New Disney "Family run" park on Former Military Ba

[yoda_four]

From SaveDisney.com, via http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.c ... 797I51.DTL

Psst, Minnie, pass it on. San Francisco's Presidio is being eyed as a possible home for a major museum dedicated to the man who made Mickey Mouse.

Word is, the heirs of Walt Disney have approached the Presidio Trust about turning a century-old barracks at the old Army base into a permanent showcase for the life, art and philosophy of Disney.

The barracks needs $9 million to $10 million in seismic repairs and probably at least that much in other renovations to turn the place into a real museum.

Disney grandson Walt Miller confirmed, "We're in the middle of negotiations for the building.'''

Largely unbeknownst to the public, Disney's heirs have been leasing a small, unmarked warehouse in the Presidio for the past three or four years, where they've set up a display of photos, letters and other Disney mementos, according to well-placed sources.

Much of that material is already online in a "virtual museum'' at the Disney Family Foundation (disney.go.com/disneyatoz/waltdisney), which is hosted by Disney online but is not affiliated with Walt Disney Co.

Disney daughter Diane Miller says the online museum fulfills her lifelong ambition of helping people to "better understand Walt Disney as the man behind the myth.''

It even answers some persistent questions about the man, such as:

Was Walt dishonorably discharged from the Army?

Was it true he couldn't draw?

Was he a mean boss?

What was his favorite attraction at Disneyland?

And, was Walt frozen?

(The answers, according to the Web site's FAQ section: No, no, depends on who you ask, whatever he was working on at the time, and nope.)

One question that isn't answered is how some people in lefty San Francisco might feel about the Presidio hosting such a shrine to the flag- waving animator.

"Some people are going to freak -- we know that,'' admits one Presidio insider familiar with the plans.

Then again, with some 6 million square feet of rental space inside the park, Presidio officials are casting a wide net for tenants.

As for why Disney's heirs would be interested in the Presidio:

Family members wouldn't comment, but one Presidio source familiar with the project said Walt was a very patriotic gent and his family "liked the idea of it being on a former military base.''

Besides, his daughter and son-in-law spend most of their time around here these days -- in fact, they own the Silverado Winery up in the Napa Valley.

Awesome news! Hope they do this! Sounds almost like Walt's plans for setting up his "life" museum at Marceline, Missouri before his death. I'd want to visit this museum, especially if it doesn't have anything to do with Eisner, and is true to Walt. The Disney family rocks! Hope Roy's part of it as well.

[Ludwig Von Drake]

That would be great, I just went to the presideo last summer, though I didn't know that they had anything there then.

[wwwjim]

This sounds great, but it's a shame that the Disney family felt they had to put the museum outside of Anaheim or Orland (or Paris or Tokyo)! If these plans come to fruition, I'll definitely be a visitor. San Fransisco is one of the most beautiful in the country, and this would just be one more reason to go!