HYPERION HISTORICAL ALLIANCE
PUBLICATIONS
Among the mission charters of the Hyperion Historical Alliance is to deepen the research relationships between scholars, historians, archivists, and other professionals who explore the history of animation, themed spaces and outdoor entertainment, the historical figure of Walt Disney, and the overall work accomplished at Walt Disney Productions / The Walt Disney Company over the past nearly 100 years (up to but not including the immediately current 15 years).
One of the ways the HHA fulfills this mission is through two primary publications that enrich the research database and historical record for Disney history. The goal of these publications is to be as historically accurate as possible, requiring the checking and re-checking of information sources and rooting out imprecisions and debunking widely held urban legends and myths. Both publications are published in association with Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California, and are available to the general public on Amazon.
HYPERION HISTORICAL ALLIANCE ANNUAL
An annual, multi-author, anthology featuring extensively researched essays written by selected HHA members showcasing various Disney history topics.
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Bianca Majolie in the Story Department – Didier Ghez
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Drawn to Disney: La Verne Harding and Fred Moore – Tom Klein
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Walt Kelly in the Story Department – Didier Ghez
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Walt Disney Left His (Post)Mark on the World – Maggie Evenson
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Presidents, the Nixon Tapes, and the Disney Parks – Bethanee Bemis
The 2021-22 Hyperion Historical Alliance Annual includes these topics:
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Amazing Grace in Disney’s Story Department – Didier Ghez
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Disney Animator Betty Smith-Totten: She Wouldn’t Take “No” For An Answer! – Mindy Johnson
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A Practically Perfect Premiere – Kevin M. Kern
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A Preview of Disney’s World – Matt Moryc
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Wise Dwarfs and Thrifty Pigs: The Canadian Bond Trailers, 1941–42 – J.B. Kaufman
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Mickey’s Revivals (1978–2018) – Didier Ghez
The 2020 Hyperion Historical Alliance Annual spotlights these topics:
The inaugural 2019 Hyperion Historical Alliance Annual features these six essays:
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The Best of Bill Garity’s Diary – Didier Ghez
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Jack Cutting, an Artist Abroad – Jim Hollifield
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Production Innovations at The Walt Disney Studios in the Mid-1930s – Garry Apgar
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Ward Kimball and the Making of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs – Todd James Pierce
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The Firehouse Five Plus Two in 1950 – Lucas O. Seastrom
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The Music Behind The Little Mermaid – David Bossert
HYPERION HISTORICAL ALLIANCE MONOGRAPH SERIES
These are single-topic, hardcover, full-color publications that each feature an in-depth history and overview on one particular subject (typically an esoteric topic that hasn’t received previous historical attention), authored by one or two HHA members, and heavily illustrated with photos and art that, in most cases, has not been previously published.
The inaugural entry in the HHA monograph series is The Making of Walt Disney's Fun and Fancy Free by J.B. Kaufman.
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The behind-the-scenes story of Walt Disney’s Fun and Fancy Free, a 1947 “package feature” composed of two different stories, Bongo and Mickey and the Beanstalk. Both were originally planned as separate feature-length films in the early 1940s; both were shelved during the war and resumed production in 1946, then combined in a single colorful package with animation by some of the all-time great Disney animators. Here is the full story of the film, profusely illustrated with sketches, paintings, and photos, many never previously published.
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The second volume in the HHA monograph series is The Origins of Walt Disney's True-Life Adventures by Didier Ghez.
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How did Walt Disney, an artist known the world over for his animated cartoons and features, decide, in 1948, to produce the first of the True-Life Adventures, a live-action educational featurette about Alaskan seals? To understand how and why Seal Island was produced, this monograph travels back to 1938 during the making of Bambi, and also unearths some of the abandoned True-Life Adventures.
Relying on new archival research, never-accessed-before correspondence, and the recently rediscovered autobiography and diaries of cinematographers Alfred and Elma Milotte, historian Didier Ghez covers all this and more in this richly illustrated, groundbreaking monograph.
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The 2019, 2020, and 2021-2022 HHA Annual are available on Amazon and the the Monograph Series is available at Stuart Ng Books.
SUPPORT THE HYPERION HISTORICAL ALLIANCE
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The Hyperion Historical Alliance (HHA) is a non-profit association. Support our publishing efforts and help us preserve Disney history by using the link below to donate. Your donation to the HHA is tax-deductible.
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