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Harrriet Burns, the first woman to join the creative staff of Disney Imagineering, passed away at the age of 79.

Ms. Burns joined Disney in 1955 and initially worked on the sets and props for the “Mickey Mouse Club.” While working alongside Fred Joerger who was creating models for the planned Disneyland Park, Ms. Burns participated in the design of Sleeping Beauty Castle and Storybook Land miniatures.

Harriet was known for her decidedly feminine work outfits. With matching dress, heels and gloves, she was sawing, sanding and running a lathe alongside her male coworkers. In an earlier interview she commented “It was the 1950′s. I wore color-coordinated dresses, high heels and gloves to work. Girls didn’t wear slacks back then, although I carried a pair in a little sack, just in case I had to climb into high places.”

In speaking of Harriet’s accomplishments, Marty Sklar, Executive Vice President of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts and Imagineering Ambassador stated “What really earned respect for Harriet Burns was her creative skill. Fred Joerger, Wathel Rogers and Harriet became known as the WED Model Shop, the heartbeat of Walt’s design engine for Disneyland and beyond.”

Among her many accomplishments is Disneyland’s Matterhorn replication and the underwater set for the former Submarine Voyage. She participated in finishing the figures for the Tiki Room and the Carousel of Progress that Disney created for the 1964 World’s Fair.

Her creativity can see seen in New Orleans Square where she was responsible for building the model for Pirates of the Caribbean. She was a figure finisher for that project as well as for the Haunted Mansion.

Her legacy was honored in 1986 when she was the first woman with a Main Street window on Disneyland’s Main Street which reads “The Artisan’s Loft – Handmade Miniatures by Harriet Burns.” In 2000 Harriet was named a Disney Legend.

Stan Lee’s POW Entertainment has partnered with the Walt Disney Company in creating digital content.

Lee, the creative force behind Marvel Comic’s superheroes, will develop online and mobile versions of “Time Jumper”, his latest product. The storyline for Jumper involves a teen who is able to time travel and battle terrorists via his cell phone.

Lee stated “Comics have always been a springboard for movies. This deal means they can be a springboard for a new form of entertainment.”

Paul Yanover, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Disney Online commented “Our focus is to not only help deliver the story, but also become an interactive part of telling the story of Time Jumper.”

Lee said that Time Jumper “is right up Disney’s alley. It lends itself to new types of media”.

The collaboration is expected to be announced July 25 at Comic Con. Other Disney/Lee ventures include the character of Tigress, Blaze and a private eye named Nick Ratchet.

The Port Canaveral Authority has chosen CH2M Hill to oversee the modification of the Disney Cruise Line terminal.

The expansion, slated for completion on October 1, 2010, will allow the two new Disney ships access to the Port. The ships, currently being built in Germany, will be substantially larger than Disney’s existing fleet.

The contract between CH2M Hill and Port Canaveral is still under negotiation.

Disneyland gave itself a wonderful present yesterday for its 53rd Anniversary when it was announced that by late this year the Sleeping Beauty Castle Diorama would re-open with a new show.

When the attraction is unveiled later this year, the “show” will differ from the dioramas of the 1980s and ‘90s, returning to the unique style of the original 1957 show and motion picture. Enhanced with new scenes and special effects magic, the re-Imagineered attraction will employ technology not available in the 1950s to represent scenes from the story of Sleeping Beauty, including the magic of good fairies Flora, Fauna and Merryweather, and the more sinister spells of the evil Maleficent.

This is a most magnificent development and as along as Maleficent keeps her evil fingers out of the development, Sleeping Beauty Castle should return to entertain new generations of Disneyland visitors.

Disney is taking measures to stop the sale of expired FastPasses on internet auction sites. The tickets are used at Disney’s parks as a method for guests to bypass lengthy attraction standby lines.

EBay is the main selling venue for FastPasses and has declined Disney’s request to put an end to the FastPass listings.

Catherine England, spokesperson for eBay, stated “Since there are no laws prohibiting the sale of expired tickets, listings for expired tickets are allowed. EBay does not enforce third-party contracts, so it’s up to whoever issues the tickets, in this case Disney, to enforce the terms and conditions they’ve defined for their tickets”.

In addition to the expired FastPasses, sellers list VIP versions of the tickets which Disney provides to celebrities and politicians.

Disney has taken measures to stem the use of the tickets sold on the secondary market. In addition to the time and date on a FastPass, there is now a caution that they are “Not For Sale”, valid only on the day issued and are nontransferable.

There is also a problem with counterfeit FastPasses being used in the parks. Disney employees are told to check that the edges are perforated, unlike those the fakes which are manually cut.

Disney spokeswoman Zoraya Suarez has stated that Disney Cast Members are instructed to check that the FastPass is valid and to turn away those that are expired/fraudulent. Suarez commented “What we typically do, we have the cast member politely explain the FastPass is only valid for the date and time issued, then we invite the guest to get a valid FastPass or go to the stand-by queue.”

Disney has recently begun looking into alternative methods of issuing FastPasses including the use of barcodes on the tickets and barcode readers at the attractions.

Walt Disney World is using a legal loophole and stating that they are exempt from Florida’s recently enacted legislation allowing concealed weapons to be carried by residents with permits.

Disney is claiming their federal permits for the storage/use of fireworks falls under the law’s stipulation that employers who manufacture, store or use explosives can ban firearms.

A legal team representing Disney and other Florida businesses lobbied for the exemption.

Zoraya Suarez, Disney spokeswoman stated ‘anyone bringing a gun on property can expect to be subject to discipline.’