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Neverworlds: Burbank’s Disney-MGM Studio Backlot

Long, long ago…

When Michael Eisner and Frank Wells took the reins of The Walt Disney Company, their agenda was clear: Movies. Both executives came from the film business, and they were brought into the studio on that basis. The problems that had faced the previous management team were firmly in the theatrical realm; theme [...]

At The Cinema – Waking Sleeping Beauty

Waking Sleeping Beauty is a film that, by all rights, shouldn’t exist.

After all, at its core it’s the story of massive egos maneuvering for control and credit in the wake of one of the Disney company’s most successful artistic and financial periods since Walt’s death in 1966. Getting any of the parties involved [...]

Oh, Eisner – 1987 Edition

Previously, on As the Eisner Turns…

Ambitious young Michael Eisner and his boon companion Frank Wells took over control of Walt Disney Productions, which was struggling to make its way in the modern film industry. Disney began to cash in on underexploited assets, and the eyes of management shifted from theme parks to film and [...]

Best. Press Release. Ever.

Those of you who’ve been around here a while might know of my disdain for and propensity to mock press releases. There’s something about the modern entertainment industry press release that grates on me so; perhaps it’s because, by their very nature, they’re intended to herald any event or product as if it were the [...]

Oh, Eisner – 1986 Edition

Previously, on as the Eisner turns, we’d seen our doughty new CEO wrap up his first complete year at the helm of Disney alongside his stalwart counterpart Frank Wells. Profits were on the rise, due in no small part to Eisner’s affinity for raising prices at the popular Disney resorts while cutting costs. There had [...]