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Quick question: What do you think of the “Back to the Future” sequels? Copyright 1989 Universal Pictures. All Rights Reserved The reason I ask … Well, while many people consider the original “Back to the Future” to be an enormously entertaining movie, most folks don’t feel the same about “BTTF II” &...

CatastropheCanyonCat writes in to say: Photo by Jeff Lange “I’ve been checking your site for days now, waiting for the D23 EXPO coverage to begin. When are you going to start telling us what this show was like, what your favorite parts were?” Favorite parts? There’s a line out of Ben Brantley‘s May 2001...

Mickey, meet Spidey. Spidey, Mickey. In a deal that (I’m sure) the Disneyana community will have trouble wrapping its head around, The Walt Disney Company announced plans today to acquire Marvel Entertainment, Inc. in a stock and cash transaction worth an estimated $4 billion. As to what actually drove...

When people talk about the impact that John Lasseter has had on the Mouse House, they tend to focus on Walt Disney Animations Studios as well as the Company’s Parks & Resorts division. Which is a shame. Why For? Because these folks are really missing the bigger picture. You see, John isn’t just out...

First the good news: What Disney Princess is for little girls, Cars has become for little boys. Copyright Disney·Pixar. All Rights Reserved As in: This John Lasseter film is now one of Disney Consumer Products ’ fastest growing key franchises. Global retail sales of “Cars”-themed licensed merchandise...

September is shaping up to be quite a month for Disney history buffs. First the D23 EXPO will give film fans the chance to check out two recent documentaries that relate to the Studio’s past: “ the boys: the sherman brothers’ story ” will be screened on Thursday, September 10 th at that event. Richard...

Early this morning, Martin A. Sklar ’s friends & family gathered at Disneyland . Where this Disney Legend was then honored with his very own Window on Main Street . And it was kind of appropriate that Marty spent his last official day as a Disney employee at the very place where his career with the...

If you haven’t already decided that you really, really , REALLY need to attend this year’s Comic-Con International, the following will certainly seal the deal. You wanna know who Disney’s bringing to San Diego this year? Would you believe John Lasseter, Tim Burton, Robert Zemeckis and Hayao Miyazaki...

Twilight is traditionally a time of shadows. But from what I hear, no one at Walt Disney Pictures dreamed that " Bolt " would be so totally overshadowed by “ Twilight ” at the box office this past weekend . As recently as 10 days ago, Mouse House marketing types were quietly putting out the word that...

You all remember Lightning McQueen and Mater from " Cars ," right ? Copyright 2008 Disney - Pixar. All Rights Reserved Well, the folks at Disney - Pixar certainly hope that you remember these two animated autos. Given that -- come the Summer of 2011 -- they're going to be starring in " Cars 2 " ... Copyright...

By now, I'm sure that you're heard that Glen Keane is no longer the co-director of "Rapunzel." That he and Dean Wellins will be turning the reins over to Byron Howard & Nathan Greno , who were the co-director and head of story on " Bolt " respectively. To be honest, this change couldn't have come...

It's that time of year again, folks. That rarified moment when Willy Wonka allows a lucky few to enter the Wonka Works ... er ... I mean when John Lasseter opens the gates in Emeryville , allowing a limited number of people to come visit Pixar Animation Studios . Mind you, you won't need a Golden Ticket...

"It was 20 years ago today ..." Well, it was tomorrow actually. August 2, 1988 to be precise. That was the date when an incomplete version of " Tin Toy " first screened at SIGGRAPH and truly wowed the crowd in Atlanta. Given the overwhelmingly positive response that this John Lasseter film received ...

It's been a week now since that "TR2N" teaser trailer ran at Comic-Con. And Disneyana & sci-fi fans are desperate for additional information about this Summer 2010 release. Well, let me share some info that I'm sure will send all of you "TRON" fanboys out there straight off the Game Grid. Guess who...

Peter David isn't exactly sure when he first discovered the Adventurers Club. "It had to be sometime in 1989 or 1990," this award-winning author remembers. "I was exploring the then-newly-opened Pleasure Island . I'd already been to a number of the other clubs on the Island. And I must have wandered...

Folks who visited Disney's Animal Kingdom late last month got something of a treat. In that -- for a while there, anyway -- most of " Expedition Everest " 's effects were actually working. The scenic mist that's supposed to drift off of Forbidden Mountain top actually did that. The fog bank that your...

If you were to ask David A. Price when Pixar Animation Studios first came on his radar, he'd probably tell you about this tech conference that he attended in the late 1980s where the work-in-progress version of "Tin Toy" was shown. "Tinny had just gotten stuck in that box," Price recalled. "And as he...

Everybody knows about those " Hidden Mickeys " that Disney sometimes stashes in its motion pictures & theme park attractions. But have you ever heard about the "Hidden Lasseters" ? Yep. As a tribute to the creative Grand Pooh-Bah of Pixar , the folks who work at this Emeryville-based animation studio...

Have you seen that clip on YouTube ? The one that shows how the Mr. Potato Head AA figure that you find in the queue area of Disney's " Toy Story Mania " can actually pull off its own ear? Well, that's nothing. Wait 'til you hear about how the Imagineers are now pulling out their hair as they try &...

Following up on last month's article about how Children's Place is getting ready to sell the Disney Store retail chain back to the Walt Disney Company ... I spoke with the managers of a number of New England-area Disney Stores over the past few days. And while none of these folks wanted to go on-the...