Where to Listen to Fan-Favorite Disney Performers, Get Amazing Collectibles, and More!

Love checking out vintage Disney items or cool collectibles? Want to learn more about some of the people who created your favorite Disney characters? Would you love to dance along to songs performed by popular bands that used to be in Disney World (like Off Kilter)?! Want to help a good cause?

If you said “yes” to any of the above, then there’s an event going on right now that you’ll want to check out!

Right now, the 2021 DIS Family Reunion is taking place primarily in Disney’s Contemporary Resort! Specifically, the event is going on today (September 9th), tomorrow (September 10th), and there will be a special After Hours event on September 11th (note that the After Hours event is already sold out).

The event features all kinds of great Disney merchandise you can bid on or purchase, performances from fan-favorite Disney groups, interesting panels to attend, and more. And what makes this even better is that the event benefits Give Kids the World Village — a nonprofit resort in Central Florida that provides kids with critical illnesses and their families weeklong, cost-free vacations.

Today we were invited by the DIS to check out some of the 2021 DIS Family Reunion. First, we stopped by to see some of the vendors and special guests that were available. At the event, you could grab some candles inspired by some of your favorite Disney scents by Magic Candle Company…

…fun items from The Lost Bros…

…and even a bracelet or two from Lillian & Co.

Even the Dreamfinder himself, Ron Schneider, was there!

Whether you’re into Funko Pop! figures or other things, there are a whole bunch of items to look at and purchase.

Next, we stopped by one of the panels. This panel was all about stories from Disneyland’s opening.

We got to hear from some Cast Members who were there back in the very early days of Disneyland. Specifically, Tom Nabbe, Bill Hoelscher, and Bill Sullivan were there reminiscing about the opening of the Happiest Place on Earth.

Never heard of Tom Nabbe? Well, he’s got some INTERESTING stories to tell! Nabbe shared how he had a paper route and he’d sell the extra papers outside Disneyland in the mornings to the construction workers there. Then, he was hired to sell newspapers to guests. If Nabbe was able to sell 100 newspapers outside, he’d then be allowed inside the park!

A bit later, when they were making Tom Sawyer Island, someone told Nabbe that he looked like Tom Sawyer, and that he should ask Mr. Disney (meaning Walt) if he could be Tom Sawyer in the park. According to Nabbe, he essentially annoyed Walt for a LONG time. At one point Walt even reportedly said that he could just put a mannequin up and it would look like Tom Sawyer/Nabbe anyway. But, eventually Walt did hire Nabbe to play Tom Sawyer in the park!

Want to know one of the more glorious parts of Nabbe’s work as Tom Sawyer? At the beginning, fishing on Tom Sawyer Island was catch-and-clean, and it was Nabbe who had to clean the fish and put them in bags! But, guests started leaving the dish all over the park causing a rather bad odor. So, the fishing was quickly changed to catch-and-release. It’s always fascinating to hear these stories from the individuals who were there experiencing it all.

This isn’t the only panel being offered today though. You can visit the 2021 DIS Family Reunion site to learn more, but here’s a quick look at some of the panels going on later today.

Tonight there will also be some spectacular entertainment from fan-favorite Disney performers like Yehaa Bob, Off Kilter, and American Martian (formerly known as Mulch, Sweat, and Shears).

And here’s a peek at some of the panels that will be going on tomorrow (the 10th).

There’s even a panel set to take place tomorrow that will talk about the legacy of the Haunted Mansion!

And there will be more fun to be had tomorrow night as members of the Mickey Mouse Club reunite!

Want to bid on some pieces in the auction? You can do that too! We saw a variety of different items available including this classic cup set…

…a vintage Mickey Mouse telephone…

…stuff for the Marvel Fans…

…a Kitchen Kabaret Hand Towel(!!!)…

…this terrifying vintage Peter Pan costume…

…and more! You can bid on these items online on the 2021 DIS Family Reunion page.

If you want to visit the DIS Family Reunion, you can buy tickets online. Note that there are a variety of different ticket options available, we’re just showing 2 of them below.

If you want to check out some of these fun panels, buy cool merchandise, and support a great cause, then be sure to visit the 2021 DIS Family Reunion page for more information!

We’ll keep an eye out for more updates around Disney World and let you know what we find.

Will you be attending the DIS Family Reunion? Tell us in the comments!

Disclosure: We were invited by the DIS to attend this event. This did not affect our reporting of the event — our opinions are our own.

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