The Spirited Seventh Heaven ...

[Nemo14]

Which is just a variation on something sold in The Land back in the 80s ... few things are truly new.

 

[1023]

I love that old graphic...Excellent work....

*1023*

"A Handwich is a Handwich but a Manwich is .... hmmmm... maybe they need to rethink that tag line...."

 

[dhall]

I'm jealous of certain folks, I admit. But none of them are Disney Lifestylers and I'm still not sure I'd want to change places with them ... as to my Honorary Doctorate in Mental Health and the Disney and UNIversal Fan Community, I think those folks are either crazy (or is the proper term 'nuts'?) or jealous of my credential.



I was thinking how MAGICal it might be to attempt to 'utilize' every restroom facility (no hotel rooms, just public spaces) at WDW and blog about that. Imagine talking about the particular smells of the TTC facilities (these have reeked like truck stops since the 70s) or the new wallpaper and design of Port Orleans or ones that are more hidden and secluded ...I think I know the perfect guy for this ... hey @TalkingHead !!!

I don't know if you or anyone else remembers this far back on the internet, but sometime in the late 90's a guy had a website dedicated to taking pictures of every trash can at WDW.

 

[Figments Friend]

It's certainly a lot more appropriate to Disney than, say, Touchstone pictures was, with Bette Midler mouthing off four-letter words and Julia Robert's selling herself on the streets of LA. And a lot better material than the Disney Channel stuff the other live-action properties seem to be culled from aside from the massive failures of John Carter, Lone Ranger, and even the tepid response Tron Legacy (which I just saw last night and is actually a darn good film).

Tron Legacy IS a good film.
You really missed something special not seeing it when it was originally released...in glorious IMAX 3D.
FANtastic experience in the theater and the crisp IMAX images and atmospheric dimentional effects were great.

 

[1023]

I don't know if you or anyone else remembers this far back on the internet, but sometime in the late 90's a guy had a website dedicated to taking pictures of every trash can at WDW.

Magical Trash features Disney trash cans... www.magicaltrash.com .

Enjoy...

*1023*

 

[Mike S]

Tron Legacy IS a good film.
You really missed something special not seeing it when it was originally released...in glorious IMAX 3D.
FANtastic experience in the theater and the crisp IMAX images and atmospheric dimentional effects were great.

Didn't see it in IMAX but I did see it in 3D. It was a good movie

 

[dhall]

That question doesn't have a clear cut answer, because it depends on what went down and when. One would assume that the applications that support MM+ were built to be in whats called a Highly Available state with load balancing built in. This means that the application and database are spread over multiple machines either physical or virtual. This simply means that if one server goes down the others keep going and take up the load, and that all traffic is load balanced across the hopefully many app servers accepting connections from both the web and the MM+ mobile apps. This is usually done at the network layer in front of the app servers. ..

One could also assume that perhaps the vendors that included such capabilities (and their associated costs) were not the lowest bidders.

You would many be amazed how many IT projects get short changed when it comes to disaster recovery, because in many cases number crunchers cannot understand why they are paying for hardware that isn't doing anything at the moment and is there for just in case. And then you would also be equally amazed at how quickly those things get paid for the first time it fails and there is business impact.

Particularly in cases where the customer lacks the technical ability to discern the need for such capabilities. It all depends on how far down in the details the project managers who are Disney employees live. I get the sense that they outsourced a lot of the project level control and get nicely summarized reports at a VP level.

 

[dhall]

I believe that in recent years, Disney has been trying to fight the notion it serves unhealthy carnival foods. It seems that those in pursuit of coronary artery issues continue to be indulged in new and exciting ways. Perhaps for dessert they will offer bacon-wrapped, deep-fried, cheese balls with cheese whiz topping.

*1023*

Remember, though -- the side will still be fruit cup unless you ask for fries

 

[GoofGoof]

Here's the million dollar question. Why on earth would they spend $1.7 billion on Hollywood studios?

They won't end up spending that much. The $1.7B spent on DCA covers a period of nearly 10 years from initial planning in 2005 into next year at this point with nothing major planned. When you break it down that less than $200M per year spent at DLR. I have a hard time believing they will cough up $1.7B for DHS now when there is still $500M+ to go at DAK. Realistically they will probably end up with a StarWarsLand in the $500M range that doesn't fully ramp up until 2016 or 2017 and then maybe throw in a few new shows or parades and call it a day. To do a transformative refurb of the park and truly reinvent it they need more than just Star Wars. The park needs rides and capacity to keep people busy and happy for a full day.

The question of why the would spend that much is a philosophical one. If they think that they can indefinitely sustain the current model of upcharge events and seasonal overlays (like Frozen summer or SW weekends) it would be bad business to spend the money needed to refurb the park the right way. People still pay to get into DHS in its current state so why fix it at all?

If someone at some level of Disney management actually decides that the current strategy is not sustainable then they would/should consider this kind of investment. The only way to keep raising prices on park tickets and hotel rooms indefinitely is to offer people something that will draw them back. DHS is definitely losing vacation days to the boy wizard down the street. The question is does Disney care? A fully refurbed park with SW Land and additional offerings would probably become the 2nd most attended park in Orlando and drive overall attendance at WDW instead of just riding MK's coat tails. With multi-day passes it's a lot harder to quantify the financial gains from this type of boost in attendance. The biggest gains would probably come from increased hotel occupancy. If someone sold the BOD on an 11% increase in revenue from NextGen they could probably find a way to sell this.

The final reason they should do it is simply to get back on top. P&R is humming along and making record profits. Now is the perfect time for a major reinvestment to set themselves up for future gains.

 

[WDWFigment]

OK, so I FINALLY find something I want to listen to on a Disney Podcast. Yes, it is true ... @WDWFigment appeared with the Parkscope Bois and I actually tried to listen, but couldn't for some tech reason that I didn't have time to deal with.

Oh, how I want to hear Sean's intellectual ramblings ... and I wonder if the bois sorta grilled Tom over his still unrequited love for WDW ...

I've seen your complaints about podcasts and, be warned, I embody just about all of the most common criticisms. I'll be the first to admit that; even I can't listen to myself on a podcast. Not to dissuade you from listening...just don't come back complaining that my voice is monotone and I'm not an engaging speaker.

 

[John]

They won't end up spending that much. The $1.7B spent on DCA covers a period of nearly 10 years from initial planning in 2005 into next year at this point with nothing major planned. When you break it down that less than $200M per year spent at DLR. I have a hard time believing they will cough up $1.7B for DHS now when there is still $500M+ to go at DAK. Realistically they will probably end up with a StarWarsLand in the $500M range that doesn't fully ramp up until 2016 or 2017 and then maybe throw in a few new shows or parades and call it a day. To do a transformative refurb of the park and truly reinvent it they need more than just Star Wars. The park needs rides and capacity to keep people busy and happy for a full day.

The question of why the would spend that much is a philosophical one. If they think that they can indefinitely sustain the current model of upcharge events and seasonal overlays (like Frozen summer or SW weekends) it would be bad business to spend the money needed to refurb the park the right way. People still pay to get into DHS in its current state so why fix it at all?

If someone at some level of Disney management actually decides that the current strategy is not sustainable then they would/should consider this kind of investment. The only way to keep raising prices on park tickets and hotel rooms indefinitely is to offer people something that will draw them back. DHS is definitely losing vacation days to the boy wizard down the street. The question is does Disney care? A fully refurbed park with SW Land and additional offerings would probably become the 2nd most attended park in Orlando and drive overall attendance at WDW instead of just riding MK's coat tails. With multi-day passes it's a lot harder to quantify the financial gains from this type of boost in attendance. The biggest gains would probably come from increased hotel occupancy. If someone sold the BOD on an 11% increase in revenue from NextGen they could probably find a way to sell this.

The final reason they should do it is simply to get back on top. P&R is humming along and making record profits. Now is the perfect time for a major reinvestment to set themselves up for future gains.

Makes sense but there sure is a lot of "if's" "and's" or "but's. Hey I am with you. BUT this isn't TDOs MO. The up-sell events are a golden goose to TDO. They have an exact ROI. Cost them basically nothing to produce. The cost is built in to the ticket. They constantly sell out, therefore these events will increase and will be a feature for the foreseeable future. Problem with your post?......you are making to much sense.

 

[John]

I've seen your complaints about podcasts and, be warned, I embody just about all of the most common criticisms. I'll be the first to admit that; even I can't listen to myself on a podcast. Not to dissuade you from listening...just don't come back complaining that my voice is monotone and I'm not an engaging speaker.

Don't be so hard on yourself....atleast you had something interesting to talk about.

 

[WDWFigment]

to anyone who says the mac-and-cheese monstrosity looks good: i would very much like for you to subsidize my healthcare costs next year. i'm sorry, it's a stretch to put bacon on freakin' mac-and-cheese as it is. it's not like you're eating eggs whites and, oh well, what's a little bacon between friends. it's mac-and-cheese already! then slosh it in a cone. oh, even better! to quote mr. david spade: "i can actually hear you getting fatter."

jokes aside, it does present a serious branding issue. selling frankenfoods makes you comparable to a state fair. if that's what disney is going for, great. but no one can complain that people say the experience is being walmarted.

I think the 'branding' they're going for is trendy foods, not state fair foods. Gourmet mac & cheese is actually a 'thing' right now. One of the most popular food trucks here (http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/40/1657296/restaurant/Wholesale-District/Mac-Genie-Indianapolis) sells $10+ mac & cheese, and it's quite inventive and delicious. I've only been able to eat there once because I can literally feel myself getting fatter when I eat it, but it is good.

If this is anything like the other recent (Cars Land) Handwiches, I'm sure Disney's take isn't very good, but my point is that it's probably motivated by a desire to capitalize on a trend, rather than to 'Walmart' the product.

As for the health bit...being healthy and eating unhealthy foods are not mutually exclusive. I eat foods on occasion that are absolutely awful for me, yet I'm in great shape. Eating foods that are poor for you in moderation isn't all that bad, nor does it somehow prevent you from exercising.

 

[crispy]

I've seen your complaints about podcasts and, be warned, I embody just about all of the most common criticisms. I'll be the first to admit that; even I can't listen to myself on a podcast. Not to dissuade you from listening...just don't come back complaining that my voice is monotone and I'm not an engaging speaker.

I have to say, I appreciate how positive and polite your responses are to everyone even when being people are ribbing you a bit. You are really a good sport.

 

[WDWFigment]

Don't be so hard on yourself....atleast you had something interesting to talk about.

Ha, thanks. I still enjoy recording a podcast and unlike some others around here, so it doesn't bother me. I don't think a podcast needs to be this ultra-polished, broadcast-caliber type deal. Most of my favorite podcasts are just informal conversations among friends, recorded. I think the medium lends itself to that...but that's just me.

 

[GoofGoof]

Makes sense but there sure is a lot of "if's" "and's" or "but's. Hey I am with you. BUT this isn't TDOs MO. The up-sell events are a golden goose to TDO. They have an exact ROI. Cost them basically nothing to produce. The cost is built in to the ticket. They constantly sell out, therefore these events will increase and will be a feature for the foreseeable future. Problem with your post?......you are making to much sense.

TDO has little say in this. The decision will come from the top. Maybe not that much better, but Iger did buck up for DCA in a lot less favorable economic climate.

 

[OSUgirl77]

One could also assume that perhaps the vendors that included such capabilities (and their associated costs) were not the lowest bidders.

Although, just because a vendor doesn't have the capabilities necessary, doesn't mean they don't tell the customer that they do. Some vendors (not all) can be sneaky like that, as I'm sure many of you know, and as I have experienced firsthand. If those making the decision to outsource aren't network people, and are only concerned with numbers, they are way more likely not to ask questions...no matter how loudly the network engineers voice their opposition.

 

[flynnibus]

did anyone else see this? does anyone else feel sick?

http://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/disney-s-hollywood-studios-food-macaroni-and-cheese-bread-cone

A similar 'dish' has been available in Carsland since it opened. But there it's chili instead of M&C+bacon. At least in DCA there was some semblence of a theme integration. Not needed at WDW.. shocker.

 

[Phil12]

Yes indeed the Handwich was ahead of its time. In the late 1980's cell phones were rare and there was little need for the Handwich. Now, with the ubiquity of the smart phone the Handwich will make its triumpful come-back. You can eat with one hand while never putting down your smart phone with the other hand! Brilliant!

 

[PhotoDave219]

I think the 'branding' they're going for is trendy foods, not state fair foods. Gourmet mac & cheese is actually a 'thing' right now. One of the most popular food trucks here (http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/40/1657296/restaurant/Wholesale-District/Mac-Genie-Indianapolis) sells $10+ mac & cheese, and it's quite inventive and delicious. I've only been able to eat there once because I can literally feel myself getting fatter when I eat it, but it is good.

If this is anything like the other recent (Cars Land) Handwiches, I'm sure Disney's take isn't very good, but my point is that it's probably motivated by a desire to capitalize on a trend, rather than to 'Walmart' the product.

As for the health bit...being healthy and eating unhealthy foods are not mutually exclusive. I eat foods on occasion that are absolutely awful for me, yet I'm in great shape. Eating foods that are poor for you in moderation isn't all that bad, nor does it somehow prevent you from exercising.

Remember this?

http://www.latimes.com/travel/la-trw-disney8-2008aug08-story.html

Disney, seeking to promote healthier eating habits among children, said in 2006 it would license its characters to sell fruits and vegetables. The company also has stopped promoting its films with Happy Meals from Oak Brook, Ill.-based McDonald's. Disney said in 2006 it would remove foods containing so-called transfats, an artery-clogging ingredient now banned in New York City, from its theme parks by the end of 2007.

Or This.

http://thewaltdisneycompany.com/dis...unces-collaboration-first-lady-michelle-obama

"Having been at the forefront of making healthier lifestyle choices appealing to kids and families, Disney is delighted to work with the First Lady to promote exercise, nutrition and healthy living," said Robert A. Iger, president and CEO, The Walt Disney Company.

Or this.

http://thewaltdisneycompany.com/dis...ealthy-families-disney-launches-magic-healthy

Since 2006, Disney's nutritional guidelines have been implemented across all Disney-branded businesses. Company progress to date includes:

• Healthier food options to choose from in Disney parks including fruits for snacking, the elimination of added trans fats** and healthier default sides and beverages that families opt for in nearly 60% of kids' meals.

Or This.

http://thewaltdisneycompany.com/dis...ds-food-advertising-kids#sthash.pyKBZ6e6.dpuf

Building on its landmark nutrition guidelines established in 2006, The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) today became the first major media company to introduce new standards for food advertising on programming targeting kids and families. This significant undertaking marks the latest step in Disney’s partnership with parents to inspire kids to lead healthier lifestyles. Under Disney’s new standards, all food and beverage products advertised, sponsored, or promoted on Disney Channel, Disney XD, Disney Junior, Radio Disney, and Disney-owned online destinations oriented to families with younger children will be required by 2015 to meet Disney’s nutrition guidelines. The nutrition guidelines are aligned to federal standards, promote fruit and vegetable consumption and call for limiting calories and reducing saturated fat, sodium, and sugar.

Or this.

https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/bl...k-makes-nutritious-eating-more-simple-and-fun

Menu items that receive the Mickey Check meet Disney Nutrition Guidelines that limit calories, saturated fat, sodium, and sugar. To accomplish this, chefs at Disney Parks have re-imagined many kids’ menu items to find delicious ways to make existing meals more nutritious.

The Mickey Check, which was revealed last year, may be new to table-service restaurants but it already appears on kids’ menus at our U.S. parks and resorts’ quick-service restaurants, on various Disney-licensed food products sold at retail locations, and on qualifying recipes at Disney.com and Family.com.