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Walt Disney Treasures - Disneyland USA

Walt Disney Treasures - Disneyland USA

List Price: $32.99
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Still The Happiest Place On Earth!
Review: At last! I hope there will be more to follow. I agree that there was too much cut out, but Disneyland played a very important role in my life. I was 12 years old when it first opened, and spent many hours there. It is my kids' favorite place and now my grand kids too! I didn't care too much for the 10th Anniversary Show. So much more could have been put on the disc. And, why can't we get "Song of the South?" Such a classic! I am hoping for more of the '50's Disneyland on DVD. If you were in Disneyland during this time era, you won't be disappointed! What a "flashback!"

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Sentimental and fun, but not an exceptional DVD
Review: Im a unique Disney fan. I can enjoy everything I read and view, but I can also be critical of the quality and content. It seems some of the Disney fans cannot do that. So here goes.

The presentation is awesome. A fine case and a cleverly packaged set. Probably a big reason I bought the set.

Like other reviewers, I was disappointed with the lack of chapter access and the generally poor quality of the "historic" clips. I understand the package is supposed to be archival but I have seen better clips on the Disney Channel.

There is plenty to enjoy...and on the second disc the sections on the imagineers is awesome. However, the "Magic Kingdom" piece on the second disc is choppy and contains footage from the other sections of the disc. Its called Magic Kingdom but it is about Disneyland. Hmmmm.

When Walt isnt in some corny staged scene...and he is allowed to just speak the moments shine with sentimentality and creativity. What a remarkable American!

The people watching is fun too. The Shah of Iran, Frank Sinatra (Sr. and Jr.!) Nehru...holy cow. Satchmo sings and plays the horn and you just wish you were there way back when.

So, what can I say? For a Disney addict, watch it and enjoy it (flaws and all). For others, Im not too sure this is worth buying.

Hope this was helpful.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Disney does it again...
Review: What should have been a fantastic DVD release is scuttled by the Disney company. As has been documented in other posts, the shows are edited (although the box claims they're 'uncensored') and there are intrusive safety warnings during the firewalker scenes. Very silly. If this set was complete and unaltered, it'd be a 5-star release. Unfortunately Disney couldn't seem to get the release right despite the fact that the original shows air on the Disney Channel all the time.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Cheap Time Travel
Review: Disneyland is my favorite place on earth. I've alwys wondered about the live opening of the park I've heard so much about and it's wonderful to finally see it for myself! All four of these shows are great commercials for the park and really made me want to go back again. Not only are they instructive in how the park has changed, but they remain very entertaining. I was grooving along with Louis Armstrong, laughing at the scientist with the ping pong balls, amazed at the backstage material of Pirates of the Carribean, and applauding the Davey Crockett performance in Frontierland. It was a great first viewing! I only wish it was a bit more special somehow.

There isn't any real bonus material and the shows themselves, though fun to watch don't give me time to truly inspect the park as much as I thought they would. I guess a documentary is what I'm looing for to add to the experience. I'm very glad I purchased the DVD, but I'm not sure how much I'll be rewatching it. The shows include reused footage from other programs ie: The Sorcerer's Apprentice and Lonesome Ghosts (both in black ans white) as well as Disneyland footage seen in one show, shown again in another. I realise that's how these show's originally aired, but something is needed to make it more of a learning experience. The menu system is strange in that I didn't know which show I was accessing. But, still this a great set for any fan of Disneyland and should not be missed.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Warning: Scenes cut. Faded color print. No chapter access.
Review: This is the biggest DVD disappointment of the year. First, these are edited episodes. The episodes shown on the Disney Channel for the past 18 years are more complete. Cut scenes include songs from the Enchanted Tiki Room and every scene with the Mouseketeers at the 1955 opening of Disneyland! Was it simply because Disney didn't want to pay them royalties? There may be additional cuts, since the running times are much shorter than the original programs (even without ads).

Edited material should be labeled as such; I bought the set for material that is missing. That alone would be reason for a no-star rating.

Second, the prints of the color episodes are faded and speckled, even though Disney has better source material available; the Disney Channel versions have excellent color and no speckles. It's disappointing that Disney didn't bother to use their best prints for the DVD presentation. (The Davy Crockett box set is also poor, compared with cable prints.)

Third, the menus are bare-bones, with no direct access to the many chapters, which include many performances or brief appearances that would have made natural chapter stops. In addition, extras are skimpy and rather pointless. The "documentary" simply shows brief clips of scenes already in the episodes. There are no behind-the-scenes photos or text, either on the discs or in the booklet. (This could have been a treasure trove of backstage information.) Instead, Leonard Maltin's commentary is forced upon us at the start. If non-original programming must be added, it should be optionally accessible.

These were some of my favorite shows when I was young, so I was greatly looking forward to the DVD. Yes, it provides fascinating programming you may not have access to, but it does not reveal that it is cut, and it is sloppy in its poor presentation and lack of DVD potential, including menu features. I hope that Disney is persuaded to improve upon this in its future releases of treasured TV programming. They were always the gold standard in caring for the audience; let's hope they become so once again.

PS: Sammy Davis Jr. is second-billed as "entertainment." Sammy fans will also feel ripped off. All he does is drive by in a bumper car. Did anyone at Disney actually look at these shows?

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Be Warned: More Cuts
Review: Despite the package's Claim that the shows are uncut, The sequence with the 1950's Mouseketeers in "Dateline Disneyland" (after Mickey & Minnie enter the Disneyland theater) has been completely removed from the DVD. Not a treasure at all.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Real Treat for Disney Fans
Review: This two-disc DVD treasury is a real treat for Disney fans. Consisting of four different "specials" about Disneyland, including a rare 10th Anniversary Show, the material here is both entertaining and archival. One can see footage of now-defunct rides such as the Submarine Voyage back in the seminal days of the park (the Submarine Voyage originally had live swimmers as mermaids). It is also interesting to hear Walt Disney talk about his visions for expanding the park, and see how some of the attractions (such as Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean) were designed from sketch to model. Not to be missed for those of us who love Walt Disney, his films and his theme parks.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: LET LEONARD MALTIN BACK IN THE VAULT!!!!!!!
Review: This series is excellent! I purchased all but the Davy Crockett DVD but I WILL be buying it very soon. This series is truly a delight for not just Disney fans but for all kids and adults alike! I hope that the Disney Company will continue to release TONS more of these treasures from there vault so we can share them with our friends, family and future generations in our homes. Let us hope that strong demand will persuade them to do so. I intend on writing Buena Vista Home Entertainment Inc. applauding them on the series and asking for more volumes.(HINT,HINT) The potential of this series is staggering! Imagine other volumes including ZORRO, THE MICKEY MOUSE CLUB(Including all the "Annette" and "Spin and Marty" serials), Goofy and Donald Duck shorts(mayby including some of the films Walt made for the war effort)and how about those forgotten ALICE COMEDIES starring Virginia Davis(all you Disney fans know what I am talking about). Another Disneyland (or WALT DISNEYS WONDERFUL WORLD OF COLOR)volume would be nice also! I also think it would be nice to have a (LONG OVER DUE)volume of Annette Funicello's work on TV (HORSEMASTERS, ESCAPADE IN FLORENCE,(BABES IN TOYLAND'S)BACKSTAGE PARTY, AND THE GOLDEN HORSESHOE REVUE). I know that this is a tall order but I really believe with the publics demand these examples I have mentioned could become a reality. So hurry and get these limited edition DVD's while you can!
-ENJOY!!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Glad Disney did this
Review: I am so glad Disney did this DVD set. I taped these shows off the Disney Channel several years ago. Just need more extras & in the future more of these shows on tape or DVD.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Oh...he is one.
Review: DVD Pro's.
1. Being able to freeze frame long enough to see that Bob Cummings is *not* kissing his wife in Frontierland.
2. Seeing Frankie and Sammy riding the cars of the Autopia.
3. Watching Walt wag his tongue almost lasciviously at the young hostess named ambAssador of Disneyland during its 10'th Anniversary.
4. Nice shots of a few of the rides, e.g. Matterhorn.
5. Jose explaining how the Tiki-birds' audio-animatronics work.
6. Watching foreign professor explain concept of nuclear fission via ping-pong balls and mouse-traps.
7. Tiny segment of Song of the South.

DVD Con's
1. Probably could have all been fit onto one DVD.
2. Leonard Maltin as the Narrator.
3. Uninteresting menus that don't really indicate well what you're going to see.
4. Regurgitated footage through many segments.

If you don't have the Disney Channel and have never seen this stuff, it's probably not a bad buy.


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