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So -- in the weeks & months ahead -- we've got " My School Musical " on the Disney Channel , " High School Musical: Get in the Picture " on ABC as well as the theatrical release of " High School Musical 3 ." But how far exactly is the Walt Disney Company planning on stretching the "High School Musical...

Picking up where we left off yesterday ... Despite the two MCA lawsuits, Disney continued to develop plans for the Disney-MGM Studio Backlot in Burbank . At the helm of the Disney project were two Imagineers: a young Joe Rohde (then 32-years-old) and Rick Rothschild . Their mission was to seamlessly...

Picking up where we left off yesterday ... During the first five months of 1987, Burbank city officials worked toward an agreement with Disney to build a theme-park-slash-shopping-center in their downtown district. At issue was the money: Disney wanted to buy the land for next to nothing. Disney also...

It's the story that's often been told about the creation of Disney World . How Walt -- as he was flying over the swamps of Central Florida in Disney's corporate plane -- looked out the window and saw Raz Island sitting in the middle of Bay Lake. "That's it," Walt was reported to have said, "That's where...

R. Noble writes in to ask: Jim – I just read your article about Disney’s decision not to go forward with that “Pirates of the Caribbean” character dining experience at the Magic Kingdom . That is very disappointing news for me personally. My kids are obsessed with Disney's “Pirates” movies as well as...

I'm sure that you're familiar with the animated version of Tinker Bell that appeared from Walt Disney Productions' 1951 release, " Peter Pan " ... Copyright Disney. All Rights Reserved ... not to mention the live-action version of this pixie that periodically appears in fireworks displays ... Photo by...

Hey, folks -- Jim Hill here. Before this month's Floyd Norman column officially gets underway, I thought that I'd take a moment to let JHM readers know that Mr. Fun recently launched his very own blog. Appropriately titled Mr. Fun's Blog . So if you want more than just the usually once-a-month dose of...

In recent articles here on JHM, there’s been quite a bit of discussion about the fact that the Walt Disney Company has agreed to repurchase 100% ownership of its Disney Stores and that -- as part of the re-acquisition and repositioning of the once-strong retail division -- they are going to be closing...

I was sorry to hear that Charlton Heston passed away this past weekend. Mind you, that wasn't because I thought that this Academy Award winner was a particularly good actor. But rather ... Well, because -- for the past few weeks -- I've been doing some research for an article that I've now got in the...

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...

Yes, it's true. Disney's " The Parent Trap " will always be special to me because -- unlike other Disney movies -- this one is personal. However, we'll get to that in a moment. Let's take a trip back in time. The year is 1960, and the Walt Disney Studio is still a beehive of activity in a laid back Disney...

Have you heard about these Disney Princess & Pirates of the Caribbean -themed Happy Meals that McDonald's is selling now through April 10th? Given that this is the first time that Mickey Mouse & Mickey Dee have joined forces since these two mega-corporations decided to end their 10-year, $100...

"I wanna be where the people are ..." Earlier this week, where the people were was NYC's World of Disney . This past Tuesday afternoon, hundreds of musical theatre fans crammed into that 5th Avenue flagship ... Photo by Chris Barry ... So that they could then be on hand for a very special event. You...

An item posted this past Friday on Screamscape about how the Cheesecake Factory will soon be pulling out of DisneyQuest got tongues wagging around the Web. As Disneyana fans began wondering if this intriguing new tidbit meant that WDW's indoor interactive theme park -- long rumored to be on the ropes...

The next time you use as a FastPass at a Disney theme park, pay close attention to what the cast member does once you walk up to that FastPass Return entrance. After you hand over your ticket, do they quickly run their finger along the top of that FastPass before then allowing you to enter that ride...

Have you heard about this advertorial that the Walt Disney Company had placed in the March issue of GQ ? This 8-page spread (Which is loaded with pictures that fashion photographer Ben Watts took of a handsome family of hipsters cavorting at Walt Disney World ) tries to sell WDW as this great place to...

Remember how I mentioned in yesterday's story that there are senior officials at the Walt Disney Company who believe that " ... the HSM phenomenon will soon blow itself out." Well, this belief does not extend to Disney Theatrical . If anything, the folks who brought us " The Lion King ," " Mary Poppins...

TiggerFan452 writes in to say: Hey Jim, Just wondering if you've heard anything about these focus groups that Disney World has been recruiting people for. If you take part, you're apparently shown a preview video for something called "Disney's Night Kingdom". Any idea what this project is about and if...

Back in the 1960s, our morning was interrupted by a special meeting. It was held in a small conference room just off A-Wing in Disney's animation building. I honestly don't recall everyone in the meeting. But I do know that production boss Ken Peterson and Andy Engman were present. Why this special meeting...

Well, the first field test of the Walt Disney World Resort 's new " Magic Connection " system was completed late last week. And -- to be honest -- things didn't go quite as well as WDI R & D had hoped they would. Don't get me wrong, folks. The problem wasn't with the technology. From what I hear...