General
Le Plug: The Snowbound Edition
Let the media binge-ing begin! Snowed in on a Saturday, Jim Hill begins plowing through all of the books, DVDs, CDs, games and magazines that people have sent him over the past few weeks to review.
9:30 a.m. EST … Welcome to the Winter that will NOT end.
Here we are, supposedly weeks away from the start of Spring. And yet — up here in the woods of New Hampshire — we’re about to get plastered with yet another snowstorm. The third this week. The second in 12 hours!
Photo by Nancy Stadler
And — given that this one is supposed to drop 9-14 inches on us — I guess that pretty much derails any plans that Nancy and I may have had for this Saturday. Which originally involved driving down to Massachusetts and doing a birthday brunch with my parents. And then continuing on down to Connecticut to catch a screening of “Robots” with Jeff & Flo Lange.
That sounds like a fun Saturday, don’t you think? Well, that ain’t gonna happen now. Which sort of sucks.
But — on the other hand — given that I’m almost certain to be snowed in today … I guess that this finally gives me the incentive that I needed to get started on plowing through that huge pile of books, DVDs and CDs that people have sent me to review. So I guess I’ll go park my carcass on the couch and have myself a good old fashioned media binge.
“And what — pray tell — is a media binge?,” you ask. Well … Have you ever found yourself watching something on television. But the show that you’re watching isn’t all that involving. So — as you’re watching the tube — you pick up a magazine and begin paging through it.
Then the phone rings. So you mute the television, get up off the couch and — magazine in hand — walk over to the phone. This incoming call turns out to be from a friend of yours who knows no short stories. So — as they’re yacking away — you sit down at your computer and fire that up. Just so you can check your e-mail while you’re talking with your pal.
Let’s pause here for a moment so that you can get a real sense of what’s actually going on here. You’re talking on the phone at the same time as you’re firing up your computer. But — because that’s going to take a moment or two — you turn around in your chair to see if something interesting is happening on the muted television. But nothing is. So you glance back down at your magazine.
Do you see what’s actually going on here, folks? You’re media multi-tasking. You’re piling stimuli on top of stimuli on top of stimuli on top of stimuli. Because — as they say down in Texas — “Too much ain’t enough.” In short, you’re media binging.
Of course, there are other ways to media binge. Like — say, for example — watching all three of Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings” films (and we’re talking the extended DVD versions here) in one sitting. Or arriving at a Disney theme park just as it opens for the day and not leaving the place until you’ve experienced every single ride, show, parade and attraction. Sometimes twice.
We’re talking about extreme stimulation of the pleasure / information-processing centers of your brain. The sort of thing that my old friend, Eric Craven, and I would experience ‘way back in the late 1980s when we’d go to our local multiplex and not leave until we’d seen every single new release.
I know, I know. That sort of thing might sound kind of crazy to some of you people. But — me personally — I find it kind of exhilarating to suddenly have a lot of new information thrust at me. To struggle to take it all in, make sure that I don’t miss a thing … But — at the same time — just enjoy the simple pleasure of experiencing something new.
That’s a media binge, my friend. Something I hope you experience sometimes while you’re here at JHM. Reading a story that suddenly gives you a whole new insight into one of your favorite films and/or Disney theme park attraction …
Speaking of binge-ing … If I’m really gonna get started on cranking out all of these reviews, I guess I’d best get started collecting up all of my loose media …
Give me a couple of minutes, okay? I promise that I’ll be right back …
11 a.m. EST — Okay. Slight pause there while I made Nancy some breakfast. The snow is really beginning to pile up out there. I think we’ve already got 4 or 5 inches out on the deck. And the storm isn’t due to wind down for another 4 or 5 hours yet. *Sigh* …
Photo by Nancy Stadler
Anyway … Let’s get back to those reviews, shall we? I thought that I might start by throwing a new CD stereo which (hopefully) would feature some motivated-to-get-writing music. Unfortunately, my first choice — Ari Hest’s “Someone to Tell” — wasn’t quite what I was looking for.
Don’t get me wrong. Singer / songwriter Hest does a fine job with this, his third album. Ari has a nice voice — which shifts almost effortlessly from this low, raspy baritone to a free-floating falsetto. And there are a couple of really great songs on this CD. With “When Everything Seems Wrong,” “Strangers Again” and “A Fond Farewell” coming across as particularly strong cuts.
But you have to understand that I’m already trapped inside a house on a snowy Saturday. If I listen to too much heartfelt material right now, I’ll probably just wind up in a depressed funk on the couch. Wondering why I lost touch with various old girl friends.
And I really can’t afford that right now. I’m a fat guy from the suburbs who’s already in a happy, committed relationship. So I don’t need to be listening to any music that could help kick start a mid-life crisis.
So let’s see what else we have in the pile here … Ah … The soundtrack to “Be Cool.” This John Travolta film actually did okay last weekend at the multiplexes, coming in second to Disney’s “The Pacifier” in the box office derby. It’s a sequel to the 1995 film, “Get Shorty.” And — based on the cast (I.E. Travolta, Uma Thurman, James Woods, Danny Devito, Cedric the Entertainer, Vince Vaughn & Harvey Keitel) as well as the fact that this film is based on an Elmore Leonard novel — “Be Cool” looks like it might be fun to go check out.
But as for the film’s soundtrack … Ai-yi-yi … Again, there are a couple of cuts here that are legitimately entertaining. Like Christina Milian’s performances of “Believer” and “Ain’t No Reason.” And — while I don’t know if the word “entertaining” actually applies here — The Rock singing that old Loretta Lynn classic “You Ain’t Woman Enough (To Take My Man)” certainly is memorable.
By my problem with the “Be Cool” soundtrack is that there’s music from the 1970s on this CD. Songs like Earth, Wind and Fire’s “Fantasy,” “Kool and the Gang’s “Hollywood Swinging” and Sonny & Cher’s “A Cowboy’s Work is Never Done.” And — having actually lived through the 1970s — I have absolutely no desire to ever go back there again.
Mind you, I’m not one of those people who insists that the 1970s were the cultural low point in U.S. history. After all, the first “Star Wars” film came out in that decade. As did both of the “Godfather” films. And “The Rescuers.” So it wasn’t like that entire 10 year span was a waste of time.
I mean, there were even a few fun things to watch on TV back then. Like the “NBC Sunday Night Mystery” movie whenever a new “Columbo” came on.
I don’t know about you, but I just loved watching Peter Falk go through his paces in those old TV movies. The rumpled raincoat, the cigar, that old beat-up car and the bassett hound. And — of course — the old “Oh, just one more thing.” That seemingly innocuous question that Columbo would always ask that would eventually come around and bite the villain square in the butt.
That’s why I was so pleased to see that Universal Home Entertainment has finally begun releasing these old “Columbo” TV movies on DVD. Season One went on sale back in September of last year. And Season Two became available for purchase earlier this week. So maybe that’s how I’ll spend the rest of this snowy afternoon. Watching Peter Falk outwit Ray Milland, Leonard Nimoy, Robert Culp and/or John Cassavetes.
Or — better yet — I could watch Volume Three of “SCTV.” Arguably the best late night comedy to ever air on television, “SCTV” had a killer cast — the late, great John Candy, Joe Flaherty, Eugene Levy, Andrea Martin. Catherine O’Hara, Dave Thomas, Rick Moranis, Martin Short and Harold Ramis — as well as some of the cleverest writing that was ever done for the tube.
By that I mean: I defy someone to sit down and watch SCTV’s parody of “The Godfather,” which substitutes Flaherty’s Guy Cabalerro for Marlon Brando’s Don Corleone, and not laugh. This epic length sketch goes beat-by-beat through the Francis Ford Coppola movie, wittily sending up each & every aspect of this film masterpiece.
Now — while the third “SCTV DVD set (which just became available for purchase last week) doesn’t include anything quite as impressive as that “Godfather” parody — it’s still awfully entertaining. It features such wonderful episodes as “Battle of the PBS Stars” as well as Martin Short’s first appearances on the program.
This DVD’s extra features aren’t all that shabby either. They include a John Candy profile as well as the cast’s 1997 reunion at the Museum of Television and Radio. Plus some interesting commentary tracks by Flaherty, Short as well as SCTV staff writers Paul Flaherty, Mike Short and *** Blassuci. Which offer some real insight as to how this ground-breaking late night comedy ultimately came together.
Ah, decisions, decisions. Do I go with “Columbo” or “SCTV”? Give me a moment here …
1:30 P.M. EST — Okay. It’s official. It’s really getting bad out here. The snow’s coming down so thick and so fast that we actually lost our satellite feed for a while there. I had to mush on out into the yard & scrape all the snow out of the dish before our signal finally came back up.
Photo by Nancy Stadler
So now Nancy’s on the couch, watching “Smuckers Stars on Ice.” And — since she’s currently got dibs on the TV — I thought that I might try reading a book. But which one …
Mind you, I guess I could re-read James B. Stewart’s “DisneyWar.” But — to be honest — I didn’t enjoy it all that much the first time I read it.
Why for? Because — to put it bluntly — it’s kind of a mess. It’s like Stewart couldn’t decide which sort of book he really wanted to write (I.E. A first person volume that takes you behind-the-scenes at the Magic Kingdom, an omniscient boardroom expose and/or a blow-by-blow account of the “Save Disney” battle & the Mike Ovitz trial), so he wrote all three.
So what James ultimately ended up with was a book that lurches all over the place, that radically shifts in style and tone depending on which chapter you’re reading. More importantly, because this story isn’t over yet, “DisneyWar” doesn’t really have an ending.
Don’t get me wrong. There are some interesting tidbits scattered among its 572 pages. Like how Disney CEO Michael Eisner hoped to convince John Lasetter and the rest of the crew at Pixar to continue on with the Mouse by offering that studio its very own Disney princess movie to produce, “The Snow Queen.” Or Johnny Depp’s battles with Disney Studio execs about how Capt. Jack Sparrow should be portrayed in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie.
But — beyond that — “DisneyWar” ‘s pickings are pretty slim. Given all the hoopla surrounding the release of this Simon & Shuster volume (I.E. How the publishers pushed up the book’s release date by three weeks) as well as the fact that Stewart won a Pulitzer Prize for his reporting on the stock market back in 1988, I was honestly expecting a lot more here.
You wanna read a really good book about the inner workings of the Walt Disney Company? Then go pick up a copy of Edward Jay Epstein’s “The Big Picture.” This Random House release blows the lid off of the way the Mouse makes movies.
By that I mean: I don’t know how Epstein ever got access to some of the numbers that he uses in this book. But — for the first time ever (That I can recall, anyway) — we actually get a real accounting of how the money flows in Hollywood. How much goes to the stars, how much is spent on publicity & marketing, how much the studios actually use overseas.
For Disney fans, what’s particularly fascinating about “The Big Picture” is that — as its main example of Tinseltown’s skewed version of book-keeping — it uses Touchstone Pictures’ June 2000 release, “Gone in 60 Seconds.” Which — while this Nicholas Cage film was touted in that year’s annual report as being a financial success — the truth of the matter is that this movie (which grossed over $242 million worldwide) was on Disney’s books as having actually lost over $160 million.
Epstein walks you through all of the numbers associated with the production of “Gone in 60 Seconds.” Its $103.3 million negative cost (I.E. The money the Mouse actually spent to make this movie), the $13 million spent on duping prints of the picture, the $67.4 million that was blown on advertising the film … Which finally gives one a real sense of what costs what out west.
For those of you who love well-researched Hollywood histories, books that actually deliver on what they promise … Well, my advice is to skip “DisneyWar” (Or — at the very least — wait ’til the thing comes out in paperback) and pick up a copy of “The Big Picture: The New Logic of Money and Power in Hollywood.” Epstein’s book will really open your eyes.
Whereas Stewart’s book? I have to admit that I found my eyelids drooping while I read the first 150 pages or so of “DisneyWar.” I mean, was it really necessary to recap how Walt & Roy founded the company and/or how Eisner came to power? Particularly when these very same subjects have already been so exhaustively covered in Bob Thomas’ “Walt Disney: An American Original,” John Taylor’s “Storming the Magic Kingdom,” Ron Grover’s “The Disney Touch” and Kim Masters’ “The Keys to the Kingdom.”
Sorry if I’m coming across as kind of cranky here. But I really wanted “DisneyWar” to be a good read. And — to be honest — it just didn’t deliver the goods. At least for me.
Now, if you’re looking for something that really takes you behind-the-scenes at the Mouse House, a publication that tells you how that Disney magic is actually made … Then I suggest that you pick up a copy of the March 2005 issue of “Genii: The Conjuror’s Magazine.” This month’s issue of this snazzy publication has an article by Brian Sibley entitled “A Spoonful of Magic.” Which details how Jim Steinmeyer came up with a number of the illusions featured in the stage version of “Mary Poppins.”
Plus — if you’re someone like me who enjoys learning about the craft of performing — then you probably should put “Genii” to your “Must Read” list. For this monthly regularly features a fascinating array of articles. Everything from magic history as well as what’s going on in the industry today. All in all, “Genii” is definitely worth a look-see.
Speaking of look-see … Let me take a peek outside and see what’s going on with the storm …
3:30 P.M. EST — Man, it’s still coming down out there. The weatherman said that it would be winding down by 3 o’clock. But — to be honest — this storm isn’t showing any sign of stopping.
Photo by Nancy Stadler
Okay. Nancy’s finally finished watching her ice skating show. Which means that I can once again take command of the media center. So what should I throw into the DVD player?
“The Incredibles” is awfully tempting. Not only is that Brad Bird film supremely entertaining, but Buena Vista Home Entertainment has really outdone itself with all the extras that it crammed onto this 2-disc set.
I mean — all by itself — the alternate opening for “The Incredibles” is worth the entire price of the DVD. Even though this sequence is still in storyboard form, it’s still ridiculously entertaining. Hell, I’ve seen finished full-length films that weren’t as much as much fun as this 20-minute deleted scene is.
Then there are “The Incredibles” commentary tracks. The one with Brad and the film’s producer, John Walker, is particularly illuminating. It was actually recorded weeks before “The Incredibles” was released to great acclaim. Which is why it’s kind of funny to hear Bird’s snide aside to Walker: “Yeah, we’re going to be the ones that break Pixar’s winning streak.”
But then Frank & Ollie’s cameo comes on screen. And then you learn that — the night before Brad & John recorded their commentary track — that Frank Thomas had just passed away at the age of 92. And it’s actually kind of touching to hear Bird struggle to find just the right words to try & pay tribute to this Disney legend. His friend & mentor.
Yeah, “The Incredibles” is one fascinating flick. A CG tour de force … Would that I could say the same about the other item that I have beside my DVD player: The “Special Collector’s Edition” of “Scourge of Worlds.”
To be fair, this “Dungeons & Dragons” product isn’t a movie in the truest sense of the word. But — rather — an interactive DVD adventure that promises “.. six possible endings! Over 1100 possible story paths.”
Well, I just spent an hour or so clicking my way through “Scourge of Worlds.” And — to be honest — it was kind of enjoyable.
Mind you, I’m no whiz when it comes to game playing. It seemed like — no matter what choice I made — Regdar, the human warrior; Lidda, the halfling; and Mialee, the elven wizard — wound up dying. But the game/movie moved along at a good clip. And I liked the fact that the people who put together this DVD understood that “D & D” games have a somewhat campy quality. So they played this up in the characters’ dialogue.
I mean, when was the last time you heard dialogue like this in a swords & sorcery-filled environment: “Screw those guys. We don’t need them,” “You want some cheese with that whine?” or “I’ll wear your ass as a hat.”
Obviously, “Scourge of Worlds” is not intended for younger viewers. Speaking of viewing: The 2-disc edition of this “Dungeons & Dragons” interactive features a linear version of the movie that you can watch as well as galleries full of character concept art.
If you’re an old “D & D” fan who wants to relive what it was like to bash some orcs without actually breaking out your dice … Well, it seems to me that “Scourge of Worlds” might be just what you’re looking for.
Man, it’s getting dark out there. What I wouldn’t give to have a little ray of sun to break on through all that gloom …
Ray! That’s it. That’s what will break the blue mood in the house right now. A little Ray Charles.
Thankfully, I have copies of both of the “Ray” CDs (I.E. The original motion picture soundtrack as well as the “More Music from ‘Ray’ recording) on hand. So I’ll just throw those disks in, hit “Random” and then …
Ahhhh … Now I really don’t care how much snow falls outside. Not when I can sit & bask in the glory that is Ray Charles. The original soundtrack album features 17 absolutely killer tracks like “Georgia on My Mind,” “Hit the Road, Jack” and “You Don’t Know Me.” While the “More Music from ‘Ray'” features some more specialized items like “Makin’ Whoopee” and “Baby, It’s Cold Outside …”
And speaking of it being cold outside … Maybe I should take a look at how the storm is doing …
Photo by Nancy Stadler
5:00 P.M. EST — Well, it finally appears to be winding down. By that I mean: Instead of a lot of big flakes, we’re now getting just a bunch of little flakes. (Which sort of reminds me of the last Hill family reunion I attended. But I digress …)
Speaking of flakey, I just got an e-mail from a JHM reader who asked me to help promote his petition. Which calls for Cartoon Network to stop airing its newest “Adult Swim” show, “Robot Chicken.”
“And why does this weenie wanna shut down ‘Robot Chicken’?,” you ask. Because back on March 1st, this 15-minute long stop-action sketch comedy presented a skit which featured Walt Disney. Or should I say Walt’s severed head. Which was then kept alive by grafting it onto the body of a crab-like robot. Which then could only stay alive if it consumed the flesh of young Cuban children.
Now I can understand how a premise like that might offend hardcore Disney fans. But here’s my problem. I actually saw the show that this guy was complaining about. And that “Robo-Disney” sketch that he was talking about? Yes, it was offensive. But it was also really, really funny.
You see, that’s the beauty of “Robot Chicken.” It’s an equal opportunity offender. One moment, it might be making fun of Walt Disney. The next, it’s showing what happened when the unicorns, dragons & cyclops all showed up too late to get on Noah’s ark. Then — after that — it’s using the Transformers to demonstrate what can happen if you don’t get your prostate regularly checked.
Yes, the show’s jokes is sometimes crude. The guys who put together “Robot Chicken” clearly love knee-to-the-crotch humor. But — that said — there’s no denying that it’s also a real kick to see action figures (some of which are likenesses of well-known celebrities) acting in very unexpected ways.
Speaking of celebrities … “Robot Chicken” ‘s vocal cast is pretty impressive as well. Just last week, Burt Reynolds, Dom Deluise and the entire cast of “That 70’s Show” lent their voices to several skits on the show. So — if only for the increasingly bizarre cameos — “Robot Chicken” is well worth checking out.
So — if you’re approached by some Disney dweebs asking you to sign a petition to shut down this Cartoon Network show (All because of one skit that showed a Walt-cyborg lusting after the flesh of Elian Gonzalez) — don’t sign. At least not until you’ve checked out the show first. Then you’ll see that — yes — “Robot Chicken” is offensive. But it is also really, really funny.
Okay. If non-stop stop-action crotch jokes aren’t really your style but you’d still like something fun to watch on Sunday night … Well, I’ve been hearing some fairly nice things about “Jake in Progress.”
I know, I know. ABC has been pushing this new John Stamos sitcom very hard. Those “Jake in Progress” promos seem like they’re airing every hour on the hour. And — over the next five days — the show will air four times (twice on Sunday at 9 & 9:30 p.m. and twice on Thursday at 8 & 8:30 p.m.).
But the good news is … The first couple of episodes of “Jake” are actually supposed to be pretty funny. More to the point, given that Stamos is backed up one of the better supporting cast on television today (I.E. Wendie Malick, Ian Gomez and Rick Hoffman), this show has a better than average chance of developing into something special.
So — if you deliberately want to ignore “Jake” during its first week on the air because of all the hype — that’s okay. Just remember that “Jake in Progress” settles into its regular Thursday-nights-at-8-p.m. slot starting next week. You can check the show out then.
Photo by Nancy Stadler
6:30 p.m. EST — Speaking of checking things out: I’ve just taken another look outside. It appears that the snow has almost stopped.
Which is why the cats seem so eager to get outside and eat … er … “meet” their little forest friends. Until — of course (As you can see by the photo above) — they step off the deck and immediately disappear into a snowdrift.
So I guess that’s my cue to pull the plug on “Le Plug” for tonight and head outside to start shoveling.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this semi-live experiment here at JHM. Where I tried to clear through a pile of promotional material without being too obnoxious about it.
By that I mean: I wasn’t too obnoxious … Was I? If so, let me know, okay?
That’s it for now. I’ll see you folks again on Monday, alright?
jrh
General
Seward Johnson bronzes add a surreal, artistic touch to NYC’s Garment District
Greetings from NYC. Nancy and I drove down from New
Hampshire yesterday because we'll be checking out
Disney Consumer Products' annual Holiday Showcase later today.
Anyway … After checking into our hotel (i.e., The Paul.
Which is located down in NYC's NoMad district), we decided to grab some dinner.
Which is how we wound up at the Melt Shop.
Photo by Jim Hill
Which is this restaurant that only sells grilled cheese sandwiches.
This comfort food was delicious, but kind of on the heavy side.
Photo by Jim Hill
Which is why — given that it was a beautiful summer night
— we'd then try and walk off our meals. We started our stroll down by the Empire
State Building
…
Photo by Jim Hill
… and eventually wound up just below Times
Square (right behind where the Waterford Crystal Times Square New
Year's Eve Ball is kept).
Photo by Jim Hill
But you know what we discovered en route? Right in the heart
of Manhattan's Garment District
along Broadway between 36th and 41st? This incredibly cool series of life-like
and life-sized sculptures that Seward
Johnson has created.
Photo by Jim Hill
And — yes — that is Abraham Lincoln (who seems to have
slipped out of WDW's Hall of Presidents when no one was looking and is now
leading tourists around Times Square). These 18 painted
bronze pieces (which were just installed late this past Sunday night / early
Monday morning) range from the surreal to the all-too-real.
Photo by Jim Hill
Some of these pieces look like typical New Yorkers. Like the
business woman planning out her day …
Photo by Jim Hill
… the postman delivering the mail …
Photo by Jim Hill
… the hot dog vendor working at his cart …
Photo by Jim Hill
Photo by Jim Hill
… the street musician playing for tourists …
Photo by Jim Hill
Not to mention the tourists themselves.
Photo by Jim Hill
But right alongside the bronze businessmen …
Photo by Jim Hill
… and the tired grandmother hauling her groceries home …
Photo by Jim Hill
… there were also statues representing people who were
from out-of-town …
Photo by Jim Hill
… or — for that matter — out-of-time.
Photo by Jim Hill
These were the Seward Johnson pieces that genuinely beguiled. Famous impressionist paintings brought to life in three dimensions.
Note the out-of-period water bottle that some tourist left
behind. Photo by Jim Hill
Some of them so lifelike that you actually had to pause for
a moment (especially as day gave way to night in the city) and say to yourself
"Is that one of the bronzes? Or just someone pretending to be one of these
bronzes?"
Mind you, for those of you who aren't big fans of the
impressionists …
Photo by Jim Hill
… there's also an array of American icons. Among them
Marilyn Monroe …
Photo by Jim Hill
… and that farmer couple from Grant Wood's "American
Gothic."
Photo by Jim Hill
But for those of you who know your NYC history, it's hard to
beat that piece which recreates Alfred Eisenstaedt's famous photograph of V-J Day in Times Square.
Photo by Jim Hill
By the way, a 25-foot-tall version of this particular Seward
Johnson piece ( which — FYI — is entitled "Embracing Peace") will actually
be placed in Times Square for a few days on or around August 14th to commemorate the 70th
anniversary of Victory Over Japan Day (V-J Day).
Photo by Jim Hill
By the way, if you'd like to check these Seward Johnson bronzes in
person (which — it should be noted — are part of the part of the Garment
District Alliance's new public art offering) — you'd best schedule a trip to
the City sometime over the next three months. For these pieces will only be on
display now through September 15th.
General
Wondering what you should “Boldly Go” see at the movies next year? The 2015 Licensing Expo offers you some clues
Greeting from the 2015 Licensing Expo, which is being held
at the Mandalay Bay
Convention Center in Las
Vegas.
Photo by Jim Hill
I have to admit that I enjoy covering the Licensing Expo.
Mostly becomes it allows bloggers & entertainment writers like myself to
get a peek over the horizon. Scope out some of the major motion pictures &
TV shows that today's vertically integrated entertainment conglomerates
(Remember when these companies used to be called movie studios?) will be
sending our way over the next two years or so.
Photo by Jim Hill
Take — for example — all of "The Secret Life of
Pets" banners that greeted Expo attendees as they made their way to the
show floor today. I actually got to see some footage from this new Illumination
Entertainment production (which will hit theaters on July 8, 2016) the last time I was in Vegas. Which
was for CinemaCon back in April. And the five or so minutes of film that I viewed
suggested that "The Secret Life of Pets" will be a really funny
animated feature.
Photo by Jim Hill
Mind you, Universal Pictures wanted to make sure that Expo
attendees remembered that there was another Illumination Entertainment production
coming-to-a-theater-near-them before "The Secret Life of Pets" (And
that's "Minions," the "Despicable Me" prequel. Which
premieres at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival next week but
won't be screened stateside 'til July 10th of this year). Which is why they had
three minions who were made entirely out of LEGOS loitering out in the lobby.
Photo by Jim Hill
And Warner Bros. — because they wanted "Batman v
Superman: Dawn of Justice" to start trending on Twitter today — brought
the Batmobile to Las Vegas.
Photo by Jim Hill
Not to mention full-sized macquettes of Batman, Superman and
Wonder Woman. Just so conventioneers could then see what these DC superheroes
would actually look like in this eagerly anticipated, March 25, 2016 release.
Photo by Jim Hill
That's the thing that can sometimes be a wee bit frustrating
about the Licensing Expo. It's all about delayed gratification. You'll come
around a corner and see this 100 foot-long ad for "The Peanuts Movie"
and think "Hey, that looks great. I want to see that Blue Sky Studios production
right now." It's only then that you notice the fine print and realize that
"The Peanuts Movie" doesn't actually open in theaters 'til November
6th of this year.
Photo by Jim Hill
And fan of Blue Sky's "Ice Age" film franchise are in for an even
longer wait. Given that the latest installment in that top grossing series
doesn't arrive in theaters 'til July
15, 2016.
Photo by Jim Hill
Of course, if you're one of those people who needs immediate
gratification when it comes to your entertainment, there was stuff like that to
be found at this year's Licensing Expo. Take — for example — how the WWE
booth was actually shaped like a wrestling ring. Which — I'm guessing — meant
that if the executives of World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. didn't like
the offer that you were making, they were then allowed to toss you out over the
top rope, Royal Rumble-style.
Photo by Jim Hill
I also have to admit that — as a longtime Star Trek fan —
it was cool to see the enormous Starship Enterprise that hung in place over the
CBS booth. Not to mention getting a glimpse of the official Star Trek 50th
Anniversary logo.
Photo by Jim Hill
I was also pleased to see lots of activity in The Jim Henson
Company booth. Which suggests that JHC has actually finally carved out a
post-Muppets identity for itself.
Photo by Jim Hill
Likewise for all of us who were getting a little concerned
about DreamWorks Animation (what with all the layoffs & write-downs &
projects that were put into turnaround or outright cancelled last year), it was
nice to see that booth bustling.
Photo by Jim Hill
Every so often, you'd come across some people who were
promoting a movie that you weren't entirely sure that you actually wanted to
see (EX: "Angry Birds," which Sony Pictures Entertainment / Columbia
Pictures will be releasing to theaters on May 20, 2016). But then you remembered that Clay Kaytis —
who's this hugely talented former Walt Disney Animation Studios animator — is
riding herd on "Angry Birds" with Fergal Reilly. And you'd think
"Well, if Clay's working on 'Angry Birds,' I'm sure this animated feature
will turn out fine."
Photo by Jim Hill
Mind you, there were reminders at this year's Licensing Expo
of great animated features that we're never going to get to see now. I still
can't believe — especially after that brilliant proof-of-concept footage
popped up online last year — that Sony execs decided not to go forward
with production of Genndy Tartakovsky's
"Popeye" movie. But that's the
cruel thing about the entertainment business, folks. It will sometime break
your heart.
Photo by Jim Hill
And make no mistake about this. The Licensing Expo is all
about business. That point was clearly driven home at this year's show when —
as you walked through the doors of the Mandalay
Bay Convention Center
— the first thing that you saw was the Hasbros Booth. Which was this gleaming,
sleek two story-tall affair full of people who were negotiating deals &
signing contracts for all of the would-be summer blockbusters that have already
announced release dates for 2019 & beyond.
Photo by Jim Hill
"But what about The Walt Disney Company?," you
ask. "Weren't they represented on the show floor at this year's Licensing
Expo?" Not really, not. I mean, sure. There were a few companies there hyping
Disney-related products. Take — for example — the Disney Wikkeez people.
Photo by Jim Hill
I'm assuming that some Disney Consumer Products exec is
hoping that Wikkeez will eventually become the new Tsum Tsum. But to be blunt,
these little hard plastic figures don't seem to have the same huggable charm
that those stackable plush do. But I've been wrong before. So let's see what
happens with Disney Wikkeez once they start showing up on the shelves of the
Company's North American retail partners.
Photo by Jim Hill
And speaking of Disney's retail partners … They were
meeting with Mouse House executives behind closed doors one floor down from the
official show floor for this year's Licensing Expo.
Photo by Jim Hill
And the theme for this year's invitation-only Disney shindig? "Timeless
Stories" involving the Disney, Pixar, Marvel & Lucasfilm brands that
would then appeal to "tomorrow's consumer."
Photo by Jim Hill
And just to sort of hammer home the idea that Disney is no
longer the Company which cornered the market when it comes to little girls
(i.e., its Disney Princess and Disney Fairies franchises), check out this
wall-sized Star Wars-related image that DCP put up just outside of one of its
many private meeting rooms. "See?," this carefully crafted photo
screams. "It isn't just little boys who want to wield the Force. Little
girls also want to grow up and be Lords of the Sith."
Photo by Jim Hill
One final, kind-of-ironic note: According to this banner,
Paramount Pictures will be releasing a movie called "Amusement Park"
to theaters sometime in 2017.
Photo by Jim Hill
Well, given all the "Blackfish" -related issues
that have been dogged SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment over the past two years, I'm
just hoping that they'll still be in the amusement park business come 2017.
Your thoughts?
General
It takes more than three circles to craft a Classic version of Mickey Mouse
You know what Mickey Mouse looks like, right? Little guy,
big ears?
Truth be told, Disney's corporate symbol has a lot of
different looks. If Mickey's interacting with Guests at Disneyland
Park (especially this summer, when
the Happiest Place on Earth
is celebrating its 60th anniversary), he looks & dresses like this.
Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc.
All rights reserved
Or when he's appearing in one of those Emmy Award-winning shorts that Disney
Television Animation has produced (EX: "Bronco Busted," which debuts
on the Disney Channel tonight at 8 p.m. ET / PT), Mickey is drawn in a such a
way that he looks hip, cool, edgy & retro all at the same time.
Copyright Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights
reserved
Looking ahead to 2017 now, when Disney Junior rolls out "Mickey and the
Roadster Racers," this brand-new animated series will feature a sportier version
of Disney's corporate symbol. One that Mouse House managers hope will persuade
preschool boys to more fully embrace this now 86 year-old character.
Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc. All rights reserved
That's what most people don't realize about the Mouse. The
Walt Disney Company deliberately tailors Mickey's look, even his style of
movement, depending on what sort of project / production he's appearing in.
Take — for example — Disney
California Adventure
Park's "World of Color:
Celebrate!" Because Disney's main mouse would be co-hosting this new
nighttime lagoon show with ace emcee Neil Patrick Harris, Eric Goldberg really had
to step up Mickey's game. Which is why this master Disney animator created
several minutes of all-new Mouse animation which then showed that Mickey was
just as skilled a showman as Neil was.
Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc.
All rights reserved
Better yet, let's take a look at what the folks at Avalanche Studios just went
through as they attempted to create a Classic version of Mickey & Minnie.
One that would then allow this popular pair to become part of Disney Infinity
3.0.
"I won't lie to you. We were under a lot of pressure to
get the look of this particular version of Mickey — he's called Red Pants
Mickey around here — just right," said Jeff Bunker, the VP of Art
Development at Avalanche Studios, during a recent phone interview. "When
we brought Sorcerer Mickey into Disney Infinity 1.0 back in January of 2014,
that one was relatively easy because … Well, everyone knows what Mickey Mouse
looked like when he appeared in 'Fantasia.' "
Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc. All rights reserved
"But this time around, we were being asked to design
THE Mickey & Minnie," Bunker continued. "And given that these Classic
Disney characters have been around in various different forms for the better
part of the last century … Well, which look was the right look?"
Which is why Jeff and his team at Avalanche Studios began watching hours &
hours of Mickey Mouse shorts. As they tried to get a handle on which look would
work best for these characters in Disney Infinity 3.0.
Copyright Disney
Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved
"And we went all the way back to the very start of Mickey's career. We began
with 'Steamboat Willie' and then watched all of those black & white Mickey shorts
that Walt made back in the late 1920s & early 1930s. From there, we
transitioned to his Technicolor shorts. Which is when Mickey went from being
this pie-eyed, really feisty character to more of a well-behaved leading
man," Bunker recalled. "We then finished out our Mouse marathon by
watching all of those new Mickey shorts that Paul Rudish & his team have
been creating for Disney Television Animation. Those cartoons really recapture
a lot of the spirit and wild slapstick fun that Mickey's early, black &
white shorts had."
But given that the specific assignment that Avalanche Studios had been handed
was to create the most appealing looking, likeable version of Mickey Mouse
possible … In the end, Jeff and his team wound up borrowing bits & pieces
from a lot of different versions of the world's most famous mouse. So that
Classic Mickey would then look & move in a way that best fit the sort of
gameplay which people would soon be able to experience with Disney Infinity
3.0.
Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc. All rights reserved
"That — in a lot of ways — was actually the toughest
part of the Classic Mickey design project. You have to remember that one of the
key creative conceits of Disney Infinity
is that all the characters which appear in this game are toys," Bunker
stated. "Okay. So they're beautifully detailed, highly stylized toy
versions of beloved Disney, Pixar, Marvel & Lucasfilm characters. But
they're still supposed to be toys. So our Classic versions of Mickey &
Minnie have the same sort of thickness & sturdiness to them that toys have.
So that they'll then be able to fit right in with all of the rest of the
characters that Avalanche Studios had previously designed for Disney Infinity."
And then there was the matter of coming up with just the
right pose for Classic Mickey & Minnie. Which — to hear Jeff tell the
story — involved input from a lot of Disney upper management.
Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc. All rights reserved
"Everyone within the Company seemed to have an opinion
about how Mickey & Minnie should be posed. More to the point, if you Google
Mickey, you then discover that there are literally thousands of poses out there
for these two. Though — truth be told — a lot of those kind of play off the
way Mickey poses when he's being Disney's corporate symbol," Bunker said.
"But what I was most concerned about was that Mickey's pose had to work
with Minnie's pose. Because we were bringing the Classic versions of these
characters up into Disney Infinity 3.0 at the exact same time. And we wanted to
make sure — especially for those fans who like to put their Disney Infinity
figures on display — that Mickey's pose would then complement Minnie.
Which is why Jeff & the crew at Avalanche Studios
decided — when it came to Classic Mickey & Minnie's pose — that they
should go all the way back to the beginning. Which is why these two Disney icons
are sculpted in such a way that it almost seems as though you're witnessing the
very first time Mickey set eyes on Minnie.
Copyright Disney Enterprises,
Inc. All rights reserved
"And what was really great about that was — as soon as
we began showing people within the Company this pose — everyone at Disney
quickly got on board with the idea. I mean, the Classic Mickey that we sculpted
for Disney Infinity 3.0 is clearly a very playful, spunky character. But at the
same time, he's obviously got eyes for Minnie," Bunker concluded. "So
in the end, we were able to come up with Classic versions of these characters
that will work well within the creative confines of Disney Infinity 3.0 but at
the same time please those Disney fans who just collect these figures because
they like the way the Disney Infinity characters look."
So now that this particular design project is over, does
Jeff regret that Mouse House upper management was so hands-on when it came to
making sure that the Classic versions of Mickey & Minnie were specifically
tailored to fit the look & style of gameplay found in Disney Infinity 3.0?
Copyright Lucasfilm / Disney
Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved
"To be blunt, we go through this every time we add a new character to the
game. The folks at Lucasfilm were just as hands-on when we were designing the
versions of Darth Vader and Yoda that will also soon be appearing in Disney
Infinity 3.0," Bunker laughed. "So in the end, if the character's
creators AND the fans are happy, then I'm happy."
This article was originally posted on the Huffington Post's Entertainment page on Tuesday, June 9, 2015
-
History10 months ago
Unpacking the History of the Pixar Place Hotel
-
History9 months ago
The Evolution and History of Mickey’s ToonTown
-
History10 months ago
From Birthday Wishes to Toontown Dreams: How Toontown Came to Be
-
Film & Movies7 months ago
How Disney’s “Bambi” led to the creation of Smokey Bear
-
News & Press Releases9 months ago
New Updates and Exclusive Content from Jim Hill Media: Disney, Universal, and More
-
Merchandise7 months ago
Introducing “I Want That Too” – The Ultimate Disney Merchandise Podcast
-
Theme Parks & Themed Entertainment2 months ago
Disney’s Forgotten Halloween Event: The Original Little Monsters on Main Street
-
Theme Parks & Themed Entertainment2 months ago
The Story of Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party: From One Night to a Halloween Family Tradition