Day 13 -
Needless to say, from here on in, a blanket
spoiler alert is in effect. If you're planning to go on the Adventures by Disney: Backstage Magic tour, there are several big surprises that you might want to keep a surprise.
We were scheduled to meet our transfer into Hollywood at 8:00 a.m. at LAX. We didn't know what to expect, a bus, car or horse. It turned out to be a private car that took us through L.A. to Hollywood, and dropped us off at Loew's Hollywood Hotel. It was undergoing construction at the time, so on the inside it didn't look much different than a Holiday Inn. Still, it's perfectly located at Hollywood and Highland, with direct access to Hollywood Boulevard, the Hollywood and Highland Center, and Graumann's Chinese Theatre. (Also, because of the construction we were gifted free internet access during our stay. Bonus!)
The Hollywood and Highland Center is designed to look like the set of the silent film Intolerance, an epic movie known for its excess. The original set was built on Sunset Boulevard and left standing for several years before being declared a hazard and torn down.
It was in the Loews' makeshift lobby that we met our two tour guides, Christian and Summer Rose. They were, predictably, extremely welcoming and nice, and their enthusiasm for the tour rivaled ours. We chatted for a spell, and it looked like were the first of the tour group to arrive. Our rooms weren't ready yet, so we left our bags with them and ventured out into the Hollywood wilderness.
It was a Sunday morning, and even Hollywood Boulevard was deserted and naked enough to see the garbage, dirt and tawdry little souvenir stores. It was hard to believe that we were at the nexus of the movie world, past and present. The story of Hollywood is the cheap made luxurious, the ugly made beautiful, and the ephemeral made mythic. If there's a single building that embodies these things, it's Graumann's Chinese. It's visual shorthand for Old Hollywood, and we found many a familiar footprint, but the old place is definitely showing its age. Immediately next to the old theater is the newer, colder Dolby Theater, formerly the Kodak Theater, where the Academy Awards are staged.
We had avoided seeing
Monsters University upon its release, because we'd purchased VIP tickets to the early showing at the El Capitan theatre. The El Capitan is owned by Disney, and its feature films are frequently premiered there. Even before Disney, the theatre hosted vaudeville and films, including the premiere of
Citizen Kane. Disney has even restored the theatre to its original Art Deco glory, including an authentic silent picture-era organ, and each film they show there begins with an organist, a live stage show, and a curtain show.
But with time to spare before the picture began, we wandered, taking photos.
Yeti will be enrolling at MU in the fall.
Not knowing how brisk business would be at the box office, we pre-bought our VIP tickets online. It turned out to not be necessary, because, apparently, people don't like watching movies at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday morning, no matter how nice the theatre is. Our VIP status, however, did get us a collectable popcorn bucket and drink, and pre-arranged seats. The movie, of course, was a delight.
It was after the show that we were looking forward to, because the theatre is attached to Disney's Soda Fountain & Studio Store.
If the El Capitan is the site of Disney's movie premieres, the Soda Fountain & Studio Store is the site of Disney's pin premieres, and some can only be found there. We bought some goodies at the store before setting down at the soda fountain for some lunch. (But before anyone who isn't in the know gets too excited, we've taken so long writing this trip report that the Soda Fountain no longer stands as it did during our honeymoon. It's now a less a unique 1950's soda fountain and more of a Ghirardelli ice cream food court. We were very disappointed to hear the news, but glad we made it in before the changeover!)
The inside is decorated like a soda fountain from the 1940's with employees in candy-striped vests and chrome stools. The menu is straight-forward diner fare with some Disney touches. They know their audience, and there are two Disney-themed sundaes on the menu, including Mickey's Masterpiece, served in a Sorcerer Mickey hat, and the Pintrader's Delight, a milkshake glass filled to brim and beyond with ice cream, fudge, marshmallow and whip cream. The Pintrader's Delight also comes, naturally, with a limited edition pin that changes every couple of days, as they sell sundaes and run out. We literally got the last pin in the edition (Mushu) before the pin changed over to Roger Rabbit.
French Dip
Hot Pastrami
Pin Trader's Delight and Mushu pin (it was the last one of edition and the server put it aside for us when she heard we wanted to order the sundae after our sandwiches!)
With our bellies full and wallets empty (there were limited edition Marie pins!), we retired back to hotel to rest and wait for the welcome dinner with our fellow travellers. But not before we ran into a couple of familiar faces:
Minnie! Donald! Wait… that's not… Oh god why?!
Our bags had already been delivered to the room. We had a south-facing room that looked past Hollywood Boulevard towards downtown L.A. A north-facing room would have had a clear view towards the Hollywood sign.
The Dolby Theatre: home of the Academy Awards ceremony