Episode 099 – Krista Joy, Part 2

Posted on October 2, 2015 by Randy Crane

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Krista Joy

In this episode, we conclude a 2-part interview with Krista Joy. Krista is a former Walt Disney World Cast Member, and a current blogger, podcaster, and lover of all things Disney, especially Walt Disney World. In part 1 we talked about what she did while working for Disney, whether working for Disney ruined the magic for her, why she started Disneyways.com, some insider tips on dining locations, and more!

In this episode, Krista talks about…

  • Being part of a marriage proposal at the Magic Kingdom, set up by Theme Park Concierges;
  • Her original plan for Disneyways and what it’s turned into;
  • A bit about our shared history;
  • Some of the people in the Disney community she’s met that stand out to her;
  • Her new podcast, Living the Dream;
  • If she could have any job working for the Walt Disney Company, what it would be and why;
  • What she never gets asked that she wishes people would ask her;
  • What inspires her;
  • Her appeal on my behalf to you to send me a message or leave an iTunes review;
  • Her advice to you for following your dreams;
  • Shameless Plug Time.


Find Krista:

I want to hear from you, so please email me, leave a comment below, or call the Listener Feedback line at (734) 23-STORY.

If you call in, don’t worry about having to sound perfect. If you ask me to, I’ll edit out any mistakes so you sound as good as you possibly can. You’re even welcome to start your entire story over again and I’ll use the “take” you want! If you want to submit a story anonymously, for whatever reason you may have, email it to me and tell you me you wanted it shared that way. I’ll read it on the podcast, but keep your name private.

Thanks for listening!

Subscribe by RSS.

Subscribe in iTunes.

Subscribe on Stitcher Radio.

Music and voiceovers provided by Rick Moyer.

Some product links in this post are affiliate links.

Posted in Blogger, Cast Members, Podcast, Podcasters, Walt Disney World | 1 Comment

Episode 098 – Krista Joy, Part 1

Posted on September 25, 2015 by Randy Crane

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Krista JoyIn this episode, we begin a 2-part interview with Krista Joy. Krista is a former Walt Disney World Cast Member, and a current blogger, podcaster, and lover of all things Disney, especially Walt Disney World. She is so genuinely excited and passionate about Disney that I know you’ll enjoy this.

In this episode, Krista talks about…

  • How and why she started working at Walt Disney World;
  • Her memories of her Traditions class;
  • What she did at the Garden Grill;
  • A funny story about her time as a hostess;
  • Working the Disney Dining Line;
  • How her experiences have worked together to enhance each successive one;
  • Why she started DisneyWays.com;
  • Whether working at Walt Disney World “ruins the magic”;
  • Why she stopped working at the Garden Grill and the Disney Dining Line;
  • The effect on her of meeting Lou Mongello from WDW Radio;
  • Talking to Disney people that she never imagined she’d ever meet;
  • How she felt about travel agents who called the Disney Dining Line;
  • Hidden gem restaurants at Walt Disney World;
  • When she felt like, “I’m really a part of this!;
  • One of my stories about a character meal;
  • Her suggestion for a special dessert location for a celebration.


Krista Joy 3Find Krista:

 

Podcasts Spotlighted in this Episode:

I want to hear from you, so please email me, leave a comment below, or call the Listener Feedback line at (734) 23-STORY.

If you call in, don’t worry about having to sound perfect. If you ask me to, I’ll edit out any mistakes so you sound as good as you possibly can. You’re even welcome to start your entire story over again and I’ll use the “take” you want! If you want to submit a story anonymously, for whatever reason you may have, email it to me and tell you me you wanted it shared that way. I’ll read it on the podcast, but keep your name private.

Thanks for listening!

Subscribe by RSS.

Subscribe in iTunes.

Subscribe on Stitcher Radio.

Music and voiceovers provided by Rick Moyer.

Some product links in this post are affiliate links.

Posted in Blogger, Cast Members, Podcast, Podcasters, Walt Disney World | 2 Comments

Episode 097 – D23 Expo 2015, Part 2

Posted on September 11, 2015 by Randy Crane

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D23 EXPO 2015 - D23 EXPO, the ultimate Disney fan event, brings together all the past, present and future of Disney entertainment under one roof. Taking place August 14-16, this year marks the fourth D23 EXPO at the Anaheim Convention Center and promises to be the biggest and most spectacular yet. (ABC/Image Group LA) ROBERT A. IGER (Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, The Walt Disney Company), GEORGE LUCAS

In this episode, we conclude our 2-part series on the 2015 D23 Expo. In the first part, I shared with you some of the Disney Legends Awards, a bit of audio courtesy of the Mousetalgia and Skywalking Through Neverland podcasts, and some of my favorite parts of the Once Upon a Time Panel. I hope you enjoyed those.

Now, in this episode…

  • We revisit the Disney Legends Awards, this time with…
    • Carson Van Osten, former illustrator and vice president in Creative Resources for a couple of divisions of the Walt Disney Company;
    • Susan Lucci—I included this one because when I heard she was going to be named a Disney Legend I thought, “You have got to be kidding me.” But her speech was so gracious and moving—to me, anyway—that I wanted you to hear it, too, especially if you have the same thought I did;
    • Artist, illustrator, and author Eyvind Earle—if you’ve seen Sleeping Beauty, you’ve seen his magnificent and unique work;
    • And of course, the maker himself, George Lucas;
  • D23 EXPO 2015 - D23 EXPO, the ultimate Disney fan event, brings together all the past, present and future of Disney entertainment under one roof. Taking place August 14-16, this year marks the fourth D23 EXPO at the Anaheim Convention Center and promises to be the biggest and most spectacular yet. (Disney/Image Group LA) AMY SMEED

    3 segments with Imagineer Joey Caparaso, courtesy of Skywalking Through Neverland – episode 90;

  • A few excerpts from Disney in Concert: A Silly Symphony Celebration—I didn’t include all of any of the songs, but there are some introductions from film critic and film historian Leonard Maltin, followed by Walt Disney’s introduction of the Silly Symphonies;
  • A bit more from Skywalking Through Neverland, this time with Ashley Eckstein;
  • Some audio from the Walt Disney Animation pavilion on the show floor, where animator Amy Smeed talked about her process and working on both Wreck It Ralph and Frozen.

Were you at the Expo? Do you have any thoughts you’d like to share? Let me hear from you!

Podcasts Spotlighted in this Episode:

I want to hear from you, so please email me, leave a comment below, or call the Listener Feedback line at (734) 23-STORY.

If you call in, don’t worry about having to sound perfect. If you ask me to, I’ll edit out any mistakes so you sound as good as you possibly can. You’re even welcome to start your entire story over again and I’ll use the “take” you want! If you want to submit a story anonymously, for whatever reason you may have, email it to me and tell you me you wanted it shared that way. I’ll read it on the podcast, but keep your name private.

Thanks for listening!

Subscribe by RSS.

Subscribe in iTunes.

Subscribe on Stitcher Radio.

Music and voiceovers provided by Rick Moyer.

Some product links in this post are affiliate links.

Posted in Animation, D23, Disney Legends, Imagineers, Podcast, Walt Disney Company | Leave a comment

Episode 096 – D23 Expo 2015, Part 1

Posted on September 4, 2015 by Randy Crane

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D23 Expo 2015Welcome to our coverage/recap of the D23 Expo 2015! Unlike many other shows, which focus on announcements, displays, reviewing the event, etc., these 2 episodes will focus, as Stories of the Magic always does, on the people. I can share my thoughts and recap the event the “usual” way, too, but I won’t do it unless you tell me you want to hear it.

 

Because I wasn’t officially there as “media/press” I didn’t have the same kind of access for interviews that I did in 2013. However, I still captured audio from the presentations I was able to attend, and had a bit of help with some friends for more.

In this episode, you’ll hear from the Expo…

  • Disney Legends Ceremony
  • Imagineer Kim Irvine talks about how she became an Imagineer and what was different for her (courtesy Mousetalgia Podcast – episode 358);
  • Grammy-winning producer and Disney music historian Randy Thornton, talking about how he got his start, working with James Earl Jones and Corey Burton, and seeing/handling original sheet music and scores for Disney classics (courtesy of Skywalking Through Neverland – episode 90);
  • 3 Clips from Once Upon a Time: An Evening with Snow White & the Evil Queen;
    • Ginnifer Goodwin (Snow White/Mary Margaret) is a massive Disney fan;
    • What it’s like acting in some of their scenes now that they’ve had kids;
    • A round of “Disney Favorites.”

Next time: More Legends, excerpts from the Silly Symphonies concert, hear from a Walt Disney Animation Studios animator, and interviews with Ashely Eckstein and Disney Imagineer Joey Caparaso.

 

Were you at the Expo? Do you have any thoughts you’d like to share? Let me hear from you!

 

Podcasts Spotlighted in this Episode:

 

I want to hear from you, so please email me, leave a comment below, or call the Listener Feedback line at (734) 23-STORY.

If you call in, don’t worry about having to sound perfect. If you ask me to, I’ll edit out any mistakes so you sound as good as you possibly can. You’re even welcome to start your entire story over again and I’ll use the “take” you want! If you want to submit a story anonymously, for whatever reason you may have, email it to me and tell you me you wanted it shared that way. I’ll read it on the podcast, but keep your name private.

Thanks for listening!

Subscribe by RSS.

Subscribe in iTunes.

Subscribe on Stitcher Radio.

Music and voiceovers provided by Rick Moyer.

Some product links in this post are affiliate links.

Posted in D23, Disney Legends, Imagineers, Music, Podcast, Television | 1 Comment

Episode 095 – Jessica Clawson, Part 3

Posted on August 21, 2015 by Randy Crane

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Jessica ClawsonIn this episode, we conclude our 3-part interview with former Walt Disney World Cast Member, Jessica Clawson. In the first 2 parts, we talked about working at Toy Story Midway Mania and in the resorts as a Concierge, the transition to Magic Bands & My Disney Experience, teaching in the Youth Education Series, some love for Walt Disney, and some great guest stories.

 

If you followed along with any of my coverage of the 2015 D23 Expo, thank you! I’ll be bringing you a couple of episodes devoted to it soon, but in the meantime, I hope you enjoyed this, and I’m glad you came along with me! To see what I shared, head on over to the Stories of the Magic Facebook page and you can look through everything from the weekend that I posted.

In this episode, Jessica talks about…

  • What she remembers most about her Traditions class, when she first started at Walt Disney World—it took all she could do not to burst into tears;
  • When she remembers thinking, “I’m doing something really special”;
  • Working the Osborne Spectacle of Dancing Lights;
  • What she loved most in her time at WDW;
  • A few other favorite stories—this is what makes Cast Members special, and one of the main reasons I do this podcast;
  • Why she had to  leave Walt Disney World;
  • How she brings Disney into her classroom as a teacher in a special needs class;
  • If she could have any job working for the Walt Disney Company, what it would be and why;
  • What she never gets asked that she wishes people would ask her;
  • What inspires her—part of this answer may surprise you;
  • Her advice to you for following your dreams;
  • Shameless Plug Time.


Find Jessica:

 

I want to hear from you, so please email me, leave a comment below, or call the Listener Feedback line at (734) 23-STORY.

If you call in, don’t worry about having to sound perfect. If you ask me to, I’ll edit out any mistakes so you sound as good as you possibly can. You’re even welcome to start your entire story over again and I’ll use the “take” you want! If you want to submit a story anonymously, for whatever reason you may have, email it to me and tell you me you wanted it shared that way. I’ll read it on the podcast, but keep your name private.

Thanks for listening!

Subscribe by RSS.

Subscribe in iTunes.

Subscribe on Stitcher Radio.

Music and voiceovers provided by Rick Moyer.

Some product links in this post are affiliate links.

Posted in Cast Members, Podcast, Walt Disney World | Leave a comment