From All of Us to All of You, MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Christmas Card opening by Xtencio

"From All of Us to All of You" is a very popular Christmas special that was shown for the first time on December 19, 1958 as a holiday treat on the "Wonderful World of Color". As usual Walt Disney was the host introducing the show although a chirpy Jiminy Cricket took over those chores quickly as the segment moved into animation.

Mickey Mouse, brought to life with wonderfully expressive character animation provided by Les Clark started the musical ball rolling with Tinkerbell applying just the right amount of pixiedust to open the curtain. We were led through memorable sequences from many of the Disney classics from "Snow White" to "Lady and the Tramp" presented as Christmas cards with new animation bridging with the vintage clips.

More of X's wonderful artwork

Over the years as this special repeated, it would include new footage of films and projects that were upcoming from the Disney Studio. It was directed by a good friend of mine, former animation teacher and First Dean of the Character Animation Program at CalArts, Jack Hannah who directed most of those classic shows that featured Walt introducing the episodes from his "office". That "office" by the way was a near perfect re-creation, yes re-creation of Walt's office which was about a 10 minute walk from the soundstage and up 3 floors in the corner overlooking the backlot. It was easier to do that than disrupt the operation and privacy of Walt's real office which was also brimming with confidential memos, notes from meetings and project ideas not the least of which were future attraction suggestions for Disneyland which had recently opened a bit over 2 years earlier.

Hazel "Gil" George Walt's nurse and songwriter

By the way, I'll bet you dollars to doughnuts holes that  you don't know who wrote the lyrics for the title song, "From All of Us to All of You"?. The credit listed from the original airing is "Gil" George but a few of us will recognize that as an alias of sorts for Hazel. Hazel Gilman, later married as Hazel George wrote quite a few very memorable songs during this period from feature films like "Old Yeller" to bouncy songs like "Talent Roundup" for the Mickey Mouse Club. She pretty much gave up her song writing career in the early sixties although Hazel continued on as Walt's personal nurse, a position she had held since first treating his neck pain due to a polo injury from 1938. I wanted to mention her song writing career primarily because it seems to be largely unknown and ignored by Disney historians to this very day which is unfortunate when you consider her valuable contribution to the musical history of Disney Studios. It is also rather a significant responsibility in particular to this creation of this Christmas special.

Over time, the special "gained weight"  (don't we all? sigh) as they expanded it from the original 60 minutes in 1983 to 90 minutes and retitled it to "A Disney Channel Christmas". Unfortunately we don't see this special in this country for some reason as often as they do in the Nordic Countries of Sweden, Finland and Norway. In fact almost half the entire population of Sweden enjoys this holiday treat which is broadcast every Christmas Eve as their most popular and most watched show of the year.

Over yonder in that land known for meatballs, IKEA, and Ingrid Bergman, they call it "Kalle Anka och hans vanner God Jul" which is Swedish for "Donald Duck and his Friends Wish You a Merry Christmas!" Kinda roles off the tongue like lingonberry jelly doesn't it? And imagine, Donald getting top billing over Mickey! This delightful delicacy is still not available on DVD but here's wishing the Disney Studio will release it, the original 1958 version please, someday as part of a Holiday Collection so that new generations can enjoy what we have these many years.

So from All of Us to All of You, a very MERRY CHRISTMAS!

TOYS for TOTS!

Walt kicking off the annual "Toys for Tots" drive

Every year as the Christmas Season approaches, we can find a "Toys for Tots" sign or banner  heralding holiday solicitations to provide gifts for the disadvantaged children of America. When you placed that doll or game in the box, did you know that the Walt Disney Studio had a part in helping bring this worthy cause to fruition? Well it all began back in 1947 when a Major Bill Hendricks along with group of fellow Marines Reservists took it upon themselves to collect and ultimately distribute over 5,000 toys to children in need. Bill's wife Diane actually came up with the original idea when she asked her husband to hand out raggedy ann dolls she had hand crafted. She wanted to give them as gifts to needy children facing a bleak Christmas so soon after the war when many were still attempting to put their lives and financial future back together.

Familiar sign at the parks

Bill couldn't find an agency to help with the cause so he did what he had to do... create one!  So in 1947 "Toys for Tots" was born and became so successful that it spread its magnificent mission across our nation. One of the "perks" Bill had in his favor was that besides being a Marine Reservist, he also held an important post in civilian life as Director of Public Relations for Warner Brothers Studios. In that role he was able to garner support from many of Hollywood's celebrities to help with the campaign.

The celebrities of those days just seem a little different to me than some of the ones we see today on the five o'clock news. Maybe because they had suffered through the great depression and a second "war to end all wars" so they knew what real suffering was all about and were ready to lend a hand to help their fellow Americans.  Bob Hope, John Wayne and Doris Day and many others volunteered their services and vocals were supplied by legends including  Nat King Cole and Peggy Lee. No wonder they are referred to as "the Greatest Generation."

Early Disney Studio design

The second year of the program they all realized something was missing and that what was really needed now was a recognizable logo. Something bright and cheery that would immediately grab the attention of the public and at the same time encourage people to donate without coming off too pushy. That is precisely where Walt Disney stepped in. In 1948 Walt instructed his publicity artists at the Disney Studio to create the memorable design we all know today.

The jolly red choo-choo was inspired by Walt's love of trains and in fact the early drop off points for "Toys for Tots" were set up as large bins attached to one another to resemble the unique Disney railway design. This arrangement kept everything "on track" regarding the creation of a recognizable look the public would respond to and remember. Since its beginning back in 1947, "Toys for Tots" has distributed 450 million toys to 200 million needy children. So please give generously when you see a "Toy's for Tots" sign. That simple gesture on your part will brighten the Christmas season for a child in need of a little hope and little cheer in the shape of a toy from you.  -MP

Walt Disney World Christmas Cover

Mickey Monitor magazine for Disney Passholders

I was recently asked if I'd be interested in doing an original cover for the holiday issue of the annual Walt Disney World Magazine for Passholders, with the magical moniker of"Mickey Monitor". Being that it was obviously a Christmas theme and Mickey Mouse would be included I immediately nodded yes! Unfortunately it was an email and the Disney exec didn't see my head shaking up and down or hear it rattling so I emailed him back with a yuletide yessiree! 

The Mickey Monitor is a very popular magazine that is sent out to the Passholders 4 times a year and filled with wonderful behind the scenes photos and interviews as well as information about special events held at Walt Disney World for Passholders only . On the right are two inside pages  from the recent Fall 2012 Mickey Monitor discussing facts about the fabulous  New Fantasyland that mouse ears have been buzzing about.

One of my rough sketches, sepia pencil on paper

Now that I've explained the magazine for those new to it, I'll get back to the cover assignment.  Well Mickey had to have pal Pluto in the painting with him. Obviously  a man... er I mean a mouse and his dog was a natural setup. When I saw the skinny vertical format and was told it could also be enlarged as a 2-pager I decided to include his confederates in comedic cartoon collaboration, Donald and Goofy.

I sketched out a few different setups and settled on the one to the left. It's designed so when you first see the cover it'll be just Mickey and Pluto but as you open the 2 page spread it reveals two special holiday guests visiting the house of mouse. I sent in the rough pencil sketch and they liked the setup giving me the thumbs up to go for paint. I like it when they like it.

Cleanup drawing by Mike Peraza ready for color

I tightened up my rough into a 2-tone cleanup shown here to the right with the background drawn in blue and the characters in red just to keep it simple while I rendered it out. I didn't want to rush into color before having a fairly tight setup to work from. Disney Legend and friend Ken O'Connor instilled in me how important it is to be sure your layout's clear before going to color or you may be wasting a lot of time coloring and then re-coloring a badly composed illustration. Ken really knew his stuff so I listened.

After experimenting with quick little color studies I decided on the path below for the final direction with yellow as the brightest hue while including white to help pop the characters. The only black used is for character details like ears, noses, boots, etc to also help separate from the background where I didn't go that dark. I toned down the red in Goofy's Santa suit so as to give Mickey the "hot seat" so to speak and make him stand out.

Final painting "Dreaming on Christmas Eve" by Mike Peraza

Being that it was a magazine illustration instead of an animation background I was free to include more detail with a super saturated color scheme than I would normally incorporate although I still had to get it out under one week. I also included a few "hidden Mickeys" that folks seem to hanker for so "have a happy holiday hidden Mickey hunt!" As this painting "hits the newstands" I was honored to discover that the D23 folks will also include it in their special "23 Days of Disney Christmas" gallery and ultimately display the final piece in the Walt Disney Archives.

This wintery scene was created in the summer of 2012, during the record breaking heat wave that baked Southern California. The AC was on and Christmas carols were playing non-stop to get me in the mood. The neighbors must have thought I was nuts but I prefer to think I'm just a bit early for the season, like the department stores are every year.  

I am so thankful to have the opportunity to illustrate cover art and hope I'll be asked to do more in the future. I'm thrilled anytime I get to work with the original "stock company" of  Walt Disney, namely Mickey, Pluto, Donald and Goofy. I know some folks will think I'm corny but I've done so many illustrations of this gang over the years that they feel like part of my family. Well folks, as the jolly old elf said, "Merry Christmas!" Now would someone please pass the eggnog?