The Spirited Sixth Sense ...

[ford91exploder]

No, the numbers I am quoting are the GSR (Graduation Success Rate) numbers, not the FGR (Federal Graduation Numbers) numbers.

I think you have the two transposed. FGR method keeps track of first-time freshmen who are full-time students. It follows those students over the course of a six-year period to see if they graduate at the same institution at which they began their secondary education.

The GSR uses the same type of data as the FGR, but the GSR data also takes into account students who transfer into a school and graduate from that same school. It also doesn't count against a school's rate when a student-athlete in good standing transfers out of that institution to attend another.

Gee I guess a decade plus as an academic officer at an Ivy League school means I don't understand graduation rates and what they mean.... Just remember that while figures don't lie, Liars figure and none of the big athletic schools want to get off the college sports gravy train.

 

[Phil12]

Does anyone remember some crackpot that ran a scam called 'Howie's Angels' or something like that back in the late 90s? Basically, he had a flock who would call to Disney's CRO every morning at 7 a.m. and book phony ressies for Cindy's Royal Table character breakfast because it was so popular and then people would have to go through him to get them (he supposedly wasn't selling them, although I never bought that and when I first found out about what a Lou Mongello was I got the same slimy vibe!)

I remember Howie Ditchek:
http://www.mouseplanet.com/mike/ms040507.htm
http://www.mouseplanet.com/mike/ms040521.htm
http://www.mouseplanet.com/mike/ms040604.htm

 

[John]

IMHO the entire US economy right now is nothing but smoke and mirrors.......Being floated by the fed printing money like it was a Chinese factory making Mickey plush toys.

 

[ParentsOf4]

The unemployment numbers these days are outright lies and they have been since the early noughts, If we counted unemployment today as those ELIGIBLE to work and unable to find a job the unemployment rate would be 24-26% in 2004-6 it would have been about 15%.

The workforce participation numbers are the most accurate and they show only 53% of the eligible workforce has a job.

I feel sympathy for today's youth who have never experienced a truly booming economy during their entire professional lives.

 

[asianway]

Does anyone remember some crackpot that ran a scam called 'Howie's Angels' or something like that back in the late 90s? Basically, he had a flock who would call to Disney's CRO every morning at 7 a.m. and book phony ressies for Cindy's Royal Table character breakfast because it was so popular and then people would have to go through him to get them (he supposedly wasn't selling them, although I never bought that and when I first found out about what a Lou Mongello was I got the same slimy vibe!)

It seems monetizing a script on the Disney family of websites is the latest lifestyler craze. Damn am I going to have to start typing the wavy line code words in everytime I do something now?

 

[John]

I feel sympathy for today's youth who have never experienced a truly booming economy during their entire professional lives.

And probably never will.....we don't make anything anymore.....we produce nothing. The only thing we make in this country is pizzas and hamburgers.

 

[bhg469]

I am with you on the boat ride. I am looking more forward to it then the e-ticket. I'm hoping you are wrong about it being a C. There were those alleged leaked plans that called it a "C ticket", but I thought those may have been later exposed as not being real or accurate. I kinda got the feeling that maybe the "Soarin 2.0" and "C ticket boat ride" labels were rolled out by the anti-Avatar camp to belittle the project. Maybe that's just wishful thinking. If the budget is what it's rumored to be (close to double FLE) and the boat ride is cheap and lame what the heck are they spending the cash on?

I don't recall one drop on haunted mansion or Kilimanjaro in any of it iterations yet they are some of my favorite attractions of all time. When everest was being built I think people put way too much stock in it having a drop. Drops don't make a great attraction, if they want drops send them to ceder point.

 

[ford91exploder]

That's all fine and good. Internal transfer pricing exists everywhere, not just Hollywood. It even happens at Universal Since there are no profit sharing or royalty arrangements I don't see the economic benefit from over inflating the costs. It would not have a positive tax impact. Is it something related to the deal with Cameron. I just assumed they paid him a flat fee for theme park rights plus a piece of the merchandise sales.

Example LOTR made billions at the box office for New Line Cinema, According to New Line it's still hundreds of millions in the red. No profits == no taxes yet all that money poured into new line... It went somewhere but not to the taxman or those who had a share in the profits.

 

[ford91exploder]

And probably never will.....we don't make anything anymore.....we produce nothing. The only thing we make in this country is pizzas and hamburgers.

And worthless 'derivatives' which are not worth the paper they are printed on...

 

[yellowstone7123]

Gee I guess a decade plus as an academic officer at an Ivy League school means I don't understand graduation rates and what they mean.... Just remember that while figures don't lie, Liars figure and none of the big athletic schools want to get off the college sports gravy train.

Here is an example, Zack Mettenberger started his career at Georgia. He got in trouble and transferred to a junior college then transferred to LSU. He will receive his degree from LSU. The FGR will report that he did not get his degree and penalize Georgia and they will not credit him for a degree at LSU. On the other hand, GSR does not penalize Georgia and credits him with graduating at LSU. What is so hard to understand? What is with the thin skin? I was not criticizing you, I was just letting you know what numbers I was quoting. They are not my numbers, I was just reporting not lying. Relax man.

 

[bhg469]

Does anyone remember some crackpot that ran a scam called 'Howie's Angels' or something like that back in the late 90s? Basically, he had a flock who would call to Disney's CRO every morning at 7 a.m. and book phony ressies for Cindy's Royal Table character breakfast because it was so popular and then people would have to go through him to get them (he supposedly wasn't selling them, although I never bought that and when I first found out about what a Lou Mongello was I got the same slimy vibe!)

He is quite an unsavory guy for someone that smiles so much.

 

[GoofGoof]

Example LOTR made billions at the box office for New Line Cinema, According to New Line it's still hundreds of millions in the red. No profits == no taxes yet all that money poured into new line... It went somewhere but not to the taxman or those who had a share in the profits.

No, I get the concept completely. It just doesn't apply to Avatarland. If WDI overcharges P&R for construction that doesn't result in any tax breaks for TWDC. They capitalize the actual labor and material costs either way, but the internal markup is only a metric to judge individual business unit performance and washes out in consolidation. There would be no tax benefit. Unless Cameron directly shares in the profits (which I can't see how he would) there is no profit sharing either so again, no benefit.

 

[ford91exploder]

Here is an example, Zack Mettenberger started his career at Georgia. He got in trouble and transferred to a junior college then transferred to LSU. He will receive his degree from LSU. The FGR will report that he did not get his degree and penalize Georgia and they will not credit him for a degree at LSU. On the other hand, GSR does not penalize Georgia and credits him with graduating at LSU. What is so hard to understand? What is with the thin skin? I was not criticizing you, I was just letting you know what numbers I was quoting. They are not my numbers, I was just reporting not lying. Relax man.

The FGR is the one used by the DoEd and is considered the OFFICIAL statistic, The GSR is a number used primarily by college athletic departments to inflate the graduation rate so the transfers and drops are not so obvious.

 

[JimboJones123]

Song of the South question for those that have seen it....

Did Johnny actually die at the end? The surreal finale always had me feeling that he didn't actually recover, but was experiencing the glories of the afterlife at the end. All of the character tensions seemed to melt away. And there was singing. And cartoons. And it just feels a bit too surreal and simple an ending.

Not unlike the ending of Radio Flyer where Bobby flies away, letting the viewer know that Bobby never really existed, he was just a split part of Mike's mind to help him cope with the abuses.

I haven't seen much support of the "Johnny Died" theory, but I thought I would bounce it off here.

 

[ford91exploder]

No, I get the concept completely. It just doesn't apply to Avatarland. If WDI overcharges P&R for construction that doesn't result in any tax breaks for TWDC. They capitalize the actual labor and material costs either way, but the internal markup is only a metric to judge individual business unit performance and washes out in consolidation. There would be no tax benefit. Unless Cameron directly shares in the profits (which I can't see how he would) there is no profit sharing either so again, no benefit.

Unless of course WDI has off balance sheet entities which some of the money goes to. That being said I'm not an accounting professional so other than being able to read a balance sheet and P&L and understand it I would not be able to set up an accounting system.

Ah's just an engineer with a memory for dirty numerical tricks. But WHAT IS the explanation for WDI being 10-20x as expensive than other creative organizations.

 

[ford91exploder]

He is quite an unsavory guy for someone that smiles so much.

Sharks smile a lot too, Just before they eat you.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Song of the South question for those that have seen it....

Did Johnny actually die at the end? The surreal finale always had me feeling that he didn't actually recover, but was experiencing the glories of the afterlife at the end. All of the character tensions seemed to melt away. And there was singing. And cartoons. And it just feels a bit too surreal and simple an ending.

Not unlike the ending of Radio Flyer where Bobby flies away, letting the viewer know that Bobby never really existed, he was just a split part of Mike's mind to help him cope with the abuses.

I haven't seen much support of the "Johnny Died" theory, but I thought I would bounce it off here.

It's been a while since I saw it... I have the DVD I should check it out again... but it seems like I left thinking he survived. The music was rejoicing in the miracle.

 

[spacemt354]

I find it very amusing how some people here seem to have convinced themselves that Harry Potter is some kind of fad that is going to slip out of the public and cultural consciousness in order to try and talk up Avatar. I wonder if they would have felt differently had Disney and Rowling been able to forge a creative partnership...

You bring up a great point. People would be praising Potter's longevity if Disney had acquired the rights!

In fact I was watching HP and the Sorcerer's Stone on ABC Family (oh the irony) last night. The movie isn't stale. Not by a long shot. Not only is the film not stale, Harry Potter for my generation has been what we have grown up with. Books that were so good we would rush to the store to purchase it on opening day, and stay up till 4am that night relishing every page and wanting desperately to find out what happens next. Rowling made reading "fun" and allowed people of all ages to develop this magical world in their imagination. A magical world that was adapted to the big screen in one of the most lucrative film franchises to date. All of this culminated in a visceral theme park land straight out of the books and films to wrap all of this excitement into one fantastic experience (which will be even more enhanced this summer.

But yeah... it's just a fad

 

[lazyboy97o]

Unless of course WDI has off balance sheet entities which some of the money goes to. That being said I'm not an accounting professional so other than being able to read a balance sheet and P&L and understand it I would not be able to set up an accounting system.

Ah's just an engineer with a memory for dirty numerical tricks. But WHAT IS the explanation for WDI being 10-20x as expensive than other creative organizations.

The hows and whys of Walt Disney Imagineering's higher costs have been explained. It has to do primarily with the organizational structure. Nobody else maintains such a large staff or involves so many people in the process all bogged down by meetings and decisions made by committees.

 

[GoofGoof]

Unless of course WDI has off balance sheet entities which some of the money goes to. That being said I'm not an accounting professional so other than being able to read a balance sheet and P&L and understand it I would not be able to set up an accounting system.

Ah's just an engineer with a memory for dirty numerical tricks. But WHAT IS the explanation for WDI being 10-20x as expensive than other creative organizations.

I think it's pretty much what @lazyboy97o said. Just a very inefficient cost structure in a high cost labor market.