Walt Disney A Magical Life | Disneyland | Walt Disney Animatronic Analysis

Imagination Skyway

Matthew Krul

History, Society & Culture, Places & Travel, Kids & Family

5 • 830 Ratings

🗓️ 23 July 2025

⏱️ 80 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Walt Disney—A Magical Life opened at Disneyland on July 17, 2025 (the 70th anniversary of Disneyland) in the Main Street Opera House (to be rotated with Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln). With Walt Disney One Man's Dream as the opening sequence, this new attraction features the first-ever Audio-Animatronic figure to depict Walt Disney. On July 15, I had the honor of attending a special media preview of this brand new show with the opportunity to view the show twice plus hear from the Imagineers (Tom Fitzgerald and Jeff Shaver-Moskowitz) and Walt Disney Family Museum representatives (Kristen Komoroske) who worked on this new experience. In this episode, I'm joined by Jack Kendall from DSNY Newscast to discuss this new attraction, including plenty of honest and detailed analysis about the new Walt Disney Audio-Animatronic and some discussion about the lobby experience (led by Imagineer Kim Irvine) and film sequence. Thank you to Disneyland for this very special opportunity and for inviting me to attend this media event. Get bonus content, ad-free episodes, and more at patreon.com/imaginationskyway. Create your own Disney travel memories with our sponsor KMV Travel. Subscribe to WDW Magazine and receive 15% off with code SKYWAY when visiting https://www.wdw-magazine.com/shop/?ref=SKYWAY Tag me and join the conversation below. YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@imaginationskyway Instagram: www.instagram.com/imaginationskyway Facebook Group (ImagiNation): https://www.facebook.com/groups/imaginationskyway Facebook: www.facebook.com/imaginationskyway TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@imaginationskyway Threads: https://www.threads.net/@imaginationskyway Twitter: www.twitter.com/skywaypodcast Email: [email protected] How to Support the Show Share the podcast with your friends Rate and review on iTunes - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-imagineerpodcasts-podcast/id1244558092 Join our Patreon Group - https://www.patreon.com/imaginationskyway Purchase merchandise - https://www.teepublic.com/stores/imagineer-podcast?ref_id=8929 Enjoy the show!

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome aboard Imagination Skyway, your guided tour through the worlds of Disney and Imagineering.
0:18.0	I'm Matthew Krall, your host on this panoramic journey, and I'm on a mission to better
0:22.5	understand the stories and places we love and the people who bring them to life.
0:27.1	Today's episode is a very special one.
0:29.2	Earlier this month, I had the remarkable opportunity to attend the first public viewing
0:34.0	of Walt Disney A Magical Life, thanks to a very special invitation from Disneyland
0:39.5	and Walt Disney Imagineering. This show has been highly anticipated, as it includes the first
0:45.4	ever audio animatronic figure of The Man Behind the Mouse, Walt Disney. In today's episode,
0:51.6	I'm joined by Jack from DSNY Newscast as we discuss our first impressions
0:56.1	of this brand new show, which we had the privilege of seeing twice during the media preview.
1:01.2	We'll also discuss the details you won't want to miss in the lobby prior to the show, and we'll
1:06.2	share some of the things we learned from the panel that featured Becky Klein, director of the Walt
1:10.5	Disney Archives, Tom Fitzgerald,, director of the Walt Disney Archives,
1:11.6	Tom Fitzgerald, senior creative executive at Walt Disney Imagineering, Jeff Schaver Moskowitz,
1:16.7	portfolio executive creative producer at Walt Disney Imagineering, and Kristen Komorski, executive director
1:22.2	of the Walt Disney Family Museum. As you fasten your seatbelts, I encourage you to take out
1:26.7	your mobile devices and search for
1:28.3	Imagination Skyway on your favorite social media app. Better yet, if you're looking for ad-free
1:32.8	episodes, bonus content, or the ability to comment directly on the podcast, head to patreon.com
1:38.8	slash Imagination Skyway, where you can sign up for a free account or a premium subscription.
1:49.0	And if this episode leaves you yearning for a trip to Disneyland or any other destination,
1:57.5	reach out to our partners and sponsors at KMV Travel by visiting kMVTravel.com slash skyway.
	...

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