Looking at Lucasfilm Episde 1: The Saga Begins (Audio) In the introductory episode of this new podcast series, Dan Zehr of "Coffee with Kenobi" and Jim Hill talk about the latest news out of the land of Lucas. Among the topics discussed is Frank Oz's terrific interview with Mark Hamill at the 92nd Street Y, the preview of Batuu that will be included in "Thrawn: Alliances," as well as John Boyega bulking up as he gets ready to shoot Episode 9. Released April 13, 2018 Hosts...

Universal Studios' theme parks are full of strange & wondrous things. State-of-the-art rides, shows & attractions based on super-popular film & television franchises like " Fast & The Furious " and " The Simpsons ." Not to mention fun things to eat & drink like Krusty Burgers , Butterbeer and Voodoo Doughnuts . But will visitors who journey to the Universal Studios parks soon find themselves craving some Eggo frozen waffles ? To be honest, that depends...

Marvel News Round​-​up for March 2018 Jim Hill and Aaron Adams discuss the latest Marvel Entertainment-related headlines, including when James Gunn will be shooting the live-action footage for EPCOT's new "Guardians of the Galaxy" indoor coaster as well as when we may be seeing a "Black Panther" sequel released to theaters.

David Ogden Stiers was the sort of guy who forced you to step up your game. Just ask Alan Alda. Who had - for the first five years that "M*A*S*H" was on the air - had Larry Linville (who played the weaselly Frank Burns) as Hawkeye Pierce's comic foil. But when Linville opted out of continuing to play this craven character as this Emmy Award-winning series was heading into its sixth season on CBS ... The powers-that-be at 20 th Fox Television division decided to do something different...

Kingdom Hearts is the longest-running video game series featuring the Disney mascots. The latest title, Kingdom Hearts III is about to debut and audiences cannot wait for it. Copyright Disney / Square Enix. All rights reserved Developed by the Japanese studio Square Enix , the series was originally a Nintendo GameCube exclusive when it appeared in 2002. It had fantastic reviews and tremendous word of mouth. It sold millions of copies, to date over 20 million in the series, and created fans the world...

Now through February 7th (in honor of the 80 th anniversary of the general release of the studio's first full-length animated feature), Disney is presenting "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" at the El Capitan Theatre. To help sell tickets to this extremely limited engagement (How limited? Just six days. Then the El Cap tosses The Fairest in the Land out on her fanny to make room for its Throwback Thursday presentation. Which - fittingly enough [given that the opening ceremonies for...

If things had gone a little different at Walt Disney Animation Studios back in the early 1980s, it wouldn’t have been J.K. Rowling who first introduced the world to the idea of a school that then specialized in teaching wizardry and witchcraft. But rather, it would have been another English author – Mary Stewart – who would have been credited with popularizing this concept. Thanks largely to “The Little Broomstick,” a movie that the Mouse House came within inches of...

Doreen Tracey - who passed away last Wednesday while being treated for pneumonia at a hospital in Thousand Oaks, CA -- had a complicated relationship with The Walt Disney Company. Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved How so? Well, this story that Jennifer Armstrong shared in "Why? Because We Still Like You: An Oral History of the Mickey Mouse Club" (Grand Central Publishing, October 2010) should give you some idea of the challenges that this performer faced in her post...

If 20 th Century Fox Home Entertainment had actually followed tradition (i.e., that your 50 th anniversary is supposed to be golden, your 60 th anniversary is diamond, etc.), they'd have done something platinum to commemorate the 70 th anniversary of the release of "Miracle on 34 th Street." But instead of platinum, 20 th Century Fox opted to go with helium. As in: Pay tribute to this much-beloved holiday classic by recreating one of the giant balloons that can be seen floating in the...

"We can't do this. This doesn't work." This is what Michael Eisner - the then-Chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company - told Thomas Schumacher, Peter Schneider and Julie Taymor back in August of 1996. That the stage version of Disney's acclaimed animated feature, "The Lion King," which this trio had been developing at that time wasn't even remotely ready for Broadway. Which is why - as Michael Lassell recounts in his terrific new behind-the-scenes book, "The...

When Mouse House managers wanted Christmas to come to Arendelle, they knew exactly who to turn to: Kevin Deters & Stevie Wermers-Skelton. Who are basically Walt Disney Animation Studios' in-house specialists when it comes to holiday specials. After all, Kevin & Stevie are the talented team who rode herd on "Prep & Landing." Which was WDAS' very first foray into creating a Christmas special for television. That 2009 production was so well-received that it not only took...

Greetings from Orlando. Where Nancy and I are right in the middle of a whirlwind working trip. Things got underway bright & early this past Saturday morning with the kick-off of the first-ever Disney Dish Podcast fan weekend. Organizing by the very nice folks at Storybook Destinations, this three day-long event was full of fun holiday-themed activities like Ugly Christmas sweater contests ... Photo by Nancy Stadler Len Testa and I also recorded our first live-in-front-of-an-audience (at a Disney...

Over the month of November, Disney will be spending some serious cheddar on its Big Cheese. But that's all because Mickey Mouse will be celebrating his 89th birthday on November 18th. As part of the lead-up to his big day, Mickey has begun traveling around the globe. Making stops in places like London so that he can then surprise some of his biggest fans (and - of course - share these encounters on Disney's official Mickey Mouse Facebook page). Which is all well & good. But Mickey isn't...

When "Star Tours" originally opened at Disneyland Park back in January of 1987, one of the things that most excited theme park fans about this motion-based simulator is that its ride film could supposedly easily be changed out. Which meant that - once the cabin of the StarSpeeder 3000 had been reprogrammed to move in concert with a new ride film - Guests could then experience a brand-new Star Wars-inspired adventure. Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved In fact, according...

What makes a Disney Princess? In this post-"Frozen" period, that may seem like a pretty silly / simple-to-answer question. But as Jody Dreyer - the former Vice President of Corporate Synergy at the Walt Disney Company - recounts in "Beyond the Castle" (Zondervan, September 2017), there was a time in the not-too-distant past when Mouse House managers really struggled to come up with an adequate answer to this query. Copyright Zondervan. All rights reserved Mind you, prior to February...

Whatever happened to "Happily Ever After" ? It used to be - when a Walt Disney Animation Studios production came to a close - you could count on that story being neatly tied up. With the villain being vanquished and the hero & heroine getting hitched. But now that a number of the more recent WDAS releases are opting to continue their tales (thanks to new animated series that Walt Disney Television is producing), Happy Endings are much harder to come by. Take - for example - poor Pascal...

When she first started out in stand-up back in 1982, Lea DeLaria - who now proudly describes herself as " ... an actress, singer, comedian and professional lesbian" (though not necessarily in that order) -- could have never imagined the path that her 35 year career in entertainment would follow. Lea's first unexpected turn came back in November of 1998 when she played Hildy in the hit revival of "On the Town." Which was when Ben Brantley of the New York Times declared that...

So how exactly did Ernie Sabella wind up with " ... the greatest gig of my life" (i.e., being cast as the voice of Pumbaa the warthog in Disney's "The Lion King") ? To hear this Broadway veteran talk, it was all because Nathan Lane doesn't like to work alone. "In early 1992, Nathan & I had been cast in a revival of 'Guys & Dolls.' He was playing Nathan Detroit. I was playing Harry the Horse," Sabella recalled during a recent sit-down interview...

How long can you hold your breath? I ask this question because Paul Briggs wound up holding his "Breath" (i.e., "Catch My Breath," that charming picture book which Briggs wrote & illustrated. This is also the 48-page hardcover that Disney Hyperion sent out into stores late last month as the most recent installment of its Walt Disney Animation Studios Artist Showcase series) for over five years. "I initially submitted my pitch for a children's book back in early 2012...

Marvel Entertainment has long been celebrated for its ability to weave these epic-length narratives that can then play out across multiple motion pictures, TV shows and comic books. Copyright Marvel Studios. All rights reserved So if length really plays to this studios' storytelling strength, why then is Marvel Animation headed in the opposite direction? Creating a series of stand-alone, 90-second long shorts that - rather than putting Marvel's super heroes through their usual action-adventure...

Back in the early summer of 2015, when Matthew Youngberg & Francisco Angones first met to discuss how they were going to try and reboot DuckTales for Disney XD , the big question that really dogged them was ... Which version of this much-beloved IP were these two actually going to revive? "Both Matt and I have an intense love for the original animated series. But we also understood that the DuckTales characters meant different things to different people," Angones - the co-producer ...

If you were to ask Star Trek fans which was the best film to be based on that much-beloved 1960s television series, "Wrath of Khan" would undoubtedly be their answer. And as to who should get the lion's share of the credit for this 1982 Paramount Pictures release actually being exciting & entertaining (which then made "Star Trek II" a decided improvement over that studio's initial attempt to transfer Kirk & Co. to the big screen, 1979's "Star Trek: The...

"Playful spooks have interrupted our tour. Please remain seated in your ... Doom Buggy." Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc.All rights reserved If you've ever been on The Haunted Mansion and heard this message as your ride vehicle temporarily came to a halt, those were the reassuring tones of Disney Legend X Atencio that you were listening to. Who just passed away this past Sunday at the ripe old age of 98. And believe you me, X knew a lot about interrupted journeys. The weird little...

Ever since "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" was first published back in 1964, people have dreamed of visiting the Wonka Works. Make their way past those fabled gates and then ... Well, go for a sail down the chocolate river aboard the Wonkatania. Copyright Wonderbly. All rights reserved Or - better yet - visit some of the rooms at that factory that Roald Dahl mentioned in his text but which readers then never got to explore. I mean, what sort of machinery is actually inside of the Juicing...

The long Labor Day weekend is traditionally when Americans kick back for a bit. Catch a three day-long breather before these same people then plunge into all of the projects work that they've got planned for the Fall. Drew Scott and Emma Slater, his professional dancing partner for the upcoming season of ABC's "Dancing with the Stars." Photo by Craig Sjodin. Copyright A merican Broadcasting Co mpanies, Inc. All rights reserved Well, Drew Scott clearly never got the take-Labor-Day...

When it comes to successfully marketing your motion picture, it helps to know where your target audience actually is / will be. Which is why - when Warner Bros. wanted to get comic book fans excited about " Wonder Woman " earlier this year - it worked with over 2,000 comic retailers, bookstores, and libraries around the world to spread the word about this Patty Jenkins film. Likewise when Marvel Studios wanted to make sure that " Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 " would become a...

If you look around the Web today, you'll see that there are lots of Disney fans who are expressing sorrow at Marty Sklar's untimely passing . But I wonder how many of these folks would ever admit that they were among those who - just two weeks ago today - actually booed this Disney Legend. All because Marty - at the "Disney Pirates of the Caribbean: 50 Years of Swashbuckling Adventures in Disney Parks" panel at this year's D23 EXPO - dared to defend Imagineering's recent...

Through his various " Star Trek " productions, Gene Roddenberry shared his dream for a far more hopeful future. One where humanity eventually rose above all of its petty squabbling and began to travel to the stars. Gary Berman & Adam Malin had a dream too. An admittedly far more earth-bound one. One where they'd take your typical trip to a comic book convention (which was - and still is, in certain corners of fandom - infamous for its long lines and rough treatment of attendees...

Everyone has a bad hair day every now and then. Well, imagine what Ashley Priselac - the studio manager for Madame Tussauds Orlando - has to deal with. Especially on those mornings when she arrives at this I-Drive attraction to do her usual 6:30 a.m. walk-thru and then discovers that a good percentage of the 75 - 80 wax figures that are on display here now have disheveled 'dos. "Sometimes - just by looking at the figures during morning walk-thru - it's easy to tell that we'd had...

I know, I know. You don't have tickets for Comic-Con this year. Which means that you can't partake in all of the cool, pop cultural stuff that's going on down in San Diego right now. And that's making you blue, right? Copyright Disney Pixar. All rights reserved Well ... What if I were to tell that that's not entirely true? Copyright Disney Pixar. All rights reserved I mean, sure. If you want to do something like meet Michael Giacchino (i.e., the guy who won an Academy Award for...

What with the introduction of the Toucan Tracker wristband system back in 2014 (which can virtually hold one's place in line outside of Hall H. Which means that most Comic-Con attendees can now go back to their hotel rooms & get a good night's sleep -- more importantly, bathe - prior to seeing one of those super-popular film panels inside of this 6500-seat venue), there just isn't as much camping out in Plaza Park as there used to be. Mind you, inside the San Diego Convention Center...

Back when he was promoting "Zootopia" 's theatrical release, screenwriter Phil Johnston shared this great behind-the-scenes story about one of the more memorable / infamous moments from that 2016 Walt Disney Animation Studios production. You know the scene that I'm talking about. The one where Chief Bogo (i.e., the gruff old water buffalo character who was voiced by Idris Elba) tries to persuade office Judy Hopps (i.e., the naïve new hire voiced by "Once Upon a Time"...

For the better part of a year now, theme park fans have been closely watching as all sorts of steel has been rising up in the northwestern corner of Disneyland Park . Photo by Jim Hill Mind you, it's common knowledge that this construction was being done for Star Wars Land, which is supposed to open in Anaheim & at Disney's Hollywood Studios in the Spring of 2019. But what isn't as well known is what this 14-acre addition to those two theme parks would actually entail. Well, all that...

Two years ago, just prior to when the original "Descendants" premiered on Disney Channel, director Kenny Ortega told me he wished this musical fantasy would do extremely well in the ratings. That way, he and the cast (not to mention the creative team behind this Disney Channel Original) might then get the chance to make a sequel to this particular TV production. "The Descendants world really is a wonderful place to play in. I think - were you to ask the cast and the crew - they'd...

How do you like your Ghost Town? Virtual or extra-lively? Because - this summer -- Knott's Berry Farm actually gives you options. You can either experience a VR version of this theme park's historic Old West section (where you'll then get to battle robots in an immersive 360 shooter). Or you can explore Ghost Town Alive! where the streets of Calico are filled with dozens of performers dressed in authentic western garb. Who then - with the help of Guests who are visiting the farm for the...

Sure, for some folks, the Fourth of July is all about fireworks. But for the 75% of all Americans who own a grill or a smoker, the Fourth is our Nation's No. 1 holiday when it comes to grilling. Which is why 3 out of 4 of those folks will spend some time outside today working over a fire. But here's the thing: Though 14 million Americans can cook a steak with confidence because they actually grill something every week, the rest of us - because we use our grill or smoker so infrequently ....

There are TV programs where you can watch any one randomly-selected episode and then immediately know everything that you need to know about that particular set of characters & the world that they live in. And then there are shows like " Doctor Who ." Copyright BBC. All rights reserved I bring this up because ... This past weekend, BBC America aired " World Enough and Time ," the first part of "Doctor Who" 's Season 10 finale. And I have to admit that I kind...

The Hall of Presidents at WDW's Magic Kingdom is renown for a lot of reasons: Its earnest, respectful and almost painfully balanced look back at our nation's history. Not to mention being a technological marvel that - thanks to the magic of Audio Animatronics - manages to create the illusion that all of this country's Commander-in-Chiefs have somehow gathered together onstage at one point in time. Where they then all interact with one another with great dignity & restraint. But you...

Is the world really ready for Lauren Graham to go from being a "Gilmore Girl" to a "Gilmore Ghoul?" Well, we'll have an answer to that question later this year when "Vampirina" premieres on Disney Channel , Disney Junior and the new Disney NOW app . This new animated series (which is based on " Vampirina Ballerina ," that popular children's book series from Disney Publishing) chronicles the adventures of a young vampire girl who struggles to fit in...

So if you had wanted to see the Original Mouseketeers in person back in their heyday (1955 - 1958), what were your chances if you lived outside of Southern California? Slim & none. Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved And why was that exactly? To be blunt, "The Mickey Mouse Club" didn't shoot in front of a live audience. More to the point, Cubby & Co. were just too busy rehearsing & then shooting this TV show to make all that many personal appearances when...

" Cars 3 " got off to a solid start this past weekend, racking up over $53 million in ticket sales during its first three days in domestic release. Copyright Disney Pixar. All rights reserved And given that this Brian Fee film currently has a 66% freshness rating over at Rotten Tomatoes (which is a significant step up from the 39% freshness rating that " Cars 2 " received back in 2011. More to the point, it's within spitting distance of the 74% freshness rating that the original...

In a summer that's already jammed packed with reboots (i.e., Paramount's already beached movie version of "Baywatch," Universal Pictures' rapidly unraveling "Mummy," as well as Sony's still-eagerly-anticipated "Spider-Man: Homecoming"), how can Disney XD make its "DuckTales" reboot stand out from the crowd? By staging a programming event. Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved Mind you, given that the Disney Channel already had...

In a previous blog post , we looked at Marvel Contest of Champions . The mobile fighting game featuring the majority of the Marvel Universe. There also happens to be a DC Universe fighting game out right now as well. Injustice 2 was released May of this year. And is doing quite well on the sales charts. It was the sequel to Injustice: Gods Among Us , a NetherRealm Studios title from 2013. The game features a very dark take on the DC Universe. It is a bit darker than even the recent live-action Warner...

Greetings from the Holiday Inn Fairborn. Photo by Jim Hill I'm here in Fairborn, Ohio for Dayton Disneyana . Which is this terrific weekend-long event that's hosted by the "Plane Crazy" chapter of the Disneyana Fan Club. This year's event is particularly exciting, given that Mike & Patty Peraza are here. For those of you who don't know: Mike is an award-winning designer with over 35 years of experience creating magic for the Walt Disney Studios, Walt Disney Television...

Marvel has had tremendous success in the movie industry but moderate success in the video game arena. With the exception of a few titles, the Marvel gaming library has been lackluster on the home consoles. That is with the exception of one genre. Fighting games lend themselves very well to the various superhero franchises. The Marvel universe has been featured in popular fighting games since at least 1994, when the Japanese publisher Capcom released X-Men: Children of the Atom in the arcade. Capcom...

Earlier this week, at 7 am Pacific, Nintendo held an abnormally short Nintendo Direct- a typically bi or tri-annual stream used to reveal new projects and updates on projects to fans. This direct was focused on Pokemon, and had plenty of anticipation building around it despite the announced run time of eight minutes. With leaks from information datamined (gained from hacking into the files for) the Pokemon Sun and Moon games, a 'Pokemon Stars' game was anticipated, some even speculating that...

If you have a child that watches cartoons, or you enjoy watching cartoons yourself, you're probably pretty aware of Yokai Watch . In fact, if you have any interest in entertainment in Japan, you probably have, at least, a vague idea of what Yokai Watch is- I've already covered the series multiple times, and have written about the game I'm about to cover, but here's the brief version of it: There are collectible monsters you have to use a watch to find. There are hundreds of the adorable...

Game publishers are constantly looking for the next big thing but sometimes it's the little games that turn out to be the blockbusters. Take the game Crossy Road for example. You may have not heard of the mobile game but chances are that someone you know has a copy on their phone. The game was originally published in 2014 by a small studio called Hipster Whale. The game featured a chicken character trying to cross a never-ending road. The game was deceptively simple yet hard to put down. It was...

Unless you've been living under a rock, or in space (or inside of a rock that's in space that isn't Our Rock In Space), you probably know what Pokemon is. If you don't ... wow! I'll keep it brief: Pokemon is about over 750 collectible little creatures. But an app that's been released earlier in May is focused on a very, very special Pokemon. The wonderfully useless Magikarp: A fish Pokemon that is known for being extremely weak and having the 'splash' attack, which...

Some people travel halfway 'around the planet so that they can then experience the excitement of the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona . If you're more of a Slow Living enthusiast (as I am), then perhaps you should amble to Brattleboro, VT . Where - over the first weekend in June - you can then join a herd of cow enthusiasts at the annual Strolling of the Heifers . Now in its 16 th year, this three-day long event typically gets underway on Friday night in June with a combination block party...