Browse by Tags

Don't you just hate it when you drive into work and discover that some thoughtless jerk has parked in your parking space? Well, look at what the folks who work at Goodyear Tire & Rubber in Akron, OH had to endure yesterday morning when they arrived at work. First some boob with a big rig blocks the...

You’ll find signs like this all over the Disney lot. Photo by Jeff Lange “No lookie-loos.” In Disney speak, this means: “Employees only.” Translation: If you’re a guest and/or a visitor on the lot, you really shouldn’t be nosing around. Peering in through any open conference room doors. Trying to find...

Given that this company's mascot is a giraffe, you'd think that Toys 'R' Us would be better at sticking its neck out. Particularly for a great retail partner like the Walt Disney Company . To explain: For the past three years, Mickey Mouse has put a lot of time and energy into developing a very strong...

Quick question: How many of you Trek fans out there remember that classic old SNL routine, " The Last Voyage of the Starship Enterprise " ? For those of you who can't actually recall this memorable sketch: "The Last Voyage" made its debut 'way back in May of 1976 during "Saturday Night Live" 's first...

Before we get started here, just a quick thanks to Diane B. Rooney. Who so graciously offered up this "Pirates of the Caribbean II: Dead Man's Chest" set report (which previously ran over on the Compass Rose discussion boards) for reprinting on JHM. Also -- for those of you who don't want to know too...

Try to remember the kind of September When life was slow and oh so mellow Try to remember the kind of September When grass was green and grain was yellow Try to remember the kind of September When you were a young and a callow fellow Try to remember and if you remember Then follow ... It's strange. But...

Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time. As in: Hiring Lindsay Lohan, the pretty teen star of recent Disney remakes like "The Parent Trap" and "Freaky Friday," to headline in yet another redo of a Mouse House classic, "The Love Bug." But -- over these past few months -- it's been anything but a...

Okay. Everybody out there knows the rules about how to make a successful western, right? First of all, your story has to be set in the American West. Then -- given that your film must feature a figure who sits tall in the saddle -- it just stands to reason that you're also going to need a horse in there...

The summer movie-going season has long been a time of somewhat diminished expectations. By that I mean: People now understand that -- when they visit their local multiplex between the months of May and August -- that they're probably not going to find many thoughtful dramas playing there. Yeah, summer...

Well, Disney's last (for a while, anyway) traditionally animated feature -- "Home on the Range" -- continues to hang in there. After four weeks in release, this film has managed to pull in $45.5 million. Which (admittedly) isn't a smash hit by any stretch of the imagination. But -- at the same time ...

Let's say you're Rob Coleman, one of Industrial Light and Magic's top computer animation artists. And you're given the opportunity to render in CG one of the "Star Wars" universe's most beloved characters: Yoda. What do you do when you learn that you've landed this plum assignment. Well, according to...

Look. I know that there are serious film geeks who come by JimHillMedia.com every now and again. These are the people that I need to speak with right now. And my message to you is ... Do whatever you have to -- sell your car, your house, a kidney -- but just make sure that you're in San Rafael, CA. in...

Well, I doubt that anyone at the Walt Disney Company is going to forget "The Alamo" anytime soon. $9.2 million. This major motion picture -- which supposedly cost $107 million to produce and an additional $30 million to market -- took in just an estimated $9.2 million during its first weekend in domestic...

Okay. I'll admit it. I'd been kind of blue since I got back from California this past Tuesday night. And Nancy -- who'd grown tired of seeing me mope around the house -- had finally had enough. Which is why she threw me in the car yesterday morning and drove me into Boston. Why for? Because Universal...

If you're a Disneyana fan, I'm sure that you'll recognize the following couplets: Serpents, spiders, tale of a rat, Call in the spirits, wherever they're at, Rap on a table, it's time to respond, Send us a message from somewhere beyond But this next line may not be as familiar to you: I beseech you to...

"Now gather 'round, while I elucidate About what happens outside when it gets late. Around about midnight, the ghosts and banshees Get together for their nightly jamboree. There's ghosts with horns and saucer eyes, And some with fangs about this size. Some short and fat, some tall and thin, And some...

There's this great little moment about five minutes in to "George of the Jungle 2." It's when the audience finally gets its first good up-close look at the guy playing George ... and they suddenly realizes that it's not Brendan Fraser, the actor who played the clumsy jungle king in the original 1997...

Hey, gang! Jim Hill here. Now I can't tell you who exactly it is who sent JHM this story. All I can do is assure you that this unnamed individual actually did work on Disney's "Haunted Mansion" movie and that their behind-the-scene tales are legit. Will "The Haunted Mansion" turn out to be a "Pirates...

Ah, what a difference almost-a-year makes. Some of you may recall how in late July 2002, Disney's "The Country Bears" opened in theaters nationwide. This Walt Disney Pictures production got absolutely hammered by the critics. Grossing only $16.9 million during its entire domestic run, "Country Bears...

Hey, gang! Jim Hill again. Nancy and I are still out in California. As you read this, we'll probably already be on our way up to the Bay Area to check out some animation schools. And -- speaking of animation (nice segue, eh?) -- I'm pleased to welcome back to JHM guest columnist Mark Mitchell. Some of...