D23 Shopping, Popcorn Bucket Chaos, and Joe Rohde’s “Floating Mountains” (Ep. 113)

Fresh from D23 in Anaheim, Jim Hill and Lauren Hersey unpack what it was really like to shop the show floor, from virtual queues and coveted merchandise to fans finding creative ways around the reservation system. Lauren shares what surprised her about D23 Day at Disneyland, the new Imagineering apparel collection, and Disney’s increasingly social-media-driven activations. Then Jim and Lauren turn to legendary Imagineer Joe Rohde and his new book, Floating Mountains: The Art of Imagining the Impossible, including how Rohde’s work connects the Adventurers Club to Disney’s later Living Character Initiative.

NEWS

• D23 Day at Disneyland brings massive merchandise lines, exclusive releases, and the Hatbox Ghost popcorn bucket frenzy.

• Disney’s D23 shopping system puts fans up against limited virtual queues for the Marketplace, Mickey’s of Glendale, the Company Store, and other high-demand locations.

• Lauren explains how some attendees gamed shopping reservations, paid others to hold places in line, and bought merchandise in bulk.

• Disney+ and Hulu lean heavily into photo activations and social sharing across the D23 show floor.

• The new Walt Disney Imagineering apparel collection turns out to be understated clothing designed by Imagineers for Imagineers - with a very unusual mobile-order shopping process.

FEATURE

• Jim and Lauren discuss Joe Rohde’s Floating Mountains: The Art of Imagining the Impossible and what sets it apart from a traditional Disney memoir.

• Rohde offers a behind-the-scenes look at Imagineering’s creative process, leadership style, and the development of experiences such as the Adventurers Club.

• Jim traces the roots of Disney’s interactive “living characters” from the Adventurers Club back to an unusual talking vulture once installed inside Disneyland’s Club 33.

HOSTS