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in September at an event called D23 Expo character sketches, model sheets, and rough
2022 with little more revealed since then. But layouts. The prices vary between animator
stay tuned. Twenty-twenty-three promises and project but you can often find them at
to be a year of wonder, to be captured and lower prices than the original cels they inspired.
collected forever. With Disney theme parks all around the
world, merchandise connected to the
experience and purchased on-site is what
A Guide to Disneyana memories and collections are made of. From
mouse ears to park brochures are saved and
With 100 years of collectible merchandise,
commemorative items, movies, and beloved collected by fans. Serious Disneyana collections
think even bigger, including props, signs,
characters, the “Disneyana” market is huge and other items associated with the magic of
and encompasses a wide range of vintage and Disney. When it comes to props, the biggest
contemporary Disney articles. With the release thing to pay attention to is the phrase “park
of new 100th Anniversary memorabilia, used.” A replica might look nice but it will
limited edition collectibles, and associated never be as valuable as a piece bearing the
Disney-branded items, that market is only wear and tear of actual use in a Disney Park.
expected to grow. “Park used” pieces are also much rarer as
According to invaluable.com, Disneyana
can be loosely split into three overarching Cinderella Mice Autographed by Walt Disney, they’re made in limited quantities for practical
use and were only sold to second-hand sellers
categories: Sold on Nov 17, 2022 for $9,975, phil-sears.com by the company itself. But in exchange for the

1. The movie memorabilia, primarily from their animated features. higher price, you get a truly
unique object that once
This includes animation cels, production sketches, and faithful Disney- delighted people in their
produced replicas.
millions, now retired to the
comfort of your private
collection. One of the more
popular and unique Disney
Park Disneyana collectibles is
park signs. These range from
An original park-used signs for attractions and park
Disneyland Autopia “Do shops to ride warnings and
Not Bump” sign from the even old employee parking
vehicles introduced when spot signs. But some collec-
Autopia was revamped in tors dream bigger than a sign;
1998. On heavy plastic, they want a piece of the
measuring approximately ride for themselves. The
2. Theme park memorabilia, ranging from 2 ⁄8” X 8”. In very good rarest and most expensive
1
props and signage to exclusive merchandise condition. Sold for $125 collectibles are ride parts: cars,
sold in the many Disney Parks. on phil-sears.com Mickey Mouse Early Publicity Artwork Signed props, and the coveted of all,
by Walt Disney, c. early 1930s, comics.ha.com animatronics. These items
3. Miscellaneous merchandise, toys, collabora- come up rarely.
tions, and memorabilia centered around Walt Outside the world of theme parks and
Disney himself. films, many other pieces of Disneyana strike
the fancy of collectors. Disney has collaborated
Historically, animation required thousands
and thousands of individual animation cels— with many companies over the years creating
cross-branding and marketing items. There
named for the transparent celluloid sheets—for are the original Donald and Mickey Pez
even a short cartoon let alone a feature film. dispensers that usually sell for a few hundred
Each cel was hand drawn and painted by the dollars. Then, the first editions of Disney
Disney animation team, painstakingly comics that began in the 1940s. The countless
photographed, and then linked together to unique releases of their film classics in every
create beloved masterpieces like Snow White format imaginable and the many, many toys.
and the Seven Dwarves. Unfortunately, very few Most lauded of all the Disney toys is one of
of these cels from Walt Disney’s personal the very first, the Mickey Mouse doll created
heyday (the 1920s to the 1960s) survive today. by American seamstress Charlotte Clark.
Why? Nobody responsible had any inkling that Walt Disney is featured signing autographs at The fervor extends to Walt Disney himself.
these would become highly prized collectors’ Disneyland on the cover of this 1968 Disneyland His autograph on its own or with his typical
Pictorial Souvenir and Guide booklet. Soft cover.
items. Therefore, most were either washed to In very fine condition. Sold for $39.95, phil-sears.com Mickey Mouse drawing regularly sells for over
be reused or simply destroyed. An authenticated fifteen thousand dollars. But it doesn’t stop at
cel of good quality, featuring popular Disney characters or famous the signature. People collect all sorts of items
moments, can reach a high price at auction, and some cels can even and objects tangentially related to his life. The
fetch close to six figures – though it’s much rarer for those sorts of cels key to authentic Walt Disney collectibles is
to come to auction. Minor characters from less popular films and shorts Phil Sears (www.phil-sears.com), the leading
will cost much less, towards the lower thousands and upper hundreds. expert in Walt Disney’s signature and the man
There are also official limited-edition recreations issued by the
Disney company. These are serigraph cels – created by silk-screening whose name you should look for when
purchasing a Walt Disney signature.
layers of color onto celluloid. Print runs range from a thousand to ten
thousand for such cel recreations, making them far more accessible than
an original cel.
Usually, these are originally sold by Disney and are available widely
from auction houses. You can also look into production drawings: Vintage no-feet Pez Mickey Mouse
dispenser selling at ebay.com

26 Journal of Antiques and Collectibles