Pros and Cons of Eisner

[goofyfan13]

Well, since there is the possibility that Eisner may resign (hopefully), I was wondering what you all thought were some of the pros and cons of the "Eisner Era"

Here are some of mine

Pros:
-Spectromagic
-Tower of Terror
-Animal Kingdom Lodge
-Kilamanjaro Safaris
-Illuminations: Reflections of Earth

Cons:
-Buzz Lightyear, yes it is a good ride, but you can tell that they cheapened the ride up a little.
-Dinorama, I think we can all agree on this
-Taking out classic rides for meet and greets
-The plummet of ABC
-The Tiki Room Under New Management


Obviously I left some big things out that I just can't think of right now because It's getting late.

 

[Michael72688]

Was he the final sword that cut Tapestry's throat?

 

[General Grizz]

I don't think so, Michael. :lol:

 

[Michael72688]

ok, then he isnt all bad

 

[Bill]

Originally posted by goofyfan13
Obviously I left some big things out that I just can't think of right now because It's getting late.

How about DCA and Walt Disney Studios Paris?:lol:

 

[DisneyFan 2000]

Pros: Splash Mountain!

Anyone with me?

 

[ucf disneyfan]

Originally posted by DisneyFan 2000
Pros: Splash Mountain!

Anyone with me?

Splash was a big Pro. But it seems like the Cons outweigh the Pros. The biggest problem I have with Eisner is installing Carnival-like rides in the parks. (All of DCA, Dinorama, etc) And the games of chance are horrible too. If a new CEO does come in I'd love to see him/her tear down all the tacky carnival stuff. I hate the fact that disney is building rides that they just order out of a catalog.

 

[andre85]

First of, I love DCA. The “carnival” rides at least match the theme, unlike the godforsaken Aladdin ride over at the Magic Kingdom. But I've always found the park to be very attractive and unique. Anyways, onto the pro list:

PRO:

Tower of Terror
Typhoon Lagoon
Blizzard Beach
Rockin Roller Coaster
Bugs Life 3D
Mission Space
Test Track
Splash Mountain
Muppets 3D
Honey I shrink the Audience
Buzz Lightyear (sure, the premise sounds cheap, but they did a good job, IMO - Better than Universal's MIB at least)
Animal Kingdom
Downtown Disney

(some of theme I'm not entirely sure of his level of involvement, but they opened up during his tenure regardless)



CONs: (Maybe it's just me, but I really have a hard time thinking of things I truly dislike about Disney, but here's a few)

That godforsaken Aladdin Magic Carpet ride
River Country's closure
Alien Encounter's removal (I have hope that the new Stitch ride will be good)
Dinorama (though it's not too bad, the roller coaster is at least decent...but yes, it does detract from the atmosphere)

That's about all I can think of. However, perusing my list I realized that some of my favorite attractions at Disney came out while Eisner was in the house.

 

[Grim Grinner]

Eisner's promoting of Pressler to Theme Parks over the Disney Stores was a terrible blow that Disneyland is feeling to this day. Refusing to work with J. Katzenberg so that the man left the company was another travesty.

On a quick side note- I actually liked the new Chester and Hester's spot in Animal Kingdom. It's so unDisneylike it sticks out. The rides are a good place to let the kids loose. One thing I pointed out to some people (and no one ever notices this...) is that that parking lot was simply not there before. It actually looks like it have been there for years. The attention to detail is awesome. Sure its cheesey, but its supposed to be. This isn't just another location to drain money, but a simulation that makes the park around it seem even better by contrast.

 

[goofyfan13]

Originally posted by Bill
How about DCA and Walt Disney Studios Paris?:lol:

I have heard bad things about these parks and from what I have seen I would have to agree with you. I just didn't put those down is because I haven't been there. Which is why I haven't put Mission: Space down either, I haven't been on the ride. I can't beleive that I forgot a ride like Splash Mountain though. :brick:

 

[CTXRover]

Although theme parks are the main focus of this site, Eisner has been responsible for an enormous growth of the Disney company since he took the reigns in 1984. Perhaps one of the biggest things he did was in fact the major expansion of the theme parks worldwide, opening two parks in Orlando, a sister park for Disneyland, two parks in Paris, two parks in Tokyo and soon a new Disneyland in Hong Kong with talks for another in Shanghai. Without Eisner's leadership, who knows if Disney theme parks would still be the draw they are today, or if we would even have Animal Kingdom or MGM had Eisner not taken the company to where it is today. Don''t forget, without him, the Disney company may be in the hands of many different companies as the company was about to be bought and sold off in chunks around '84. The theme parks might have been bought by someone who cared less about Disney heritage, Disney magic, Disney essence than many who criticize Eisner suggest. I personally think he has done wonders to help the theme park industry as a whole become as competitive as it is today.

Also, under Eisner, Disney animation made an enormous rebound, although he has been unable to maintain that recently. Disney is now the proud owner of the most successful cable channels, The Disney Channel and ESPN. ABC, although still underperforming, is showing some great improvement this year. Not to mention, the film studio is having its best year in history this year.

That said, I think its time for Eisner to go. A lot of the things he has done for the Disney company can never go unnoticed, but after being there for almost 20 years, anyone is bound to lose their creative edge. Some of his most recent decisions, building parks "on the cheap" and then working on them as need be, closing of animation studios, etc. are signs of this. He has become too focused on $$$, but who can blame him when you've got stockholders breathing down your neck 24/7 to bring the company back to its high levels of 2000. For reference, since Eisner took over in 1984 to today, the stock of the Disney company has risen over 1,000%. What is even more shocking is that he had got it to improve over 2,000% at one point, and that is why the last 3 years or so I have seen Eisner get more concerned with $$$ and why I think it is time for someone new to come in and re-energize the company.

I just think Roy couldn't have chose a worse time to bring this up. The company is showing signs of improving in almost all sectors this year, from cable TV, to the best film studio, to improving ratings at ABC to rebounding in theme park attendance, etc. It would have been better to do this like two years ago.

 

[Pioneer Hall]

Originally posted by goofyfan13
Well, since there is the possibility that Eisner may resign (hopefully), I was wondering what you all thought were some of the pros and cons of the "Eisner Era"

Here are some of mine

Pros:
-Spectromagic
-Tower of Terror
-Animal Kingdom Lodge
-Kilamanjaro Safaris
-Illuminations: Reflections of Earth

Cons:
-Buzz Lightyear, yes it is a good ride, but you can tell that they cheapened the ride up a little.
-Dinorama, I think we can all agree on this
-Taking out classic rides for meet and greets
-The plummet of ABC
-The Tiki Room Under New Management


Obviously I left some big things out that I just can't think of right now because It's getting late.

These things are just very small parts of the company. You need to look at everything as a whole. Disney is a massive corporation. And when it comes to specific ride attractions. Eisner just signs the paper to build or destroy. By the time the paper gets to him the attractions fate is almost definately decided. So something like the change of the Tiki Room had very little Eisner influence to it.

 

[Michael72688]

Originally posted by ucf disneyfan
Splash was a big Pro. But it seems like the Cons outweigh the Pros. The biggest problem I have with Eisner is installing Carnival-like rides in the parks. (All of DCA, Dinorama, etc) And the games of chance are horrible too. If a new CEO does come in I'd love to see him/her tear down all the tacky carnival stuff. I hate the fact that disney is building rides that they just order out of a catalog.

ok you may not like these awesome rides, but they're fun and the majority of people at the parks do to! also the games, last time I checked they brought in money, the tourists may it and it helps the company! Overall I think these areas are great! :sohappy:

Thankyou Eisner for putting Dino-Rama in! other than that you can go now

 

[PeterAlt]

The Eisner era

I think Eisner had his ups and downs. He started off good and then trusted people like Paul Pressler. I think he realizes by now that the cost cutting tactics of Paul Pressler was a huge mistake. You can see the that the company has learned that cheap is cheap and cheap attractions will not bring in the masses. This is evident in the latest round of new construction. Under Eisner, here is a list of attractions built at WDW...

At the MK:

Splash Mountain
New Tomorrowland
Buzz Light Year
Mickey's Toontown Fair
Aladin Magic Carpets
Winnie the Pooh
Snow White 2.0
Tiki Birds Under New Management
Mickey's Philharmagic
...and soon Stitch Escape

At EPCOT:

Test Track
Mission: Space
Innoventions
Wonders of Life
Norway
Illuminations
Living Seas (planning was started before Eisner)
...soon Soaring Over California

At Disney-MGM:

Entire park (Great Movie Ride, Catasrophe Canyon, etc.)
Star Tours
Tower of Terror
Rock 'N Rollercoaster
Fantasmic!
...soon Auto Stunt Show

At Animal Kingdom:

Entire park (Dinosaur, etc.)
Asia
Dinorama
...soon Expedition Everest

Elsewhere:

Pleasure Island
Disney's West Side
Disney's Boardwalk
Blizzard Beach
Typhoon Lagoon
Disney's Wide World of Sports

For only 19 in office, this is a lot of construction! Oh yeah, all the hotels, except Contemporary, Polynessian, the Villas at WDW Village, and the Fort Wilderrness Campground were build under Eisner as well.

 

[T1nker_Bell]

pros:
-TOT
-RnRRC
-Spectromagic
-Ellen's Universe of Energy
-Splash Mountain
-A Bug's Life
-Muppet Vision
-Honey, I Shrunk The Audience
-Buzz Lightyear
-Winnie the Pooh
-kiliminjaro safaris
-test track

Cons
-The degradation of journey into imagination
-the closing of mr. toad's wild ride
-the poor design of the animal kingdom (i love what it offers, but that place is not well designed)
-Aladdin's Magic Carpet Ride
- general rundown of several attractions

 

[General Grizz]

I don't think Eisner had to do much at all with those attractions. He may have approved a few things, or asked for higher budget. . .

But those pros and cons do NOT reflect Eisner . . . they reflect Walt Disney Attractions, Theme Park Executive Offices, and Walt Disney Imagineering.

 

[bigbadwolf]

Originally posted by bigbadwolf
I have noticed a Dramatic change from 1990-today.
-Animal Kingdom opened but all that wasted space! Most of it is shops! Its a money pit!
-Too Many New Resorts
-Poor CMs and more RUDE ones
-Higher Food Cost
-The movie Movie Quality gets worse and worse!!! Anybody remember Dinosaur?!? or Its a bugs life?? or all the stupid siquels!
-Crappy Dinosaur amusement park idea for DinoLand USA "Its a money pit"
-Ive noticed broken Water Fountains and constant construction
-Classic Disney Rides closed! Especially ones we loved... Mr.Toads wild ride!! 20,000 Leagues under the sea! Imagination! Herizons! And now Alien Encounter!
-They still have River Country CLOSED!
-Plans for removing the classic Space Ship Earth!?!
-They wasted there money to rebuild Imagination 2 times!? why didnt they leave it alone?!?
-The giant Mickey Hand on spaceship Earth cost so much they need to leave it up there.
-They removed the old glass statue in the fountain at Epcot?
-Copies of Dumbo?EXAMPLE-Alladin's Magic Carpet- And if you didnt know the camels are from a old MGM studios parade!
-I recall more Characters outside greating kids! Looking at home movies from 1992 i see a decrease of characters in random places. You can only see them in meeting places or Restaurants.
-The rebuilding of Mickeys ToonTown! A Farm to a Fair?!? what??!
I noticed more outside comercial products-TOT gift shop is more filled up with skull tees you can find from hot topic.
-Indy ride copy to Dinosaur at Animal Kingdom!
-MGM studios copied to other locations! BS!
-Too much money for Califofnia Adventure! Has nothing todo with Disney Characters! Its just another locations to copy rides from WDW to there!

Sorry if im bragging... but really... Some of you have to see it right in front of you. Roy is right... Eisner HAS to go.

I wrote this in another topic....

 

[NemoRocks78]

Originally posted by andre85
Buzz Lightyear (sure, the premise sounds cheap, but they did a good job, IMO - Better than Universal's MIB at least)

You think Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin is BETTER than Men In Black: Alien Attack!?!?!?! :lookaroun


Pros of Eisner-
Splash Mountain
Mickey's PhilarMagic
MISSION: Space
Test Track
Tower of Terror
Rock n Roller Coaster starring Aerosmith
Disney MGM Studios
"New" Downtown Disney featuring the West Side
Honey, I SHRUNK The Audience
The Boardwalk
Blizzard Beach
Wishes
Fantasmic!
Mickey's Toontown at Disneyland

Cons of Eisner-
Closures of: Horizons, World of Motion, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, SeaCabs at The Living Seas, Journey Into Imagination, and The ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter.

Disney's Animal Kingdom which houses barely any rides, too many shops.

The poor quality the parks and resorts are coming to.

Having fights with Steve Spielberg resulting in no Roger Rabbit attractions at WDW.

Building cheap rides (DinoRama!, Aladdin's Magic Carpet Ride)

Wand over Spaceship Earth, Sorcerer's Hat in front of the Mann's Chinese Theatre.

Poor quality of cast members.

Two poor rehabs of Journey Into Imagination which were only seperated by a few years.

Disney's California Adventure and Walt Disney Studios Paris.

Poor drop in quality films from Animation.

ABC ratings drop.

Last but not least, forcing Roy Disney to resign.


And there's a lot, lot more. I'll never forgive him for what he's done. I hope he resigns very soon.

 

[Tim G]

My opinion...

 

[goofyfan13]

I do realize that I just put attractions on my pros and cons list and that I should add some things that have reflected his run more accurately. I do appreciate the jump that he created in Disneys stock and some of the things that his era did bring in I commend. Like the Disney Cruise Line, the spread internationally of the theme park industry, ESPN, and the fact that he did bring the company back from its near downfall. With that said, recently he has not been living up to some of the things he did in his first few years. As many people have stated he has become to concerned about money and has cheapened many things. His not getting along with giants like Spielberg and Pixar really haven't helped either. I do agree with CTXRover that Roy really should have been brought up a little big ago, becuase the company is starting to improve again. As a Disney stock holder, I am a little concerned as to how low the stock has been for the past couple years when it used to be up at about 32. I think Eisner has brought a lot of great things to the table for this company but its time for something fresh, change is good, and in Disney's case it could very well be for the better.