With Press Credentials in hand, Lil Oishi and I are ready to cover the 50th Anniversary Red Carpet and Screening of Mary Poppins! This was an amazing opportunity to celebrate one of my favorite films of all-time at the same theatre where Mary Poppins premiered!
Before photographer Kevin and I found our spot on the red carpet we went to find a couple of Hollywood Stars on The Walk of Fame! Of course we had to find Julie's Star!
Then we went to find Dick Van Dyke's Star!
The historic Mann's Chinese Theatre now called the TCL Chinese Theatre was the setting for the event!
Lil Oishi feels right at home on the red carpet!
Disney Legend Floyd Norman stopped by to talk with me! He shared with me that he had worked on all of the animated sequences in Mary Poppins and that the animated sequence in Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious was his favorite!
Super adorable Rowan Blanchard is going to play Riley Matthews in the highly anticipated TV Show Girl Meets World, a spin-off to the highly acclaimed Boy Meets World! She stopped by to talk with me and we talked about her upcoming show! I am a huge fan of Boy Meets World and cannot wait to see Girl Meets World!
Rowan was kind enough to take a quick photo with me!
Mallory Lewis and Lamb Chop stopped by to say hi! Mallory is the daughter of Shari Lewis who created Lamb Chop. Mallory took over the role after her mother passed away. They were both an unexpected surprise on the red carpet!
The stunning Victoria Summer stopped by to talk with me! She plays Julie Andrews in Saving Mr. Banks! I asked her how she got her role. She told me that she did not even have to audition. As she knows the story, the producers and director picked her head shot because she looked the most like Julie Andrews at the time Mary Poppins was being filmed. That is straight out of a Hollywood story! Her idol is Julie Andrews and Mary Poppins is one of her favorite movies!
Victoria was kind enough to pose for a quick photo with me!
The always charming and sweet Kathryn Beaumont stopped by to say hello as well! She is best known as the voices of both Alice in Alice In Wonderland and Wendy in Peter Pan!
Karen Dotrice who played Jane Banks in Mary Poppins stopped by to answer a question or two. I asked her what it was like here 50 years ago. She said it looks the same but the streets are cleaner today! I also asked her how did she feel to be here 50 years later! She responded that now she got to share this with her family and that is what makes this truly special!
Karen was kind enough to take a quick photo with me!
Disney Legend Richard Sherman also came by to answer a few questions! I asked him how he felt walking the red carpet 50 years ago. He said that as a much younger man he was very nervous because he didn't know if people were going to embrace the music or the movie. Now 50 years later, to be here now is magical. Walt would have been proud!
With ticket in hand it was time to go in and to take our seats!
Before the movie started Dick Van Dyke took the stage to talk about the film!
Then it was time for the film to begin! To see the film in the same venue that it debuted nearly 50 years earlier was truly special! The newly restored digital print of the film shined! The film looked better than ever and showed how truly timeless the movie is!
On the way out we each got a poster and a keychain to celebrate the upcoming blu-ray release of Mary Poppins!
This was a truly magical night! To be able to be a part of the this amazing celebration was an honor! To share it my experience with all of you is a dream come true! To be surrounded with stars from the film, Disney Legends and an enthusiastic crowd of fans in the very same venue that the film premiered was a one of a kind experience that I will never forget!
