The D23 Expo is "The Ultimate Disney Fan Event," a yearly conference that is the highlight of the year for fans of all things Disney. Complete with exhibits, merchandise, and much awaited reveals of new projects, this event is always a major source of excitement, and this year, fans of the Ford Mustang can enjoy the hype right alongside the Disney fans! The Ford Motor Company Archives teamed with the Walt Disney Company to display one of the original "Skyway Mustangs" for this year’s event in Anaheim, California.
The Mustang is one of the most recognizable and important cars that Ford has ever produced, and it made its debut at the 1964 World's Fair in New York. Walt Disney played a significant role in the World's Fair that year, building attractions for the occasion, many of which are still in use today in Disney parks, and taking the chance to explore and develop ideas that would go on to become some of his best and most famous projects.
Disney worked on a ride for the Ford Pavilion called Ford's Magic Skyway as one of the attractions for the 1964 World's Fair. Together, the attraction and pavilion took three years to construct. Using classic Ford vehicles, this ride brought visitors through dioramas of natural history. Although it was expected that the ride would feature Ford Galaxies, Lincoln Continentals, and Fairlanes, the all-new Mustang became the centerpiece of the attraction, using a total of twelve different cars.
Today, the locations of only four of the original "Skyway Mustangs" that were a part of the ride in 1964 are known. Disney and Ford teamed up once more to put one of those iconic Mustangs on display at this year's D23 Expo in celebration of the 60th anniversary of that famous World's Fair.
The Mustang display was a part of a bigger Disney Archives installation called the "Great Big Beautiful Car Show," a play on the song "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow," from another of Disney 1964 World's Fair attractions. Cars that have appeared in several of Disney’s well-known movies were from the Disney archives and put on display. There were over 30 distinct vehicles shown, including various Ford vehicles, but the Skyway Mustang, which was positioned beneath a replica of the archway that surrounded it at the 1964 World's Fair, was without a doubt the collection's centerpiece..
Ted Ryan, Ford Heritage Brand Manager and Archivist, also participated in a panel discussion, called “A Beautiful Tomorrow - Just a Dream Away: Disney at the 1964–1965 World's Fair.” alongside notable figures from Disney legend, including “Monsters Inc.” Director Pete Docter, Imagineer Tom Fitzgerald, Director/Actor Jon Favreau, and Marvel President Kevin Feige.
Disney, Ford, and the Ford Mustang have all had years full of excitement and success since that historic World's Fair in 1964, and this year's D23 exhibition was a wonderful way to commemorate that history. There's just one thing left to do, and that's to start looking forward to what the next sixty years have in store!