This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Herriman • Hundreds of floating balloons anchored to a faux chimney shifted in the wind from atop the iconic "UP" house here on Saturday as several hundred became part of the animated home now brought to life.
"We saw the ads in the paper for it and it piqued our interest, so we decided to do the Salt Lake Parade [of homes] this year," said a family from American Fork who drove to Salt Lake County specifically to see the custom built Bangerter Homes replica of the flying house in Disney/Pixar's 2009 movie "UP."
Adam Bangerter, builder with Bangerter homes said thousands have come to take a peek at the home since early July before the actual Salt Lake Parade of Homes began on July 29. The parade goes until Aug. 14.
Bangerter said since The Tribune initially reported on the house, news of the replica has been reported by people from all over the world from Brazil, Australia, Pakistan, China and Finland.
"A gal came through [to see the house], her sister called from England and said, 'have you gone and seen that 'UP' house?' and she had no idea, and she is [lives] right here in Utah," Bangerter said.
One night one of the brother builders Blair Bangerter decided to make the Disney/Pixar home come to life. It happened while Bangerter was watching the movie "UP" with his family, he recognized the "incredible lengths the masters at Disney/Pixar had gone to in creating such a wonderfully presented house and felt like a true to life version could be attempted," according to a news release from Bangerter Homes. After about 1 1/2 years of conceptualizing the idea and finding the right place to build, the home became a reality.
This is the 65th annual Salt Lake Parade of Homes, the longest running parade of homes in the nation.
For more information or to see the home in person visit http://www.saltlakeparade.com.
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