Welcome! We are happy to guide you through the next few days as we embark on our voyage of discovery. It is our first TCM Classic Cruise and the first time we have been on a Disney ship. It’s a relatively small ship but there are some differences between the Disney line and other lines we have experienced over the years. There are more accessible facilities in the common areas and more staff to help the many guests who are in wheelchairs and walkers. I thought this line was just for kids and families but I see that it can also be the ship for grandparents. I was quite impressed. Our cabin steward has also gone above and beyond in his duties with little touches, like arranging the cords to our devices so they are not too long. Little things like that add up.
We began our day early with a visit to the Walt Disney Theater, where we watched “From Here to Eternity ” and listened to Tina Sinatra discuss the film and her father’s performance and its effect on his life. Frank Sinatra was a teenage idol but was not doing so well. His award-winning performance changed the trajectory for the rest of his career and life. I had never seen the film in its entirety—just clips of the many iconic scenes, like sex on the beach with Deborah Kerr and Burt Lancaster—and was blown away by the film. If you have never seen it, rent it!
Once again, the TCM host Alicia interviewed Tina Sinatra. She appeared in a puffy jacket because this venue is VERY COLD!
We got through the morning with a protein Shake so we headed off to lunch in the buffet. I had a delicious bowl of lentil soup, garlic bread, enhanced pomegranate water, a fruit cup and dessert!
Beatrice praised her chicken tortilla soup. The food has been consistently good, another plus for Disney!
After lunch we headed back to the Walt Disney Theater for another interview, this one with the daughter of Olivia de Havilland, who did some exhaustive research on her mother. Ben Mankiewicz, the TCM host, asked some probing questions about her mother’s relationship with Errol Flynn. Olivia and Errol had a passionate love affair but he couldn’t leave his wife for her. They made the movie “Robb Hood” after the affair was over and they were “cordial “ even though there were a few mild romantic scenes between Robin and Maid Marion. She did get her revenge on the movie set, though…Ben managed to get a bit of gossip out. She has a book about her mother and her life, of course!
The interviews are lots of fun and draw a big crowd. We watched the Robin Hood movie, which was a hoot, but I was getting tired of sitting so we were glad to have a break. I went to the shops in search of a sweater! We also did some walking around the ship and stopped in our room before heading out for dinner.
This is the menu for our restaurant. We have 5:45 seating at table 7, a table for four. There are two other people assigned to our table but they didn’t show up. My cocktail of choice was a Hugo spritz and I ordered sirloin steak with asparagus and baked potato. Dessert was beignets with chocolate sauce on the side and decaf coffee. It was excellent! Beatrice had wedge salad, prime rib, baked potato and carrots. Fifties food works for us!
We stopped by music trivia on the way back to the Walt Disney stage where Beau Bridges was interviewed. He looks great for 85 and attributes it to his young wife, who is 20 years younger. He discussed the family and its influence on his 80 year career. We look forward to seeing “The Fabulous Baker Boys “ when it is screened later this week.
Last night’s highlight had to be the interview between Ben and Eddie Muller, the TCM host of TCM’s Saturday night “Noir Alley,” where he shows film noir masterpieces from the ‘40s and ‘50s. He has a foundation that is responsible for restoring these films and has a huge fan base. My sister, Marilyn and I are big fans of the show. Eddie introduced his film, a documentary about a blacklisted director Abraham Lincoln Polinsky ( will have to check on last name!). We saw the film. It was excellent. It was its first showing and was very well received. The show ended after midnight and I turned out my light at 1:15 AM.
We were greeted ny a dog and chocolates.
Sunrise, Thursday October 15th. We spotted land! It’s just after 7:00 AM.
We are in Catalina today until late afternoon. No need to rush. Will check out the program later today. It will be nice to revisit this lovely spot. I have been here twice but it’s always a fun place to visit.