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Do recently registered domain names hint at a possible comeback for Disney’s Dreamfinder?

Jim Hill

It's time to take another peek over the horizon. To see what
The Walt Disney Company may have up its sleeve by checking out some of the
domain names that the Mouse has registered over the past month.

Now some of these domain names are fairly obvious. Take –
for example – …

… which are clearly websites that the Company intends on
using to promote "John Carter of Mars."
Which will be released to theaters on March 9, 2012.

And then there's …


Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved

… which a brand-new animated series that will be debuting
on the Disney Channel during the Spring of 2012. Which deals with the
adventures of Dipper and Mabel, two city kids who are forced to spend
their summer with their crusty old great uncle Stan (aka Grunkle Stan) in
Gravity Falls, Oregon.

Which sounds like a fate worse than death for a city kid.
But – as it turns out – Gravity Falls is not just some backwoods burg. But –
rather – this strange and wondrous place. Home to all sorts of weird creatures
and bizarre phenomenon. Everything from time portals to child-snatching gnomes.


Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved

FYI: Folks that I've spoken with at the Disney Channel say
that "Gravity Falls" is the funniest, most imaginative series that they've seen
in quite a while. Which is why that these folks are hoping that this new
animated comedy could turn to be another "Phineas & Ferb." A popular enough
TV program that the  characters from "Disney's
Gravity Falls" & the storylines from this show could then become fodder for
new games from Disney Interactive Studios or character encounters at the theme
parks.

And speaking of the Parks: No, Disney didn't grab the domain
names …

… because it's planning on building a brand-new theme park
in Georgia. But – rather – because Raven-Symoné is returning to the Mouse
House.


Raven-Symoné on the set of her new ABC Family
sitcom, "The Great State of Georgia." Photo by
Randy Holmes. Copyright ABC Family/
All rights reserved

That's right. The star of that popular Disney Channel
sitcom, "That's So Raven," has a brand-new show in the works for the Company. "The
Great State of Georgia" (which is an ABC Studios Production) is a new half-hour
multi-camera comedy which debuts on ABC Family June 29th. This time around,
Raven-Symoné plays Georgia, an aspiring actress who's trying to make her way in
New York City. To make ends meet, Georgia shares an apartment in the city with
her science geek best friend, Jo (played by Majandra Delfino).


"The Great State of Georgia" 's Majandra Delfino and Raven-Symoné (L to R, center).
Photo by Randy Holmes. Copyright ABC Family. All rights reserved

And just because The Walt Disney Company grabs domain names
like …

… and …


Copyright 1964 Walt Disney Productions. All rights reserved

… doesn't mean that the Studio is now considering remaking /
rebooting "The Aristocats," "That Darn Cat" and/or "The Three Lives of Thomasina."
No, the Company registered these domain names because it's looking to use the
Internet to promote "The Nine Lives of Chloe King."  Which is this new one-hour scripted drama
which will be debuting on ABC Family June 14th.

"Nine Lives" is kind of a departure for ABC Family. Given
that this show follows Chloe King (played by Skyler Samuels), who is this typical teenage girl … or so she
thinks. As Chloe's 16th birthday approaches, she begins developing cat-like abilities. What's more, Ms. King eventually discovers that she's a
member of this ancient race which has been hunted by human assassins for millennia.
More importantly, Chloe may hold the key to her ancient race's ultimate
survival.


Skyler Samuels stars in "The Nine Lives of Chloe King." Photo by Adam Rose.
Copyright ABC Family. All rights reserved

And speaking of mystery and mystical back stories … That's
also why Disney recently registered …

"And who is Emmet Cole?," you ask. Well, he's the enigmatic
character at the center of "The River." Which is this new hour-long drama for
ABC that will debut during the 2011 – 2012 TV season. Which network execs hope
will turn out to be the next "Lost."


Copyright American Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved

You see, Emmet Cole was the host of this popular TV program …

… who went missing in the Amazon. Now a group of friends and
family members have embarked on a quest to try & find this famed adventurer and TV
personality. Little realizing what Emmet and the River now have in store for them.

Though ABC has yet to officially announces its line-up for
the 2011 – 2012 season, given that large number of "The River" -related domain
names that The Walt Disney Company registered back on March 27th, it
looks like this hour-long drama (which is being co-financed by DreamWorks Television
and ABC Studios) is now a shoe-in for next season.


Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved

And speaking of shoe-in … Given that The Walt Disney Company
registered all of these domain names on April 2nd …

… it would appear that – when "Star Tours: The Adventures
Continue" opens in late May at Disney's Hollywood Studios in late May and at
Disneyland Park in early June – this revamped theme park favorite will then be
equipped with image capture. Which means that you'll then be able to take home
souvenir snapshots of your trip to Coruscant, Naboo, Hoth, the Death Star … or
whenever else your StarSpeeder 1000 happens to take you.


Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved

Okay. That takes care of the domain names that The Walt
Disney Company has registered that are pretty obvious in regards to which
projects they'll be used to promote. But then there are the mystery sites.
Those domain names that the Company recently registered that are simultaneously
promising and vague.

Take – for example – the slew of Imagination-based names
that the Mouse grabbed on March 29th & 30th:


Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved

Sifting through this pile of domain names, it's pretty
obvious that The Walt Disney Company soon expects to launch some sort of online
World of Imagination site which will then feature a gaming component. But will this
new website be tied to Epcot's Imagination! pavilion (and perhaps serve as a new
vehicle to promote that theme park's Figment character)? Or will this website
draw its inspiration from Disney Junior's popular Imagination Movers TV show? Or
– given that the redesigned Disney Stores are supposed to unlock children's
imaginations – is it this arm of The Walt Disney Company that this new website
will be promoting?

Given how badly I got burned last month by my "Disney's Main
Street Animation Studios" article (Though – since then – I have heard that the
above domain name may be tied to Walt Disney Animation Studios. To be specific,
a new arm of that studio which would then make Disney artists &animators available to work on outside projects like television commercials and/or
animated sequences for non-Disney produced motion picture. Though I have yet to
be able to confirm this most recent rumor with any of my more reliable sources at WDAS), I'm now reluctant to play the Disney Domain Name Guessing Game.

But that said … Given that – as part of Walt Disney
Productions' original plans for EPCOT Center – the Disney Channel was actually
supposed to air this TV series which was inspired by the characters and concepts
showcased at Future World's "Journey into Imagination" attraction … Well, I'm kind of hoping that it's this
concept which The Walt Disney Company is now revisiting.


Copyright 1982 Walt Disney Productions. All rights reserved

Now please keep in mind that just because The Walt Disney Company registers a domain name does NOT automatically mean that a particular project with direct ties to that name is then imminent and/or in active development. But that said, how would you folks feel if the Dreamfinder and Figment
were finally reunited? Not in a theme park at Walt Disney World, mind you. But
out here on the World Wide Web?

Your thoughts?

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