Books & movies to see/read before trip?

[sn00zn]

Ok, this is probably a little obsessive/compulsive, but I think it's fun to be familiar with all the themes before hitting the theme park. I'd just like to know if anyone can add to my "research" list.

Movies: Jaws, Earthquake (which doesn't appear to be available in DVD-yikes!), Twister, Men In Black, Back to the Future, Jurassic Park, Spider-man, Shrek, X-Men, ET, Ghostbusters, Beetlejuice.

And of course the various part 2's going with some of these. Are there any others that are heavily referenced, say in the horror makeup show or elsewhere which wouldn't be obvious? I'm sure I've forgotten at least a few that ARE obvious too!

As for television, I guess anything on Nick that I'm willing to let my kids watch would be good. Does anyone know if any of the superheroes are on TV? My little guy loves Justice League, but Dark Marauder informed me they are, sadly, not Marvel. Are the X-men on TV?

For books, I'm thinking mostly of the Dr. Seuss books. Oh, what sacrifices I make, reading Seuss books to my kids so they will better enjoy their vacation ...I know that The Cat in the Hat, One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish, and If I Ran the Zoo should be on our short list. Are there any others that have small exhibits or characters on the Caro-Seussel or anything? I can't think of any other books....maybe reread Jurassic Park.

Well, here's an obscure question.....Dark Marauder also informed that me that, much to my oldest daughter's chagrin, Xena is no longer in the parks. Are there perhaps any similar female characters? Aren't some of the X-men actually women? Are there comic books or anything that star female characters we might see in the parks?

Wow, with the length of this post I really do come off as pretty obsessive/compulsive, but I appreciate any advice folks can offer!

snoozn

 

[damo]

Add Terminator to the list and watch some Jimmy Neutron cartoons.

Learn about Popeye and Dudley Do-Right.

A little mythology would help with Poseidan, Zeus, etc.

Also learn about Sinbad.

 

[Prince Eric1]

We rented Sinbad for the kids (disney version) and bought Dudley Doright out of Walmarts $5.50 bargain bin (glad I didn't pay more for that). They have seen Popeye on TV and I think everyone knows Dr. Suess. I think it will be cool that their first trip will follow just after Spiderman 2's release. They of course love Shrek and I got my youngest to watch ET, and we all watched MIB 1 and 2. Hopefully this way they will appreciate the decor put into the rides as well as the animatronics and understand them a little better.

 

[BarbaraMB]

WOW! You will be busy. Don't forget The Mummy and I Love Lucy.

 

[sn00zn]

Thanks for all the suggestions....and I knew I would forget some obvious ones! Some I would never have thought of (didn't know there was a Disney version of Sinbad for instance!) I now have all these titles set on auto-record in Tivo and/or in my Netflix queue, so hopefully by November we will have had a chance to see everything! We already have tons of Dr. Seuss books and a few on Greek mythology, so we should be ready. Time to get to work now...(I'm also glad to know I'm not the only one who does this kind of "planning"!) Thanks!

snoozn