What If The Golden Girls Piloted the Millennium Falcon?
What…?
No, this is not about Bea Arthur’s appearance on the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special. You can find that here. We’re talking about The Golden Girls, and the new Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run.
That’s the topic we explore in this podcast. You can find that podcast here on Podbean and here at iTunes. You can also type in “Disney at Work & Play Podcast” when you visit Spotify. Be sure to subscribe!
Returning to the title, imagine you had Dorothy, Rose, Blanche and Sophia all gathered at Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge. If you had to create assignments for Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run, who would you assign to be the pilots, gunners, or engineers? Why?
How well do you think all four would do in the cockpit? How well do you think they would work together? You may want to check out my Disney at Play article, Teamwork Tips on Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run to understand what’s needed to be a great team player.
Before Galaxy’s Edge There Were…
Long before Galaxy’s Edge at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, there were other team defining experiences. Previous there was Lights! Motors! Action! Extreme Stunt Show.
Before the stunt show, the Backstage Tour took a drive along a residential neighborhood. There you would see the home of The Golden Girls:
The home is actually based on one in Los Angeles that was used in the earlier years of the show’s production, before Disney MGM Studios was built.
Thank You For Being a Friend
One of the things that made The Golden Girls so successful is the very catchy tune played at the beginning of every song.
It was Andrew Gold who wrote the original lyrics to that song.
Andrew learned much about friendship and supporting others from his mother, Marni Nixon.
Yes…Andrew was the son of a nun! Marni played the positive member of the convent who believed in Maria’s potential. She also supported West Side Story by providing the voice of Maria for Natalia Wood; the vocals in place of Deborah Kerr in The King and I; and infamously, the voice of Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady (a part that should have gone to Julie Andrews).
You can see Andrew and his band playing the song below:
Souvenirs for Your Organization
As with every Disney at Work post, we like to bring you “souvenirs”–or great ideas from the House of the Mouse that you can apply back to your own business:
- What small things put a “bee in my bonnet” working with others? How do I address them?
- How can I be more of a peacemaker?
- How can I use humor to bring people together
- With just 22 minutes, what relationships can I repair by making a little effort? What relationships require outside the length of a typical sitcom?
- How can I build relationships by giving greater credit to others?
- How does my need to be in the spotlight keep me from having greater success?
More Studio Magic!
My book, Disney’s Hollywood Studios: From Show Biz to Your Biz was written before Toy Story Land and Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge, but it’s a “behind-the-camera” look at how Disney creates show biz magic and how you can get your own business ready for its close up. Included are over forty chapters of park history, Disney trivia, and business best practices, including:
- How the experience starts in the parking lot
- A tale of two movie moguls: Walt Disney vs. Louis B. Mayer
- The valuable lessons of “merchantainment”
- Adventures in partnership, with George Lucas, Jim Henson, and Aerosmith
- Hidden secrets of the Tower of Terror, and how Disney exceeds its own high standards
Be sure to get your copy today, available on Amazon!
