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Those of you who read this past weekend's "Why For" may recall that I said that "... the Walt Disney Company is this very dynamic organization." Well, scratch that. As of this past Friday afternoon, Disney officially became a very schizophrenic organization. Why for? Because -- after spending all of...

God, I hate to write stories like this. I mean, some people really seem to get their jollies by throwing together articles about how Disneyland's new "Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" ride is apparently underwhelming. Or how -- in order to contain costs -- the Imagineers were forced to constantly...

Today, with little or no fanfare, Universal Studios Hollywood will be closing its "E.T. Adventure" attraction. Why the lack of hoopla? Because the folks who run Universal's theme parks are deathly afraid of offending Steven Spielberg. You see (as you all are already no doubt aware), Mr. Spielberg is...

How many of you out there are familiar with Tom Morrow, the Audio Animatronic figure (voiced by Nathan Lane) that hosts the "Innoventions" exhibit in Disneyland's Tomorrowland? I mean really familiar. As in: You haven't just watched this robot do all of his intro spiels to the various areas in "Innoventions...

First, Noel Aronson writes to ask: Hello: It's a little belated, but let me add to the list of people congratulating you on getting your own web site. The only problem is -- whenever I lose track of whatever site you happen to (be) writing for / on -- I always manage to find your new home just as...

You know, I get letters like this all the time: Dear Jim - Don't you think that it's awful that the Walt Disney Company has started making movies that are based on its theme park attractions. Awful, creatively bankrupt films like "The Country Bears," "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "The Haunted Mansion...

The dictionary defines "Gemini" as A constellation in the Northern Hemsiphere. The third sign of the Zodia. A remarkable event; an omen. Given all three of these meanings, I have to assume that the Imagineers had the third definition in mind when they opted to name their Future World redo "Project...

BigbyWolf235 writes to ask: Dear Jim, Perhaps you can help settle a Disney Urban Legend for me. It seems since the beginning of films there have always been strange rumors as to things that were stuck in the backgrounds of scenes. In THE WIZARD OF OZ there was always the rumor of the Munchkin hanging...

You know, I hammer pretty hard on the Mouse. On a fairly regular basis, I'm posting articles that go into great detail about how the Walt Disney Company cut corners on this project or that film or whatever. And it just doesn't seem fair that I always take aim at the very same target. So today, I thought...

Bobo B. wrote to me on Sunday to ask: Jim: I know that - in the wake of this weekend's Columbia tragedy - that it may seem incredibly crass or insensitive to bring up something as trivial as a theme park ride at a time like this. But still I have to wonder: What impact (if any) do you think that the...