It's 36-hours before Christmas, and we're readying ourselves for a full day of A Christmas Story airings, with a little Love Actually and It's a Wonderful Life sprinkled in-between. 'Tis the season for themed-movies—heck, even Die Hard is getting a lot of airtime—and as much as burrowing underneath a Snuggie with TiVo-ed shows sounds enticing, we'd much rather get out to avoid cabin fever.
San Francisco cinephiles and holiday movie lovers have plenty of reason to do so with two programs designed for those whose idea of cheer is cozying up to the big screen. The first is a very kid-friendly series titled "Christmas with Walt Disney." It runs from December 24-January 4 at The Walt Disney Museum, highlighting holiday miscellany like The Nutcracker Suite from Fantasia, Pluto's Christmas Tree, and "rarely seen home movies of Walt and his family." ]]>
In the unforgiving world of public opinion, there are pushbacks, there are pushbacks, and then there's what the Disney empire will do to protect its brand. Remember that scene from South Park? Yeah.
The personal image of Walt Disney has taken more than a few hits over the last decade. In response his heirs are opening a $112 million museum in San Francisco, the purpose being to dispel some of the wilder myths about Walt Disney the man. The Walt Disney Family Museum, set to open in Fall 2009, will be run by the former deputy director of the Harvard University Art Museums, Richard Benefield.
The museum, made up of three buildings located in San Fran's Presidio, will be dedicated entirely to Walt's life. It will have 215 video monitors and feature all manner of unique Disney memorabilia. The exhibits will cover everything from the conditions of Walt's childhood to the production of Snow White to the political controversies that swirled around him.]]>