A New Disney Family Museum Premieres by Various Travel Authors on Creators.com

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A New Disney Family Museum Premieres

By Patricia Arrigoni

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — The Disney Family Museum, which recently opened in the Presidio of San Francisco, offers 19,000 square feet of exhibits that tell the personal story of Walt Disney and his family. It cost the Disney organization $110 million to transform an old brick Army barracks and two neighboring buildings into a state-of-the-arts set of galleries, a theater, cafŽ and gift shop.

One long curved corridor features large windows with a stunning view of the Golden Gate Bridge that looks like a lovely painting framed with palms and eucalyptus trees and white sailboats dotting the bay. (This is the only place inside where photos are allowed.)

The decor of the museum changes with ceilings and wall colors from gallery to gallery. Many are painted white mixed with red bricks and white ceilings containing open beams and pipes. The upper galleries have wooden floors (some carpeted) and black ceilings with projectors hanging down. Visitors then walk down a colorful curving ramp into a lower area to view a display of Walt Disney's original model design for Disneyland.

Everything is spotlessly clean and attended by young people dressed in black pants with purple tops. The crew in the cafŽ all wear black. They have been trained to be very polite, greeting visitors both at entry and departure. Several attendants monitoring the exhibits asked if I had any questions.

The museum features 10 permanent galleries: Beginnings (Walt's early years in Kansas, driving an ambulance in France after World War I and discovery of animated cartoons); Hollywood; New Horizons in the 1930s; The Move to Features; We Were in a New Business (new studio built in Burbank); The "Toughest Period in My Whole Life" (1941 workers strike and World War II); Postwar Production; Walt and the Natural World; The 1950s and 1960s: The Big Screen and Beyond (1964 World's Fair, Disneyland and TV); Dec. 15,1966 (at Walt's death, he was 65 years plus 10 days old).

I especially enjoyed family photographs because I had attended the University of Arizona in Tucson with Sharon Disney, the youngest daughter. She had told me about the miniature train her father had built around their home in Southern California called "The Lilly Belle" after her mother, Walt's wife. The little train was on display, along with photos of the family riding on top its cars.

The day I toured the museum, the crowds were light so the noise level was not bad — a combination of Walt talking from various displays, the audio from running films and constant music. I enjoyed seeing clips of old cartoons, animated and live feature films and nature specials.

There were shots from "20,000 League Under the Sea," "Peter Pan," "Lady & the Tramp," "Mary Poppins" and all the others that made Walt Disney such a memorable part of American culture.

IF YOU GO

It is a bit tricky to find the museum, which is located at 104 Montgomery. That street is usually associated with the business district in downtown San Francisco. I found it driving southeast on Lyon (a right turn if you are coming from the north over the Golden Gate Bridge and down Doyle Drive); right on Lombard which curves around into Presidio and Lincoln going west; left on Montgomery. There are no directional signs since the Presidio does not allow them. The museum has a small sign in front and a couple of flags on poles. There is plenty of free parking in front.

The Presidio is also served by MUNI, Golden Gate Transit, BART and the PresidiGo Shuttle. The Presidio Transit Center, located at 215 Lincoln Blvd., is a central hub and a short walk to the museum.

The Museum CafŽ offers a variety of sandwiches and salads, fresh fruits, chips and bottled drinks. I ate a fresh Caesar salad for $4.25 and bottled water for $1.65. Recycling bins have been placed near the tables.

The museum is open Wednesday to Monday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and closed Tuesdays and on Jan. 1, July 4, Thanksgiving and Dec. 25. The last entry time is 4:45 p.m. Tickets all have time stamps to avoid overcrowding.

Admission: adults, $20; students and seniors, $15; children, 7-17, $12.50; and younger kids free.

The Walt Disney Museum also features concerts, screenings, lectures and talks, classes and performances. Memberships are available.

My only criticism is that a few more chairs or benches along the way to pause and rest throughout the galleries would be helpful. This seems to be a constant complaint, according to one of the attendants.

For more information: The Walt Disney Family Museum, 104 Montgomery St., The Presidio of San Francisco, 415-345-6800; www.waltdisney.org or www.presidio.gov for directions.

Patricia Arrigoni is a freelance travel writer. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.