Okay, the concept of replacing the songs in Country Bear Jamboree with Disney songs was worrisome. It sounded like a basic marketing grab, at the expense of classic original tunes. But Disney has done it well, and the creatives behind this new take on the revue deserve extensive applause. The bears’ original country takes are fresh, particularly as the show skews to less ubiquitous songs. If you haven’t already seen it, give today’s preview performance a watch, spoilers below:   I love the sight gags they’ve added into the show. Between the “Try Everything” slideshow as hinted to in prev ..read more

The upcoming Country Bear Musical Jamboree is just around the corner, and we’re getting new information about the casting from Walt Disney Imagineering’s newest We Call It Imagineering episode, “Soundscapes.” Emily Ann Roberts as Trixie We first met Emily in 2015, when she was a contestant on The Voice, as part of Team Blake Shelton. Immediately, three of her songs fro mthe show placed on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, and a fourth showed up on the Hot Christian Songs chart. She placed second in the season. She’s followed the series up with both a gospel and a count ..read more

Canadians Air Miles collectors have a chance to win a trip to Walt Disney World, no purchase necessary. The 5-night, 6-day vacation includes up to four round-trip coach airfares, travel vouchers to get to and from WDW from Orlando International Airport, five nights at a Walt Disney World hotel, up to four 6-day theme park tickets with Park Hopper Plus, and a Disney Gift Card worth USD$600. Just head to the official Air Miles Canada website and enter your Collector info for one entry. If you’re booking a trip before May 26 through Air Miles Travel, to be completed by July 31, you’ll get another ..read more

If you’re looking to buy anything from Disney Store, today’s a good day. American customers get free shipping on May 22, with the code FREESHIP. To redeem, just drop the code into the Add Promotion Code area, and click the apply button. If your order is eligible, the change will show up. Here are the exceptions, as outlined by DisneyStore.com: **Free Shipping Promotion Restrictions: Valid May 22, 2024 (12:01 am PT) through May 22, 2024 (11:59 pm PT) on select, in-stock merchandise purchased in a single sales transaction at DisneyStore.com (online or via phone orders). Not valid on purcha ..read more

One of Britain’s neatest pop culture stores hosted a live painting demonstration today, May 4, featuring an officially licensed Star Wars artist. Jay Manchand is one of Star Wars’ officially licensed artists, and has created artwork for card company Topps. When interviewed in 2020 by Jedi News UK, he had produced more than 20 licensed cards. Today’s painting was of Ahsoka Tano. Host store Cosmic Jo’s Galactic Trading Outpost, in Norwich, England, is a highly themed store with a mix of current but uncommon collectibles and retro toys. Described as an “immersive experience,” it also includes a c ..read more

Happy May the Fourth! Disney Channel is celebrating with a new episode of their short series How NOT to Draw, where an animator’s instruction video goes amok. The finale of the second season of this series features the Animator (Mark Hamill) drawing R2-D2, then C3P0 (Anthony Daniels), but things going awry when the Jawas show up. At just two minutes, it’s a delightful romp ..read more

A few weeks ago, we were treated to a behind the scenes peek at Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, courtesy of the official Disney Imagineering channel. YouTuber Disney Dan just broke down all the secrets, in a May 3 video, pointing out things most of us missed on screen. Uniquely, it turns out that you can dress exactly like an animatronic. In the video, an image of Eudora’s outfit is shown. Dan searched and found the outfit’s original Etsy listing, and indeed four copies of the dress are still available as of when this article was published, each $250. The elaborately patterned outfit is just screami ..read more

Despite the enduring popularity of Experiment 626, Stitch has never been made into a true PEZ dispenser. He’s been a Funko Pop PEZ, certainly, as DisKingdom reported in 2019. But those collector treats were far from common. All that will change in January 2025, PEZ Collectors Store reports, in the May edition of their monthly newsletter. Both the mischievous blue alien and best friend Lilo are to get a proper release. Then in September, Giant PEZ of both characters will hit specialty store shelves. The January release may also hint toward when the live action Lilo & Stitch film on Disney ..read more

It’s hard to imagine, but Disney’s Hollywood Studios has been open 35 years. The park celebrated today with a short ceremony, hosted by Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy. While last year’s Jollywood Nights event featured the characters performed to a pre-recorded audio track, the one-time “Celebrating Magic and Adventure Show” indeed used official performers Matt Vogel and Eric Jacobson. Another special element was that a selection of 35-year cast members were on hand in the front row, receiving a well earned round of applause from the audience. The show included speeches and a short dance routin ..read more

Three years after closing the majority of their stores in the United States and Europe, and all of their stores in Canada, Disney is opening in a new country, The Phillipines. The first ever location in the country will open at SM Mall of Asia this September, according to Manila Bulletin. That shopping centre is not only the largest in that country, but the sixth largest in the world. SM Mall of Asia is nearly a million square feet larger than Mall of America, for comparison. The reboot is courtesy of conglomerate SM Group, which owns everything from groceries stores to shopping malls, hotels ..read more