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Every year, after Santa's 60 foot-long sleigh float rolls up in front of Macy's Herald Square store on Thanksgiving morning, 50 million television viewers turn off their sets and say "Well, that's it for this year's parade." Not exactly. Though NBC's broadcast of this NYC...

You can't spell "scare" without "care." And the fiendish folks behind Universal Orlando 's Halloween Horror Nights clearly understand this. That's why they put a full year of careful thought & planning into the 24th edition of this seasonal scare-fest. Which officially...

So who here misses the Jersey Shore? And no, I'm not talking about that horrible reality television show with The Situation & Snooki . I'm talking about the REAL Jersey Shore . Places like Wildwood, NJ which -- thanks to some very smart doo wop preservationists -- still have that authentic...

The Internet is really a wondrous place. Especially if you're a young person who's considering a career in animation. If you've ever considered becoming a character designer someday, you can always swing by Tom Bancroft 's Character Mentor Studio or Stephen Silver's blog and then...

So what's Christmas-time like in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter ? Given that holiday magic is kind of different from the sort of magic that they practice up at Hogwarts, Christmas in Hogsmeade is a somewhat understated affair. There's a wreath on the door at Zonko's and some garland...

It was a quiet, grey November day yesterday at Universal Studios Florida ... Photo by Jim Hill Which was kind of impressive unto itself. Given that the night before had been October 31st, Halloween, the very last night of operation for this year's edition of Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights...

Penn & Teller, Universal Orlando team up to create haunted house for Halloween Horror Nights In the nearly 40 years that they've been working together, Penn Jillette & Teller have accomplished a great many things. Thanks to their skillful blend of cynical showmanship & macabre magic,...

AMC's "The Walking Dead" takes a bite out of Universal's Halloween Horror Nights Fans of AMC 's " The Walking Dead " will be running -- not walking -- to Orlando and Hollywood later this year. Especially after they learn that this Emmy Award-winning television series is...

There must have been a few confused tourists at Universal Orlando earlier today. Given the whales ... ... and polar bears that were parked right outside of the entrance of Universal Studios Florida this morning ... ... you have to wonder how many tourists thought (at least for a moment) that they had...

January used to be the start of the slow season at the stateside Disney Parks. How so? So slow that - immediately after New Year's Day -- Disneyland Park wouldn't even open on Mondays & Tuesdays. Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved Which -- as far as the maintenance crew...

All around the world tonight, as children lay nestled, all snug in their beds, while visions of sugar plums dance in their heads ... Out in the living room, their parents will be quietly cursing as they attempt to assemble some overly complicated Christmas gift. If it's any consolation, while that...

Four weeks from tonight, the Universal Orlando Resort will be premiering the 20th anniversary edition of Halloween Horror Nights . "And just what should we expect as HHN reaches this special headstone ... er ... milestone?," you ask. Well, to hear show director Mike Aiello talk, the 20th anniversary...

There have been lots of looky-loos lately over that Fantasyland Forest construction fence. Which has resulted in an equally large number of theories floating around online about what's currently going on with this $300 million project. Take - for example - all that soil that's been piled up towards...

By now, you’ve undoubtedly heard about the huge crowds that turned up on Friday . The line that stretched all the way back into CityWalk . Which was full of Harry Potter fans determined to be among the first to visit IOA ’s Wizarding World . Photo by Jim Hill Mind you, one of the main reasons that these...

Greetings from the Universal Orlando Resort . Where I’m now in my final day of covering the grand opening of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter . Photo by Jim Hill It has been an absolutely amazing couple of days. And I’m heading back to New Hampshire tonight with all sorts of stories to share about...

Denny P. dropped me a line on Saturday to ask: Did you see Jason Garcia’s story in the Sentinel yesterday about the Wizarding World of Harry Potter ? As a Disney fan, this sounds like complete hype to me. But what do you think? Is this Islands of Adventure addition really going to be a game changer for...

How's this for a twist on social media? Universal Orlando has just set up a Facebook fan page for Halloween Horror Nights . Which is this seasonal USF event that typically features tons of performers who look as though they've just had their faces ripped off. If you can get past that grisly irony, then...

Let's take a quick look at the weather, shall we? For Central New Hampshire, the forecast calls for ... Some areas of light snow or mixed showers will move in tonight. A spotty light accumulation is possible, but will move quickly out of the state early Friday morning. After a fairly quiet, but mostly...

It's perhaps the most eagerly anticipated addition to Orlando's assortment of rides, shows and attractions in more than a decade: The Wizarding World of Harry Potter , which is slated to open at Universal Studios' Islands of Adventure in 2009 Copyright 2007 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved And...

What's in a name? Well, as Universal learned the hard way back in 1998, when it decided to rename its recently expanded resort " '>Universal Studios Escape " and thus confused hundreds of thousands of tourists ... Sometimes picking the wrong name for your theme park and/or resort can prove to be disastrous...