Roy Disney Resigns and calls For Eisner's Resignation

[phisigprincess]

Of COURSE the media is spinning this to look like Roy's just bitter. Who controls most of the media? Without getting into a political debate on the boards, everyone knows the media is generally liberal (with the exception of Fox news). It has been rumored that the very liberal Eisner will be funding Michael Moore's new documentary linking the Bush family to the Bin Ladens. Obviously, ME's position in political matters is very clear. Of course the liberal media would take ME's side in all of this!! Why make ME look bad? What upsets me the most is the fact that ME's abusing his power and promoting his political agenda. Sadly, the Disney name gets caught up in all of his opinions and takes away some of the magic. As my dad said "I love Disney because it lets me forget about the real world. I don't want Eisner to take that from me."

 

[DancingBear]

Please, let's not turn everything into a liberal/conservative debate.

 

[Galahad]

Originally posted by DancingBear
Please, let's not turn everything into a liberal/conservative debate.

Yes, let's not, please! Ther is plenty for Roy and Mr. Gold to be upset about without bringing the old left and right into it.

BTW, Eisner is one of the few prominent Hollywood types that gives money to both Dems and Republicans....including GWB..... so I doubt his politics has anything to do with any of this (even the media coverage).

 

[raidermatt]

I don't pretend to know where this will all lead, but a part of me is glad SOMETHING is happening, while another part is apprehensive about how it might all turn out.

One thing I think we can say for sure is that we can put to rest the idea that the perception by some that Disney has let certain standards slip is not merely an internet feeding frenzy.

 

[DVC-Landbaron]

One thing I think we can say for sure is that we can put to rest the idea that the perception by some that Disney has let certain standards slip is not merely an internet feeding frenzy.

I'm sorry. As I was reading this I couldn't help thinking about the certain "element" that is sometimes used around here. Does this mean that Roy can be considered of 'the element' too?

I also could help thinking about my old friends DisDuck and the good Pirate. I wonder if Roy joining Car #3 (or maybe even #4!!) has any bearing on our past conversations! Or future ones!!!

 

[Peter Pirate]

Well Baron, yes and no.

I'm firmly behind Roy & Stanley in this action and I hope that against all odds they are successful and SOON. But WDW is still a great place to spend my time, Pirates of The Caribbean was by far my favorite movie of the summer, Brother Bear made us cry more than Lion King and the Disney Channel still babysits the kids better than the competetion... and Eisner did have a lot to do with this. We've argued this ad nauseum and I don't want to do it anymore. My support of Eisner has never been more than support against the 'piling on' that always goes on around here, although you guys have never quite grasped this. I have thought it (Disney) would be a better place without him for at least a couple of years now and I am appalled at the picture Roy has painted of his heavy handed, dog eat dog tactics but this still doesn't color the enjoyment of WDW (and Disney products) that I've experienced throughout, and it many ways because, of his tenure. It does make me worry a lot more about the future, but honestly my kids are growing fast and the future of Disney is less important to me than a couple of years ago...

 

[raidermatt]

Does this mean that Roy can be considered of 'the element' too?

Other than the statement in my avatar, I'm trying to avoid the use of the word "element" around here, but, yeah, the same thought crossed my mind.

I'm trying not to start another thread since that just makes things more confusing, so here's an interesting story from Jim Hill about what he believes is going on behind the scenes.

Impossible for us outsiders to verify any of this right now, but if there is any truth to it, it makes things even more interesting.

Jim Hill

 

[raidermatt]

...but honestly my kids are growing fast and the future of Disney is less important to me than a couple of years ago...

Forgive me if I'm being too personal, but any chance at grandkids down the road? My kid is only 5, but I know I hope to be able to share the same things with my grandkids someday...

Everyone has the right to decide if they care about the future of WDW and/or the Disney company. But if you don't really care, why are you here? I don't mean that in a confrontational way, and I certainly am not trying to get you to bail, but I really am curious.

If you're really not all that concerned with where Disney is 10 years from now, that would help me understand a lot of your positions.

 

[Peter Pirate]

Wow Matt, you sure read a lot into that.

Disney has never been the most important thing, place or entertainment in my life...It would seem quite sad to me if it were. But what Walt gave us was so incredible and what was built on what Walt gave us, while not more incredible, was certainly so prolific, that I'm in awe of the humble 'beginnings to now' developments. WDW in particular has been the 'escape place' for our family in all different variations (from the wife & I, to three of us to all four and for me with each child individually). WDW afforded me a place that made magic with my family far beyond other venues.

I have always appreciated the quality the same as everyone and I am genuinely concerned about Disney's future...But it won't be the end all. If WDW should become less then it'll be time to explore more. One door closes another door opens. I will fit what I need into whatever niche I can use.

So I don't mean to imply that I don't care about Disney, but as my kids get older it is true I have other concerns and issues more important and pressing than Disney has been in our lives in the past. I will have Grandkids someday, I'm sure, and I hope this magic can be passed on at WDW but if not it will be passed on in another place or form...

Perhaps this clears my POV, perhaps I've made it worse...

 

[Another Voice]

Some people are fans of "Disney" because they are an audience. They look up at the stage and enjoy the show that parades before them. If the show stops or fails to amuse, the audience moves on to the next theater where a different group will present fresh diversions (all for a price of course).

Others are fans of "Disney" because they admire the craftsmanship used to create that show. They marvel out how people can take word and color and sound to create works that can instill wonder, joy, and hope into others. These fans are not looking just to escape from a mundane existence, their happiness come from the appreciation and the joy of creating.

When The Company is finally destroyed, a lot of the crowd will shuffle onto the next guy promising a momentary entertainment. There are plenty of people after a buck and plenty of people just marking away the hours of their life. But others, the ones that care about the power of story, that find happiness in imagination, and those that can still dream - they are the ones that will miss the end of Disney.

 

[Peter Pirate]

Man, what a slap in the face.

 

[Planogirl]

I do admire the Disney creations. I am in awe of what has been done in the far off past and even the more recent past. I am not enamored with the current Disney to the degree I once was and I ride proudly in the rumble seat of Car No. 3.

However, I think that I almost agree with the Pirate in one way. (Hey, odds said that it had to happen. ). Magic is not exclusive to Disney. There are still talented people out there with stars in their eyes and the memories of a child still in their heart (maudlin but true) that if pulled together in the right way can still create this type of magic. I fervently hope that Disney does so but if not someone else will, at least I like to hope so. I feel that Universal often flirts with this perhaps because so many imagineers have ended up working there. But if not Disney or Universal, someone will eventually step up.

 

[lucky_bunni]

It's sad to think ME would now intend to do what he was originally brought into the company to prevent; The breaking up of the company. ME is a business man, however, not an artist or dreamer. He is only out to look for sure-fire methods of growth and money making. Perhaps the greatest loss of the Frank Wells accident was the balance he brought to the management partnership between ME and himself. When he died, the weight of creativity was lost.

 

[Sammie]

Originally posted by Peter Pirate
Man, what a slap in the face.

I don't think so Peter. I think you are just misunderstood. I think Peter and many others appreciate Disney and all things Disney as much as anyone else that has gone to WDW and Disneyland many times over the years.

However I also think that Peter and myself included "do" realize that everything creative, fun, magical, wonderful, and joyful is not controlled by one company, Disney.

There is alot to see in this world from the man made wonders to the natural ones. It would be a very sad situation to think that only what Disney offers is truely imaginative.

I agree with Peter, I would miss Disney greatly but the world would go on. And I would find that creativity somewhere else.

 

[Galahad]

But WDW is still a great place to spend my time, Pirates of The Caribbean was by far my favorite movie of the summer, Brother Bear made us cry more than Lion King and the Disney Channel still babysits the kids better than the competetion.

I agree.

and Eisner did have a lot to do with this

Good point. Probably Roy and Stanley did as well. If ME stays in place, it will be interesting to see the next "evolution".

 

[crusader]

It's the audience that keeps the artist from becoming a gov't subsidy. Without our patronage the only money source left for all these "creators" are foundations; grants; bequests and donations. Good Luck clamoring for that pittance!

Artists seem to despise the constraints of having to work within the same financial arena everybody else does and what they fail to understand is that their output doesn't hold one ounce more in value or worth than any other contribution from a productive member of our society.

The trick has always been in appeal. You can create the most intricate, substantive meaningful work of art and spend your life's fortune doing so but unfortunately if you can't sell it to the public, you will starve.

That's because art is completely subjective. It's success lies within the eye of the beholder and even if the colleagues all "get it" and hail you with critical acclaim, the audience can easily walk away because it doesn't get them!

We can be labeled as beige all you want, but the bottom line is, we are consumers. We have the purchase power. We disdain arrogance and can easily withhold our money knowing full well it is our money you are after. When it comes to entertainment we are typically inclined to spend whatever we want purely for the "enjoyment factor". There are many corporate benefactors of this. There are many employed as a result.

Disney isn't going to lose its' audience because the company knows how to appeal to our love of entertainment. This year has been another great example of that.

Despite the wranglings within the executive cesspool, the product continues to demonstrate one thing: There is a tremendous amount of dedication within the soul of this company from every division. Creativity may be where it starts, but that's certainly not where it ends. Every single member of the operation is vital to it's success - including the finance department.

 

[DancingBear]

Raidermatt, thanks for the Jim Hill link. Fun stuff there! I read the "Did Roy Jump the Gun?" article first, and my two thoughts were (1) as Hill acknowledged, if a deal was in place for ME to leave in 9/04, why didn't they let Roy and Stanley in on that deal, and (2) if the deal was in place, why was Roy being forced out.

But the second article suggests that the board DID become concerned that ME would back out of the 9/04 agreement, and so the Roy/Stanley campaign is part of a insider and outsider effort to put pressure on ME to resign. Very intriguing.

Hill also adds the possibility that both Pixar and the Henson families only want to do a deal with Disney if ME is out. Very interesting.

 

[Peter Pirate]

Thanks Sammie & crusader for understanding. It seems some folks have a hard time believing people CAN understand and even agree to certain theories and yet still choose to live their life in an alternate manner. It doesn't necessarily make us less, ignorant or even willing to settle for less.

It's like great French Cuisine. I understand that it is good. I understand the intracacies of the preperation, the time at culinary academys. I understand the mingling of fine ingediants and the importance of proper wine pairings...I don't generally like the food. My palette is not educated enough, my frame of mind wasn't formed in the manner necessary to appreciate this food, my taste buds are somewhat pedestrian and provincial. I know this about myself but it doesn't mean I can't understand and appreciate the artistic care and great ability needed in preparing fine French food.

I appreciate Disney for both what it has done, is doing and will do for me AND I appreciate Disney for the innovation, original business model and creativity they introduced to the world in their realm throughout their existence. These two things ARE NOT mutually exclusive.

It may be interesting to point out here that Walt was ridiculed and low browed through much of his early career because he was involved in animation. It didn't matter that he was taking animation to new levels of greatness, the fact of the day was that animation was not considered high art, if it was even considered art at all...

 

[GrimGhost]

lucky_bunni wrote:

It's sad to think ME would now intend to do what he was originally brought into the company to prevent; The breaking up of the company

I'm sorry, did I miss something. What in the light of recent events would indicate ME is planning on carving up Disney ??

 

[Another Voice]

Okay - we're on to the next metaphor.

Do appreciate French food in general, or do you happen to find the work of one particular chef to be especially to your liking? Are you simply looking for the best plate of snails-in-butter that you can find, or do you seek out the best that is practical?

Do you settle for what you get?

I completely agree that Disney has no lock on quality or imagination. That's why I left the company - Disney wasn't interested in making quality "Disney" products anymore, but I knew there were others that were.

But I also realize how extremely difficult it is to make "the good stuff" on a consistent basis, especially given the ways of Hollywood and business. Disney is unique because they seemed to have found a knack to do what everyone else found was all but impossible. Disney as a group has been at it for 75 years while everyone else in town floundered.

The tragedy - and why this isn't simply a matter of packing up and moving to the next French restaurant down the road - is that Disney has chosen to stop. There are no outside pressures forcing it to quit, no sudden upheaval in the universe. The Company got lazy and gave up.

I like Disney, I want them to return to what they are capable of. The move on attitude of "my kids are getting older" and "I'll find another restaurant" is, to me anyway, just another example of the same laziness that has infected Disney for a decade.

What Roy Disney has done is an attempt to reverse that process and try to make the company good again. He's gone against the prevailing (and easy) attitude that "better the Devil you know". It's also a strike against the fear of the devil-you-don't.

For me, it's much better to try than to accept.