Jim Hilll

Monday Mouse Watch : Vegas veteran wades in on “Disney’s World of Color”

2009-07-06T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill chats with Gene Bowling, the front feature manager for the Bellagio Resort & Casino. Who talks about the many challenges involved with operating & maintaining a multi-million dollar fountain show...(read more)

“Phineas & Ferb” creators say that creativity holds the key to making the most of your summer vacation

2009-07-03T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill shares the wisdom of Dan Povenmire & Jeff “Swampy” Marsh, who use examples from their own childhood to show today's kids how they too can have a very enjoyable June, July & August...(read more)

Comic-Con Countdown: Getting right to the Heart (Box) of the matter

2009-07-02T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill chats with Bryan Ono, President of eFX Inc. about the premiere Disney Gallery Collection item that they’ll be previewing at this year’s Comic-Con International ...(read more)

Hollywood bets big on “Beast,” considers remake of “My Fair Lady”

2009-07-01T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill talks up the trio of “Beauties” that are either already in production and/or currently in development. He also considers CBS Films & Columbia Pictures’ plan to remake Warner Bros. Academy Award-winner from 1964...(read more)

Years for Fears: Advance planning really pays off when it comes to Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando

2009-06-26T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill talks with Michael Roddy, director of Show Development at the Universal Orlando Resort, about all the behind-the-scene effort that goes into pulling off a seasonal event of this size...(read more)

Toon Thursday : Tickets for Lasseter / Miyazaki event go on sale today at 9:01 a.m.

2009-06-25T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill talks up this once-in-a-lifetime event. Where John Lasseter will play host to Japanese animation master Hayao Miyazaki at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science ...(read more)

Disney's Imagination Park?! The Maleficent Movie?! It’s time to shine a spotlight on new Disney domain names

2009-06-24T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill shares some of the more intriguing domain names that The Walt Disney Company has registered in recent weeks...(read more)

Tube Tuesday : Hutch Dano & Adam Hicks skateboard into the spotlight with “Zeke & Luther”

2009-06-23T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill chats with the 17-year-olds who co-star in Disney XD’s newest series, which racked up record-breaking ratings during its primetime debut last Monday night...(read more)

Monday Mouse Watch : “Rapunzel” revealed; a “G-Force” sequel?

2009-06-22T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill wonders why more people aren’t talking about Carmen Esquer’s article for Disney twenty-three magazine. Which features an in-depth interview with Nathan Greno & Byron Howard, “Rapunzel” ‘s new directors. PLUS Does Jerry Bruckheimer has another franchise in the works?...(read more)

“The Proposal” just isn’t all that engaging

2009-06-19T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill reviews this new romantic comedy from Touchstone Pictures. Which – in spite of Sandra Bullock & Ryan Reynolds’ herculean efforts – can’t quite overcome its underwritten script...(read more)

Tune Thursday: Fresh faces add new fun to Broadway’s “The Little Mermaid”

2009-06-18T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill talks up the talented trio of performers that have just joined the cast of this long-running Disney Theatrical production, which continues on at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre...(read more)

With “Toy Story 3,” “Cars 2” and “Monsters, Inc. 2” now in the works, why no “Incredibles 2” ?

2009-06-17T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill’s back with even more tales from the 2009 Licensing International Expo. This time around, he talks about what’s been holding up development of an “Incredibles” sequel...(read more)

Don’t duck out on this opportunity to become Donald’s official portrait artist

2009-06-12T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill reminds all D23 members that the deadline is rapidly approaching for submitting sketches for the Donald Duck Portrait Contest. He also reviews this once-in-a-lifetime competition's somewhat convoluted entry process...(read more)

It's Handy Manny to the rescue at the 2009 Licensing Show

2009-06-04T04:00:00Z

Jim Hill checks in from the convention center at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino. Where the Disney Channel just announced its expansion plans for this hit preschool series...(read more)

Kingdom Comics key creatives aren't ready to talk about Disney's graphic novels line. Not yet, anyway

2009-02-19T05:00:00Z

If Ahmet Zappa had his way, he’d be shouting from the rooftops about what Kingdom Comics has been up to.

But because of this son of legendary musician Frank Zappa felt that Mouse House managers had lasers trained on him, ready to take Ahmet out should he reveal too much too soon about Disney’s new graphic novel division, Zappa chose his words carefully while paneling at this year’s New York Comic-Con. Talking only in the vaguest possible terms about this new arm of Disney Publishing Worldwide had been up to since its inception back in May of 2008.

Ahmet Zappa points out where he believed Disney's killer lasers
were located in the hall at the Jacob K. Javits Center.
Photo by Jeff Lange

So what was Ahmet and his Kingdom Comics creative partner, Christian Beranek willing to go on the record about? Not much, actually. They talked about how Kingdom Comics will be following a traditional book publishing schedule and eventually hopes to release 6 to 10 titles per year. They also mentioned that these 120-page books would be based on films from Disney’s live-action vault. To be specific, motion pictures that the Studios made 20 – 30 years ago.

Zappa & Beranek made a point of stressing that Kingdom Comics would not be creating any graphic novels based on properties that Disney Studios already has in pre-production and/or active development. So you can forget about a Frank Miller / “The Dark Knight Returns” –ish rethink of the “Tron” mythology (Though, that said, Ahmet did say that he had seen some of the concept art that had already been done for the “Tron” sequel. And he declared that this project looked very, very cool indeed.)

But as for which Kingdom Comics title would be first out of the gate … Zappa & Beranek really danced around this subject. Often coming close to revealing the book’s title (“It rhymes with … “) only to then suddenly back away from revealing much of anything. Again supposedly because they were very concerned about those ever-present Disney lasers.

Ahmet Zappa (L) and Christian Beranek (R), the key creatives behind
Disney's new Kingdom Comics graphic novel division.
Photo by Jeff Lange

Which – I know – makes Ahmet & Christian sound like two very silly men. Which they are. But they’re also obviously incredibly passionate about this project and are thrilled to death that the Walt Disney Company has entrusted them with this huge responsibility. Which is to re-imagine and rejuvenate some of the Studios’ most beloved films from the 1970s & 1980s in graphic novel form.

That’s the real reason that Zappa & Beranek were actually at NYCC. Not so much to hype Kingdom Comics. But – rather – to meet with artists and writers who were attending this year’s Con. To see if any of these people shared Ahmet & Christian’s vision of what a Disney graphic novel could be like. The grand possibilities involved with telling a tale loaded with action & adventure that was specifically set in a Disney universe.

And the beauty of Zappa & Beranek’s take on this material is that everything in the Disney universe actually fits together. Again in the vaguest possible terms, they talked about how Kingdom Comics graphic novels would be loaded with Easter Eggs. Oblique references to other live-action Disney films. Familiar characters popping up in very surprising ways.

Christian Beranek spoke of how much great stuff there was in
Disney's back catalog, what a challenge it was to
" ... build whole new world to explore."
Photo by Jeff Lange

But then – just as they’d start to get specific (“ … in the spirit and tone of the “Pirates” movies … ) – Ahmet would start to get nervous about those Disney lasers and then send the panel careening off in a completely different direction by talking about how – when he was a kid – he used to pray that Kim Richards from the “Witch Mountain” movies and Robin Zander of Cheap Trick would get married.

Which made for a very amusing if not all that informative panel at this year’s NYCC. Not to worry, though. In closing, Zappa & Beranek did say that they’d be revealing the title and subject of Kingdom Comic’s first graphic novel this July at San Diego’s Comic–Con International.

That is – of course – if Disney’s lasers don’t zap Zappa first.

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