01 October 2010

Oriental Land Company Set to Continue Spending Spree Until 2016

Tokyo Disneyland is set to receive 200 billion yen ($2.4 billion) worth of new additions between now and 2016. That's an astounding amount of infrastructure investment.

Theme Park Tourist:
2011 will see the opening of Mickey's Philharmagic, and Cinderella's Fairytale Hall at Tokyo Disneyland, along with the addition of the $22 million Jasmine's Flying Carpets and a version of the Fantasmic show at Tokyo DisneySea. This will be followed in 2012 by the opening of Toy Story Mania at Tokyo DisneySea. Further new attractions are likely to be installed in the next few years, if the company's spending plans are carried out as stated.

Walt Disney Explains His Plans for EPCOT

"The most exciting, by far the most important part of our Florida project - in fact the heart of everything we'll be doing at Disney World is our experimental prototype community of tomorrow. We call it EPCOT."

30 September 2010

Disney Considering Just Making a Film About the Whole Damn Magic Kingdom

Sean O'Neal writing for the AV Club:
But to the studio’s credit, it seems to be taking that possible exploitation of its own properties very seriously, with executives reportedly very mindful of the fact that it could end up damaging the entire Disney brand if the film—which is being described as Disney’s own Justice League or The Avengers—ends up feeling like a feature-length commercial that trades entirely on past successes. (Of course, the fact that even studio executives are thinking in those terms pretty much confirms that it would be, right?)

Construction Crews Begin Dismantling Maliboomer

I have heard that the ride has been sold to another, not Disney amusement park.

29 September 2010

Fake Tickets, Scorching Heat

Marty Sklar and Dick Nunis reminisce on Disneyland's disastrous opening day.

Disneyland Mandates That Muslim Employees Look Ridiculous

Favorite quote:
Cruel. Would they make Christians wear that? Yes? Wow.

28 September 2010

Interview With Black Cauldron Producer Joe Hale

The Black Cauldron is not one of my favorite Disney films, but its development is fascinating to read about.

1998 CGI Test Footage for Abandoned Roger Rabbit 2

Every once and a while there is new interest in developing a sequel to Roger Rabbit.

Who knows, now that Steven Spielberg is on better terms with Disney maybe something will eventually come of it.

Artwork Released Illustrating Hijab Costume Compromise

Seems reasonable.

27 September 2010

Gore Verbinski in Talks to Re-team With Johnny Depp on Lone Ranger

Deadline.com:
Verbinski, whose last live action film was 2007’s Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, is getting serious about making his next directing outing The Lone Ranger, the Disney pic that has Jerry Bruckheimer producing with Depp playing Tonto.
Huh.

Disney Agrees to Allow Hijab for Intern

The Greater Los Angeles Area office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-LA) announced today that a Chicago Muslim woman employed as an intern at Disneyland in Anaheim will be allowed to wear an Islamic head scarf, or hijab, at work.
Interesting. But we don't know what the accommodation entails.

Is it similar to the option given to the Grand Californian employee, only the intern accepted?

Bloomberg: Disney, Sony, Warner Planning $30 Home Film-Viewing Option

Sony Pictures, Warner Bros. and Walt Disney Co. are in talks with the largest cable TV systems to offer films for as much as $30 per showing soon after they run in theaters.
The studios are talking with In Demand, a partnership of Cox Communications Inc., Comcast Corp. and Time Warner Cable Inc., Bob Benya, chief executive officer of In Demand, said in an interview. Disney is also discussing streaming films on Web- linked devices such as Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox console and Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 3, people with knowledge of the talks said.
Okay, but how do they convince the already nervous exhibitors that this isn't going to destroy their business?