Chuck Schmidt

Chuck Schmidt, bitten by the Disney bug at an early age, remembers watching The Mickey Mouse Club after school in the mid-1950s. During his 48-year career in the newspaper business, he channeled that love of Disney as the Sunday News and Travel editor for The Staten Island Advance. Chuck has written or co-authored seven books for Theme Park Press, including Disney's Dream Weavers, On the Disney Beat, An American in Disneyland Paris, Disney's Animal Kingdom: An Unofficial History and The Beat Goes On. Chuck has shared his passion for all things Disney in his Still Goofy About Disney blog on AllEars.Net since 2015. He resides in Beachwood, N.J., with his wife Janet. They have three adult children and seven grandchildren.


How Roy E. Disney Brought His Uncle’s Collaboration with Salvador Dali to Life

Posted on by Chuck Schmidt
In the late 1990s, Roy E. Disney was researching material in his quest to put together a sequel to "Fantasia." While in the Disney archives, he came across artwork from the 1940s by Disney Legend John Hench and world-renown surrealistic artist Salvador Dali. Thanks to the efforts of a team of Disney animators, that artwork would eventually become the Academy Award-nominated short film "Destino," which was released in 2003.
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The important role music has played throughout Disney history

Posted on by Chuck Schmidt
The record covers for Disneyland Records’ “Lady and the Tramp,” “Bambi” and “Pinocchio” soundtracks. [Chuck Schmidt] When plans for Epcot were being formulated in the 1970s, it dawned on Marty Sklar of Walt Disney Imagineering that he and his team were overlooking something important, fundamental and functional … a Disney parks staple that hadn’t seen … Continue reading "The important role music has played throughout Disney history"
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You can learn a lot by leafing through decades-old Disney magazines

Posted on by Chuck Schmidt
A magazine advertisement for Eastern Airlines, which was the official airline of Walt Disney World when the resort opened in 1971. [Chuck Schmidt] “You can observe a lot by watching.” So said the great American philosopher, Lawrence Peter [Yogi] Berra. Most of us have Disney books and magazines tucked away somewhere. Some are probably years, … Continue reading "You can learn a lot by leafing through decades-old Disney magazines"
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Disney Cruise Line’s Dream and Fantasy: A tale of two christenings

Posted on by Chuck Schmidt
Oversized Lumiere and Sebastian characters join the parade during the christening of the Disney Dream on Jan. 19, 2011. The Disney Cruise Line will be adding three new ships to its fleet, in 2021, 2022 and 2023. With that in mind, we thought we’d look back at the christenings of DCL’s two “newest” ships, the … Continue reading "Disney Cruise Line’s Dream and Fantasy: A tale of two christenings"
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