Monday, May 24, 2010

Ironman 2 has a Walt Disney Connection?

I just saw Ironman 2 the other night and thought it was pretty good. I’ll need to think about it a couple of days and maybe even need to see it again down the road to confirm that. The one thing that did stand out was a scene that was used in the movie that actually has a, what I think, Disney connection. I don’t think this is a spoiler, but at a couple points in Ironman2 you see an old video of Tony Stark’s father Howard. Howard is dressed in the standard grey suit of the 50’s with the white shirt, tie and handkerchief. With the slicked hair and thin build and thin mustache, Howard Stark could have been Walt’s brother. That however was not what had me thinking Walt Disney as I watched these scenes. Howard Stark was talking about something and referring to a large table top model of the City of Tomorrow. It was the Design for the Stark Expo, but it could not have looked more like what we see every time on the TTA and in a handful of Walt Disney TV appearances towards the end of his life. E.P.C.O.T. As I was thinking this thru it crossed my mind that now Disney owns Marvel, could this reference have been intentional. As I was researching this thought I came across one of my favorite Disney beat writers, Jim Hill. And, Jim had already thought of and answered that question, and I agree with Jim’s assessment. The story for Ironman2 was written and filmed much earlier than the company takeover. And as Jim points out, Howard Stark is a great match to the Industrialist and movie maker Howard Hughes.
If you see Ironman2 in the theatres or at home, tell me if when you see these scenes you say, “Haven’t I seen that before somewhere?”