Let's me get this straight...  Mothers who are taking their kids to McD's for a high transfat kiddie meal are upset when the underpaid counter staff isn't up on current language to talk around gender signifiers????  Why are such mothers in McD's in the first place?

Interesting article Jim. If I had a mother going off on me I'd be rather blunt. I'd just say that I wasn't thinking about your child, I was thinking about the toy. You can guess that if I was a Disney cast member I'd probably wouldn't last long.

People are weird. You never know what will set some people off. If someone were to think that I was judging their child I have another way to deal with it. I could say "Lady, I have a huge crowd of people here. I literally do not have the time to judge your child." Then I'd probably be fired LOL!

I first responce is ....WHO CARES! I realize Disney and any other company has to pussyfoot around sticky PR & marketing problems, but well....uh, oh yeah!...WHO CARES. Somebody is going to be offended at every move you make and the offended are in the minority in the large scale of things.

If the special event Party doesn't fly then, oh well, there are a thousand and one other ideas for Disney to try instead of beating a dead horse. Changing of ethnicity in a photo campaign isn't going to save it.

The addition of Belle looks weird, just because of her placement.  Why didn't they copy the Snow White pose?  I don't think that it will change things either way.  I can only say that the Disney toys are making me want to go to McDonald's for the first time in years, but people are hypersensitive about lots of things these days, and will be upset about anything.  I'd just make sure that the employees stick with their spiel.

I hope that the Pirate and Princess parties do "walk the plank". Charging $50 for extra hours in the Magic Kingdom that used to be free is ridiculous! Yes, the fireworks are amazing, but not $50 amazing. How about keeping the park open past 7pm for regular paying guests?

I think the bigger problem with gender ID is the toys themselves. I mean the princess one is more obvious, but I bet there are a lot of girls into Pirates who want those toys.

Don't forget that you don't have to eat the heart attack food to get the toy...you can buy them individually.  Delight your children with a McDonalds bag full of toys...minus the trans fat.

http://www.raymation.net

zzzzzzzzzz... Huh, what! Uuuh nevermind. zzzzzzzzzzzzzz...

This story irritates me in so many different ways, I don't even know where to begin.

The levels of PC nonsense in our society know no bounds. The fact that there is hypocrisy in it is hardly news, either. But this is not even close to the most eggregious of examples.

Here's a fun one for consideration and absolutely true. A few years ago one of the major Christian denominations decided to "politically-correct-ize" their standard hymnal, excising all allegedly-offensive items regarding race, sex, physical characteristics, and the rest of the litany of woes of our PC-age.

So here's what they did in one instance. They changed the name and the lyrics of a pretty popular hymn that happened to have this title and main refrain:

"Stand up! Stand up for Jesus!"

WHYFOR did they change it? To attempt not to give offense to paraplegics and other disabled people who could NOT physically stand up!!!

Putting aside this unintentionally hilarious over-sensitive nonsense, you'd think people involved in faith would understand that the song clearly was saying something about "standing up" in a SPIRITUAL sense--as in "stand up and be counted!" and not actually PHYSICALLY standing up or being able to......but it happened, folks.

So the fact that yuppie moms are spoiling for a fight at the drop of a gender term at the local Mickey D's is sad, but not a shock. The woods are full of such fools, and the only real cure for Disney or the fast-food folks it partners with is to make all future characters sexuall neutral in name, form, and behavior, I guess, before daring to spin off a burger-meal toy from them.

Uh, how is this any different than when McD's offers Hot Wheels vs. Barbie Happy Meals?

AB

When in Cyberspace visit http://www.plausible-impossible.com

These are the same hypersensitive parnets who buy violent video games and elect war mongers to be president.

Really sensitive aren't they...?

What happened to Disney's new "healthy living" youth policy where there were no longer going to target children with these types of meals.  If they insist on pursuing these type of promotions then they should be dropping the gender specific toys anyway and offering something more educational that anyone can enjoy like puzzle games and miniature books.  They can still tie in their latest promotion if they must.  Other fast food chains like Arby's, Long John Silvers and Chik-Fil-A do this very well.  The big three (McD's, BK and Wendy's) do this very poorly which is a shame since they have the most resources and clout.  My 3 year old son would be perfectly content with a series of trading cards featuring the characters from the latest Disney movie or a little book outlining the story of the latest Disney movie.  Just like he is quite content with the apple sause or carrot sticks that most kids meals now offer.  By the way, during a road trip this past weekend we chose to stop at McDonald's and the Happy Meal featured a pirate bandanna!  This seemed like a left over item from a Pirates of Caribbean Happy Meal from a couple years ago.  And the box clearly stated "Disney's" Pirate and Pincess Party and not "Mickey's" Pirate and Princess Party.  Yet another marketing slip-up based on Jim's recent posting on this party's name change.

Good point, AB.

McDonalds in my area alway ask if it's the happy meal is for a boy or girl.  No boy wants anything to do with a GIRL toy.  Girls on the other hand are frequently happy with either. It's ridiculaous to get irritated at a McDonalds employee for slipping up. Most of them are way underpaid, so they don't get the brightest bulbs out there, and frequently they are so busy that remembering to ask Pirate or Princess when they usually just say boy or girl is bound to happen. As for parents freaking out about it, they need to get a life.   Worry about this stuff at home or school, not over a stupid Happy Meal!  Switching out the girl on the sign? No big deal really. I do think that it has become necessary to think about such things in ads. The ads need to reach a whole lot of people.  And ads that just feature a bunch of white people are likely to present the idea that whatever is being advertised is just for them.  The only time I get a little annoyed is when it has become obvious that a company is pandering to everyone. And this sign is pretty innocent.  A cute little girl in a princess outfit is cute no matter what the race.  Now, if Disney were to start "colorizing" Mickey to fit different races you'd have an issue.

What I dont get is the continued lambasting of McDonalds meals. Granted you still have the burgers and all as an option, but US McDonalds have plenty healthy options now, including the salads which are healthy as can be (as long as you dont get too liberal wih applying the additional dressing)

I dont know if US McDonalds does this or not but over in the UK You can swap out fries for fruit or carrot sticks in a happy meal and some other healthy options too. I'm surprised US McDonalds hasnt followed suit with that yet. Reagardless I had lots of the old happy meals as a kid and I was never fat or anything of the sort.

As for this gender arguement. Well you always have a few moms ready for a scrap sometimes. Seems weird to me though. The hot wheels and barbie promotion is the same idea and has gone on for decades (As aracuanbird mentioned). If parents cause a stink about that I'm sure they cause a stink about this other annual happy meal.

Though to me this seems weird because the gender adapatablity seems 1 way to me. Girls could want to be princesses and pirates but I dont see boys wanting to be princesses (maybe princes but none of the toys in the princess side would be trans-gender at all). I'm a tomboy and personally find the pirates toys more appealing personally.

Personally I'm pleased to see Disney and McDonalds trying to work together again. Happy Meals are not the same without the disney magic.

Does Jim EVER put a name to ANY of his quotes? Does anyone else find it odd that this is the case? To use a phrase from the recent season of The Wire, his quotes are a little "too word-perfect."

Jenny I do swing by the McDonalds on occasion (guilty pleasure...the fries are so damn good...cant..resist) and yes we do get the kiddos a Happy Meal now and again.  But the chain is trans fat o rama..... check out the "nutrition" facts from their own page...one meal at McDs is practically your daily allowance..for everything..fat, sugar, sodium...

http://www.mcdonalds.com/app_controller.nutrition.index1.html

True the salads arent as bad as the Big Mac, but what kid..of any age wants to go to McDs and get a salad...hell I always get a fish sammich thinking "hey its fish and fish is good for me"...yeah not so much...

http://www.raymation.net

I myself would never refer to "little boy" or "little girl" toys.  I do try to avoid gender stereotyping.  I think it matters.  Sometimes my children have shown that they remember some little thing I said.  They are paying attention all the time.

However, I would not argue with a McD's clerk about it!!  If we ever went there and heard such a thing, I might just speak about it to my kids, see if they noticed or had any thoughts about and go from there.

Arrowyn is on point here.  These messages do add up, and on the Disney side they are foolish to not make them Pirates and Royals or something similar.  

Part of why this is getting noticed has to be that you are dealing with upper middle-class folks in Mass., who are probably more in tune with the gender issues to begin with.  

Having said all that, and as the father of a 14-month old girl who I never want to grow up thinking that she is a princess in need of servants, rescuing, and frilly things, I also would not have made an issue of it with the counter person.  These issues are best discussed with the children at their level and a 'sternly worded letter of complaint'.

I'm so glad that there are some parents that have nothing better to do with their time than to chastise some underpaid fast-food worker because they asked if they wanted a "boy toy" or a girl "toy".  Sheesh...

As far as the princess switch? That was probably McDonalds' and Disney's attempt to head off any criticism from the hyper-sensitive people who would go off on a rant about why princesses all have to be white.  I'd like to think even the folks at Disney's marketing department wouldn't be cynical enough to add an African-American girl to the ad copy in the hope that it'll get a few more African-American families to attend their underwhelming hard-ticket event. Right? Right??  

The gender issue is just moronic mothers who will ALWAYS find something to whine about.

And its not surprising that a company that wont release Song of the South will change the color of the character Belle in a ad, like that is going to change the vacation plans of people!!

Right after reading this article a WDW ad came on the TV and I pointed out the pitch to my husband.  I'm sure many of you have seen this one for the Year of a Million Dreams, where they show the family winning the Cinderella suite, and then another family being grand marshals in the parade, etc.  Watch it carefully . . . the first family is black, the second family is Asian, the third family is Hispanic.  In every scene the focal characters are minorities (except for one shot of children going down Splash Mountain, there is one Caucasian boy in the back of the log) and only the families in the background are white.  Yay for DVR, we even paused it, EVERYONE in the backgrounds are white, but the focal families are always minorities.  As such, the changing of Belle doesn't surprise me, but I can't help but be saddened that Disney, who you would THINK would be color blind (at least they would like you to think so) would make it so obvious that they were trying to "prove something".  It's not like people were watching that ad of Cinderella's coach pulling up to the house (the affordable vacation ad) and saying "wow, the family is not black.  Honey, tell the kids we're going to Busch Gardens instead."  The best multi-ethnic advertising works when it's not shoved in your face, when it just "is".

As for the McDonald's meals, *laughs* having been born and raised in Massachusetts OMG I KNOW THOSE MOTHERS.  These are the types of moms who, when I ran a toy store in Worcester, would shriek at you for telling their children "no, you really must stop hitting that other child over the head with the toy mallet right now" because "no" damaged their self-esteem.  Now I am out in South Dakota and seeing the other side of it; here they do not ask you which toy your child would prefer, if it is a girl they get the princess toy.  Period.  They'd look at you like you were a bad parent if heaven forbid you didn't want the "appropriate" toy.  There's a good middle ground but it's not anything to go Jerry Springer over by any means.  Those moms make me want to drop the only surviving copies of Oprah's Book Club books right in the middle of Rt. 128 for them to fetch.  *removes hat for the Micky-D's manager*  You have my deepest sympathies.

 Quine said:

"Having said all that, and as the father of a 14-month old girl who I never want to grow up thinking that she is a princess in need of servants, rescuing, and frilly things ... "

What if she wants to be a princess in need of servants, rescuing, and frilly things?

I always laugh at parents who think they can control what their kids become. My DW and I the most non-touchy/feely, girly people you can imagine. My DD5 is as girly as they come. Nothing we could do about it (even if we had wanted to, which we didn't). She is who she is.

My advice, as an experienced parent of two kids, is to not worry about stupid stuff like that and let her be a kid. If she wants to be a princess, let her be a princess.

buttermaker: "These are the same hypersensitive parnets who buy violent video games and elect war mongers to be president."

Making sure one doesn't label one's child as a pirate (boy) or princes (girl) is much more a Liberal "Democrat" issue than a Republican one.  Don't let your hatred for the President interfere with the real issue.  Disney has run out of ideas.

These types of things always make me angry... and then I laugh hysterically at peoples complete ignorance.

Do people really forget what a stereotype is? Merriam-Webster defines it as: Something conforming to a fixed or general pattern.

That means it is based on reality and fact. It may be oversimplified. It may not be 100% accurate, but a true stereotype is correct.

Now you can make up negative stereotypes or invent completely false ones (but those would be lies, not stereotypes), but that is another matter.

The truth of the matter is: Most boys want to be a Pirate and most girls want to be a Princess. So the marketing reflects that. If someone decides to see that as a bad thing... well, I'm going to stereotype them as not only unfit to raise a child, but a complete waste of space.

PS- Anyone who decides whether or not they can do something based upon advertising is none to bright to begin with.

PPS - Kids would never think of such things if adults didn't cram it down their throats. Kids will like pretty much anything and everyone... until some 'concerned' adult ruins it for them.

Amen to both craigdvc and captainhook91. Both excellent comments with excellent points.

"But I don't wanna be a pirate!!"

And I was going to make the same point aracuanbird made...it's nice to complain about Disney and all, but McDonald's has been doing Barbie/Hot Wheels Happy Meals for years.  I imagine the same problem came up then, too.

As for Belle being added to boost ticket sales among black families...sorry, but that's just how businesses work.  Right or wrong, we're all familiar with the idea of putting minorities into sales pitches to make the product more attractive to a certain demographic.  Companies have been doing it for years, including good ol' Disney.

The thing is that "boys toys" are more gender-neutral than "girls toys". I'm just annoyed when people push it, like the time when I was about 8 or 10 and the guy at the kiddie hair place wouldn't let me use the "boys toys" coin machine. That's uncalled for and I kept my quarter instead of getting some wussy girly toy. I don't care what you call the options- I get demographics and gender norms and all that but I just wanted the creatures and cars more than some useless pink girly thing. I think the boys who lean more girly don't quite dig the princesses much either- it's more about the Disney villains and villainesses and maybe Sharpay, Ryan, Spin 'n' Marty.

As for Black Belle, we'll see Tiana take over soon enough. I imagine we'll see little white girls dressed like her in the park too.

Reading the great comments a childhood memory came to me. Once upon a time, when I was maybe 7 or 8, I was invited to a friends' birthday party which was to be my very first non-Halloween-time COSTUME party. My folks got me this GREAT indian costume--real buckskin with fringe and feathers and a tomohawk and a feathered headdress and we took an hour to carefully put on the war paint and I felt like I was really, really fantastic.

Then we pulled up at the party house...and as I stepped out of the car door I looked to see EVERY OTHER KID AT THE PARTY running towards me dressed as....COWBOYS! I ran back to the car and refused to get out. Period.

So be careful, parents, what you wish for your kids to emulate. The next big craze movie could be an epic of heroism by Brit or Spanish captains out to VANQUISH all th eeeeevil pirates! Y'never know.

One day last summer I'm standing in line at the Candy Kitchen on Main Street and there's an adorable little blonde girl in line next to me wearing a princess gown and a pirate hat, sporting a hook for a left hand.  I asked her father, "Excuse me, is that a pirate or a princess?"

He looks at me and whispers, "It's a blonde."

Initial thought is - wow crazy mom alert; however...

This is a problem McDonald's didn't need to have. The McDonald's rep - either a franchise owner, or a Corporate district rep - is makin' way over $100k/year, so I really don't feel much sympathy. After five minutes of PC communication with the mom, he's back in his Porsche off to have drinks at the golfclub. If this was really an issue that he just couldn't stand, by golly he'd pay the employees more, personally hold some training sessions, and make sure they follow the spiel as trained. It is also actually possible to get employees to perform as instructed, even at minimum wage.

If you treat the frontline employees well (doesn't necessarily have to be more $$$), their work ethic improves, and so many potential problems never appear. Too many corporations would rather make their bonuses by underpaying and understaffing - that's fine, but then don't complain about those "unreasonable customers." Some of those unreasonable customers are concerned about gender roles, and other customers are telling you why DCA isn't going to work 3 years before it opens. Sometimes it's not too bad to listen to the crazy customers.

So....your "sympathy" is given based on income, eh? And your imaginary $100k is the cutoff point? I see. And obviously you've priced Porsches no more recently than say 20 years or so, right? Oh, and you disdain golf--does that mean you picket the courses at WDW for being hives of elitist McDonald's-boss-capitalist-swine-$100k-Porsche-driving scum? Oh, and of course it's the fault of corporations, too--like, oh, McDonald's and uh...Oh, The Walt Disney Company which is, of course, incorporated, and thus instantly overdue for a show trial and a quick proletarian firing squad execution of that evil tool of a mouse, Mickey?

Only one question: With your reverence for your idealized version of customers, curmudgeon....how do you manage to survive without ever being one yourself...and if you ARE one, aren't you supporting those very evil entities you so despise?

Just a note: When the Pirate and Princess parties were FIRST advertised, the brochures had an african american boy on it. Just wanted to note that.

this artciel was probably the funniest thing  have seen.

Its not the first time that Mcdonlads offers happyy meals with "gender specific" or boy/girl toys.

So we are tobelieve that now just because its Disney toys it is causing a problem.

as for the prmotional art, Disney has always produced promotional art with people of diferent race for almost all of its promotions.  They usually use the more appropriate one depending on local.   Its nothing new and its not somekind of conspiracy

I'm just wondering when it was decided that the differences between boys and girls, men and women, should be diminished, rather then distinguished and appreciated; even celebrated. Asking if your child wants a girl or a boy toy is such a distant cry from saying your little girl can't be anything she wants because she's female, so that it's in different galaxy. There's nothing wrong with asking that question, even remotely. Putting anyone on the spot for that, is failing to use good judgement, being a little short-sighted yourself and reinforcing another negative female stereotype. There are places for that kind of stance. The McDonalds register isn't one of them.

I don't know if it's because I'm seeing the two pics one-under-the-other, or if it's because of all the design work I do, but the addition of little Belle looks forced. Her orientation feels wrong, and it looks like she was  pulled from some stock photos at the last minute, rather then photographed for the purposes of the ad. I would have had the whole thing re-shot with the exact same pose myself. Personally, I don't really see the difference between trying to make it more PC after the fact, and trying to effectuate black people to visit Disney World/The Pirates and Princess Campaign. I was under the impression that when a business tries to be more PC about something, then it's for the very reason of trying to draw more people in.

Hmmm, I think that you're getting into deep water here Jim.  Is this news?

"Uh, how is this any different than when McD's offers Hot Wheels vs. Barbie Happy Meals?"

Which is exactly what I was wondering while reading...

They've been doing this for years.   Every time they have a promotion that includes something like Polly Pocket or some other "girly" toy, they've had to do the same thing.  I've rarely ever heard anybody be non-gender specific when it comes to these toys.   It's always "is it for a boy or a girl?" or something like that.    (Not that I go to McDonald's often, but that's what I've heard on the unfortunate times when I've happened to be there during these promos.)

So, in a follow-up, I'd really like to see how this actually compares to others.   Are people actually acting differently?

Though, I think more people would take somebody asking if they'd like a boy toy in a completely wrong way....   so, what's worse?   Being non-gender specific or asking if they'd like a boy toy?

curmudgeon said:

"This is a problem McDonald's didn't need to have. The McDonald's rep - either a franchise owner, or a Corporate district rep - is makin' way over $100k/year, so I really don't feel much sympathy. After five minutes of PC communication with the mom, he's back in his Porsche off to have drinks at the golfclub."

Wow ... you're WAY out of touch with reality, aren't you? $100k a year doesn't get you either a Porsche or a golf club membership these days. In fact, my wife and I combined make more than double that and I drive a Chevy and we belong to no clubs more glamorous than the Disney Vacation Club.

I think asking "boy or girl toy" is offensive, as only a women who was the first female to take shop class in both her Jr High and High school, can feel ! It is no harder to say "Pirate or Princess" than "girl or boy", with the added bonus of offending no one !

Coaching employees to get it right is only good business, as is creating marketing materials to appeal to the widest demographic.......so the story is Disney and McDonalds are both conforming to normal business practices ?

Asking "boy or girl"...."pirate or princess"....isn't it really just the same thing?  Tis true girls are lucky that they can enjoy both pirate and princess themed toys... but do boys really want a tiara?  Girls can indeed enjoy the pink aisle at the toy store as well as the action figure aisle.....not so much with the fellas...I think I should protest this ;)

One time we went through the drive through to get my daughter a Happy Meal; during one of those Barbie/Hot Wheels promotions.  They forgot to ask "boy or girl"...and we drove off...my daughter opened her box to find a nice shiney car...with a side of disappointment.

We live in a world of labels...we label people, things..not sure what compells us to do so. but we do....lately we have exchanged old labels for new ones to make us "feel" better.  I didn't like my old label...but I'm really digging this new one.  Boy or Girl, Prince or Princess, Barbie or Hot Wheels...its all the same thing.....the label may sound different, but they say/refer to the same thing..

In 20 years our labels will have gotten old...people will feel offended by them and the labels will change once more.  circle of labels...

http://www.raymation.net

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't there a difference in saying, "This is a boy's toy." versus, "This is a boy's only toy."?

When I see a pirate I think of a guy. When I see a princess I think of a girl. When I think of shop class I think of guys. But I know that there are female pirates... I do enough theatre to know that there are guy princess'... and there were 2 girls in my shop class in high school.

I think some people, probably like JudyfromBoise (and feel free to correct me if I'm wrong) get bent out of shape due to how the situation is presented to them. If, when JudyfromBoise went to apply for shop class, her counselor said, "You do realize that that class is usually taken by boys and you will be the first girl? You okay with that?" And then let her in... there would have been no problem with it being labeled a 'boy class'. But, what probably happened, and I can totally understand why it would tick someone off, is that the counselor said something like this, "You want to take WHAT? Are you crazy?! That class is for boys. Why don't you take Home Ec.? That's what girls do. You probably won't even understand what is going on in there. What will people think of you?"

It's not the label, or stereotype, that is wrong or bad... it's the idiots in charge who discourage, lie, and mislabel things that screw it all up.

Pirates is a boy toy... that anyone can have.

Princess' is a girl toy... that anyone can have.

I agree that the one issue....the asking of toys can be a "tempest in a teapot", as no one is saying only boys can have the boy toys. However the slant of the article and comments that only WASPY soccer moms with no lives would care....is what i find discouraging.

But onto the next article !

Where the real outrage should lie is the clear prejudice against boys that exists in Disney merchandise and the clear assumption the girls are only interested in being princesses.  Obviously boys are only interested in being pirates and have no interest in being princes, or Peter Pan.  

Disney sells Captain Hook costumes year round but Peter Pan costumes during October.

Disney sells a Pirate girl costume but no prince costume.

Disney has specialized boutiques for girls and nothing even close for boys.

HSM merchandise is clearly specialized for girls even though a lot of boys like it too.

Merchandise sections are over 2-1 in favor of girls, and all princess stuff.

Not saying girls shouldn't be able to play with the boys and have the same toys, just saying the boys should have more than pirates and cars.

Re: the lack of prince costumes - I always thought that it wasn't so much about boys not wanting to be princes than it was about Disney princes pretty much being bland and interchangeable.

Don't believe me? Next time you're at a Disney theme park or resort, see if you can find the prince walkaround character not hanging out with his designated princess and try to figure out which prince he is. For that matter, try coming up with the guy's name! ;)  

Good points re. the neutral identity of the princes...but folks, let's get real. In the entire history of childrens' costume clothing (putting aside Halloween which is, after all, a specialized and once-a-year thing) how many popular MALE outfits can you think of? I think we can go through them pretty easily:

1. Cowboys & Indians--putting aside my own memories, the fact is that Westerns are not what they were in the 1950's and 60's and before. The toys such as the "Christmas Story" favorite Red Ryder BB Gun and all the various outfits keyed to Hopalong Cassidy, The Lone Ranger, etc. etc. are LONG gone from currency, as is Disney's own famous claim-to-mass-marketing-fame, the Davey Crockett coonskin cap. So there's one category that's missing for a reason.

2. SciFi. Yes, there have been successes with "Star Wars" and "Star Trek" stuff in recent years, but mostly for fan con's, movie premieres, and again, special things. You don't really see kids walking down the street in Imperial Storm Trooper armor, so other than teeshirts with movie LOGOS (a whole different kind of item) this, too, is a barren field for boys merchandise on an ongoing basis.

3. Superheroes. Well now.....since schools would and should ban masks for both safety and distraction reasons, and since again, other than teeshirts, they aren't popular outside of Halloween, well, we're once again at a dead end. You just don't see kids roaming the malls or playgrounds in full Spidey-suited glory...but you DO see them, the girls, in princess dresses. Often.

4. Cartoon characters--and hey, when's the last time you saw a BOY in a Mickey Mouse suit? 'nuff said.

Aside from that, of course, other than a VERY few Pixar possibles, Disney hasn't got any cowboy, sci-fi, or superhero characters that BOYS would be willing to wear outside of a unique party or halloween/holiday setting. The reason why the GIRLS outfits sell is because of their relatively HIGH price point--that is, the girls are willing to wear them a LOT, thus justifying the expense. BOYS on the other hand, won't be caught DEAD in even a PIRATE suit beyond a certain age as an everyday play type of thing.

So what DO boys do/play with to imagine themselves in another role? They play with toy CARS, toy SPACESHIPS, toy PLANES, toy TRAINS, and...sorry for you PC types but it's still true, toy GUNS.  Girls dress up as princesses and have tea parties. Boys hold things in their hands and go "Zoom!" and "Bang." Its just the way it is.

Now if you think that by stocking, say, a full-on Prince Charming outfit for say $80, complete with satin slippers and blue TIGHTS and a feathered hat will suddenly make the Walt Disney Company their next million in merch. revenue.....there's probably a good reason why they haven't hired you as a buyer yet.

Boys may want to BE princes, or would if they were told that princes get the gold, the girls, and the best horses. But DRESS like one? I don't think so. Ain't gonna happen. And the good shopkeepers of WDW know it.

Tellya what---if they are sued by some equal rights outfit or petitioned by some well-meaning do-good social activism organization and are forced to offer a MALE set of possible makeovers in the "Bippity-Bobbity Boutique" some day, we'll all see how that works out. But then, considering the McDonald's happy meal gender problem, what will they do if and when a BOY asks to dress up as a PRINCESS too?

Ooopsy.

I am reminded of one of the great "Pinky & The Brain" exchanges where Pinky replies with something hilariously non-sequiter when Brain asks him, he thinks rhetorically, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Pinky?"

Pinky replies, "I think so, Brain. But if they called them SAD meals, the children wouldn't buy them!"

When Disney actually creates a series on movies with lead characters who are not caucasian I will believe they are concerned about race and gender issues. No a dog who sounds hispanic doesn't count.

Mushufan:  funny that someone with your screen name would say that.  I wasn't aware that Fa Mulan was a haole chick.  

Micky: I don't think Jim was saying that it was the first/only time - please show me where he says that, 'cause I read it over twice and couldn't find it.  Perhaps I'm just not seeing it.  

Somepirateguy: I know plenty of guys who want tiaras.  More than they already have, even.

Schnebs:  This is why you should have Robert Tieman on speed dial.   He knows these things.

And now, a lovely reminiscence.  

I was about five months pregnant with Alice, and Jim and his writing partner picked me up from the doctor's office.  On the way to get her kids from daycare, she drove through McDonald's.  She and Jim ordered burgers, I ordered a salad, and she ordered Happy Meals - they were doing Barbie/Hot Wheels at the time - for her two kids.  "Boy or Girl toy?"  the speaker buzzed at us.  

That set Jim's writing partner off but good.  "CAR-OR-DOLL!"  she berated the poor kid on the other side of the microphone, going off on him (her?  Can't remember) for a good five minutes while I'm in the back seat, yelling: "Cut it out!  I ordered the salad, they're gonna think I'm the crazy mom and spit in it!"  I rolled down the window and announced to the menu speaker: "I just want you to know that I ordered the salad and I'm not the one yelling at you!  She ordered a burger!  I ordered the salad!"  

"DOLL!   OR!   CAR!!!!!" yelled Jim's writing partner.

"Fine," the speaker voice gave in.  "Doll or car?"  

"One of each."  she replied.

The Barbie Doll toy for her daughter, the car for her son.  I kid you not.

Sigh.  Good times.  

I think Disney should not work with McDonalds ever again.

As for the article, the little African-American girl doesn't match because the lighting is bad. They should have fixed that.

Mushufan, considering the huge flackstorm Disney is dealing with in its new afro-american "princess" film and the ongoing nonsense they get from the politically-inept/correct types over releasing "Song Of The South"....why should they bother to reward bad behavior on the part of race-baiting politicos and pressure groups with more raw meat?

Also, last time I checked, not only Mulan & co. were Asian, but of course Alladin & his fellow characters were non-anglo, as was Stitch's little Hawaiian pal, and hey, even in "Lady and the Tramp" there were Siamese if you please...or don't please.

I guess we should be thankful that French pressure groups don't picket the fact that Disney/Pixar just made a whole film of RATS French, too!

But there's a bigger point here: If we actually DO want a color-blind world where people are judged on the content of their character (non-animated variety--no pun intended, honest!) and not the color of their skins....well, then, why can't your kids and my kids want to be pirates, princesses, mice, ducks, cars, toys, or dwarves....for their heroism, love, and truth-seeking, not because they happen to be "drawn" in a hue similar to the way the God of all of us happend to "draw" their own skin?

I was at the Pirates and proncess party in January.  Outside the bathrooms stood an entire family (both adult men and women).  The young boy looked about 8 years old.  "I don't want to be a princess" he said.  Mom said "I dont care, you're coming in the Princess room with me"  

OK, I admit to not being a big fan of boys in the ladies room, especially ones that are big enough to handle things on their own in the mens room.  Especially in Disney World, not in the local mall, or somewhere seedy.  But I could see they had someone to go into the mens room.  Maybe Dad just didnt have to 'Go".  

Y'know what folks? A simple solution has been staring us in the face all along: Simply call it "Pirates and Piratesses and Princesses and Princes" and let GOD sort 'em out!

Gender names can be bizarre anyhow and are always ultimately patronizing. A friend of mine used to be an office manager for a guy who was the honcho of a local yacht club, and would tell me about doing the invitations for social events addressed on behalf of this guy to what the club called its members and their spouses---"Dear Commodores And Commadorables!" OUCH!