Significance of Sid Cahuenga

[darthjohnny]

I always thought Sid Cahuenga's One-of-a-King Curio shop is a bit of an odd name. Does anyone know what it signifies or was it some kind of important person like an Imagineer?

 

[disneywy]

I am not really sure about the Sid part of the name, but Cahuenga is the name of a street and pass in Los Angeles. The 101 Freeway goes thru it and connect the San Fernando Valley with Los Angeles basin. It is one of the main ways to get between the two areas of LA. Grauman's Chinese Theater, the El Capitan, and the Kodak Theater are all near it and Universal Studios/Universal City is on the San Fernando side of the pass.

 

[Since1976]

I've always been fascinated by that little house. It always seemed out of place, like it was a house that had always been there, and the park was just built around it.

It is meant to duplicate the similar little curio shops that sprouted up in residential communities in Hollywood. Even as a kid, I "got" what Sid Cahuenga's was all about, even though I didn't know much about Hollywood history. That's great Imagineering, huh?

 

[nicolita3]

isnt sid mickey teacher in fantasia thats his name i think you know where he makes the brooms fetch the water and stuff.

 

[mrerk]

isnt sid mickey teacher in fantasia thats his name i think you know where he makes the brooms fetch the water and stuff.

The sorcerers name is Yensid, which I'm sure we all know is Disney spelled backwards.

 

[SirNim]

Sid Grauman built the original Chinese Theatre.

And as mrerk has referenced above, yenSID is the name of the Fantasia sorcerer, and DISney spelled backwards.

I think "Sid Cahuenga" is a very appropriate made-up name...

 

[Lee]

Sigh....I remember when Sid's was a really cool store. It used to have far more autographs, props, etc.
Now...to much generic merchandise.

 

[Ariellen]

I believe Sid was a Streetmosphere character at MGM for a while, but the performer who portrayed him (who, if I recall correctly, was married to Pam Brody, a performer in Epcot's UK pavilion) passed away last year.

 

[shaelyn]

When you walk into the store, look to the left in the corner, there's a pic of Sid and a few autographs made out specifically to him. CHer's one of em, I think.

I don't know whether he's real or fictional, but... yeah.

 

[LostNametag]

On my last CP, at a walk around tour of the park called Encore, our guide told us Sid's story. The way he talked, Sid was a real guy and everything. He said Sid kept Christmas lights on his house year 'round and something about how Disney got wind of this guy, liked him so much that they moved his house to that spot in MGM. And the other stuff about it being a replica of the ones in Hollywood is true too. I thought that was a neat story. Clearly he knew that we knew that was what we were supposed to tell the Guests when asked. =) So I'm telling ya...

 

[AEfx]

Sigh....I remember when Sid's was a really cool store. It used to have far more autographs, props, etc.
Now...to much generic merchandise.

They still have some rarities, but I think the simple fact is most theme park guests aren't going to buy a $300-500 autograph on their vacation, so they put the ABC related books and such in to give average folk something to buy.

I still spend some time there, but you are correct that the real rarities (i.e. not signatures from Lost or Housewives cast members) are becoming...well, rarer.

AEfx

 

[Soundstage'95CP]

Sid Grauman built the original Chinese Theatre.

When they opened the studios most of the autographed items for sale included phrases such as "To Sid..." in reference to Sid Grauman as these items were originally gifts to the original Chinese Theatre. As the theatre auctioned them off to support their charity organizations, Disney aquired some of the items that would help make the one-of-a-kind shop what it was. Since so many of the items were like this, the first name Sid in the shop name made sense. So if you purchased something that was autographed with "To Sid..." take pride in knowing that you have a one-of-a-kind with a long history.

 

[shaelyn]

When they opened the studios most of the autographed items for sale included phrases such as "To Sid..." in reference to Sid Grauman as these items were originally gifts to the original Chinese Theatre. As the theatre auctioned them off to support their charity organizations, Disney aquired some of the items that would help make the one-of-a-kind shop what it was. Since so many of the items were like this, the first name Sid in the shop name made sense. So if you purchased something that was autographed with "To Sid..." take pride in knowing that you have a one-of-a-kind with a long history.

Oooh, that explains the autographs I saw! Thanks

 

[Lee]

Autographs can be found much cheaper than at Sids.
Sid charges a lot for the matting and framing.

 

[AEfx]

Autographs can be found much cheaper than at Sids.
Sid charges a lot for the matting and framing.

This is very true.

They had one of Crawford's famous letters matted and framed for like $350 last time I was there. As there are literally millions of her letters out there (she sent up to 70K a year for more than 40 years), and they show up on eBay all the time from $30ish - $150 (and only the higher price for the really personal letters). That's a big premium for the frame/matte.

They did have some non-framed stills and such for like $90 or 100 from ABC stars, but again the can be had more cheaply elsewhere.

AEfx

 

[MaryMcMagic]

There's a good chance that if you buy an autograph on ebay that it's a fake.

I read an article about fakes on ebay and it said anywhere from 75-85% of those on ebay are fraudulent. That's a shame...

 

[DisneyGrown-Up]

I get my autographs through the mail. I've only gotten 2 so far (Steven Spielberg and Drew Barrymore, and I think I might have accidentally thrown Barrymore's out).

When it comes to entertainment-related items at Walt Disney World, I usually go to the Virgin Megastore on the West Side and buy 300 dollars worth of DVDs.

Sincerely,

John "DisneyGrown-Up" Kilduff