Ollie Johnston managed just fine last night, as did a still breathtakingly beautiful Ilene Woods, a spunky pair of sprites in the guise of June Foray and Lucille Bliss, and the well spoken artisans in charge of the restoration - John Lowry from DTS Digital Images, and Disney’s Dave Bossert and Stephen Poehlein. Everyone was delightful, in spite of yet another ill-suited TV newscaster turned panel moderator (poor Ross King reading from index cards and relying too much on shtick best suited to hosting a beauty pageant rather than a panel of veteran voice and animation talent. *sigh*)

Nevertheless, the crowded El Capitan looked as resplendent as if the Fairy Godmother herself had waived her wand across its proscenium; more beautiful than ever and still the finest movie screening experience in Southern California. I always wonder why more visitors to Disneyland don’t take the extra day to drive up to Los Angeles and forgo the crowded stroll along Hollywood Boulevard’s Walk of Fame in favor of an afternoon at the movies the way it used to be.

The real stars of the evening were the many Princesses in attendance. Diminutive though they were, they wore their finest ball gowns with such panache and sass that Cinderella herself was seen curtseying in deference to their beauty.

Back on stage, Ilene Woods remembered the thrill of recording the first multi-track harmony all sung by one artist – her! June Foray wittily recalled how her meowing for Lucifer catapulted her career in voice work, while the adorable Lucille Bliss had the best story of the evening, reliving her journey to Los Angeles as a young actress that resulted in being “hand picked�? by Walt himself to give voice to Anastasia. In between remembrances, Deja shared treasures from his personal collection that further illustrated the level of skill and artistry that went into the animation. There is no better advocate for the continuation of so-called traditional animation than Andreas Deja, and his passion was in ample evidence.