Disney renames Mouseketeer stage for Funicello
Disney chief Bob Iger led a ceremony Monday dedicating the soundstage to Funicello.
BURBANK (AP) - The stage at Walt Disney Studios where "The Mickey Mouse Club" was filmed is now officially the Annette Funicello Stage.
Disney chief Bob Iger led a ceremony Monday dedicating the soundstage to Funicello, the Mouseketeer-turned-movie star who died in April at age 70.
Iger confessed to having a crush on Funicello when he was growing up, as many who watched the perky brunette on TV did.
Former Mouseketeers, Funicello s family and colleagues and Mickey Mouse himself also participated in Monday s dedication. Frankie Avalon, her beach party movie co-star, was among those honoring the late actress.
Julie Andrews, who starred in the big-screen musical "Mary Poppins," is the only other entertainer to have a namesake stage at Disney studios.
