The Birth Of Flynn's Arcade...

Twenty-Eight years ago today, Walt Disney Productions released "TRON" on an unsuspecting (and unready) public...

And Decadent Dave would never be the same. The film went on to make a disappointing $33 million dollars with a 17 million dollar budget. The film was one of a collection of underwhelming box office performers greenlit by Ron Miller. This was another nail in the coffin of Miller's career as head of the studio/company. Less than two years later, Ron would be gone and a young executive from Paramount named Michael Eisner, that he had tried to recruit to run the film division would be in his place.

Almost three decades later, Eisner is now gone and a sequel to the film Miller thought would help bring Disney back in touch with the modern youth (that abandoned Mickey in the mid-70's/early-80's) would be coming out in theaters. I wonder if this December, Ron will sit down in front of a silver screen to watch this and have a slight smile on his face.

Karma...

Perspectives In Tangent: Tokyo Disneyland Hotel...

Reservation for one, please...





That is gonna cost how much...
Today is the second anniversary of the opening of the Tokyo Disneyland Hotel...

And it's an incredibly beautiful design to add to the list of Disney Hotels/Resorts (not as stunning as the DisneySEA Hotel MiraCosta, but amazing nonetheless). When Tokyo Disneyland opened back in 1983, all of the hotels were essentially owned by other companies and the Oriental Land Company was in a similar situation like Walt with the original Disneyland Hotel. When the park was expanded to become a resort, there was a plan to include Disney themed hotels that would compliment the resort and expand the revenue for the OLC. But the two hotels that were built, the Disney Ambassador and Mira Costa, while great hotels, didn't include that iconic name. But with the successful expansion of the park to resort status, a plan was put into place for another hotel to satisfy the Japanese obsession with Disney. The third hotel would be their very own Disneyland Hotel, and it would be built right in front of the entrance to the park, much like the Disneyland Hotel Paris that you go under to get to the gates of Disneyland Paris. It will/now is the largest of the three Japanese Disney themed hotels with 705 guests rooms, a huge, lounge lobby level and two restaurants. The TDLH has four banquet rooms, as well as four shops that offer Disney merchandise, gifts, clothing, ect.
Now that is what I call a lot of money...




Like the other moniker hotels, it shares a Victorian/Mictorian theme that evokes the idyllic days of Walt's youth. Modeled in colors reminiscent of Cinderella Castle, it is an impressive and detailed enhancement to an already impressive park. Much like an exclamation point on a sentence.



I thought we'd take the opportunity to look at some lovely examples of what a Disneyland Hotel, particularly this one, can and should look like. While our own original in Anaheim gets updated, this one shows you what can be done with a parking lot once Imagineers get hold of it.
Wow, that's purty...



I'll pay any price...

If you'd like to see an extensive collection of pictures and video of this fabulous hotel then click on this post over at Disney and More and immerse yourself in the magic. It's going to be interesting to see how the original Disneyland Hotel will compare once it's makeover is done in 2012. It's not really the same kind of hotel to compare it to though, since it's more California's version of the Contemporary really.



Then again, there are those other hotel plans you could compare it to...

The Color Of Money...

The world is a carousel of color...


There's a lot of colorful bling on the nighttime scene...

If you've seen Disney California Adventure's "World of Color" night time show, then you've more than likely have seen the many things you can buy to show all those that haven't seen it that you have.

Disney is never one to miss an opportunity to market something to its guests and to milk it for everything it's worth. This isn't an insult by the way, I happen to have several shirts from this thing as well.

I figured we would take this opportunity to show you that haven't seen it, some (but not all) of the items you can spend some green to show some color. Or, show the world that you've seen the world.




Last night, a group of friends and I spent the evening watching the 4th of July fireworks at Disneyland and then went over to DCA for that new swanky, water show. If you were there, you would have seen me. I was wearing this...







It comes in light blue and pink as well. I don't own a pink one, btw.

Not enough info? Well, my lovely date was wearing this...







And a good friend tagging along happened to be wearing this...









And his lady-friend was wearing this...







When she wanted this...







When it got a little chillier, I put on this...







Because this would have been too spot on for me...








And after watching the show from the shower that is the front section, I dried off with this...





Of course, they offer several items exclusively for Annual Passholders as well, like this pin...






I don't know why anyone, even a kid would one of these goofy, useless things...





I mean, one of those rainbow lightsabers would've been better.

Then there were the people I saw walking around wearing bracelets like these...



I was hungry, but we decided to wait until later. Flavored popcorn is not my thing...




But those drinks were tasty, once alcohol was added, I mean...



And this glass was magical. Literally, because it changes colors depending on what you put in it. If you put orange juice, it turns orange. If you put grape juice it turns purple. If you put water in it, it miraculously turns transparent...



And those balloons that glow are interesting, but I'd hate to be the kid that wakes up the next day to find it flat. I swear it was glowing and floating last night, dad...






And that's only some of the things you can buy while there. But I think Disney has done a great job of creating interest in the show and watching these things fly off the shelves shows that guest really like it. It's nice to see people coming into the resorts sister park for something only it has. Instead of people coming simply because they have one more day on their pass and they haven't checked out the other park yet.

Change is coming and this is only the beginning and it's good to see some fruit of the TLC that this part of the Disney Empire is getting. It's slow, but it is happening.

I can't wait till they start working on that new front entrance that is going to give the park it's own version of what Main Street is to Disneyland. It now has it's own version of "Fantasmic!" to get guests into the park.

It's going to be interesting to see what becomes this park's "Pirates of the Caribbean" attraction as we move into the second decade of this second gate...

1300 Turn 234...

Happy 4th of July! 1300 words celebrating our liberty were put with a quill in ink upon paper this very day. A day on which we celebrate the freedoms that our Founding Fathers gave to us on this historic event in 1776. You may not believe it, but there was a time early on when people didn't really know which day to celebrate our founding, either the Declaration of Independence, which was signed on July 4, 1776, or when the Constitution was passed on September 17, 1787. It took many years for the tradition to take hold and become the celebration we now know it as. By the time our fiftieth anniversary had come along, it had taken hold and on that occasion, something very poignant happened.

Our second President(John Adams) and third President(Thomas Jefferson) both died on that day... in the same year, 1826... just as we were celebrating the 50th anniversary of the United States of America! And the president at the time was John Quincy Adams, the son of the former president. Both Adams and Jefferson had been bitter rivals in the early days of our founding. Years later, they started up a correspondence and eventually became friends. But the rivalry still remained. When John Adams breathed his last breath he was heard to say: "Jefferson still lives." But he was wrong. Jefferson had passed away a few hours before him earlier that day. Coincidence? No. Not in my belief, at least.

Providence, it was providence.

Happy 234th Birthday, America! Everyone go out and celebrate the freedoms and liberty given to us by our Creator, acknowledged by our Founders and defended by our Forefathers...

Port Of Origin...

Hard to believe it's been two decades since the inspiration for Tokyo DisneySEA was proposed...

Twenty years ago this month, the Walt Disney Company revealed the plans that it had been developing for its property in Long Beach harbor: Port Disney. A huge entertainment resort featuring an outdoor mall, boardwalk, five hotels, cruise ship ports, 400 slits and a theme park based on the exploration of the ocean know as Disneysea. Sadly, because of bureaucratic red tap and political posturing by the California Coastal Commission it was not to be. It would have been interesting to see how the creation of this park would have changed the City of Long Beach and the surrounding community.



But it was not meant to be.

But from these amazing plans did come the birth of the most beautiful Disney theme park, Tokyo DisneySEA. Happy anniversary, Port Disney. We didn't really get to know you, but we've gotten to love your distant cousin.

Dare to dream...

Twenty-Six Versus 26...

It's like a mirror...




I've seen a lot of comments hating on Andrew Garfield because he's too old...

But he's an actor and as long as he can play the part and look the part, it won't matter. And one thing many people don't realize is that he and Tobey Maguire are about the exact same age of each other when they were picked to play the character. Tobey was 26 and he played a high school character named Peter Parker. Andrew Garfield is 26 and will be playing a high school character named Peter Parker.

Some out there are saying that this is the "Twilighting" of Spider-Man, but I really don't think so. Once he gets a haircut, I don't think Andrew will look anything like Edward. ;)

But I hear the take on the character will be much more personal this time. And I think with Marc Webb involved, the arc of the story will be a very genuine portrayal of a high school kid that becomes a superhero. One of my favorite films last year was "500 Days of Summer," and Sony picking the director of that to handle this reboot tells me volumes as to how much they care about getting the story right and caring about respecting the characters from the comic books.

Oh, and having Disney breathing down your neck, making sure you don't violate your agreement so that the rights revert back to them helps too...

Not So Friendly Representation...

Curse you, Spider-Man...


Whoa, denied...

I have a tingling spidey-sense that someone's agents/representatives are going to get canned. Spidey won't be Josh after all. Josh's representation reportedly played hardball at the last moment and wound up losing big time. Webb and Sony pulled the offer and, well, you can read the press release:

CULVER CITY, Calif., July 1, 2010 – After a comprehensive worldwide casting search, Andrew Garfield has been chosen to portray Peter Parker when Spider-Man swings back onto the screen in 3D on July 3, 2012. The new film will begin production in early December directed by Marc Webb from a screenplay by James Vanderbilt. Laura Ziskin and Avi Arad will produce the film from Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios.

Today’s confirmation culminates what has been one of the most eagerly anticipated casting announcements in recent memory. Bloggers, pop culture speculators, and everyday fans have pored over and analyzed every conceivable online rumor in an attempt to discover the identity of the next actor to play Peter Parker. Garfield will immediately begin preparing for the coveted role.

The Spider-Man franchise is one of the most successful in film history and the three previous motion pictures have collectively grossed more than $2.5 billion in worldwide box office.

On selecting Garfield, director Marc Webb said, “Though his name may be new to many, those who know this young actor’s work understand his extraordinary talents. He has a rare combination of intelligence, wit, and humanity. Mark my words, you will love Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker.”

Commenting on the announcement, Amy Pascal, co-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Matt Tolmach, President of Columbia Pictures said, “Spider-Man is a classic superhero -- a young man who balances his responsibility to serve humanity and crush evil with the shyness and normalcy of someone struggling to find himself. The role demands an extraordinary actor. You need someone who can magically transform himself from Peter Parker into Spider-Man. An actor who will depict the vulnerability of youth and the strength and confidence of a legendary figure at the same moment. We have found that actor in Andrew Garfield. From the first time we saw him in the upcoming film The Social Network, to his glorious screen test, which floored all of us, we knew that we had found our new Peter Parker.”

Producer Avi Arad added, “I’m incredibly excited about Andrew Garfield. In the Spider-Man tradition, we were looking for a smart, sensitive, and cool new Peter Parker who can inspire us and make us laugh, cry, and cheer. We believe we have found the perfect choice to take on this role and lead us into the future.”

Producer Laura Ziskin said, “We are thrilled to have Andrew Garfield for this new incarnation of Spider-Man under Marc Webb’s direction. We were fortunate enough to meet with a group of fantastically talented young men. In the end, we all agreed that in addition to being an extraordinary actor, Andrew had the right mix of humor, youth, and pathos, along with an underlying sense of strength and power necessary to bring Peter Parker and Spider-Man to life on screen.”

The selection of Garfield was revealed at a press event in Cancun, Mexico for international journalists attending a media tour promoting upcoming films from Sony Pictures Entertainment. B-roll footage of the announcement will be available via satellite later this evening -- see uplink times coordinate information below.

Garfield is fast becoming one of the most respected and sought-after young actors working in the industry today. In a short career, spanning only five years, he has already been directed by, and starred alongside, some of the greatest names and received a BAFTA for a role that won him international praise.

Garfield most recently worked with director David Fincher on the upcoming film The Social Network. He previously starred for Spike Jonze on his robot love story I’m Here, which premiered at Sundance this year. He plays the lead male opposite Keira Knightley and Carey Mulligan in Mark Romanek’s Never Let Me Go, due for release later this year.

Other notable screen credits include Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus playing opposite Christopher Plummer, Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, Jude Law and the late Heath Ledger, Robert Redford’s Lions For Lambs, where he starred alongside Redford, Tom Cruise and Meryl Streep; Revolution Films’ “Red Riding Trilogy – 1974” directed by Julian Jarrold, where he lead a stellar cast including Rebecca Hall and David Morrissey, and his unforgettable portrayal of a young ex-con in John Crowley’s “Boy A,” for which he earned the best actor BAFTA in 2008.

Garfield’s career began in theatre and in 2006 his performances in “Beautiful Thing” (Sound Space/Kit Productions), “The Overwhelming,” and “Burn / Chatroom / Citizenship” (Royal National Theatre) won him the Milton Shulman Award for Outstanding Newcomer at the Evening Standard awards and the Jack Tinker Award for Most Promising Newcomer at the Critics Circle Theatre Awards. Other notable theatre credits include “Romeo and Juliet” (Manchester Royal Exchange) and “Kes” (Manchester Royal Exchange), for which he received the Most Promising Newcomer Award at the Manchester Evening News Awards 2004.

Oh well, you win some, you lose some. Hutcherson will have to hope that he'll play his hero (Batman) someday. Looks like the Number Two choice is now the Number One...

UPDATE: If you go over to Ain't It Cool News, they've got video of the introduction and a couple of pictures as well. If Andrew looks a little surprised, it's because he was. He found out ten minutes before the announcement that he was Spider-Man. I wonder how soon before that Josh found out that he wasn't?