement of season one of The Mandalorian, you can discover how the galaxy was created in Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian. The eight-episode docuseries on Disney+ provides roundtable conversations with the series’ creative team, along with behind-the-scenes footage of making the show. It’s full of fascinating facts, and we’ve rounded up some of our favorites to share with you as we await The Mandalorian season two. If you want to learn even more about the behind-the-scenes action of The Mandalorian, you can stream Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian on Disney+ now.

This article contains spoilers for the first season of The Mandalorian.

1. The first season was a collaboration between all the directors.

Deborah Chow, Rick Famuyiwa, Dave Filoni, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Taika Waititi were all often on set for episodes beyond the ones they directed themselves. This level of collaboration allowed the directors to work together not only to develop ideas, but to keep their stories consistent across episodes. As Filoni explains, “Everybody’s bringing their unique perspective to this, and I think that ultimately makes us stronger, makes this a better story. They all ask questions about the scripts and Jon [Favreau] and I are like ‘… Ooooh, we didn’t see that.’ But then we’re willing to fix it and we find new ways to do things.”

Chow agrees that the process allowed for more creativity in the Star Wars galaxy: “We could also bounce ideas off of each other, too, to say ‘What do you think of this?’ or ‘Does this make sense?’”

2. The Darksaber was a practical effect.
One of the coolest moments of season one (and it’s hard to narrow it down, since there are a lot of cool moments in The Mandalorian) was the reveal of the Darksaber—and that Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito) was in possession of the legendary weapon. Even cooler than that reveal? The Darksaber was actually a practical effect! In previous Star Wars films, the blades of characters’ lightsabers have been added in with visual effects after filming, (although it’s not hard to play pretend with a lightsaber—just ask anyone who’s wielded an empty wrapping paper tube, broom, pencil…. You get the gist!) so the Darksaber being an in-camera effect is especially unique to the Star Wars franchise.

3. Parts of the series were filmed in a technologically advanced soundstage called The Volume.
To transport viewers to a galaxy far, far away, The Mandalorian utilized a new (and extremely awesome) stage called The Volume, which is a stage surrounded by high-definition video screens. The Volume allows any kind of landscape or setting to be projected on the screens, so actor can seamlessly perform in any surroundings in real time. In fact, this was a milestone for filming, as Favreau explains, “The Mandalorian is the first production ever to use real-time rendering and video wall in-camera set extensions and effects.” The benefits of this technology extend to even the smallest details: Because the projections exist in real time, landscape and props would properly reflect onto anything on the stage, meaning nothing needed to be added in for post-production!

4. Ryan Coogler and Donald Glover Recommended Composer Ludwig Göransson.
One of the most iconic aspects of The Mandalorian (that’s not related to any kind of small green child) is its Western-inspired score. The music makes you want to strap on your Mandalorian armor and explore a far-away desert. But, we wouldn’t have this iconic score without some help from two friendly faces from the Disney family. As we learned in the episode “Score,” Black Panther director Ryan Coogler recommended Ludwig Göransson to Favreau after Göransson lent his musical mastery to the score of Marvel Studios’ Black Panther. Additionally, Donald Glover, who’d worked with Favreau in both 2019’s The Lion King and 2018’s Solo: A Star Wars Story suggested Göransson, as the composer had worked closely with Glover during his musical career and his television series Atlanta.

5. There are just so, so many Easter eggs
The final episode of the Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian, “Connections,” reveals a galaxy’s worth of Easter eggs in The Mandalorian, but here are some of our favorites:

Blurrgs, the beasts owned and trained by Kuiil, first appeared in the 1985 TV movie Ewoks: Battle For Endor, and had also previously appeared in the critically acclaimed animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels
Disney Legend (and, you know, Luke Skywalker) Mark Hamill has a voice cameo in “Chapter 5: The Gunslinger” as the droid bartender in the Mos Eisley Cantina. Hamill has previously voiced characters in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, and Star Wars: The Clone Wars, so this carries on a long-held tradition of keeping your ears open for a familiar voice.
You might already know that directors Dave Filoni, Rick Famuyiwa, and Deborah Chow have cameos in The Mandalorian’s sixth episode, “The Prisoner,” but do you know how their cameos connect to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge? All three directors filmed their cameos inside the X-Wing fighter that would later be placed in the Resistance camp at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
R5-D4, the droid Owen Lars almost buys before purchasing R2-D2 instead, is still at the Mos Eisley Cantina—and it looks like his motivator never did get repaired!

We’ve only scratched the surface of the details included in the series—watch the “Connections” episode to discover more (including one Easter egg based on an infamous ice cream maker-turned-prop from Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back).

6. The series relied on storyboarding and previsualization to plan everything
In the docuseries episode “Visualization,” we learned that episodes of The Mandalorian were storyboarded, a process Favreau learned from the creative teams at Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios, along with making his own films The Jungle Book and The Lion King. “It forces the filmmakers to commit early, and understand and fail early, when it’s cheap and easy,” he explains.

The storyboards were then taken to a CGI pre-visualization stage, so that the directors knew exactly what they were doing with the story before they started filming. This often helped the team solve problems before anyone even walked on set. For example, the prison guards in the sixth episode of The Mandalorian were originally floating, bucket-like droids, but the pre-visualization stage allowed Famuyiwa, the episode’s director, to realize that the fight scene would be more effective if the droids had arms and legs. Since everything was filmed in The Volume, it was essential to catch mistakes ahead of time to make the physical filming process as efficient as possible.

7. The Child was just called “Baby” on set
To be fair, that’s what we’d call it, too.

Season two of The Mandalorian starts streaming on Disney+ on October 30.

5 Fantastic Things to Watch This Week

October 26, 2020

By Zach Johnson

Before a new season of The Mandalorian begins on Disney+ this Friday, there’s plenty of other exciting things to watch earlier in the week. It all starts Monday when FXX airs the movie The Darkest Minds, adapted from the dystopian novel of the same name. Then, on Wednesday, the animated film Monsters, Inc. will air on Freeform, followed by the hit sitcom American Housewife later that night on ABC. On Thursday, City So Real will debut on National Geographic in an unprecedented one-night, five-hour commercial-free event.

The Darkest Minds—Tuesday, October 27, at 4 p.m. ET on FXX

Tune in for the network premiere of the 2018 film from 20th Century Studios. Director Jennifer Yuh Nelson and producers Shawn Levy and Dan Levine deliver an empowering tale of teens who mysteriously develop new abilities and are declared a threat by the government. One of the most powerful teens, Ruby (Amandla Stenberg), escapes and joins a group of runaways seeking safe haven. It doesn’t take long for the newfound family to realize they must join forces to take back control of their fate and save future generations. Harris Dickinson, Miya Cech, Skylan Brooks, and Mandy Moore round out the film’s cast.

Monsters, Inc.—Wednesday, October 28, at 6:30 p.m. ET on Freeform

The network’s “31 Nights of Halloween” continues with the 2011 Disney and Pixar classic from director Pete Docter. Friendly and furry Sulley (voice of Disney Legend John Goodman) and his wisecracking sidekick Mike Wazowski (voice of Disney Legend Billy Crystal) are the top scare team at Monsters, Inc., the scream-processing factory in Monstropolis. But when a 2-year-old girl named Boo (voice of Mary Gibbs) wanders into their world, it’s the monsters who are scared silly! To get Boo home safely, Sulley and Mike must keep her presence a secret.

American Housewife—Wednesday, October 28, at 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC

In the season five premiere, Katie (Katy Mixon) goes to great lengths to appease Principal Ablin (Jerry Lambert) in order to ensure her firstborn, Taylor (Meg Donnelly), graduates from Westport Unified. Meanwhile, Greg (Diedrich Bader) finishes ghost writing the final chapter of a memoir for viral video star Lonnie (Matt Shively). Oliver (Daniel DiMaggio) is devastated to learn that his best friend Cooper (Logan Pepper) will be leaving Westport, while Anna-Kat (Giselle Eisenberg) tells Franklin (Evan O’Toole) she is ready to get outside her comfort zone, as she plans to attend sleep-away camp during summer break.

City So Real—Thursday, October 29, at 7 p.m. ET on National Geographic

The five-part documentary series begins with “Welcome to Chicago” and is followed by “Blood Sport,” “With All Due Respect to the Candidate,” “If You Want to Break the Machine,” and “You Gotta Make It or You Gotta Take It.” Filmmaker Steve James paints a complex portrait of Chicago, offering a multifaceted look at a quintessentially American city set against the backdrop of its historic 2019 mayoral election. The series begins in mid-2018 as Mayor Rahm Emanuel, accused of a cover-up related to the police shooting of a Black teenager, Laquan McDonald, shocks the city by announcing he won’t seek reelection. An unprecedented 21 candidates emerge in a diverse and crowded field as they engage in a no-holds-barred battle for a chance to shape Chicago’s uncertain future. The final episode takes place in 2020, a year after the mayoral election, as the city simultaneously deals with the COVID-19 pandemic and the social unrest following the police killing of George Floyd.

The Mandalorian—Friday, October 30, on Disney+

The season two premiere finds the Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) and the Child continuing their out-of-this-world adventures. As they travel through a dangerous universe in the tumultuous era after the collapse of the Galactic Empire, they need to rally allies—and fast! With Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito) in pursuit, old friends, including Greef Karga (Carl Weathers) and Cara Dune (Gina Carano), join the dynamic duo on their epic journey.

D23 Halloween Hullabaloo Pumpkin Stencils

October 26, 2020

By The D23 Team

Please note, these stencils are not for beginner pumpkin carvers. Kids, be sure to have an adult help you with the carving tools!

What you will need:

Ready-to-carve pumpkin
Standard printer paper
Soft graphite pencil
Clear tape
Ballpoint pen
Black permanent marker
Pumpkin-carving tools

Instructions:

Download and print the template on standard printer paper. Scribble heavily all over the back of the template with a soft graphite pencil.
Tape the template onto a ready-to-carve pumpkin that is clean and dry with the scribbled pencil side on the pumpkin.
Trace over the template with the ballpoint pen to transfer the image onto the pumpkin. Define the template with a marker and then carve out the design.

“It’s Pronounced Fronkensteen”; A Look Inside the Making of Mel Brooks’ Hilarious Satire Young Frankenstein

October 26, 2020October 1, 2021

By Heather Hoffman, Walt Disney Archives

With Halloween just around the corner, it is the perfect time to grab a cozy blanket, a big bowl of popcorn, and settle in to watch some classic spooky movies. If you’re a fan of suspenseful melodrama mixed with comedic satire, one classic film that should definitely be on your watchlist this season is Young Frankenstein.

The 1974 film stars Gene Wilder as Dr. Frederick Frankenstein, the grandson of the late mad-scientist Victor Frankenstein. Frederick wishes greatly to be disassociated from his grandfather’s work and even refers to him as a “lunatic.” However, upon hearing that he has inherited his family’s estate, Fredrick travels to Transylvania and quickly discovers his grandfather’s private journals and secret laboratory. He soon decides to resume his grandfather’s scientific pursuits, excitedly proclaiming, “It… could… work!”

The Walt Disney Archives maintains many artifacts that went into the creation and marketing of this film, including behind-the-scenes photography, construction drawings, concept art, and posters. Please enjoy a behind-the-scenes look at this special collection:

Disney Guitar Is Music to Our Ears

October 23, 2020

By Courtney Potter

There’s nothing quite like the music from around the worlds of Disney… From Mickey Mouse’s whistled tune in Steamboat Willie, all the way to the sure-to-be-incredible original music from jazz giant Jon Batiste and the Oscar®-winning composer duo Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross featured in Disney and Pixar’s upcoming Soul, music is a gigantic reason why our Disney favorites are so wildly memorable.

In that spirit of heartfelt, tuneful significance comes a new project from the good folks over at Disney Music Group (DMG) and Walt Disney Records: Disney Guitar. It’s a series of themed collections—available for streaming online—of iconic Disney songs reimagined on acoustic guitar, arranged and produced by a variety of DMG writers including Aron Forbes, Jason Mater, Nick Pingree, Simon Oscroft, and the duo Parkwild. One such collection, Disney Guitars: The Molly Miller Sessions, was released earlier this month and kicked off an incredible “Acoustic Plays” contest from Walt Disney Records, Taylor Guitars, and Guitar Center that runs now through November 21. One grand prizewinner will win some amazing prizes including an AD17e Blacktop Taylor Guitar, a Disney Vinyl Collection, and $100 Guitar Center Gift Card; and two runner-up winners will receive a Disney-branded Taylor GS Mini guitar, a Disney Vinyl Collection, and two months of Guitar Center guitar lessons. (For more info on the contest—and to enter—click here!)

D23 recently spoke to several DMG writers associated with Disney Guitar, and got an inside look at what makes the project so unique. One truly unprecedented aspect? Their involvement started just after folks around the world found themselves sheltering in place earlier this year. “I’ve been down in New Zealand, where I’m from,” explains Simon Oscroft, a songwriter who’s penned tunes for the likes of OneRepublic and country artist Kaylee Bell. “I returned to New Zealand in March of this year, [and this project] came about the second week I was back… Once I heard what the [project] was, and what they were trying to do—and I heard some examples of what had been done in the past—I thought I could definitely give this a go.” Austin Zudeck and Justin Thunstrom, better known as the duo Parkwild, had a similar experience—albeit here in the States. “All of a sudden we had some time on our hands,” explains Zudeck, “[and] we were still trying to figure out how to do things virtually, like songwriting sessions… The Disney Music Group team hit us up and said, ‘Hey, we have this Disney Peaceful Piano series, and we think we want to do it on guitar. And we were like, ‘That sounds awesome!’ It all came about at the right time.”

Both Oscroft and Parkwild (who’ve recently collaborated with Dua Lipa and Hailee Steinfeld) have multiple cuts peppered throughout the Disney Guitar series—all of which are available in themed collections including Lullaby, Motivation, Calm, Love, and Chill. “We initially started with five songs,” Thunstrom says, “and [DMG] liked them so much they came back for two more rounds.” Adds Zudeck, “The last five, we got to pick. So we thought, ‘Let’s pick some favorites,’ and it was awesome.” All three writers, it should come as no surprise, are Disney fans—having grown up with the movies and TV shows from which these songs were pulled. “I’ve always been a part of rock and pop groups,” Oscroft admits. “Making music for Disney film and TV and these types of things was honestly never what I expected to go into… I’ve been a fan of countless Disney movies… [and] now that I’ve been exposed to it, it’s actually encouraged me and inspired me to want to be a bigger part of it.” “One of the reasons we’re with Disney Music Group is because of that rich heritage,” adds Thunstrom. “It’s always the most nostalgic feeling with anything Disney. Zudeck concurs: “It’s really cool to feel like we’re part of this exclusive ‘Mickey Mouse Club’ of our own. Disney shapes every childhood—I remember seeing Toy Story and Monsters, Inc., they were my favorite movies growing up. It’s been amazing to transition to adulthood, rewatch these things, and pick up so many new intricacies.”

And those intricacies include these special reinterpretations of iconic Disney songs on acoustic guitar. “For us, honestly, it’s getting to see a song’s form in a new perspective [that] makes you really appreciate the song itself,” says Zudeck. “You know, a lot of time with pop songs and modern radio, you get so caught up in the production. [With these Disney Guitar tracks], it’s quite the opposite. We’re just stripping it all the way back down. Reimagining such beautiful classic records [means] you can’t help but appreciate the melody and the simplicity of all of it. And it shows you a template of what makes these songs timeless—it’s the unbelievably sing-able melodies that pull you in every direction.” “The songs are so iconic that it just brings you back to those first moments when you heard them,” adds Thunstrom. “It was cool to dive so deep into them, instead of just being a listener—we were able to kind of remake and redefine the songs in a different way.”

All told, all three writers feel that the Disney Guitar collections have come ’round at the perfect moment—and that, through enjoying these feel-good acoustic versions of favorite Disney tunes, listeners will find “a whole new world” of delight. Says Oscroft, “I hope [listeners find] an even deeper acknowledgement and admiration for these composers—and for Disney’s focus on music, in general, throughout its history… Music is the heart and soul of Disney.” “I think why we do what we do is [because] music is able to kind of take you out of it all and put you in a different world,” Thunstrom admits. “And I think as you listen to these [Disney Guitar] songs and the fact that they’re on just one single instrument… it just helps center you, it helps ground you.” Zudeck agrees, adding, “Whether you grew up in Vermont or California or Alabama, you know some of these Disney songs, so we can all find that common ground. And I think that that is something super-important with a reimagining of these songs right now.”

Look for the Disney Guitar collections on all your favorite music streaming services… and don’t forget to enter Walt Disney Records, Taylor Guitars, and Guitar Center’s fantastic contest—running now through November 21!