London Gains Flight to Orlando

This is a prime example of what I said earlier. As US domestic airlines cut services, international visitors and airlines are increasing their visits. This means that Orlando, and Disney, are getting more international visitors to off-set any decline in domestic visitors. This additional air service from London to Orlando is one such evidence that this is going on.

Let's see if this is reflected on the 3rd quarter financial report that Disney will release today.

Zz.

First Trailer of "Princess and the Frog"

Disney has released the first trailer for their upcoming (and highly-anticipated) hand-drawn animation "Princess and the Frog". It is gorgeous!

Let's hope that they can overcome the advance controversy surrounding the storyline. I am truly hoping that this movie becomes a hit so that Disney will continue to make hand-drawn animation alongside the digital animation they and Pixar are producing.

Still, it is more than a year before the scheduled release of the movie. I can't wait!

Zz.

Earthquake Shakes Disneyland

An earthquake of magnitude 5.4 hit the Los Angeles area today. This is a video report of the earthquake shaking Disneyland.

Zz.

Mastering the Art of Theme Park Survival at Walt Disney World

This is another trip advice for anyone making their first trip to Walt Disney World. One thing sticks out:

Her survival key is a daily nap.

"With the big crowds and potential for headaches, down time is really important," she said. "Take a long lunch, a nap or a swim at noon, but break up the day into manageable pieces."

If you look at practically all of the trip advice that I've found on here, this seems to definitely be the most consistent advice being given. And it is also the main reason to find accommodations close to the parks. It makes going back to one's resort that much more convenient.

Zz.

Disney's 3rd Quarter Earnings Due Wednesday

We'll know soon enough if the economic downturn is finally starting to affect Disney, and in particular, the theme park attendance. Disney is due to report its fiscal 3rd quarter earnings on Wednesday.

Analysts generally agree that Disney's theme-park business could soften late this year and into the next. International visitation has been robust, but they worry that domestic visitation could slow as airlines cut flights and raise fares. Major airlines are shedding capacity at Orlando International Airport, a gateway for visitors to the Walt Disney World resort.

"The theme-park business won't be nearly as bad as investors fear this quarter," Pali Capital Inc. analyst Rich Greenfield said. "But 2009 is much less clear and our concern grows substantially," at the end of this year.

Personally, I would continue to buy Disney stocks. If it drops below $30 again, it will become such an incredible buy, especially when the economy recovers.

Zz.

Random Selection Process for Pin Event

I finally completed by Random Selection Process (RSP) for pins that I wanted during the upcoming Pin Trading University pin event. When compared to previous years, I would say that I'm being a bit more conservative in my buying. No framed sets at all, and only one jumbo pin in my selection. I think my selection is more of what pins that I can use for trading, since some of these pins have very low release numbers.

It's amazing that some of the pins that we got from pin events a couple of years ago are now being snapped like hot cakes. There was a time that we couldn't even get people to look at these pins that have been in our pin trading books for months. Now, we could not keep them for barely 5 minutes before they are up for trading. After being in this pin-trading hobby for the past few years, I've yet to fully understand what goes and what doesn't. But I guess that's what makes it so much fun and so unpredictable.

Zz.

The Balcony Is Closed

Most movie fans by know would have heard that both Roger Ebert and Richard Roeper have left the Disney-produced "At The Movies", thus ending one of the most beloved and influential movie review program on TV that was started by Ebert and the late Gene Siskel.

Roger Ebert wrote a very moving piece about the show and saying goodbye to it. I still want to know if Disney made its decision based on the slowly-declining ratings of the show. I'm not sure if it would be a badge of honor to go down in history that "At The Movies" as we know it got changed while under your watch.

Zz.

Disney Rumors Spur Money Grab In a Chinese City

This is why everyone involved is denying any kind of agreement or even negotiations in the rumor of a possible Disney theme park in Shanghai. Everyone wants to get a piece of the action, even those who have never heard of Disney.

Disney fever is sweeping Shanghai, and it has little to do with giddy anticipation of Mickey Mouse and company. It's about cash. Homeowners and businesses in the Shanghai village of Jinjia, where the rumors are focused, expect their properties will be bought up to make way for a Shanghai Disneyland. Residents expect that compensation will be proportional to the size of their houses, and even the number of trees on their property.

So, in a country with a well-known weakness for gambling, people are putting up new homes or adding extra rooms -- sometimes in defiance of local development laws -- for the shot at a payday.

So I guess that's one thing that Disney did right with Hong Kong Disneyland - building it on an island that was relatively uninhabited. :)

Still, what's happening in Shanghai isn't new. Walt certainly realized that this is what would happen when he was looking in Florida.

Zz.

Wall-E Remove Controlled Robot Available For Pre-Order

It's finally here. Pre-order for remote controlled Wall-E is now available on Disney Shopping.

With all the included feature listed, and what it can do, it is rather funny that the one thing it can't do was the thing that defines it in the first place - waste allocation load lifter. In other words, it doesn't compact trash! :)

Guess if it does it, it would be an appliance.

Zz.

Make-A-Wish Officials Troubled by False Chain e-mail

While this isn't directly about Disney, Make-A-Wish Foundation brings a lot of kids to Disney theme parks as that happens to be the most requested wish by the children. I want to highlight the despicable behavior of some creatures that dare to call themselves as "human beings" by taking advantage of the Make-A-Wish name and either produce some stupid chain mail or via some telemarketing scam.

However, Amy Bruce is a familiar name to the staff at the Make-A-Wish Foundation in Ann Arbor. A spokesman for the charity said Bruce is one of dozens of names that periodically pop up in chain letters. The spokesman said the chain letters are common enough, Make-A-Wish's national organization maintains a separate page on its a Web site, www.wish.org/about/chain_letters, about them.

"Words can not express how terrible that is," said Lapeer Superintendent Debbie Thompson. She said she's "totally disgusted" that someone would prey on people's willingness to reach out to a stricken child.

Most importantly, take note of the Make-A-Wish Foundation policy:

Make-A-Wish issued a statement earlier this month in response to complaints to its offices in Ann Arbor, Detroit and Grand Rapids from people upset over calls from telemarketers.

"I can assure the community that the Make-A-Wish Foundation is not affiliated with any telephone marketing efforts," said Susan Lerch, president and CEO of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan. "The Foundation prides itself on its outstanding reputation and it saddens me to see that others are taking advantage of that reputation."

Lerch added, "As a matter of worldwide policy, the Make-A-Wish Foundation does not engage in telephone fund-raising for several reasons, mainly because so many find it distasteful and invasive.Ê Rather, the Make-A-Wish Foundation relies entirely on individual and corporate donations."

This organization deserves all the support that it can get, and all without using the annoying telemarketing route that some "charitable organizations" seem to be resorting to. Hope you can support the local chapter of Make-A-Wish in your area.

Zz.

Where's the Disney Princess to Please All?

With all the brouhaha surrounding the storyline of The Princess and the Frog even before it is even released, there's finally some sane view of this whole thing.

But here's the thing: Disney, the most powerful juggernaut in child and teen entertainment, didn't have to go there. Remember, Snow White is 81 years old, so Disney has been doing this for a long time without paying homage to black characters.

I'm not advocating against criticism. Some of it is valid and necessary because strong words may be the only thing that stand between a good film and "Song of the South," the 1946 film that embraced racist stereotypes.

But I differ from critics pushing for Disney to create perfection. I want the writers to be careful, but I also want little girls to know that girls other than those born to royalty find true love and their dreams.

And I hope that this Disney movie is as true to a winning formula as its past princess movies have been: A heroine in dire circumstances, aided by someone -- a genie, a fairy godmother, dwarves -- finds true love. I want Tiana to be revered for the same reason that other Disney girls were: They overcame obstacles.

The irony in all of this is that, casting stereotypes means that the person doing it has made a generalization of something he/she didn't quite fully understand or had the full, accurate picture. Now unless some of these critics of the Princess and the Frog had a sneak peak of the movie, then I'd say the vehement criticism of this movie has to come from the SAME "generalization of something he/she didn't quite fully understand or had the full, accurate picture".

I'd rather criticize something after that "thing" actually exists, so that I know what exactly is wrong with it. Call me silly.

Zz.

Beloved Disney-Pixar Characters Coming To Comic Books

I guess this is another avenue for revenue. Boom! Studios and Disney Publishing has just announced that several beloved Disney-Pixar characters will be published in comic books.

Comics will feature characters from the groundbreaking TOY STORY franchise and blockbuster FINDING NEMO film, as well as this summer's box office success WALL*E.

BOOM! Studios is also proud to announce Editor-in-Chief Mark Waid will be writing THE INCREDIBLES comic book, featuring cover art by DC: THE NEW FRONTIER writer and artist Darwyn Cooke!

I wonder who gets the control of the storyline.

Zz.

Where In Walt Disney World

OK, here's another picture of Walt Disney World. Guess where this is from.



Zz.

Pull The Trigger On Disney

See, someone else besides me also thinks that Disney stocks is a good buy right now.

At $30 a share, Disney(DIS - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) is a buy, said Cramer. Gasoline prices are likely to drop to $3.50 a share. While the weak dollar will make it difficult to travel internationally, Americans are going to flock to Disney World, he said.

Disney's High School musical is fabulous and its channel ABC is doing well. "Disney is ready to rock at $30. Pull that trigger," he said.

Like I said earlier, considering that all the statistics and the anecdotal observation of the resorts having such high booking rate for the rest of the year, the forecast of some financial "analysts" of Disney not going to do well is rather ... er ... strange. Are these the same analysts that caused Apple stocks to tumble just after they just posted record earnings? Go figure!

Zz.

Sun-Times' Roeper Splits with Disney's 'At the Movies'

This is normally not a big news about a movie reviewer splitting a movie review TV show. But here in Chicago, this is big news, almost as big as who would replace Gene Siskel after he passed away. It seems that Richard Roeper will be leaving At The Movies that he had hosted with Roger Ebert due to contractual disagreement.

Roeper, who remains under contract until mid-August, said in his statement that "much transpired ... behind the scenes" after he fielded an initial offer months ago to extend his contract, "but an agreement was never reached and we are all moving along."

That is too bad! Roeper worked extremely well with Ebert and the show becomes not only a good source for movie reviews, but also quite entertaining on its own right. I certainly dread the news that Disney is contemplating a more "Entertainment Tonight"-type of a program. I don't need to watch any more shows about celebrity gossips and news.

Roger, can't you do something?

Zz.

Fantasmic Cut To 2 Nights Per Week Starting January

It's been reported that WDW will cut Fantasmic to only twice a week starting in January. Presumably, this will be effective throughout the "slow" period of the year.

Hum... what does this mean about WDW's projected financial health and attendance due to the slowing economy? Are they as influenced by the projection done by the other financial analysts?

My personal experience at attempting to get our preferred reservations seems to indicate that they are booked solid through the New Year. So I'm certainly not privy to any of the projection they might have into next year.

Zz.

A Disney Store Just Lost My Business

Yesterday, I went to Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, just outside of Chicago. This is the mall that also has the Disney Dooryway To Dreams DVC center. Anyway, had a nice, short chat with the cast members there at DDD store and then proceeded to the Disney Store in the same mall to buy a few things. Now, keep in mind that this is Saturday, at around 4:30 pm. We just had a tough time finding parking at this huge mall complex. So if there's such a thing as a peak time, this WAS the peak time for shopping at the mall.

So I picked up a few things that I wanted to buy, and proceeded to pay for it. That's when I noticed that there was only ONE cashier! The line was at least 10 deep when I got to the back of it, and soon after, 3 more people got in line behind me. The line still had not moved. I looked around, and there was at least 2 other employees (are they now cast members as well?) around the store in addition to the one working the cash register. This was INSANE! Again, keeping in mind that this was PEAK period for shopping on a Saturday.

I don't know if they're having management problems, or staffing problems, or what during this transition period. But even while under Children's Place management, I never saw a time when a line gets this long that they did not open another register if it was possible to check people out. It makes no sense because these are people who are about to give you their money.

After standing in line for a few minutes and not moving, and not seeing any other employees attempting to open another register to handle the customers, I changed my mind. I put back the merchandise that I took, and simply walked away without purchasing anything.

Zz.

Did Disney Lose Your Social Security Number?

OK, the title here is a bit (OK, a lot) misleading, but this is the title in this news article. It involves people who own Disney shares, but not all of them are at risk here of having their social security number falling into the wrong hands.

But its stock in now involved in a security breach....after New York's Mellon Bank reported the possible theft of 4 million names and Social Security Numbers.

Mellon bank was as a "transfer agent" for Disney shares. The Walt Disney company was not involved in this breach in any way.

However, Mellon and Disney are now alerting some shareholders their Socials may be compromised, and that they should sign up for credit monitoring, which they are offering free of charge.

If you haven't heard anything from Disney, then you shouldn't have to worry. But really, with all the problems already going on with such things, why are things like this still happening?

BTW, we own Disney stocks and are one of those people who were contacted by Disney and offered with the free 1-year credit tracking.

Zz.

Travel to WDW is Up Among Carolinians

AAA is reporting that there is a 20% increase in the number of Carolinians who are making a trip to Walt Disney World.

The increase may be because Orlando is close enough to make Walt Disney World a drive-to destination.

AAA officials say that it is typically cheaper for a family of three or four in the Carolinas, to drive than fly to Orlando.

I would guess that this is the trend at the other states as well that is within reasonable driving distance to Orlando. Now couple this with the attractiveness of overseas visitors to visit the US, one can already see that WDW will continue to see the same, if not more, attendance this year despite the higher cost of fuel and other goods. So one often wonders whether analysts such as this actually really understand what they are doing when they predict a downturn at Disney theme parks. I mean, some fools predicted the same thing for the last fiscal quarter, and look at how wrong they were!

Now, add to that, USA Today had just listed WDW as one of the 5 affordable places for a US vacation.

Zz.

Rediscovering the Disney Magic

This is a fun trip report, but unlike any other. It was written by someone (a mom) who, at first, no longer had any interest in going to a Disney theme park.

Moving to Orange County got us closer to Disneyland, but by the time I graduated from Saddleback High School, the D-land thrill was gone for me. What tore it was senior grad night when we were locked into the park until 5 a.m. Gads! There were probably fewer places to sleep in Disneyland than there were for make-out sessions. I spurned the park like a boyfriend that had outlived his shiny promise.

Anytime talk of a trip came up from my own kids, I'd start figuring out who but me could take them. Grandma Jaci came through most times. Last year, husband Joe and his fake knee took daughter Hannah and her friend Kristen to the Pirates of The Caribbean "At World's End" premiere. I was only mildly curious about the celebrities. I was more intrigued that they got to skip all the ride lines due to his handicap (the freaking ride lines, come on!).

Still, this has a happy ending. Well, sort of if you ignore the lost cell phone (which was found the next day) and kids starting to become grouchy at the end of the day. She even liked California Adventure!

Hoo boy, is Disney spot on with California Adventures or what? Pshaw to anybody that thinks a fake California doesn't have merit. Soarin' Over California almost made me cry it was so super cool! Never mind that the ticket taker wouldn't let us cut the line. Our Fastpass was no sweat and my disbelief was totally suspended. That ride alone made the price of admission worthwhile.

Good for her!

:)

Zz.

Epcot's Food and Wine Festival Snags Bocuse d’Or

Wow. This is certainly a major coup, and definitely "on theme"! This year's Epcot's Food and Wine Festival will also have, during its first week, the US semifinal of the prestigious Bocuse d’Or competition.

I've always thought that a prestigious competition like this should be hosted during Food and Wine Festival. It only makes sense. And if you have watched the Food Network on any regular basis, you'll notice that they have a lot of Food Network Challenge competitions. A few of those had been held at WDW. So one would think that they would have, if they haven't already, timed this to coincide with the F&W Festival. They could host a Food Network challenge competition every year during the festival.

Zz.

Lou Mongello Audio Guide To WDW

It's only natural that Lou Mongello, host of WDW Radio Show podcast, would produce an audio guide to WDW.

In his new audio guide, he gives listeners a more extensive and in-depth look into the elements of Walt Disney World that make it special for him and so many other Disney enthusiasts.

From the Victorian charm of Main Street USA to the African jungles in Adventureland, Lou Mongello details hidden treasures, secrets, and an extensive history of Walt Disney World in his new milestone audio series. He paints a vivid picture for listeners based on years of research and his own experiences visiting the park and reveals details about the park that will resonate with both first time visitors and Disney enthusiasts. The tour is particularly useful for visually impaired guests who want to enhance their Walt Disney World experience.

Zz.

Everything Maple Product at the Canada Pavilion at Epcot

Just in case someone is interested (like I do) in knowing a bit more about some of the products one can buy from Disney, especially the authentic items from the various pavilions at Epcot. The maple products sold at the Canada pavilion comes from Everything Maple, and this news article has a short blurb on the company and how they got their stuff at Epcot.

Zz.

Ten Disney-Pixar WALL-E Trivia Questions

I guess Wall-E will be opening July 18 in the UK, but already this website based on Scotland has a set of trivia questions based on the movie. See how many you can get right, especially those of you who have seen it! :)

While we are on Wall-E, Digital Spy (also based in the UK, I think) has an interview with Angus Maclean on various elements in the movie, including what many people conceived as the environmentalism/anti-corporate message in the movie.

Zz.

Couple Hopes to Sell Pig with Unique Birthmark to Disney

Chalk this up to another one of those quirky news. A couple in Wisconsin is hoping to sell this pig to Disney. Why? Well, this pig has a very unique birth mark. You guessed it! It looks like a Mickey head! :)

But the Chamberlins knew right away Miss Minnie Piggie was no ordinary oinker, considering the strong resemblance her birthmark bears to Mickey Mouse, a cartoon character created by animators Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks in 1928.

"We want to give her as long a life as we can," said Nancy Chamberlin. "She's priceless."

Maybe, but the Chamberlins are hoping someone will put a price tag on their prize animal, and they've contacted attorneys from the Walt Disney Co. in hopes that the company will purchase the pig. They haven't heard anything back yet.

If you go to the news article, look at the 2nd picture they have. It shows a clearer image of the birthmark.

Maybe Disney can keep the pig with the other Thanksgiving turkeys that got the presidential pardons. Now, if this pig happens to have a friend that is a duck with the name of Ferdinand, we might be on to something... :)

Zz.

Obama Reviews 'WALL-E'

Barack Obama took time off from campaigning and saw Wall-E with his family. Of course he gave it an equivalent of 4 stars! :)

Zz.

Disney Without Tears

Here's another trip advice for WDW. The analogy with a buffet is certainly different, but makes sense nevertheless. So we can add this to the many trip advice post that we already have in this blog.

Still, the common theme running through all of these trip advices (even mine), is this:

If you are staying nearby, leave the park for an afternoon break. Take a nap or a dip in the pool. Sure, you could spend that two hours waiting in a line in the park, but isn't it more logical to step back, enjoy a little conversation and return when it's cooler and the park is less crowded?

Attendance typically peaks around 3 p.m. The parks are often open until 10 p.m. or later, and many times the lines dissipate by early evening. Plus, if you get stuck in a line, it will be 80 degrees instead of 100.

Zz.

Gifts From DDD at WCPT Pin Meet

I mentioned that we each got a bag of free gifts from our special Windy City Pin Traders meet at the Disney Doorway To Dreams store this past Thursday. So here are a couple of pictures of the gifts we got in our gift bags.

This is the content of the gift bag (it also includes a food coupon for a free appetizer to the Rainforest Cafe, which I've already given away). It was a good collection of goodies (unfortunately, they ran out of the special DDD Mickey Ears hat) that includes a few DVC promotional items (of course). But the best was the collection of pins in the plastic bag.


The pins are all special DVC exclusive pins that can only be found at Disneyland. I know that I don't have any of them, till now. Just the Donald DVC pin alone was worth driving all the way to Woodfield Mall in the middle of storm for. So we are extremely pleased with the pins that they have given us.


So thanks to all the DDD Cast Members for making it such a fun evening.

Zz.

Comparison of Adventures By Disney Tours

This is rather interesting. I haven't seen comparison done like this before (or lately).

This article compares how Adventures by Disney tours handle its reservation and tours based on the information one can gather by simply calling the published number. The article compares that with 2 other tour operators.

It certainly is obvious that the Adventures by Disney reservation system comes up way on top. It is summarized clearly by these points:

* Adventures by Disney, by far, made the best first impression among the three companies we compared.
* Adventures by Disney had the most complete package. The price was not lowest but still good value.
* Adventures by Disney did not forget the younger travelers, in their package planning.

Zz.

WCPT Pin Meet at DDD - Pictures

This is a pictorial follow up to the Windy City Pin Traders Pin Meet at the Disney Doorway to Dreams store at Woodfield Mall. Luckily, while I left my camera and cell phone behind, someone did manage to snap a few pictures of the event (thanks, Patti!). So here they are:

Entrance to the DDD center.


Members of the WCPT are gathering for the initial welcome by the DDD Cast Members. A total of 44 members had RSVP to attend, which is quite a large number.


Diane at the DDD center holding a special gift box to be raffled off to one lucky WCPT members. Alas, yours truly didn't win it!


A closer look at the gift box.


WCPT members were welcomed to look around the DDD center at the AKL room models and around the store. Obviously, many of us were interested in looking at the layout of the new DVC's Kidani Village at AKL that will start taking reservations soon.


It was a wonderful event. Thanks Gene, and all the DDD Cast Members who made it such a pleasant, fun evening. It made many of us feel closer to "home" when we're so far away from our favorite Disney theme parks.


Zz.

WCPT Pin Meet at DDD

Well, so much for blogging live. Can't do that if I forgot to bring my cell phone, which was what happened tonight at the Windy City Pin Traders special pin trading event at the Disney Doorway to Dreams DVC center at Woodfield Mall.

Still, it was a wonderful event. The cast members at the center were all extremely pleasant and very welcoming. There were very little, no-pressure spiel on DVC, especially for those who were not already members. Most of the time, they just let us set up our pin trading stations and off we went! We had a great time doing quite a bit of pin trading with other traders, and the cast members went around having lively conversations with everyone. It was a great event!

We also got free gifts. I'll take a picture of all the items we got, but the best was the set of 4 DVC pins from Disneyland! That certainly was the highlight of the evening.

Oh, we were told that there will be some renovations done to the center, and they're hoping to have a reopening beginning next month with another special event. So that would be a good time to make a trip out there again.

Zz.

WCPT at DDD Tonight

If you know what that means, then it must mean you are part of the WCPT group! :)

That cryptic topic means that the Windy City Pin Traders will be attending a special pin trading event at the Disney's Doorway To Dreams store at Woodfield Mall this evening. The members of the group have been graciously invited by this DVC preview center to have a special event at its location. Of course, we fully expect that they will have some sort of a sales pitch for either buying into the DVC or adding more points to existing DVC membership. However, we were told that, along with some food and refreshments, there will be special gifts and pins for each attendee (which WCPT members have to RSVP in advanced). And who does not like freebies?

Your truly will be attending this special event and will try to report live from it this evening if possible.

Zz.

Reservations Begins at Kidani Village

The new wing of the Disney Vacation Club villas called the Kidani Village at Animal Kingdom Lodge will accept guests starting on May 1st, 2009. So DVC members that have AKL as their home resort can start booking units at the new villas starting on Aug. 10, 2008 (the start of the 11-month window). This is reported in the new DVC members newsletter.

This is exciting news, because getting a DVC unit at AKL has been extremely difficult. Hopefully, with the opening of the new section, more members can get to stay at this gorgeous resort.

Zz.

Disney's Greatest Songs

LA Times staff writer Susan King has a compilation of what she considers as Disney's greatest songs from their movies.

Strangely enough, it included the 2 most memorable tunes in Wall-E that isn't original to the movie, but rather came from "Hello Dolly".

Zz.

The Winter of Disney's Discontent

I read this latest Jim Hill Media report and my jaw just about dropped!!

The one that I could not fathom is the removal of the character dining in the evening at Liberty Tree Tavern. That's utterly unthinkable, considering how extremely popular that whole experience is. I totally agree with Jim Hill with this one that it is total BS that Disney is claiming that the guests ".. asked for less character dining.." If this is true, then it is totally inconsistent with what they did to Arkeshus at the Norway Pavilion at Epcot, which was turned into a character dining a couple of years ago. I'd rather they remove that and bring back what they had before, which had rather excellent food.

They'd better not touch the food quality and the character dining at Crystal Palace. That's all I will say.

OK, now I'm depressed!

Zz.

Laughing Place Interview With Kevin Lansberry, Vice President of Downtwon Disney

Laughing Place has a timely interview with Kevin Lansberry, the Vice President of Downtown Disney. Of course, the news regarding the closure of Pleasure Island is the topic of the interview.

There are few more insight into what they have in mind, but most of it is still under wraps. I am, however, looking forward to the tethered balloon ride. That might be very cool, especially at night.

Zz.

Expired WDW FastPasses On Sale At EBay

HUH?

This is one of those things that I don't get. It appears that there's a brisk market for expired FastPasses on eBay. I'm guessing that these are days old fastpasses. I'm quite puzzled on why people would buy such things. The only thing that I can think of is that they're hoping that they could use one of these fastpasses at the attraction with the Cast Member not noticing the different date, since they are more intent on checking the return time.

Of course, if you read the article, Disney is not going to sit back and do nothing. I can easily see them going with some barcode reader so that it no longer requires a human to read and verify not only the time, but also the date and the authenticity of the fastpasses. But what irks me the most is the comment from one of the vendor who sells these things:

"This is the first time I've ever sold any FastPasses," the unidentified seller stated in an e-mail. "You might be better off asking someone with a little more experience. If Disney didn't scam ME every time I blinked, I wouldn't feel it necessary to try to make a little money back from our trip. You can put that in your write up. :) Thanks for asking."

This is so LAME! Scam this person every time he/she blinks? And this is the justification for this person to do this? So because he/she wants to get even with Disney, Disney will institute a more rigid system for the rest of us who continues to visit the theme parks (I'm assuming he/she won't be coming back since we all don't want this person to get "scammed" again, do we?). This person does this without thinking of the consequences and how it will affect the rest of us. Think of what our society would become if we all think that we are entitled to take up such similar actions just because we had the perception (and really, there's always 2 sides to the coin on almost every issue here) that we had been wronged.

Some people just need to get over themselves already!

Zz.

Presto Now Available On iTunes

Thanks to John Frost at The Disney Blog for pointing this out. Presto, the short film that was shown before Wall-E, is now available on iTunes.

It is a hilarious, old-fashioned slapstick cartoon animation.

Zz.

Get Your Caffeine Fix at WDW's Ticket and Transportation Center

It's true! You can now get coffee and pastries at the WDW Ticket and Transportation Center. The place that used to be nothing more than a "wasteland" in between people hurrying to get to The Magic Kingdom or to their cars have opened a booth for such refreshment, as reported in the theme park rangers column of the Orlando Sentinel, complete with a picture.

Still, if they only serve Nescafe coffee, it isn't something that I'm impressed with. And speaking of which, with Nestle pulling its sponsorship of The Land, is Disney still tied to only serving Nestle's product where ever available? It would be nice if they start serving very good coffee for a change.

Zz.

Wall-E for President

OK, so I have seen this NY Times piece covered at several websites and a few blogs (see The Disney Blog and CNN blog). Still, it is a must read, especially to Americans who are facing a very important decision soon. Besides, it isn't too often that a Pixar movie gets mixed in with American politics and presidential election. When was the last time that happened?

:)

Zz.

Disneyland's Guests Will Have To Wait For The New Monorail A Bit Longer

The Mark VII monorail that has been tested on and off at Disneyland is not quite ready yet for Prime Time.

On Saturday the long-awaited new train, the park's only upgrade of the attraction in 21 years, failed to appear after several hours of on-again, off-again operation over the previous two days.

Disney officials attributed the glitches to the attraction's normal "test and adjust" period, when mechanics and designers work out the bugs.

"We are working on solving them," spokeswoman Betsy Sanchez said of the unspecified problems.

She would not predict when the ride would open full time.

It certainly is pretty slick when they were first introduced. I don't remember the last time they introduced new monorail vehicles, but did they had the same lengthy problem as well back then?

Zz.

Wall-E World

You know a movie is having an impact if the discussion about it goes beyond just the normal channel. It appears that the world created in Wall-E has generated quite a discussion.

From “I Am Legend” to Cormac McCarthy’s “The Road,” recent pop culture has been full of post-apocalyptic stories. But “Wall-E” departs from those tales in one key aspect: The human race in this movie isn’t becoming extinct, it’s just on an indefinite vacation. In the future created by “Wall-E’s” filmmakers, we humans flee our ruined planet in 2110 for giant, cruise-ship-like space vessels, where we drift numbly through the solar system for the next 700 years. Coddled by servant robots, carted around on levitating recliner chairs, fed through Big Gulp-like cups and medicated by programming on ever-present hologram TVs, we have become infantile and morbidly fat.

In this way, “Wall-E” takes 21st-century societal trends – ecological destruction, rampant consumerism, corporate consolidation and obesity – and projects them forward to their most drastic consequences. Right-wing bloggers already have attacked what they see as the movie’s save-the-Earth message, although they might be heartened to see that in “Wall-E’s” vision of the future, government doesn’t seem to exist (the spacecraft are operated by Buy N’ Large).

Sometime, a cigar is just a cigar. I don't buy into the idea that there's a message here. It is simply a good story. If one is inclined to take care of our planet better after seeing this movie, what is so wrong with that?

Zz.

A Solid Surface for Disney Success

Here's a coverage, by the New York Times no less, of something that is often neglected, the Disney On Ice production. It reveals how this has become an important aspect of the company to introduce the Disney brand into markets that are difficult for the company to penetrate.

Disney on Ice, once a backwater that the media giant practically ignored, has quietly grown into an important tool for the company as it seeks to further exploit its creative franchises and turn young children into Disneyphiles. Moreover, the shows — which are populated with figure skaters dressed as Disney cartoon characters — are helping the company expand into difficult foreign markets, analysts say.

“People forget that these kinds of live shows can be extremely powerful brand builders,” said Alan Gould, an analyst at Natixis Bleichroeder in New York.

The article describes one example where the ice shows have managed to generate considerable interest in Disney merchandise.

But the company has been able to use a powerful lever — Disney on Ice — to increase demand among Russians. Last year, Moscow and St. Petersburg played host to “Princess Classics,” a skating show meant to introduce children to characters like Snow White.

The tour, Disney’s second such effort in the country, sent retail sales of Disney merchandise soaring and generated positive local media reports. Three more tours are in the works.

For me, the Disney On Ice show is another opportunity to get into the Disney spirit (I've been now to wear my Mickey Ears hat to one of these shows) in between our trips to WDW.

Zz.

Sign Language is Part of Disney's World

This is something I don't know before. I mean, I know they have services for hearing-impaired guests, but I didn't know that they had invented a number of Disney-specific signs.

Throughout Walt Disney World, stage shows, parades and a few of the other attractions offer American Sign Language Interpretation services, at least once a week, for deaf and hearing-impaired visitors. Everything at Disney has a name, and the company has never been shy about inventing its own words, which is why it has invented hundreds of Disney-specific word signs.

Of course, some of these signs are rather obvious for anyone who knows about Disney.

How about this instead? Walt Disney World manager Mark Jones curls his fingers on both hands, thumbs on the bottom, to form opposing "C" figures, places them on top of his head, and then smiles.

Chances are, most people -- hearing or deaf -- would get the improvised mouse ears as the sign for Mickey Mouse -- even though Disney officials made it up themselves.

I will have to learn the sign language for Donald.

Donald Duck? Jones gave the sign for the letter D, then formed a beak with one hand, straight fingers on top, thumb on the bottom. He put the back of his hand to his lips, and then flapped his thumb.

Zz.

Stars And Stripes Forever (Muppets Version)

To commemorate 4th of July today, enjoy the Muppets version of Stars and Stripes Forever.



Zz.

Disney: 'Reslience and Value'

This is an analysis of the financial outlook of the Walt Disney Company.

"However, Disney (NYSE: DIS) is one of those consumer-dependent stocks where conventional wisdom may not be correct," he adds in his The DRIP Investor.

"The stock offers a solid value at current prices, and investors would do well to buy aggressively on pullbacks below $30.

Holy Cow! He's giving our secrets away! That's what we've been doing all along every time it dips below $30, which isn't very often.

:)

Zz.

"Little Mermaid" Ride Coming to California Adventure?

It appears that there's a delicious rumor that "Voyage of the Little Mermaid" attraction will be coming to Disney's California Adventure. With an estimated price tag of $100 million, this is going to be a part of DCA's rehab.

Artist sketches show Mermaid riders sitting in clamshell vehicles similar to the Haunted Mansion’s doombuggies, but Screamscape says it’s still possible an overhead track similar to Peter Pan’s Flight dark ride might be employed.

With a heavy emphasis on the movie’s soundtrack, Voyage of the Little Mermaid storyboards show the ride traveling through five scenes representing every major musical number:
* Part of Your World
* Poor Unfortunate Souls
* Under the Sea
* Kiss the Girl
* Part of Your World (Redux)

I just hope that the hype doesn't result in anything similar to the disappointing Nemo attraction at The Seas With Nemo and Friends in Epcot.

Zz.

Happy Independence Day

To all Americans celebrating the Independence Day, Happy 4th of July!



Zz.

Harvey Weinstein Manipulated Disney?

This tell-all "book" by an ex-employee of Harvey and Bob Weinstein claim that they manipulated Disney while they were still running Miramax for Disney.

The so-far-anonymous author - who signed off an e-mail to Page Six as "The Final Nail" - claims, "The book, which is told from a deep insider's [point of view], will detail the day-to-day . . . manipulation of the Disney company by the Weinstein Bros." Disney owns Miramax, with which the Weinsteins are no longer involved.

Really? I find that rather hard to believe. But then again, this was during the Eisner regime, so who knows.....

Zz.

Disney Your Way

I don't mind admitting that I'm a big sucker for reading about fond memories that people have at a Disney theme park. I just love reading about how the little things that happened, especially when cast members go out of their way to make those little magic, can really create a lifetime of memories.

So this is why I had a lot of fun reading the latest issue of the Disney Insider. They devoted the main section to guests' account of the wonderful things that happened to them while they're at a Disney park. I wish they could have more of this in every issue.

Zz.

At Pixar, Everyone Gets to be a Critic

This MSNBC piece at the way Pixar works is quite informative. The only time that I remember reading about a similar culture is the working conditions at Google. I guess when you have that degree of success, a lot of perks and privileges come along with it. With Pixar, the best that Disney can do is let them be the way they are.

It still going to be interesting, though, to see what happens when things don't go so well. I wonder how long before the suits step in and interfere when things start to go sour. However, at the rate that things have been going, I don't foresee that happening anytime soon.

Zz.

Rotten Tomatoes Officially Declares WALL-E Best Reviewed Movie of 2008 So Far

It is official. Wall-E has become the best reviewed movie of 2008 so far. It has a 96% positive ratings, compared to 93% for Iron Man.

Zz.

WALL-E Easter Eggs

Just got this link from one of my buddies (thanks, Ralph!)

SPOILER ALERT - Don't click on the link if you want to hunt for these yourself.

This article lists all the "Easter Eggs" in Wall-E, such as the appearance of the Pizza Planet truck, which character John Ratzenberger voiced, etc. It isn't as extensive as the hidden Disney references in Enchanted, but it is still fun nonetheless to hunt for them

Zz.

WALL-E Flavored with a Dash of Apple

I mentioned in my review of Wall-E that those who are familiar with Macs would have an extra love for the movie. I didn't want to say too much since I didn't want to spoil the fun for those who have yet to see the movie. However, since this has already been spilled, I might as well point to the news article that revealed all the references to Apple in the movie.

If you want to discover these connections yourself, don't click this link!

Zz.

No Deal for Disneyland Park in Shanghai..... YET!

The rumors published in a Hong Kong newspaper last Saturday is being denied rapidly by both the Shanghai govt. and Disney. No deal yet on any possible Disney theme parks in Shanghai.

Can we get on with it already? I'm getting tired of this rumor.

Zz.

All Ears On Wall-E

One of the most important aspect of Wall-E is the sound, especially during the first half of the movie where there is hardly any dialog. The person responsible for making all of the sound for the movie is Ben Burtt, who already has a legendary history in sound production in some of the most important and memorable movies in history. This news item highlights his contribution to Wall-E and the movies.

That's just a day in the life of the pioneering sound designer, who went on similar field trips when he came up with Darth Vader's breathing in "Star Wars," the Indiana Jones whip in "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and a variety of other iconic sounds now embedded in cinema history. After more than 30 years in the business and four Academy Awards, he found his largest challenge yet in "WALL-E," which features almost no dialogue in the first half of the movie. The story about a robot who finds love on an abandoned, polluted Earth used 2,500 new sound files - compared with the 700 to 1,000 for the typical "Star Wars" or "Indiana Jones" movie.

I love reading articles like this. We tend to be ignorant at how untrivial many of these things are that tend to be in the background, yet became signatures for a particular movie. It is nice to be aware of how the work of some of these men and women played a big role in these movies.

Zz.

Wall-E Review

It's no secret that Wall-E has been getting rave reviews so far. We saw it last night and every hype given to it is well-deserved. As with Ratatouille, this movie has something a lot of movie doesn't have - A HEART! This robot shows more humanity than any Arnold Swarchenegger movie. And I could easily fall in love with Eve. Who wouldn't love a "female", gun-trotting robot that can fix a trash compacter in 60 seconds flat? :)

I thought the first half of the movie (before all the dialog started) was more mesmerizing than the second half. It's not because of the quality, but more rather due to Pixar's brilliance in telling a story and conveying emotions without a single word of dialog. Of all the parts of the movie, this was where I thought it was at its best. Within a few minutes, you felt as if you know Wall-E and empathized with him (it?). And if you're familiar with Macs, you'll love him even more! :)

As far as storyline goes, which is usually the strongest asset of a Pixar movie, I thought that Ratatouille had a more fascinating storyline. The second half of the movie that took place on Axiom spaceship was funny and fun, but with a rather pedestrian storyline. The conglomeration of misfit robots as Wall-E's allies felt a bit like the Tank Gang in Finding Nemo. One of my friends said that the 2nd half probably was to keep the kids awake and interested. So while the 2nd half was fun and action-packed, the 1st half was all heart and soul.

As far as intelligence goes, it is just slightly lower than Ratatouille, which isn't bad at all considering that Ratatouille was just brilliant. I don't think the French will be as enamored with Wall-E as they did with Ratatouille. Still, don't let this stop you seeing it, even if you're French! :) As many reviewers have said, this is the best movie of the year so far.

Zz.

Disney Phone Mess Fixed

We don't much from people who actually bought the Disney phones and service, so this article is very "rare". Still, Disney should have taken care of this before the former owner had to write to The Fixer at this newspaper to get her money back.

After switching my service to Verizon on Oct. 6, I mailed back the phones the next day (within the 30-day period to get a refund). Approximately two weeks later, I received a notice from the company that it was unable to do any refunds and that I should contact Disney Mobile directly to obtain my refund.

So I contacted Disney Mobile, and it stated that yes, after all my bills were paid in full, a refund would be generated. It also agreed to refund my activation fees for the phones because it was within the 30-day policy.

After working with the customer service at Disney Mobile for more than four months, I did get the activation fees reversed, but the company would not refund the money for the phones or accessories because I purchased them at the kiosk at Downtown Disney. It stated that this was a third party.

I told the company I bought these phones on Disney property with the Disney brand name. Boy, oh boy, what a mess. The people that worked at the kiosk were long gone. I actually spoke to the person that managed that stand, and he said Disney reps had come in and shut it down the day after the notice of the Dec. 31 closure was announced.

The ONE thing that Disney needs to realize is that most guests really don't know or don't care if a vendor or a worker is from a "third party" organization. If it is on Disney property, it IS Disney and represents Disney. Period! So giving a guest the excuse that such-and-such came from a third party vendor does nothing but infuriate the guest even more! The guest may have a bad impression on that vendor, but will have an even worse impression on Disney. If it is a Disney product or service on a Disney property, it IS Disney and Disney needs to take ownership and responsibility for it. And this goes for any merchandise bought at stores, and outsourced workers working at Disney resorts.

Zz.

Will You Miss Pleasure Island?

The big news late in the week from WDW is definitely the planned closure of Pleasure Island as we know it.

BET SoundStage Club, Mannequins Dance Palace, 8Trax and three other clubs that have for years catered largely to young, single adults -- rather than to Disney's bread-and-butter family market -- will close after Sept. 27.

During the next couple of years, Disney will reopen the Pleasure Island venues with a broader mix of restaurants and shops.

I must say that this isn't highly unexpected. While I've had a few good times at PI (8-Trax is just a blast!), it has never been something that I really want to do when I'm there, mainly because I live in Wrigleyville here in Chicago where bars and dance clubs are only within walking distance. So why would I want to do the same thing at WDW of something I can easily do here back home? Furthermore, they don't have any "Disney" feel to them. I suppose the local population would be the ones who would miss it more than the tourists.

I also think that PI sort of cut the flow between Marketplace and the West Side. I very seldom walk between the two, always turning around when we get to Fulton's. So maybe a more continuous flow between the two areas might not be so bad. I've always thought that they could do better if they intermix the clubs in between the "regular" establishments.

In any case, I probably won't miss the current version of PI that much, if at all. If they can somehow build something that makes it more enticing for people to go between the two ends of Downtown Disney, then I'd say it would be an improvement.

Zz.

Call It Disney’s Food Kingdom

This is a rather interesting article on food at WDW (yes, ANOTHER one!). It is interesting because most of the places that the author went to were upscale dining establishments (Jiko, Flying Fish Cafe, California Grill). I am not surprised that they found the food there enticing and of high caliber. Jiko, especially, is one of my favorites. They should have tried to get into Boma when they couldn't get into Jiko the next night. (Boma is my #1 most favorite place to eat in all of WDW).

They also didn't try Crystal Palace at MK. Granted, the place can get hectic and loud, since it is a character dining. But from my experience, it has THE best buffet anywhere on a WDW theme park. The food quality and selection are surprisingly good. Having Pooh and friends drop by your table while you eat is an added benefit.

Zz.

Is Wall-E Too Good and Too Smart?

With Wall-E opening today, this is a rather intriguing question. Is Wall-E too good and too smart, and also too dark?

"WALL·E" is really an art film. It is besotted with its own technology, its own art -- almost to the point that it allows technology to sublimate the story.

It is, the more I think about it, a jewel of a film in conception, execution and message. But the kids, who had been laughing at a recent screening, got very quiet during certain sequences, especially when the Earth seemed irredeemable. "WALL·E's" glance into the future didn't do much for my bliss either, but the idea that a company in the business of mainstream entertainment would make something as creative, substantial and cautionary as "WALL·E" has to raise your hopes for humanity.

This is why those folks at Pixar should be commended for taking such chances. It only makes me even more excited to go see this movie.

Zz.

Wall-E Opens Tomorrow!!

Just in case you've been under a rock the past few months, Wall-E officially opens nationwide tomorrow! And Roger Ebert gave it a glowing review (but not the perfect 4-stars, though, unlike Ratatouille which did get one).

The movie has a wonderful look. Like so many of the Pixar animated features, it finds a color palette that’s bright and cheerful, but not too pushy, and a tiny bit realistic at the same time. The drawing style is Comic Book Cool, as perfected in the funny comics more than in the superhero books: Everything has a stylistic twist to give it flair. And a lot of thought must have gone into the design of WALL•E, for whom I felt a curious affection. Consider this hunk of tin beside the Kung Fu Panda. The panda was all but special-ordered to be lovable, but on reflection, I think he was so fat, it wasn’t funny anymore. WALL•E, however, looks rusty and hard-working and plucky, and expresses his personality with body language and (mostly) with the binocular-like video cameras that serve as his eyes. The movie draws on a tradition going back to the earliest days of Walt Disney, who reduced human expressions to their broadest components and found ways to translate them to animals, birds, bees, flowers, trains and everything else.

We'll be seeing it on Saturday night, so no one better come here and spoil the movie for me! :)

Zz.

Why Visit Every Disney Park in the World?

This writer got to do what I have longed to do - visit every Disney theme park in the world. So I'm utterly jealous.

Still, her wonderful piece is fun to read, especially her description of all the Disney theme parks:

Think of the properties as an extended family.

Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Calif. is the great aunt, a grande dame who has seen the world and has the wrinkles to prove it, but her pearls are still polished.

Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla. is the big brother, the star athlete who gets all the attention but is still humble enough to hang out with his nerdy little brother.

Disneyland Paris Resort is the slightly odd cousin - the one everyone tries to avoid at family gatherings but who is actually pretty nice once you get to know him.

The Tokyo Disney Resort parks are the uber-hip twins - those third cousins, twice removed, that you only get to see at weddings and funerals. They're fun and bubbly and intimidatingly cool.

Hong Kong Disneyland is the awkward tween nephew, who wants nothing more than to be just like his older and cooler relatives. He'll get there, but for now he's a bit gangly.

Top on my list is definitely Tokyo. So, one of these days..... Konichiwa!

Zz.

The Pixar Touch

This is a book review of David Price's "The Pixar Touch". The review is quite informative in including some of the important milestone in Pixar's history, including a few jaw-dropping moments. For example, would Jeffery Katzenberg admit to actually saying something like this regarding the possibility of acquiring Pixar for Disney?

Kinsey wanted Disney to buy Pixar outright for $15 million, but he was overruled by Jeffrey Katzenberg, then head of Walt Disney Studios. “I can’t waste my time on this stuff,” Kinsey says Katzenberg told him.

Why, Katzenberg could probably be listed on the same Executive Wall of Shame as the many studio executives who rejected Lucas's "Star Wars" before he found 20th Century Fox.

Sounds like this might be a fun book to read.

Zz.

NASA and Disney Invite Kids to Explore Space With Wall-E

So here's something I didn't know (maybe because I haven't been reading a lot of the news lately). It appears that NASA and Disney has some sort of a Space Act Agreement. As one of the acts of such agreement, they are promoting Disney-Pixar's Wall-E.

This collaboration highlights the similarities between the movie's storyline and NASA's real-life work in robot technology, propulsion systems and astrophysics. Disney-Pixar's WALL-E is set 700 years in the future. The film's main character is the only rover-robot left on Earth. He meets a new robot named Eve, and together they take a journey through the universe.

"Great ideas for future exploration of the universe start with the imagination," said Robert Hopkins, chief of strategic communications at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "We hope that with the help of our new robot friend WALL-E, NASA can encourage young people to learn about science and technology and become the explorers of tomorrow."

This actually sounds interesting if it is effective.

Now, if NASA can actually participate in such a thing, how about getting them to also participate in ramping up or having an exhibition/area in Innoventions at Epcot? I know they were heavily involved in Mission Space, but it wouldn't hurt if they emphasize some of the science they are doing at NASA at the Innoventions pavilion. Wouldn't that makes sense as well?

Zz.

Your Favorite Animated Space-Related Character

NASA actually has a poll for one's most favorite animated space-related character on their webpage at NASA.gov. The characters to choose from are Marvin the Martian, Buzz Lightyear, George Jetson, and Space Ghost. So far, Buzz Lightyear is leading Marvin the Martian. This is definitely Disney versus Warner Brothers! :)

So don't forget to vote!

Zz.

Disney To Overhaul Disney.com Again?

Disney wants to make Disney.com "younger", to attract younger children. This is a 2nd major overhaul in, er... what is it, 2 years?

The changes, scheduled to take place over the next few months, will introduce more free video to the site (including full-length movies like “Finding Nemo”) as well as more games and things for visitors to do with their cellphones. For instance, little girls (or bigger ones) who create fairy avatars in a virtual world called Pixie Hollow will be able to use their cellphones buy pet butterflies for their fairies.

I hope they remember that us adults also do go there. If they make it too "young", they might lose some of us.

Zz.

Is it the Original Mickey?

I was browsing Laughing Place and saw this news report. A Fox News website is reporting on this guy who claims to have the original Mickey Mouse sketch done by Walt Disney.

I immediately had a deja vu feeling and said "Wait a second. Why is this whole thing sounding familiar? I swear John Frost had something on this already".

And sure enough, when I went to The Disney Blog, John already had a rant against this claim, and I was right, he DID already debunked this story.

I have the same low opinion of Fox News, and this only re-enforced that opinion.

Zz.

9th Annual Harris Interactive Survey of 60 Most Visible U.S. Companies

The Harris poll has released the latest result on the poll of the reputation of 60 of the most visible companies. Not surprising to me, Google got the top spot this year, beating out Microsoft.

What does it take to get to the top? Google provides a case in point. Four years ago, the company was not included among the top 60 most visible companies on the list. But this year, Google rose to No. 1, beating last year’s RQ reputation leader, Microsoft. Google also beat this year’s second-runner-up, Johnson & Johnson, which was the top ranked company, until last year, since the inception of the survey in 1999.

The Walt Disney Company didn't do that badly, but wasn't stellar either. In the overall ranking, they are at No. 18, and they are also at No. 5 for the company having the highest public perception of corporate sincerity.

The full report can be found here.

Zz.

Economy, Oil Prices Finally Catching Up To Disney?

This article brings out the possibility that the increase in oil prices and the reduction of flights by Delta Airlines into Orlando might affect business at WDW.

Now Pali's Rich Greenfield isn't so sure. He thinks that Delta's flights to Orlando will be down 26% in October, and down 12% plus for the last three months of 2008. And he thinks that will continue into next year, prompting him to cut both top and bottom line growth estimates companywide; he thinks the parks unit, meanwhile, will see revenues decrease by 0.6% and operating income drop by 2.3%.

I can never understand how these people make predictions, or the logic and rationality of some of their decisions or recommendations. For example, looking at this particular issue, just now large exactly is Delta Airlines presence at Orlando International? Someone correct me on this, but I think Southwest Airlines has the largest presence there, no? And I don't hear Southwest cutting back on anything. And if I were them, I would be jumping for joy hearing all these other airlines cutting back on their flights, because it would mean more passengers for me. This is, of course, in addition to the darling of the flying crowd, JetBlue.

If this guy thinks that there will a revenue decrease in the next few months, he hasn't tried to book a room at a WDW resort for December, for heaven's sake.

Zz.

WALL-E is the Latest in Long Line of Compelling Pixar Characters

This is a wonderful article on Pixar and their story-driven movies.

Most discussions of the Pixar filmmaking process involve words like cutting edge and modern computer technology. But at the heart of their films, the experts say, are old-fashioned storytelling values.

"They remind me so much of the Disney productions of the '30s and '40s," says Don Peri, author of "Working With Walt: Interviews With Disney Artists." "There's a lot of emphasis on warmth and personality. And you see good triumphing over evil in a more traditional way. There's a little more sincerity to their characters and films, than say a 'Shrek.'"

But the Pixar artists have also rebelled against some of the familiar Disney tendencies that once set the tone for animated features. Thus far, they've avoided fairy tales and musicals. And their lead characters tend to possess adult personas rather than the childlike ones who head up many Disney classics.

"It's almost like the kids are subsidiary characters," Beck says. "And that's different from a lot of Disney films where you have characters like the Little Mermaid, Dumbo, Bambi, the kids in Peter Pan and Simba in 'The Lion King' — classic innocents discovering the harsh realities of the world."

I think that this is the very reason that both the traditional Disney animation and Pixar almost compliment each other, because they approach their movies from different perspective but still have the storyline as the main driver. Getting Pixar to be a part of Disney while still maintaining Pixar's identity was a stroke of brilliance by Bob Iger.

Zz.

Where in Walt Disney World

OK, we haven't had this in a while, so here's another one. Where in Walt Disney World can you see this?



Zz.

Disney Finds Park Space for Pixar

Variety has this rather interesting article on the "Pixar-rization" of Disney theme parks, especially recently since the Pixar acquisition.

But the Pixar-ization of Disney’s parks in Anaheim, Orlando, Paris, Tokyo and Hong Kong is under way, with the Mouse set to spend hundreds of millions to turn the company’s characters into new rides, shows and other attractions.

It’s about time.

It lists all the recently-added Pixar-themed attractions at various theme parks and even the Disney Cruise line. Now most Disney loyalists probably (at least me) have no complaints about new attractions that emphasized the theme from various Pixar movies. Heaven knows those movies were quite good and were hits. But I think there's plenty to be said when existing facilities are retooled or rehabbed to be a Pixar-themed attraction. An example is the re-themeing of The Living Seas into The Seas with Nemo and Friends. While I don't quite care about the Nemo attraction that much, I think a lot of Disney fans are afraid that the Pixar-ization could take over many of the existing but weak attraction.

Although, truth to be told, I don't mind a lot of Pixar-ization of The Carousel of Progress, but I'm in the very small minority with this one! :)

Zz.

New Oscar Rule Limits Song Nominations to 2 Per Film

So looks like Enchanted was the last movie ever to get 3 songs nominated from one movie.

The number of original songs that can be nominated from a single movie will now be limited to two, according to a rule change by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The academy's governors approved the change late Tuesday.

Last year, Disney's "Enchanted" had three titles in contention: "Happy Working Song," "So Close" and "That's How You Know." The winner of best original song: "Falling Slowly," from "Once."

I don't know about you, but I had a feeling that getting 3 almost equally-strong songs nominated from Enchanted may have hurt it from winning the Oscar.

Zz.

The World According to Disney

This is a rather interesting article on Disney and race relations, especially the shows on the Disney Channel.

I know, I know, you’d rather not give any credit to the saccharine-sweet world of Disney. But the fact is, the Disney network is a racial nirvana, where children and adults of all races, creeds and colors play, date, and work together, without an eyebrow raised. Take the wildly popular High School Musical : the romantic leads, Troy and Gabriela, are a white jock and a Latina brain. Their best friends are both black and the villain is a rich white girl adored by a black basketball player who also loves to bake. Or how about Corey in the House, a spin-off of the hit That’s So Raven. African-American Corey moves into the White House when his dad is named the head chef by a Hispanic president. His best friends are a white surfer dude and a Middle East girl, who he secretly has a crush on.

Of course, you then get someone like Angelina Jolie cannot get past the idea that there are no african-american Disney princess. According to this article, she should look in her backyard and at her profession first.

Too bad the rest of Hollywood hasn’t followed suit. According to an Entertainment Weekly study of casts for the fall 2008 season, each of the five major broadcast networks is whiter than the Caucasian percentage (66.2%) of the U.S. population. And all of the networks are representing considerably lower than the Latino population percentage of 15.2%.

Zz.

Disney Rides Again With Toy Story Mania

So what could possibly be "better" than riding Toy Story Mania with John Lasseter? Maybe riding it with Disney CEO Bob Iger!

Back to the ride, where Iger is killing me…. I'm having trouble pulling the cord that fires the "bullets" (Iger was quick to tell me they didn't want kids playing with anything that looked like a real gun). Iger is littering the screen with shots, finding the right way to pull the cord to keep the "gun" from "jamming." He seems to be dead-on. In the end, he's piled up 139,000 points (high scores are in the 300,000 range). I'm stuck at 69,000. "Well, I tried it out yesterday," Iger admits, grinning as he heads back to the company's Burbank (Calif.) headquarters.

The article also gave a brief report on the official opening of the attraction at DCA.

Zz.

Dance Off With the Star Wars Stars 2008

This video is just plain hysterical! It appears that this is part of the "Hyperspace Hoopla" at DHS during the Star Wars Weekend.



I didn't know Chewy can move like that! :) But definitely, Vader stole the show!

Zz.

Disney Plans to Outsource Robotic Figures

Chalk another one up for outsourcing. Disney plans to outsource the production of most of their animatronics.

The memo states that after review, manufacturing all Audio-Animatronics figures in-house is not feasible in terms of cost and staffing. Instead, Imagineering's Manufacturing and Prototype Operations group, based in North Hollywood, Calif., will "build some select, highly complex" figures in-house.

Zz.

Ub Iwerks Story

Holly Cow!

It's about 7:20 pm Central time, and I was surfing the TV channels when I came across "The Hand Behind The Mouse : the Ub Iwerks Story" on Ovation TV channel! Luckily, it is still in the early part (the program airs from 7 to 9 pm). They had just completed the Alice Comedies and have now moved on to Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.

Zz.

Edit: Good grief! Ovation TV has a commercial almost every 5 minutes! No wonder this thing takes 2 hours!

Toy Story Mania: How I beat Pixar's John Lasseter

Oh, this is such a fun blog entry. First of all, most of us would DIE to be able to get on a ride, much less, Toy Story Mania, with John Lasseter. Secondly, to be able to "beat" him at it is even more fun. However, did Lasseter really got beaten?

So as not to bore you with all the play-by-play details (he took a Lakers-like early lead, I battled back a la the Celtics), I’ll cut to the chase: When the final scores flashed up on the big board, I was shocked to have outscored the legendary John Lasseter 205,400 to 200,100.

Upon further reflection, I’ve come to realize that he probably let me win. That he is so good as to be able to lose at will by a few thousand points. To boost my ego. Inflate my self-worth. And provide my happily ever after ending.

I would be gloating all year even if I got beaten by Lasseter by a gazillion points.

Zz.

Disney Names VP for Planned Hawaii Resort

Disney has named Djuan Rivers to head the planned Hawaii resort at Ko Olina Resort. Now, usually this isn't such an interesting news for Disney fanatics, but I found one piece of information in the news report that I took notice of.

Djuan Rivers has been named vice president of Disney Vacation Club and Resort, Hawaii.

Hum... does that mean that this will be a DVC resort only and not a combination of DVC resort and a "regular" resort? Not that it has any significant meaning because non-DVC members can still book a stay there (and pay at a higher rate), just like Vero Beach, I suppose.

Still, I can't wait to see how many points they'll charge for a stay there. Wouldn't it be outrageous if they also build a glorious Disney store as well with Hawaii-specific merchandise? Pins, anyone?

Zz.

Toy Story Mania Opens Today

This is no big secret, but just in case anyone missed it, Toy Story Mania opens today at both Disney's California Adventure and Disney's Hollywood Studios.

Toy Story Mania is nothing like a traditional theme park attraction. It's more like a ride-through 3D video game, and I speak with great authority because I rode it seven times yesterday (see the video clip). You're on a car going around a track, wearing 3D glasses so everything is 3D. The ride is designed to make you feel like you've been shrunk down to the size of a toy in a kid's bedroom, while you along with "Toy Story" characters Buzz Lightyear and Woody navigate classic kids games and play old fashioned midway games. You pull the rope on the shooter right in front of you to try to hit targets in a range of games- darts, ring toss etc- to rack up points.

This is probably the first thing I'll aim for when we go to WDW in early Sept.

Zz.

Orange Stinger at California Adventure to Get New Disney Theme

Looks like the "face lift" for California Adventure is proceeding along. This article reports on the Orange Stinger in the Paradise Pier section of DCA that will be getting a Disney theme.

The Blue Sky Disney fan site reported the Orange Stinger will be redubbed…… “The Silly Symphonies Swings,” with a theme based on “The Band Concert” 1935 cartoon short featuring the first colorized Mickey Mouse.

The made-over 1 1/2-minute ride would feature a twirling tornado mast with smoke-spewing special effects, an orchestral score and a “Conductor Mickey” on top, according to Blue Sky.

All I can say is, anything would be better than what they have now. Having said that, I wish California Screamin' gets preserved in some way with a new theme, but keeping the ride. I actually enjoyed that one, and having the big loop going over a Mickey Head icon was a brilliant idea. But that's the only Disney connection the attraction had. So any further improvement would be a plus.

Zz.

Disney Takes 'Science Fair' Prize

This is rather timely after Disney's recent participation in the World Science Festival. It seems that they won a bidding war for the rights to writer John Sullivan family adventure "Science Fair".

I really hope they do a different take on this rather than make it look generic like "Night in a Museum". There's a wonderful opportunity to really get the science correct, while still keeping the "fantasy" element of the science projects coming to life.

Zz.

Disney Shows Some Secrets to Entice Youth Into Science, Engineering

I mentioned earlier about the Disney Imagineering participation in the first ever World Science Festival in NY City this past month. There is more post-coverage of this event in this news report. Looks like the Disney presentation was a huge hit and a crowd favorite.

Audience members didn't have to wait to experience other Disney technology, such as a a special effects tool called a "big puffer." The crowd filled with many kids and parents gasped and cheered as the massive cannon-like device rolled on stage and began shooting doughnuts of fog across the theater.

The Imagineers triggered a more chilling reaction when they used a special ultrasound speaker that projects sound in a narrow beam. With a young girl from the audience whispering "I am a spooky ghost" into a microphone, they sent her voice out to different parts of the theater.

"We wanted to create an effect that would make it sound like a sound was coming from right inside your head," said special effects expert AsaKalama.

Now, if only they could bring such a show to Future World at Epcot. Wouldn't that be a terrific location for such a demonstration?

Zz.

Walt Disney’s Inspiration is a Copenhagen Amusement

This is a coverage of Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, Denmark. I'm sure most people know Walt Disney visited Tivoli gardens and it has been reported that it because the inspiration for Disneyland.

I've seen TV shows, especially on the Travel Channel, that reports on this charming amusement park. I think it is always listed as one of the best amusement parks in the world. Samantha Brown, my favorite TV traveler, has visited Copenhagen and Tivoli Gardens in one of her Passport to Europe shows.

Zz.

Review of Disney Channel's 'Camp Rock'

Looks like the reviews of Disney Channel's "Camp Rock" appears to be quite good across the board. While the universal agreement seems to be that it won't be as big as High School Musical, it should be another major hit for the Disney Channel, and who knows, should be another possible franchise.

If it isn't obviously already, the Disney Channel is certainly on a roll.

Zz.

Wall-E To Roam California Adventure

A "real live" Wall-E will roam Disney's California Adventure! This is what Disneyland's passholder were told.

A real-world mobile audio-animatronic Wall-E robot will roam around Disney’s California Adventure and interact with theme park visitors later this year, according to the monthly newsletter mailed to Disneyland Annual Passholders.
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The adorable remote-controlled, 3-foot-tall robot built by Walt Disney Imagineering has been spotted on the streets of Los Angeles and at a Philadelphia science center, but the Mouse House has remained mum on future theme park visits by Wall-E.

After Lucky the Dinasaur, the Talking Trashcan, and other interactive animatronics around the parks, having Wall-E interacting with the guests makes a lot of sense. This will fit quite well with the new Pixar Land at DHS. So I hope they do bring Wall-E there as a permanent resident.

Zz.

CNET's Reporter Did The Segway Tour

Hope you have been following Daniel Terdiman's WDW road trip. He did the Segway Tour yesterday, and I was one of those who suggested that he did that.

Riding the Segways was one of the suggestions I got from readers when I asked last week what I should do at Disney World when I visited as part of Road Trip 2008, my journey around the South. And I have to say, it was a great idea. I love Segways, first of all, and secondly, how great is it to glide around effortlessly on a hot day when everyone else is working up a sweat just strolling from point A to point B.

So look at the comments he received here. One of them is from yours truly. :)

If you've never done the Segway Tour around World Showcase, you should really consider it. Do the one before World Showcase opens, so that you can ride it in and out of the pavilion in areas that can be accessed by the Segway. Besides, they give you a pin at the end of it! :)

Zz.

Disney Adds Blu-Ray Extras

Now that Blu-Ray has won the high-def war, Disney is going all out in promoting the medium with cutting edge extra to take advantage of the Profile 2 (or BD-Live) capability of Blu-Ray.

During a presentation Monday night to officially unveil Disney's first BD Live title -- an elaborate 50th anniversary edition release of "Sleeping Beauty" -- division president Bob Chapek promised to add BD Live elements, which allow movie viewers to tap into the Web for a wealth of interactive options, to all upcoming Disney-branded releases beginning in the fourth quarter. To further hasten the transition to Blu-ray Disc, Disney is including a standard DVD with "Sleeping Beauty" to make it easy for consumers to understand the difference between the two formats.

Chapek said the interactive extras on "Sleeping Beauty," from a menu backdrop that mirrors weather conditions in the viewer's home town to onscreen chat rooms and video messaging, are merely "our jumping off point of what's to come."

I tell ya, considering that this was the company that was hesitant to throw its full support behind DVD when it was first introduced, and actually joined in the DIVX camp during its early stage, Disney has come a long way.

Zz.

Behind the Curtain at Disney World's Cirque Show

Have you been following CNET's Daniel Terdiman 2008 Road Trip? You should! As I've mentioned here earlier, he is starting off his road trip in Orlando and, of course, immersing himself into Walt Disney World.

His latest entry (at least as of this morning) is a look at behind the scenes at La Nouba. Quite informative, even for Disney veterans.

Zz.

Hot Air Balloon Trivia

I always enjoy reading the Disney Insider newsletter, and my favorite has always been the trivia question and answer column handled by Dave Smith, the Disney archivist. The one from the latest issue is particularly good, because I didn't know about such "hot air balloon" (Oh no, do I have to return my Disney fanatic membership card?)

The question was:

I know that Ear Force One is the name of Mickey's hot air balloon. What was the name of Donald Duck's balloon?

And the answer was:

It was known as Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Duck. It made its inaugural flight on November 20, 1987.

Sorry Mickey, but that name wins in my book! :)

Zz.

Disney.com Breaks New Ground Streaming Full-Length Movies Online for the First Time Ever

Certainly exciting press release concerning the Disney.com website.

Disney.com announced today that for the first time ever the site will stream full-length movies online, featuring selections from the Wonderful World of Disney. The films will first air on ABC as part of the network’s weekly Wonderful World of Disney presentation on Saturday nights throughout summer 2008. The full-length films will then be available for free streaming on Disney.com (www.Disney.com/WonderfulWorld) for the week following the network presentation (Monday – Friday).

“Streaming full-length films on Disney.com takes our commitment to delivering world-class online entertainment to the next level,” stated Paul Yanover, executive vice president and managing director, Disney Online. “This is a wonderful partnership with ABC, and just another example of how Disney’s unmatched, high-quality content can be leveraged on multiple platforms.”

Still, anyone else finding that the website is some time excruciatingly S L O W ... ? Not only that, the Passholder website is often down, and the DVC members website CRAWLS at time!

Zz.

New iPhones Unveiling Had Disney Testimonial

Of course, the big tech news of today was the unveiling of the new 3G iPhone by Steve Jobs at the annual Worldwide Developers Conference. I guess it wasn't that big of a surprise that the Disney IT dept. gave a testimonial on how the iPhones have improved their multimedia communications.

IT departments at Disney and the U.S. Army presented testimonials about how the iPhone has improved their communications in videos aired during the keynote.

“Everything they told us they wanted, we built in,” the technology blog engadget.com reported Mr. Jobs as saying.

There's also news that they had "deployed" seven different applications.

I must say, it sounds rather impressive. If they lower the costs for international roaming charges, I might seriously consider abandoning my T-Mobile Blackberry Curve for this cutie.

Zz.

Disney PSA

While I was in downtown Chicago yesterday, I saw this Disney's public service announcement poster at a bus stop on S. Michigan Ave.



It's promoting healthy living and the new USDA's food pyramid. I'm sure this is being done all over the country, but it's the first time I'm seeing it here in the city.

Zz.

Science World Gets Disney

Looks like a Canadian science museum somewhere got a Disney exhibit.

The interactive exhibit, created by the Experience Music Project in Seattle, displays more than 65 rare artifacts from the Disney archives, including the handwritten score of the first Mickey Mouse cartoon Steamboat Willie, released in 1928, to the blue floral dress worn by Vanessa Hudgens in High School Musical.

And there's plenty to keep people entertained and educated.

Kids can hop, skip and dance across a giant piano, similar to the one in the movie Big, or bang away at several percussion instruments at the Drum Tree.

There's a magic carpet ride set in front of a green stage that lets riders soar above a cityscape of Vancouver. Because the carpet operates on a pneumatic hydraulic system, it'll move and shift for a more realistic ride.

Not much a science content, though, from what I can read.

Zz.