ajrwdwgirl
Premium Member
Totally agree about the Walt Disney Family Museum, it is so well done. I love how they offered so much virtual content during the pandemic, most for free, and they continue to offer virtual content too.
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Walt Disney – A Magical Life
- Thread starter wdwmagic
- Start date
Totally agree about the Walt Disney Family Museum, it is so well done. I love how they offered so much virtual content during the pandemic, most for free, and they continue to offer virtual content too.
SuddenStorm
Well-Known Member
Disney building a tribute to Walt when they spent the last five years actively reversing policies he put in place is a bit amusing, but this is better than anything else they've announced and if it preserves the Lincoln show a bit longer I'm all for it.
TheCoasterNerd
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- No
Yes, that's how Audio Animatronics have always been
horatiog
Member
I was originally intrigured by the idea, but I'm now more negative. Disney has generally been cautious with creating Animatronics of real people, only doing so with actors playing characters, long-dead historical figures of myth-like status like Benjamin Franklin and Abraham Lincoln, and US presidents who were granted the privilege of recording their own message for the AA to say. Doing so with Walt, particularly when he was familiar with the technology and didn't want one, is distasteful.
I can understand the logic behind the partners statue, particularly at Disneyland and WDW, which were his baby and dedicated to his legacy. The same logic makes a statue at EPCOT ok.
We also make statues of people to honor them. It's a way to respect their legacy, and has been common since the dawn of recorded history. Walt's comment on a statue of himself was reportedly "statues are for dead people," and now that he's dead and being honored it makes sense to have one. But "make a talking robot" just isn't a way we respect people. It doesn't have the cultural legacy. It makes a puppet out of a person. I'm fine that we do this with politicians, but doing so with another person just doesn't feel right.
I can understand the logic behind the partners statue, particularly at Disneyland and WDW, which were his baby and dedicated to his legacy. The same logic makes a statue at EPCOT ok.
We also make statues of people to honor them. It's a way to respect their legacy, and has been common since the dawn of recorded history. Walt's comment on a statue of himself was reportedly "statues are for dead people," and now that he's dead and being honored it makes sense to have one. But "make a talking robot" just isn't a way we respect people. It doesn't have the cultural legacy. It makes a puppet out of a person. I'm fine that we do this with politicians, but doing so with another person just doesn't feel right.
TP2000
Well-Known Member
I've got to get back to being a good host shortly, so I don't have the time to track this down on Google, but who the heck is left in the Disney "family"? Isn't it just a gaggle of grandchildren who are now quite elderly themselves? Plus whatever great and great-great grandchildren from the Miller side of the family that were born decades after Walt passed away?
Do any of them have any legal standing to determine what happens operationally in Disneyland? I doubt it. After Eisner took over for Ron Miller over 40 years ago, I don't think even Walt's two daughters had any legal standing on that sort of thing.
The elderly grandchildren, or middle aged great-grandchildren, can certainly voice their opinion along with the rest of us here on this forum about this artistic decision. But I can't imagine anyone from Disney's legal department has to run anything past any of those surviving extended family members on a park operations decision like this.
In short, the great-grandkids may have some Disney stock in their portfolios gifted to them by Mrs. Disney when she passed away 30 years ago. Otherwise, their opinion has about the same weight as our opinions do on how Disney runs its theme parks now. Which as we've seen at D23 Expo, those opinions mean very, very little to the current executive team.
mickEblu
Well-Known Member
Hahah yeah this is a good point. I was actually talking to someone about this last night when I stopped to think who was really left. Apparently his granddaughter is alive? So I think her onion should definitely be considered. As far as everyone else I agree.
donaldtoo
Well-Known Member
Roy E. Disney passed in ‘09.
He had 4 children, including Abigail at age 64, and she has 4 children of her own.
Christopher Disney, son of Ron and Diane, is 69 and appears to have never had any children.
Sharon adopted a daughter during her first marriage, but that daughter passed in ‘02.
She and her second husband had 2 children together that were born with learning disabilities.
Not sure about the rest, but Abigail and Christopher have been in the news from time to time.
The article in the original post says that family members are involved, but it doesn’t clarify which family members, and to what degree.
Disney Irish
Premium Member
You're forgetting a few kids from Ron and Diane, they had 7 kids, the one who is vocal about this is Joanna Miller. So far there is no one else who appears to be against this from Walt's side, at least that I can find.
donaldtoo
Well-Known Member
Yea, I figured there were probably more, but I really didn’t keep track much beyond knowing that Walt and Lilian had Diane together and then adopted Sharon a few years later, other than knowing about Christopher and Abigail.
Disney Analyst
Well-Known Member
Walt has been gone for 58 years. I personally do not find this distasteful, but of course I am not family and have no real opinion on the matter that is worth regarding.
But I hope this is a beautiful and loving addition, which honors Walt.
But I hope this is a beautiful and loving addition, which honors Walt.
TrainsOfDisney
Well-Known Member
The rights were sold by Retlaw (owned by Walt’s family) in 1982 along with ownership of the Disneyland Railroad and Monorail.
Disney Irish
Premium Member
I feel like we just went over this a page ago.....
TP2000
Well-Known Member
Fantastic info, thank you for doing that for us!
As I suspected, it's mostly just great-grandchildren and great-great grandchildren who don't seem to care much about the Disney company as a whole, much less the operation of the theme parks. I imagine those grandchildren and other family members took whatever Disney stock they have, and moved on with a life as a Miller instead of "Walt's great-great grandchild on his second daughter's side."
That makes sense. So legally and contractually, a grandchild of Walt Disney in 2024 has no more clout or ability to impact corporate decisions in Burbank than some random guy in Denver with 100 shares of Disney stock in his portfolio.
It would seem then that Joanna Miller's real beef lies in the business decisions her parents (now deceased) and her grandmother (also long since passed) made back in 1982 when she was a 26 year old woman.
TrainsOfDisney
Well-Known Member
That’s my understanding, yes. It’s still very slimy for Josh to say “the family supports this” when at least one of Walt’s Grand daughters does not.
Don1234
New Member
YUK! Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should do it. The previous holographic Walt Disney was lousy. Will the robot Walt Disney be as bad? We live in an age where all of Walt's dreams and ideas have been put in print or record and can be retrieved and learned from as we see fit. It seems to me there are enough maintenence projects at the Parks that deserve and require attention without forays into vanity projects. Do something that inspires the young and stimulates their belief in the Future. Put Walt Disney's hopes and dreams INTO the nuts and bolts of the Parks, not into a facsimile and sellable merchandise.
TrainsOfDisney
Well-Known Member
Here’s a question - have they consulted with the Disney Family Museum?
At some point you belong to history.
There are 45 animatronic men in the Hall of Presidents, all based on real people who have families and descendants. Add the figures from The American Adventure to that. And so on. Several have been dead less time than Disney.
The outrage here is both ridiculous and hypocritical.
There are 45 animatronic men in the Hall of Presidents, all based on real people who have families and descendants. Add the figures from The American Adventure to that. And so on. Several have been dead less time than Disney.
The outrage here is both ridiculous and hypocritical.