Disney Trivia Guy

Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone! I watched Disney’s Darby O’Gill and the Little People (1959) last night and I thought about writing this article about the little leprechaun that lives in Disneyland. Have you ever heard the tale of The Little Man of Disneyland? When Disneyland opened in 1955, there was a book published by Little Golden Books titled The Little Man of Disneyland.  Donald Duck is on the front cover. In the story, Patrick Begorra, a leprechaun, walked out of his house, which was in the trunk of an orange tree, to discover people walking around his orange grove. It was Donald, Mickey, Goofy, and Pluto. They said they were digging up the trees to build Disneyland. Patrick would have nothing to do with it. He tried to stop them. Mickey told him about a rocket trip, a Wild West stagecoach, and flying pirate ships. Patrick did not believe him, so Mickey flew him in their helicopter to the studio to show him the concept art for the park. Patrick agreed to let them build ...

I am sure you have all heard about the passing of Sean Connery, the first actor to portray James Bond on the big screen, and possibly the reason why the Bond films took off and did so well. For Disney, he starred in the family film Darby O'Gill and the Little People (1959) and for the last 13 years was the last surviving castmember until his passing yesterday. For Disney's Hollywood Pictures his starred in Medicine Man (1992) and The Rock (1996). For Disney's label Miramax , he starred in the romantic comedy Playing By Heart (1998). Now that Disney owns Lucasfilm , I'm sure we can count his appearance as Professor Henry Jones, Indiana Jones' father, in Indian Jones and the Last Cruisade (1989). He turned down the role of reprising Henry Jones in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) because he wanted to stay retired. The black and white photo is of him and his Darby O'Gill co-star Janet Munro (also from Swiss Family Robinson and Thir...