Before starting today’s column, Roger has something to share from his inbox:
This showed up in my e-mail on last Friday night.
I was asked to share it with you all by someone who has worked in the animation industry for the better part of his life. You’ve seen his work and loved it. He wouldn’t steer us wrong on this.
Grammar aside, it is a legitimate plea that I hope you will take to heart. I’ve met the author (once on a quick tour), and hope you’ll give this your consideration. Frankly, there was a lot of great work done by a lot of good people that we will likely never be seen on the big screen in a theater — unless we take up the call and drop a note in response to this request.
Subject: Mickey Mouse at the movies
Dear friends –
Would you like to see a great Mickey Mouse movie at your local theater? Well so would I.
For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Donovan Cook and I recently finished directing, The Three Musketeers a Disney animated feature film staring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy. (You can see a short preview of my movie on the Lion King 1 1/2 DVD.) Sadly because of misguided management this movie is scheduled to skip a theatrical release on the big screen and go straight to DVD.
Mr. Eisner and his executives did not make this decision based on the content or execution of the movie. In fact, the three top executives at the Disney Studio have never seen the movie. Mr. Eisner has been quoted as saying that he doesn’t think there is a large enough audience for Mickey to be in the theaters. Bob Iger, the number two exec at Disney, has publicly added that releasing The Three Musketeers in the theaters is too big of a financial risk because it is not computer animation. High quality classic animation is a financial risk? Not a big enough audience for Mickey Mouse? If you are as confused as me, please read on.
A few weeks ago, I was discussing this very situation with a friend of mine who is in no way connected with Disney or the entertainment industry. “Who could I send and email to at Disney about this?” He asked. I thought about it for a moment and said, “Well *** Cook would probably be good.” Mr. Cook, (no relation to myself) is the Chairman of The Walt Disney Studios, which means he is the big cheese in charge of all movies, DVDs and TV shows that Disney makes.
My friend did send an email to *** Cook expressing his disappointment about Musketeers going straight to DVD. Now here is the really crazy part, two weeks later, Mr. Cook called my friend to discuss his concerns. Yes you read correctly, the Chairman of the Walt Disney Studios picked up the phone and called a regular Joe just to discuss the email he sent.
Now it is unlikely that Mr. Cook calls every consumer who sends him an email, which means that this particular issue is of great concern to him. I believe that if enough people express their desire to see Mickey Mouse on the big screen, *** Cook and the Disney execs will reconsider.
So if you want to take your kids to see a high quality, classic and funny Disney movie staring Mickey Mouse and friends, send *** Cook and email at…
For your convenience, a sample letter is provided below. You may simply fill in the blacks then copy and paste it into a new email. Better yet, add your own personal concerns/complaints or best of all, write a letter in your own words.
A couple notes about your letter; be brief, (unlike me) or Mr. Cook probably will not have time to read it. If you are a Disney stockholder be sure to include that info as it means a lot, especially now.
Feel free to forward this email to any friends who you think would be interested.
Thanks for your help.
All the best to you,
Donovan Cook——————————————–
(Subject: Letter from a parent and/or stockholder)
Dear Mr. Cook,
My name is (your name here) and I am a stockholder (if you do not own Disney stock, omit this) and an undying Disney consumer/fan. I am a parent of (enter number of children) children and our family happily supports Disney products. We see every movie, purchase the DVDs, go to (Disneyland/Disneyworld — pick one), watch the Disney Channel as well as purchasing a great deal of Disney products.
I was recently thrilled to hear that Disney is making a movie of The Three Musketeers staring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy. I was however very disappointed to see that this movie will be going straight to DVD.
I am very excited to introduce Mickey, Donald and Goofy to my (child/children) through this movie, but I do not understand why this movie is not being released in the theaters. These are the characters created by Walt Disney himself. They are what your company was founded on. My family and I would like to see The Three Musketeers the way Walt would have shown it, on the big screen.
Thank you for your attention. I look forward to your reply.
(Your Name)
(Your email address)
(Your phone number)
Now on with the regular column…
“Print is dead.”
— Harold Ramis as Dr. Egon Spengler, “Ghostbusters” (1984)
Well, to paraphrase Mark Twain, rumors of it’s demise were greatly exaggerated.
While you can’t dismiss the growth of online content and folks making use of it, print is here to stay. Let’s face it. Folks like me who read tend to read a lot, and there is still a lot of content on the printed page that hasn’t made it’s way online just yet. And there is something about having that book or magazine to refer to after you’ve done reading it the first dozen times or so…
It’s why, when I get the chance, I pick up a copy of the San Francisco Chronicle to read from the paper pages, rather than the online edition. And it’s why I will buy a novel to read at my own pace instead of listening to someone perform an audio book.
So today, I’m sharing some of my favorite magazines with you. They shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise.
To bring home the point that print is anything but dead, the San Francisco Chronicle had a great piece about a new magazine being published out of the City.
What is interesting to note is that the subject isn’t one you would usually think of when it comes to San Francisco. That’s NASCAR. Typically, one thinks of a magazine like this being published somewhere below the Mason-Dixon line.
NASCAR has something that other sports or competitors for our disposable income would kill for — nationwide growing fan base. And the demographics of who is going to these races makes advertisers drool. Wide across the spectrum, it’s got something for everyone in the family. But this new magazine won’t be alone as there are already a flock of NASCAR themed publications on the stand. But “American Thunder” has some interesting folks on the masthead. Notably, President and Publisher Val Landi (who was with IDG, the Boston based publisher of Macworld and other technical magazines) and chief editor Lucas Mast (the one we can all blame for making online payments so easy — he was the man behind Paypal). According to the piece in the Chron, the magazine is to be more of a lifestyle piece than just more news about races. Gotta say, it is an interesting concept and will be worth keeping an eye on.
One of the benefits (so far) of having a Premium Annual Pass for Disneyland is the yearly subscription to Disney Magazine. I’ll give them three out of four stars for this one, but there are times when it tries to be a bit too much of all things Disney to all of it’s subscribers. Understandable that may be. But as an AP, it’s a bit like preaching to the choir at times. Maybe I was spoiled by all those years of the fondly recalled and late lamented “Vacationland” magazine. This link shows some of the classic covers. One treasured issue in my collection from the early 70’s has a great piece on young (was he ever that young?) Rod Miller and his piano at the Coca Cola Corner. With a lot less in the way of non-Disney advertising, and a Disneyland focus, is there any surprise that folks still miss it so?
Now, readers here may recall that I have an interest in the history of trains, planes and automobiles. Setting aside trains for the moment, let’s look at the others. “Air Classics” has been a favorite for many years with it’s annual coverage of the Reno Air Races, but has also offered some good history on flight back to the earliest days. A bit of everything from airline history to air combat in all kinds of conflicts. Stepping up the ladder is “Smithsonian Air & Space“. As the official magazine of the Museum it’s a bit like the Disney magazine in that it promotes attendance at it’s parent locations. And it has advertising that targets it’s core customers as well. A recent issue had a great look at the new Udvar-Hazy Center at Washington’s Dulles International. Truly some fine examples of the aero-space industry and the people who created and flew them on display there.
When it comes to cars, my dad has always enjoyed “Road & Track“. One item I always looked forward to was the April issue and their unique road test. One year it was the Space Shuttle crawler transporter, and another was Great Britain’s “Flying Scotsman” steam locomotive. Always fun to read. A slightly less pretentious car magazine for the hot rod folks is “Drive!” “Big Daddy” Ed Roth had a regular column for several years that was a great look at car culture as it has grown and evolved. Missed he is, but the magazine is still a great place for info. And best of all, it’s free! Check the web pages for locations where you can get an issue.
One of the things worth noting about magazines is that they come and they go. A good example was Paramount’s “Star Trek” magazine. Lot’s of great detail into all of the franchises with information to satisfy even the most dedicated of fans. Yet it couldn’t sustain a level of profitability to keep it going. Yet, the fan focused “Star Trek Communicator” manages to survive. Originally it was a true fan based publication, and now it’s owned by Decipher Games (best known for their collectible card games). They have good info, some of the same detailed articles on the shows (including a classic look at the original Starship Enterprise model now in the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum). Throw in a store with some decent merchandise and they manage to survive where the big guys didn’t.
Oddly enough, the other collectible card game force, Wizards of the Coast (now a subsidiary of toy giant Hasbro), (best known for it’s Magic – the Gathering card games) produces the Star Wars Insider that caters to another other big sci-fi fan base. It too started out as a fan club magazine, and now keeps fans informed of all the latest from the Lucasfilm empire. (Oh, George! What were you thinking! Teen angst?)
Well, let’s dive into the train magazines…
There are a bunch of these that seem to find their way into my hand year round. You may recall in a previous column that I mentioned a fine British publication entitled “Heritage Railway“. We had a similar publication across the pond here for a while called “Locomotive and Railway Preservation”. It didn’t have quite the coverage as it’s UK cousin, but was a good look at the topic, nonetheless. A web site called Railway Preservation News covers the railway museum scene here in the North America today.
When you talk train magazines here, the big two are “Trains” and “Railfan and Railroad“. Both go way back. “Trains” came out just before World War II, but “Railfan” goes back even farther with roots as a pulp magazine of railroad tales. Of the two, “Trains” has taken on the appearance of a more upscale publication with a slicker appearance and style. “Railfan” continues to be more homespun and fan-based in appearance and content. Both magazines also have companion model railroad publications as well, with their own histories.
Kalmbach, the publisher of “Trains” produces a host of other magazines outside the railway realm, But another railway magazine they seem to have a winner with is the quarterly “Classic Trains“. If you can’t go back in time, this magazine does a good job of taking you there. Some great stories and photos of days gone by, and tales from the people who made the trains run. (This magazine, too had previous incarnations, even under another now defunct publisher.)
For the real nuts and bolts folks, there are the more detailed train magazines. The private car owners group, AAPRCO publishes “Private Varnish” for both its members and enthusiasts. Various railroad historical groups also publish magazines with a decidedly historical focus. A few of note are “The Streamliner” from the Union Pacific Historical Society; “The SP Trainline” from the Southern Pacific Historical & Technical Society; “The Western Pacific Headlight” from the Western Pacific Railroad Historical Society; and “The Warbonnet” from the Santa Fe Railway Historical and Modeling Society. And there is a whole bunch more out there!
Now I don’t subscribe any of these right now. I just pick up an issue now and then from a local newsstand or three. Other than Disney or Time, no other magazines clutter my mailbox except that of my employer. One of the perks of your AAA membership is the local affiliate club magazine. In my case, it’s “VIA Magazine“.
So, what do you think? Looks like print will be with us for a while to come. And in the immortal word of KFOG’s Scoop Nisker, “If you don’t like the news, go out and make some of your own!”
Next week? The usual suspects return from a visit to the South, and Roger will share a thought or two on that and other topics. Who knows? Maybe even the return of “Cranky Pants”?
If you’ve enjoyed Roger’s weekly effort, why not show your support but dropping a buck or two in his Paypal Donation Box. Truth be told, it’s only folks like you who keep him going here week after week. There’s no profit sharing or other schemes, just your generosity! Thanks for your support!