Loaded Couch Potatoes

There’s just so much information here I gave up on trying to write a summary of all this.
Everything you need to know is in this video from the D23 Expo:

Just as I had speculated earlier, Jay Rasulo (chairman of Disney Parks and Resorts) announced during his keynote speech that Star Tours 2 will be coming to Disneyland in California and Disney Hollywood Studios at Disney World in Florida.  This project has been rumored to be on the back burner since 2002, and now it’s finally OFFICIAL

The current version of Star Tours will close down in October of 2010, and the new version will open sometime in 2011.  They’ve released piece of concept artwork and a short video.

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A few weeks ago several Star Wars fan sites noticed Disney was inviting the 501st legion to be at the D23 expo in September (the first convention for Disney’s official fan club, D23).  After several of the sites started asking questions, Disney posted the following on their D23 official website.

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Epcot’s Mexico Pavilion in the World Showcase will be home to a new Tequila bar.  La Cava del Tequila will be in a soft opening in late August or early September, with an official opening by September 25th (the beginning date of Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival).  The 46-seat venue will be located inside the pavilion’s main building, next to San Angel Inn restaurant.  I believe that location is the site of the former La Familia Fashions - a clothing and jewelry/silver shop.

The Tequila bar will offer an impressive collection of 70 varieties of tequilas.  The authentic agava-based spirits will range from the major brands, to the smaller and more rare varieties.  A “Tequila Ambassador” will inform guests on the process of making tequila and the history of its Mexican heritage.  La Cava del Tequila will use its décor and art work to celebrate the history of the most famous (or infamous) spirit from Mexico.  The drinks will be offered both straight and in margaritas.

I’ll be checking in on the Mexico pavilion frequently to find out when the soft opening has started.

Epcot’s annual Christmas event, the Candlelight Processional, tells the story of Christmas in words and music with a mass choir, a 50-piece live orchestra, and a celebrity narrator.  Performances are held at the America Gardens Theatre in World Showcase.  The lineup of celebrity narrators is listed below.

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Epcot has released this year’s schedule for the “Eat to the Beat Concerts.”

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Disney is now testing a new centralized FastPass distribution center at Animal Kingdom.  The six FastPass machines for It’s Tough To Be A Bug have been converted to print FastPasses for Kilimanjaro Safaris, Expedition Everest, and Dinosaur (two machines per attraction) with the Bugs attraction no longer having FastPasses.  I can understand cutting out the FastPasses for Tough To Be a Bug, since I can’t think of the last time I’ve seen a stand by wait of more than 15 minutes – and that’s usually if you get there just after a show starts, and have to wait for the next one.  All of the attractions (with the exception of It’s Tough To Be A Bug) still have their usual FastPass distribution areas running as normal.  I’ve heard they will be testing the new system until just after Labor Day, and might try it again during the busier holiday season at the end of the year.

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Several theme park news and rumor sites have been reporting a new version of Star Tours is in development for Disneyland, Disney World, and Tokyo Disney.  (possible spoilers ahead)

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Over the 4th of July weekend I headed over to Magic Kingdom to check out the updates to the Hall of Presidents, now with Barack Obama.  The new digital projection was the first thing I noticed.  The images moving between the three screens were seamless, and I didn’t see any pixelation from my seat in the front row (possibly using the new 4k resolution DLP?).  It’s been a while since I’ve seen the show, so I’m not sure how much movement to the animatronics was new, but all the presidents had a lot of subtle movements.  When the narrator would say a President’s name, the spot-light would move to them, and several of the animatronics would look over in that direction – occasionally a President standing close to the one just announced would give a respectful nod.  Obama’s animatronic was impressive, as expected.

Here is some video I found online (the audio is slightly out of sync in the video).

Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort park presidents celebrate NBA finals with a friendly wager. (continue reading…)