Dream It! Do It!

Dream It! Do It! 

A Presentation by Marty Sklar

Disney Gal Judy: This past Sunday, Kelly and I were fortunate enough to have been at the Museum of Science and Industry for a presentation by Marty Sklar for his new book Dream It! Do It! The event was opened by Kurt Haunfelner, VP of Exhibits and Collections for the museum.  This was a great person to open for Marty Sklar as Kurt worked for Disney under Marty many years ago.  Kurt shared many interesting tidbits on Marty's live at Disney such as: 

• Marty started working for Disney part-time a few weeks before Disneyland opened;
• He worked on all four exhibits for the 1964 New York World's Fair;
• He is a 2001 Disney Legend;
• He held many titles at the Walt Disney Imagineering including; Vice President of Concepts and Planning; then he was promoted to President and his last title was Vice Chairman and Principal Creative Executive of the Company; and
• He worked for Disney for 54 years.

Beat the Winter Blues at MSI Chicago

Raise your hand if you are tired of hearing "I'm bored". Keep them up if you think your children have been watching way too much television these past snow-covered weeks. Why not do yourself and your wallet a favor by heading the the Museum of Science and Industries this month. How can you beat this deal:

It’s FREE KIDS FEBRUARY at MSI!

From February 1 through February 28 the Museum of Science and Industry Chicago will offer FREE MUSEUM ENTRY to kids, ages 3-11. This is a perfect time to escape the house, beat the winter blues and experiment in fun at MSI with the whole family!

Free Museum Entry for kids also makes it a great time to purchase tickets to the Museum’s temporary exhibit offering, Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives, presented by D23: The Official Disney Fan Club. Explore nine decades of marvelous Disney innovation and history; see drawings, props, costumes and artwork from famed Disney films and television shows; and even learn to draw a favorite Disney character in the Animation Academy! (NOTE: This exhibit still requires an additional ticket for kids, but the Museum Entry portion for those 3-11 would be waived.)

MSI offers a convenient indoor garage parking to escape the cold—and an exciting day of science-filled adventures. Run in a human-sized hamster wheel. See lightning strike—indoors! Manipulate a tornado. Climb inside a historic locomotive. Dissect a real eyeball. Witness fiery chemistry at work. And much, much more

Free Kids Museum Entry tickets must be obtained on-site at the Museum ticket counter. They cannot be acquired online. Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives tickets can be added at ticket counter. For more information and restrictions, visit msichicago.org.

NOTE: This offer is good for child Museum Entry tickets only (valid for ages 3-11).Up to four free child tickets allowed with the purchase of one full paying adult. Additional experiences, including Omnimax^® films, U-505 Submarine on-board tour, Future Energy Chicago, Coal Mine, Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives and special tours are not included in Museum Entry. They require additional, timed-entry tickets. Offer not valid for groups taking advantage of group pricing or those using any other discount or offer.  No refunds will be given for tickets already purchased for February dates. Parking is not included.

Disney Gal Judy and I were just at the museum Sunday to attend a presentation/book signing by Disney Legend Marty Sklar. It was an inspiring afternoon which we will be posting about later this week. We also had a chance to revisit D23 Presents - Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives. How wonderful to see parents sharing their childhood Disney memories with their children as they walked through the exhibit. Why not share the magic with your children? Make sure your weekend plans include a stop at Chicago's Museum of Science and Industries, you won't be disappointed.

Dream It, Do It... Who is Marty Sklar?

Photo courtesy of MSI Chicago

That is the question many of my friends asked when I told them where I am going. The Museum of Science and Industries in Chicago reached out to Disney Gal Judy to cover Marty Sklar's presentation today, and she's letting me tag along! When I tried to explain to my friends exactly who this man is, words like "Disney Legend" and "He has a window" were met with many confused looks. (Yes, I have friends that are not Disney fanatics, believe it or not.)  Then I thought of the introduction in Marty's book "Dream It! Do It!: My Half-Century Creating Disney Magic Kingdoms", written by none other than the fabulously talented Richard Sherman. He wrote this song in 2009 when Marty retired, to celebrate his 50 years of dedication. If this doesn't fill in the blanks for my friends, I don't know what will. (Maybe Marty's book!)

Sung to the tune of Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious:

VERSE 1:
Before the doors of Disneyland
Were opened to the world
Young Marty Sklar was asked
To have his writing skills unfurled
The Disneyland newspaper
Was first product of his skills
Then PR and Publicity
Young Marty fit the bill...He's...

CHORUS:
Never fearing, Imagineering
Mar-ty Sklar-e-docious
For years he's led Imagineers
With passion so ferocious
Through stress and strains
He's held the reins
With leadership precocious
Never fearing, Imagineering
Mar-ty Sklar-e-docious

VERSE 2:
For Walt he wrote his speeches
And his annual reports
Then moved to WED to help create
Attractions and resorts
From Small World to Space Mountain
To eleven Disney Parks
Our Marty steered Imagineers
With their creative sparks... (and his)

repeat chorus

VERSE 3:
He's first to give out credit
To the great creative teams
His one persisting goal
Was to perpetuate Walt's dream
Succeed he did, and so we stand
As one to give three cheers
To Marty Sklar the champion
Of all Imagineers...He's

FINAL CHORUS:
Never fearing, Imagineering
Mar-ty Sklar-e-docious
For years he's led Imagineers
With passion so ferocious
Through stress and strains
He's held the reins
With leadership precocious
Never fearing, Imagineering
Mar-ty Sklar-e-docious!

We look forward to telling you all about this amazing opportunity this coming week. Keep your eyes on the blog for many pictures and stories!