Disney 100 Exhibit at the Franklin Institute

I knew Disney Theme Parks would be celebrating the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the Walt Disney Company (Disney always loves a celebration). What I didn't realize until reading DAPS's FaceBook post (which referenced his blog post) was that the celebration includes a special exhibit at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. While part of me would love to return to Disneyland for the celebration, I know it is not going to happen. I ache for the Disneyland that celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2005 when we wandered the park with 3-year-old Ashley in costume and the character interaction was magical. Things changed. The "hidden secret" of the early 2000s is now just as crowded all-year round as Walt Disney World was at the time. That and our travel dreams are taking us East towards Europe instead of the West Coast.

The exhibit opened at the Franklin Institute on February 18. Looks like it is running through August 26. Tickets are $25 for the museum + $25 for the special exhibit, or $25 to see the special exhibit in the evening (without the rest of the museum). As I said to people, much cheaper than a trip to California. We arrived early hoping to be let in early. No dice ... timed tickets mean timed tickets. Hang out near the entrance so you can be within the first to walk in at your time slot. Seemed to take them 20 minutes to process the 6 pm group and we didn't want to lose precious time in a Disney line.

Before walking into the exhibit I was transported to Disneyland when I saw these
two women cosplaying different stages of Aurora's life. Though we saw many Disney sweatshirts and other gear, they were the only cosplayers we noticed.

The exhibit opens with a hologram of Walt Disney. It is jaw dropping. His speech only lasts a minute, but it is long enough to teleport you to the past.

Due to impatience and poor planning on my part (impatience in that I really wanted to see it as soon as I could, poor planning in that I didn't buy tickets when I first heard about it), we were only able to get the last time slot for the day -- 6:30 PM, with the museum closing at 8. I had been told it takes anywhere from one to two hours to go through, depending on how much of a Disney fan you are. After watching Walt speak, I didn't have the patience to move at the pace of the person in front of me not knowing how much there was still to see. The exhibit started with the early days when Walt first created Mickey Mouse. 

My mind was racing ... how many rooms are there? How is it organized? What will I see? So Don and I moved away from the walls and moved to the end of the exhibit first. The room that felt like Main Street USA in Disneyland. The place where I fell most in love with all things Disney 18 years years ago. 

After taking a few pictures, we knew how to pace ourselves, so we walked back to almost the beginning. (In hindsight, I should have returned to the very beginning to see Walt's speech, but I suspected I could find a link to it online later, and I did.) Though the rooms at the start were still crowded, being the last ones in meant no one else was being added to the exhibit. We took oodles of pictures, and swapped tales with other Disney fans.

If you want a solid review of the exhibit, read DAPs link above. His post has the stats and the details. I didn't read his blogpost or any other news beforehand. Now that I have, I'd like to return and enjoy the exhibit again. There is much that I missed, and much I didn't appreciate. There is just THAT MUCH to immerse yourself in to appreciate all of the details. Much like a day at Disneyland.

Following are a bunch of pictures of what stood out to me at the exhibit. Major Disney fans should see it for yourselves. Minor Disney fans, this should be enough.

Guessing game ... match the color palette
with the character

Glad someone kept this gem

Walt Disney's nametag

As I was walking past this scene from "Enchanted,"
I overheard a little girl say how much she doesn't
like this movie. Ouch! I like it.

Matterhorn bobsleds from before
the refurbishment to make them safe.

Same with Peter Pan.

Minnie Mouse's dress from the 50th Anniversary celebration.
It looks so small without her in it.

Grandee use to say the "It's a Small World" dolls all reminded her of a mini-me. :) I don't see the resemblance, but I smile when I see them because they make me think of my grandmother.

Love it!

The Disney theater room was my second favorite (behind the one reminding me of Disneyland).

Many rare artifacts, like Cinderella's slipper and Pinocchio.
Helps to forget that they are really animated productions and should not have real items.

Alice always makes me think of Ashley.

This was in the movie section,
but reminded me of riding the Carousel with Mary Poppins and Bert in Disneyland.

A few weeks ago, Don and I saw the original Winnie the Pooh in New York City.

Disney is the original master of marketing.

Warms my heart someone saved all of this.

Though the exhibit was to close at 8, and we were there until the end, we did not once feel rushed. There were plenty of people still enjoying the exhibit as we left. 

Saying "hello" to Ben Franklin.

As we left the museum it was a lovely evening weather-wise. I wasn't ready to hop in the car and go home so I googled "ice cream near me." Much to my surprise, the nearest ice cream place was only a quarter mile away.

The real surprise is we had no idea Jeni's (a Columbus-based ice cream parlor) was so close to home. What a sweet way to end our adventures.