What Would Walt Disney Do? YEE @ Walt Disney Family Museum

Shame on me for writing this review months late!
My friend and I had an awesome time at this event! Thank you to the classy and (as expected) superb event organized by Mermaid Ruggy and Jessica.
They Disney Family Museum staff were courteous and friendly. The museum was spotless and spacious. Although it was not quite what I imagined (I thought it was a children’s museum), I enjoyed the facts about Walt Disney, the mini model of Disneyland and Disneyworld, and the amazing sound effects and displays found within the museum.
It’s a delight that this museum adds additional character to the Presidio. The location was great and parking was ample.
The wine was delicious and I enjoyed watching the Disney costume contest even though I (Little Red Riding Hood) and my friend (Minnie Mouse) did not win.

When I received the invite to this Unilocal Elite Event at the Walt Disney Family Museum, I made no hesitation to RSVP for it since I’m a big Disney fan.
Got treated to some nice wine and small chocolate bites. And then got to see Ruggy J. dressed up as Ariel. Priceless.
Because the event was only 2 hours I couldn’t really check out all the exhibits in depth. I did enjoy just being able to walk through the museum and seeing the history of Walt Disney and his visio. I would consider this event a nice preview of the museum for me and I would definitely come back here again for another go around.

To say that I’ve been in a writing slump lately is an understatement. My severe lack of motivation to write reviews has taken its toll, and (OMG, it’s been over 2 months *gasps* since my last one, although I’ve been all over the Check-​ins and Quick Tips). I still heart Unilocal and my Unilocal pals, (so apologies for being MIA on the reviews).
In keeping with my tradition of reviewing Unilocal elite events, this is über late (July 28) of the YEE@ Walt Disney Family Museum in SF.
I’ve been interested in checking out this museum, next to Presidio Bowl (Hello), and delighted the YEE was here!
Anywho, YEE Highlights:
1) TCHO Chocolates — Hmmm lots of it! Oh Mylanta!
2) Wolfgang Puck Apps
3) Mission Mini Cupcakes — Carrot, red velvet — Sweet and delish!
4) Silverado Wine
5) Awesome friendly WDFM staff (helpful with directions and very patient with sometimes rowdy Unilocalers)
6) Unilocal CM (Connie and Ruggy had sweet Disney costumes)
7) Unilocalers — (from SF to SBC, I got love for you guys! I also ran into some friends that I’ve known since 2^nd grade as we all were ice skaters together).
What an amazing view of the Golden Gate Bridge from one of the floors through the glass windows. Saw a beautiful sunset!
I’ll return to the museum as there was too much to look at in such a short period of time, from the theater to the original cartoon sketches to the mini model of the original Disneyland theme park that Walt envisioned.
Thanks Ruggy and Connie for another awesome Elite event!
Cheers!

(See pics)
Yes yes yes I know I am late on writing my reviews. But it’s never too late to tell a story.
I’d have never known about the museum if it’s not for Unilocal.A secluded, beautiful and made you believe you were in the Victorian era setting, come greeting us were the great beautiful CMs and man-​maid Ruggy. Many dressed up like characters come to live. Wolfgang Puck food was delicate and warmed my heart with the wines as we mingled with each other.
We then had a chance to tour the amazingly high tech museum. How you step in 1 section and the surround sound narrates stories of how each of their creation came to life, from infant to maturity. It educates in the most interesting way. It entices and interests you to want to learn more about their production. The museum is such an inspiration that I think many would want to work in their studios, to see how these characters could step out of the silver screen and come to you.
And as the enchanting music What a Wonderful World was playing, it made me very happy, because he sang, «I see friends shakin’ hands, sayin’ ‘How do you do?’ They’re really saying ‘I love you’ «. I feel the exact feeling with my friendly Unilocalers. Lots of laughter, fun conversations, like we all tuned in the same frequency.
Huge kudos to Unilocal,once again, gave us numerous memorable moments to nibble even way after the event and to tell our friends about this great museum for some fun!

I love Unilocal Parties, especially those with a theme. Our Unilocal community managers hook us up with fun parties with creative themes, sometimes a smaller more intimate group, always new and familiar faces. I love the opportunity to check out new places, try new things and make new friends.
I really enjoyed this last Unilocal event at the Walt Disney Family Museum. It has a classic feel with a clean modern interior within a historic space. I really only got a taste of what this museum has to offer and intend on returning very soon to see it all. The view of the Golden Gate Bridge is breathtaking.
The movie posters that line the lower level remind you that the Tomorrowland of yesterday is now a vintage poster and the possibilities of one man’s dream (Walt) has had a lot of influence on our lives growing up. I was in awe, this was not only my childhood Disney, but that of my parents and grandparents as well.
As we walked through the museum, my appreciation grew as I saw the items on display from more of a historical Disney family position, than a Disney company museum. The most impressive item on the tour was the Disneyland model, to see a model of Disney’s conceptual design that became a reality was truly awesome.
The wine was my favorite treat of the night, going well with the TCHO chocolates and appetizers from Wolfgang Puck. I had a great time and really got to enjoy the museum with great folks, much thanks to Ruggy, Jessica, Connie, Monica and all others who helped put on such a wonderful event.

Again, thanks Ruggy (props on the outfit!), the CMs and the Walt Disney Family Museum for hosting this fun event! Glad I went since I didn’t know the museum was located here — not that I hang out in the Presidio often.
— Seeing Unilocal friends were a given, but experiencing a modern museum with them was cool. Must return to fully appreciate all the exhibits.
— The bite-​sized TCHO chocolates were good, all the flavors really.
— Liked Wolfgang Puck (missed that Spago-​Palo Alto) appetizers; so fusiony.
— Silverado Winery’s sauvignon blanc was my favorite, and must make a note to revisit their winery.
Kudos to all the CMs on their getups, as well as Unilocalers who did, especially the ones that really went all out! You guys are true Unilocalers, yeah!
note: Ms. YEE, this would be #22 so I can now semi-​retire? :D

My first impression of the Walt Disney Family Museum was that it didn’t look like a museum at all– let alone a museum associated with the Disneys. Upon my entrance, I was slightly confused. It looked so small and I couldn’t seem to find the missing «main» floor on the map! After some wine and many pieces of chocolate later… I realized that the entrance to all the galleries were tucked in the back in what seems like a hidden entry!
Unfortunately for us– we had 45 minutes to browse through a 3 hr tour of the galleries! True to everything Disney– no detail was left unnoticed. From the elevator from «Kansas» to «Hollywood» or the pathway with the beautiful view that leads us to Disneyland there was not an inch of space that wouldn’t wow you! Of course my big wow factor was the model of Disneyland. Who doesn’t love Disneyland? Everyone there was trying to figure out what was what ride. It definitely tied together the whole museum!
Rewind back to the moment we checked into the event, when my boyfriend and I received raffle tickets. I told him that we’d win something and who would believe it? We did! My boyfriend was lucky enough to win the two bottles of wine and the olive oil. Definitely added to our already fabulous night!
Highlight of the night? Seeing Ruggy all dolled up in his mermaid costume!

FIVE STARS for Ruggy dressing up in a cute mermaid costume! He was one HOT mermaid! ;D
A YEE at the Walt Disney Museum during after hours!!! :D Amazingly fun! Surprisingly the museum was A LOT bigger than I thought! I really enjoyed the 2^nd level and beyond! They have a miniature model of the whole Disneyland theme park! Before strolling through the main museum, little nibs of TCHO chocolates, wolfgang puck appetizers, and silverado wines were enjoyed!
HUGE thanks to Ruggy and team, and the Walt Disney Museum staff for a great event!
Hellos to: Tamar D., Tracy T. and Danny P., Tammy C., Julie K., Hannah C., Peter L., Gill C., Diana M., Heidi S., Eugene L., Jimmy H., Sue Y., and the lovely Unilocalers of the bay area! Fun pre-​party at Kara’s and post party at NOPA! :D
YEE #21 and counting for 2010! :D

As Unilocalers entered the Walt Disney Family Museum, we were whisked away into the magical history & life of Walt Disney. The Disney Museum displays his life work and how Disney was started and how it branched off to where it is today. The Gf and I got there early because we have been wanting to check out the museum for quite a bit of time now and to make it more awesome, its at nite!
The museum is pretty big and one of the docents told us that it would normally take people about 3 hrs to go thru and check out everything in the museum. It was nice to take a trip down memory lane remembering all the good olé cartoons from when i was a child and alot that were made waaaaaay before i was born.
The awesome things of the nite:
Ruggy’s awesome Ariel costume:
The awesome view from part of the museum:
For the gf: meeting Grant from Mythbusters:
Nice to meet Connie C, Ting A and Angella S in person!
Last but not least, apparently Disney had its own Gun show going on too ;):
The Cons:
–Wolfgang bites, yea they were more like super itty bitty bites!!!
–I missed out on the cupcakes :(
–Didn’t get to check out the theater cuz time ran out :(
Overall it was a super fun nite and awesome to see my Unilocal peeps!
Awesome job Ruggy!
I leave you with one of the Mickey Cartoons i remember seeing as a child:

Good event overall. Enjoyed putting together my Mickey ensemble, and finally having all the pieces. Nice to see the different outfits. I enjoyed the wine.
Wish there were a few more nibbles, but still happy with it all.
Loved the museum! Disney fan here *right here! here!*
Liked the new Unilocal swag. Unilocal mints with mints shaped liked the Unilocal logo. And tangerine lip balm now, too. Unilocal sweat bands. :) I likey.
Looking forward to the next event!

I’m not gonna lie, as much as I love to discover new places in the city these Elite events are often more about the free food & drink for me. Well, not this time. Don’t get wrong I enjoyed the wine from Silverado Winery immensely and I did have a couple of those cream cheese fig bites from Wolfgang Puck, which were quite delicious. At the end of the day though, I was looking forward to seeing the Walt Disney Museum, and I wasn’t disappointed.
This place is great and the staff is extremely friendly! I spent about 30 – 40 minutes walking through the museum, and quite honestly it could have been a lot longer. The only reason I rushed through is because I have a friend of mine who visits from out of town every few months and she’s a Disney FANATIC, so I’m taking her here the next time she’s in town, so I know I’ll be seeing this place again.
It was a lot of fun seeing people dress up (I’m a little disappointed I didn’t wear my ears from my last Disneyland trip), but I think the highlight was seeing Ruggy dressed up as Ariel!

Yup, finally made it to my very first ELITE Event!
(I should have stamped ROOKIE onto my forehead!)
My plus 1 and I rolled onto the venue exactly on time (fellow Unilocaler Vet Ed aka LOVER) told me to get on time. Just following orders!
Checked in (me looking lost) but the ladies up front were friendly and good thing my plus 1 was attentive so she absorbed where things were and what not to do and so forth.
Venue: W.O.W! I didn’t really know that there’s a Walt Disney Museum. This place is huge. It looks small from the outside, but once you go in, it’s awesome! Seeing all the birth certificate from Walt’s family (all looked pristine!) was cool. Typographically — it was well labeled! My favorite would have to be the evolution of Mickey Mouse. Seeing the initial sketches to what we see now, it was really cool. I also appreciated the meticulous sketches of every cartoon that I grew up to, especially the 7 Dwarfs!
Wine: Just what the doctor needed. Rough day at work so it went down even faster!
Food: TCHO chocolate (I had to pull my PLUS 1 away from this so the rest of the folks could taste some!) and the cupcakes were good, again, I lost my PLUS 1 to this b/​c she had a radar for sweets!
Unilocal Team: GOOD JOB! High-​Five!
PS: @Ruggy: thanks for getting me into the list, no more rookie stamped on my forehead!

Getting here took 45minutes & I don’t live very far, lots of traffic but it was well worth it. Ended up here at 7:15 and there was a line out the door to get in, & no one in line was dressed up. I was like WHAT!!! Am I the only one dressed up in line!!! I felt like a fool, I wanted to go back to the car & take my costume off but come I spent my Saturday making it. I was the Minnie Mouse with white sticker dots on a red dress, all the stickers kept falling off, leaving a trail… which my BF helped me pick up because every time I bent down or move, more would come off… when I entered the museum, I was surprised that there were only a handful of people that dressed up. Ruggy in his Little Mermaid outfit, he had on the most unforgettable costume. I saw another Minnie in the restroom. There was an Alice, a Belle, a couple Goofy, many Mickeys, a couple Stitches… but not as much as I’d expected.
I’ve learned from other YEE, you never come hungry because you’ll probably end up fainting by the end of the event. I had 3 pieces of TCHO chocolate & an hors d’œuvre, all good. TCHO Chocolatey Chocolate is much better than TCHO Fruity Chocolate. I didn’t come for food, but the museum.
Once you enter to the right side, walk all the way down towards the back left, there is the entrance to the museum. REMEMBER: NO PICTURES ALLOWED!!! Now the journey of his life begins… you’ll see pictures of his work, family & even class pictures… videos of his works, sound recordings, quotes, lots & lots of drawings, Red Cross badges… but the best part was the last few rooms with the model of Disneyland
& his sad death and the making of Walt Disney World. At the end of many Disneyland rides is a store, the museum is no exception.
5 stars, this YEE is probably the best I’ve ever gone to.

Upon reaching the 2^nd floor of this Museum, the view just blew me away. The corner of this floor was covered by a wall of glass which gave you a full picturesque view of the Golden Gate — it was just a marvel to be there. I stood there by myself for a while just appreciating the beauty of the bridge reflecting the golden rays of the sun.
I was waitlisted for this event, However Eugene L. was kind enough to add me as his plus 1 … Mucho gracias mi amigo!!!
The event itself was spectacular. The Museum is located in the Presidio at an old US Army building, however once you enter.
you will be amazed how modern it is inside.
A BIG Thanks …
Ruggy and the Unilocal staff (Connie, Monica, Tiffany & Jessica)
— besides wearing your wonderful Disney costumes, You guys did a Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious job making this event happen. Great job as usual!
The staff of WDFM — for being accommodating and great hosts.
Silverado Winery — awesome vino!
TCHO chocolate & cupcakes — ummmm nom nom!
Unilocaler friends old and new — seeing you guys is always the highlight of the event. At least for me.
Now back to the Museums review… It’s amazing how they designed this place. Just plain WOW! The set up is in chronological order from Mr. Walt Disney’s birth to the creation of Disney Land plus the movies and cartoons that followed later on.
You see all well preserved photographs, birth certificates, sketches, figurines, history of making a cartoon, a movie and a lot more.
Also the miniature Disney Land model is quite impressive. You have to see it to appreciate it.
Just going inside the Museum and experiencing what I saw, like Snow White and the seven dwarfs, Alice in Wonderland, Mickey and the gang, old, old Disney flicks back in the day made me reminiscent of good childhood memories.

When I first heard that the Walt Disney Family Museum was opening up in San Francisco, I was über excited. Unfortunately, I didn’t make the time to go, so this event was THE perfect opportunity to get a sneak peek.
However, Unilocal,I must shake my fist at you!
For giving me one hour to explore a museum that usually takes three!
Okay, we were partly to blame — we were late by half an hour and spent the first half hour saying hello to friends.
Now I’m itching for a Disneyland trip!

The hubby and I arrived and were surprised that we were actually the first ones there. We had no trouble finding the place and parking was abundant and free!
We were let inside early by Ruggy, Jessica and some new faces I haven’t seen on Staff before. The inside of the Museum is beautiful. The floors are shiny and hard wood with the café being right when you walk in. Right away we headed over to their little souvenir store which was cute but naturally over priced for certain items.
It took a while for people to come but that was actually to our advantage as we got to roam about freely, see and touch all of the exhibits without it being crowded. Everything inside is literally Walt’s life from childhood until his death. It was clear that many items were originals as they were tattered and torn and just had that really vintage feel. There were old black and white photos of Mr Disney, his wife, parents, children and even his first works of art. The information was really detailed and gave you a real sense of what a great man he truly was as well as an icon today.
I have to mention that the entire time the staff there was super friendly and accommodating. The servers were great and I enjoyed the little bites and mini cupcakes they served. They had wine also but since I’m not that big on drinking, I can’t say if it was good or not.
There was a raffle at the end of the night too as well as some cool Unilocal keychains and wrist bands that I managed to pick up before they ran out.
Overall, I’m so glad I got the privilege of going tonight and learning a lot more about the man behind my favorite cartoons and movies growing up.
Thanks also to the wonderful Unilocal Staff for their hard work and might I add that Ruggy’s costume was in my opinion the BEST and FUNNIEST! ;)

I rolled to the YEE at The Walt Disney Museum with Ed Lover the Muay Thai Street Fighter in his Red Drop Top Whip. We arrived to the Presidio in record time. The Presidio itself is a Historical area and has been the Back Drop for many events and movies. We arrived to a huge parking lot and Ruggy in a Mermaid Costume which was pretty Cool you have to be real confident to pull that off. Also out front was the Lovely Connie in her Disney Costume.
Who would have thought there would have been a Disney Museum in SF. Apparently Walt Disney’s Daughter resides in SF and Napa. So its a natural. Once inside we run into The Lovely Ladies of Unilocal Monica, Tiffany, Cori and Jessica Greeting all the Elites and there Plus 1s.
The Café was in the first room and they were serving Chocolates and the Wolfgang Puck bites from there. Inside the adjoining room were numerous awards that Walt Disney had won. Also Silverado Winery owned by Walt Disney’s Daughter was pouring some of the premium Wine for tastings.
The museum itself was very cool. It was setup in the Chronological Order from the Start of Walt Disneys life to the End– Gallery #10. One of my Favorites was Oswald The Rabbit. He was a predecessor to Mickey Mouse. His image was stolen and later bought back by Walt Disney. Gallery number #9 was also very impressive especially the model of Disney Land. The Cool thing about the Model is the Streetlights Dim and the Castle lights up.
The Disney Staff were very Friendly and a wealth of information. One of the Tour Guides Donna could tell you anything you could ever want to know about the Disneyland Model. And another guide had told me the Story of Oswald’s plight. The Staff in the gift shop also were a wealth of information on the Camera System Walt Disney had developed in 1937 that was so ahead of its time. Shout out to Hana the Paralegal Disney Staffer from the Islands. :D
Silverado Winery Yum Yum the Wine was flowing. The Winery staffers were pouring very Generously. I saw a lot of Happy Unilocalers running around after having a few Drinks. The Unilocal Posse was full in effect .
Ruggy you did a Great Job as usual with this Event and His trusty Posse Headed up by Tiffany, Connie, Monica, and Jessica.. I really appreciate how much our Unilocal Cms do to bring us these Fun and Cool Events. I really like how every event has its own personality and are different. You really get Exposure to some really Great People, Venues, Food and Drink. Our Unilocal Posse really do a lot behind the scenes to ensure everybody has a good time. They are in my opinion the Ultimate Party Planners. I think if your ever at Event and you think about it Thank Them For A Job Well Done.
The Disney Museum is such a wealth of information and we are Lucky that its in this Area. I personally plan to go back and take more time to Peruse it. If it wasn’t for Ruggy and Unilocal I would have never known it was there

YAY yesterday was my first YEE event in SF. Let me first say thanks to Ruggy for letting me be Joy A.‘s guest, since I was originally on the wait-​list. I was amazed of how the Disney Museum is so historic. Even then I missed the tour guides presentation, I had a great time reading and looking at the events that took place.
This time around I met a couple of more people, thanks to Joy A. I’m quite shy to introducing myself to others, but after an introduction I have no problems. Overall a successful event! Can’t wait till the next one.
Note: You can’t take pictures inside of the museum, but I snuck in a couple of shots while no one was looking heheh

My first event. My friend and I ended up at the fidi. We thought it was down there but after some phone calls we found out the presido has street names. duh!
We flagged down a taxi and got there three mins pass 7
The museum is so amazing! I could have easily spent 3 – 4 hours here. The décor is mind-​blowing and tech savy.
Didn’t get to mingle much with everyone and we missed the raffle. Wished they had an announcement.
Overall I had a great time!

It’s a toss-​up: either Ruggy dressed as the Little Mermaid or me learning that it took more than 348 frames to come up with 1 minute’s worth of animated footage from Steamboat Willie were the top highlights of the evening.
There was so much thoughtful planning that went into the layout of this museum, just as thoughtful as Walt designed his visions and made them literally come to life. Historical figures like Walt Disney are the people that really shape the world. When an entire world mourns a loss, you understand that their impact spans both cultures and generations.
The shear amount of authentic relics from the Walt Disney family is enough to impress. This museum is filled with real-​life artifacts that were likely carefully restored and assembled into a smooth timeline of events that allow you to see how this incredible man built his empire. I was enthralled.
I LOVED the information on the multi-​plane camera; for the time, it was amazing.
Thanks to Unilocal for another fantastic Elite event. You guys continually go all out for us!