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The Walt Disney Company has long been an innovator when it comes to its theme parks & resorts. But that being said, that doesn’t mean that the Mouse doesn’t still keep a close eye on the competition. And when one of the other Central Florida parks introduces a service that quickly proves to be popular...

Given the firestorm that that “TRON” test footage created at last year’s Comic-Con … Well, it only made sense that the creative team behind this highly anticipated follow-up to that landmark 1982 film would then return to San Diego to reveal even more to this year’s attendees. The only problem is … Director...

It’s been kind of interesting watching the Pixar fan community react to Rich Greenfield ’s recent mea culpa in regards to “ Up .” Back in April, Greenfield (who’s this Wall Street analyst that keeps tabs on The Walt Disney Company for Pali Research ) expressed concerns about this Pete Docter film. Saying...

For most of us, advance planning means that – a whole week ahead of time – you know what you’ll be doing over the upcoming Fourth of July weekend. Michael Roddy (he's the one on the right), Director of Show Development for the Universal Orlando Resort. Photo courtesy of Gregory Nicotero Whereas Michael...

On paper, “ The Proposal ” really looks like it should work. Copyright 2009 Touchstone Pictures, Inc. All Rights Reserved I mean, this film stars Sandra Bullock . The girl we fell in love when she had to keep that bus zooming along at 50 MPH in “ Speed .” Who made us cry when she finally told the truth...

Christopher Sieber has a favor to ask of his fans: No more questions about his knees. Please? “Seriously, my knees are fine,” Sieber laughed, “Everything else on my body hurts right now. But my knees are great.” Of course, it’s easy to understand why friends, family, even perfect strangers would continually...

This past Thursday, Six Flags Over Georgia had a genuinely festive feel. A Dixieland band played while specially invited guests enjoyed a picnic lunch inside of this closed-to-the-public theme park. “And what was the special occasion?,” you ask. Well, a quick look at the centerpieces on the picnic tables...

Six Flags Over Georgia fans dodged a bullet a few months back. A speeding bullet, to be exact. Copyright Six Flags Theme Parks, Inc. All Rights Reserved Last year, Six Flags management gave some very serious thought to shutting down that theme park’s much-beloved Monster Plantation attraction. Worse...

Executives need reasons for success or failure. It's called survival. It's how you cover your butt. If you can provide a plausible reason for success or failure, then you've taken yourself off the firing line. I've often joked about marketing, and the people who market motion pictures. Granted, it's...

Christmas time in NYC means lines. All over the city this past Saturday, there were people standing in lines. They lined up on the 8th floor at the Macy's in Herald Square in order to see Santa . They lined up along 5th Avenue in order to see Saks ' holiday windows . They even lined up at Rockefeller...

If you're planning on watching this Thursday morning's broadcast of Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade , be prepared to see an awful lot of Disney. And -- no -- I'm not talking about that Buzz Lightyear balloon which will be making its debut in this year's parade. Or the fact that Miley Cyrus will be appearing...

What can one say about IAAPA 's Attractions Expo ? Let's start with Ai-yi-yi-yi-yi. Photo by Nancy Stadler The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions' annual conference & trade show is big. Scarily big. So big that it fills the entire North / South Building at the Orange County...

There are many things that you expect to find at the World of Disney at WDW's Downtown Disney . Mountains of Plush. Shelves piled high with Pirates of the Caribbean stuff. Way too much Disney Princess Merchandise. But Pulitzer Prize -winning authors? And yet this was where Dave Barry spent yesterday...

Bob Iger didn't mince words during yesterday's earnings call . Though Disney's CEO said he was pleased with the Company's overall performance in fiscal 2008, 2009 looks to be a very different story. What with advance bookings at the Walt Disney World Resort down almost 10% from what they were a year...

Last week, The Walt Disney Company couldn't stop crowing about how well " Tinker Bell " was doing. How this new Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment title was selling well ahead of projections , moving over a million units during its first 48 hours on store shelves. But this week, the Mouse is setting...

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...

As you might expect, NYC's World of Disney is currently all tricked out for trick-or-treat time. Photo by Jim Hill And as you wander all three floors of this 5th Avenue store, you'll find all sorts of Halloween-related materials. From 15th anniversary " Nightmare Before Christmas " merch ... Photo by...

Do you want a true demonstration of the awesome power of Disney's "High School Musical" franchise? Well, never mind about the record-breaking advance ticket sales for " High School Musical 3 : Senior Year ." Or the fact that Salt Lake 's East High (i.e. the actual school where all three of the "HSM"...

Wayne C. sent in an interesting follow-up question to yesterday's article : "When exactly did Disney World executives realize that their resort was about to hit a rough patch? Based on some of the things they've done over the past six months (EX: Announcing back in July that they'd be closing Pleasure...

Yesterday was a cold, grey day in Boston. More like November than September. It was just the sort of day that the phrase "Blue Monday" was invented to describe. Photo by Jim Hill So how do you turn a day like that around? By handing out some Mickey Mouse balloons? 2500 of them, to be exact. Photo by...