SaturdaysToys.com Hosting the Annette Funicello Research Fund Exhibition at D23 2015

"Through the years we'll all be friends wherever we may be"

- from the "Mickey Mouse Club Alma Mater" by Jimmy Dodd

As over 40,000 fans gather in August for Disney's D23 Expo 2015, the Walt Disney Company will also be celebrating the 60th Anniversary of Disneyland's dedication and grand opening.

Among the performers who participated in the live coast-to-coast broadcast on July 17, 1955 were a group of young people making their own debut as the original Mouseketeers of Walt Disney's new "Mickey Mouse Club." Of the twenty-four children who appeared on camera that day, it would be a shy twelve-year-old girl by the name of "Annette" who would sing and dance her way into our hearts.

In celebrating that historic milestone, the Annette Funicello Research Fund for Neurological Diseases will present the inaugural public exhibition of Annette's most celebrated awards, including the Disney Legends Award and her own star from the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Also, hidden within her home for over five decades, Annette's "Tower of Talent" award for her smash hit single "How Will I Know My Love, will be exhibited for the first time in history. Presented to Annette in 1959 by New York's WPTR Radio, the award would follow Annette's featured performance at one of the earliest rock and roll stadium shows of that era. On hand that night to witness the presentation were several of her friends and fellow performers including Frankie Avalon, Fabian and Connie Francis.

In addition to the artifacts from Annette's personal archive scheduled for display at D23 Expo, a vintage collection of Annette's high school homework assignments (1958-1959) has recently surfaced. A limited edition of only 100 signed and and dated pages will be offered to benefit the Annette Funicello Research Fund. Held for the past half century in the collection of Mrs. Jean Seaman, the Mouseketeers' teacher at the Walt Disney Studio, these hand-written treasures will be made available exclusively to D23 Expo attendees for a minimum donation of $100 or more to the Annette Funicello Research Fund.

The exhibit, hosted by SaturdaysToys.com (Exhibit Hall A / Booth A307), will be on display from Friday, August 14 thru Sunday, August 16 at D23 Expo 2015 in the Anaheim Convention Center.

Tickets for D23 Expo are currently available at: www.d23expo.com

We hope to see you there!!

Comments

Annette Funicello: Tributes from Fans and Friends

It's simply not often enough that I have the opportunity to alert our readers of a brand new Annette related product, but finally, the long dry spell between such releases has come to an end with the book, Annette Funicello: Tributes from Fans and Friends . Rita Rose, former president of Annette's international fan club, has compiled the personal memories and reflections of over forty individuals who are related to, have met, worked with or befriended this most likable star. While Annette is famously remembered for being the same person in her daily life as she appears on screen, this book takes you deeper and reveals some of the lesser known dimensions of her character and personality. Find out what it was like to encounter Annette as a fan, to be a guest in her home, to collaborate with her in the recording studio and attend to her on-set or on one of her early promotional tours in the '60s. Some share how they first learned and reacted to the news of Annette...

NEWS: Bikini Beach and Pajama Party Debut on Blu Ray

Just in time for Christmas, MGM is releasing two of Annette's classic AIP films on Blu ray - a wonderful gift to fans this Holiday season! BIKINI BEACH (1964) and PAJAMA PARTY (1964) are both currently available to order at major retailers online and are scheduled to ship by December 5th. Those familiar with the MUSCLE BEACH PARTY, BEACH BLANKET BINGO and HOW TO STUFF A WILD BIKINI Blu Rays can attest to the beautifully enhanced image and sound quality revealed in those releases. It is assumed we can expect the same level of improvement over the old DVD's for these latest titles as well!

A CLOSER LOOK: The Annette Cheerios Cereal Box

When it comes to Annette cut-out dolls, it's fair to say that among the rarest isn't one of the brightly colored doll books produced by Whitman Publishing for retail markets between 1956 and 1962...but rather an Annette doll offered for free on the back of a cereal box! In 1958, General Mills included an Annette cut-out doll on the packaging of Cheerios breakfast cereal. The doll, doll stand and a few outfits and accessories were printed directly on the back and left-hand side panel of the box, ready to test one's scissor skills and provide hours of playtime fun. While vintage, uncut cereal box panels with the Cheerios doll will surface from time-to-time on the collectors market, surprisingly, the front panel featuring unique and charming artwork of Annette promoting the doll included with purchase was rarely if ever preserved. Even rarer are complete, fully assembled boxes which are nearly impossible to find today. Given it's scarcity, I feel especially f...

Blog

Search This Blog