Pixar’s The Good Dinosaur details emerge! & Brave’s Jobs tribute!

LA Times shares details on Pixar’s upcoming prehistoric adventure The Good Dinosaur. Directed by Bob Peterson, in The Good Dinosaur, “an asteroid never hit the Earth and dinosaurs still roam.” Peterson adds that the inspiration for the movie came from a childhood visit to the World’s Fair where he was awed by some dinosaur animatronics. Co-directed by Peter Sohn and produced by John Walker, The Good Dinosaur is slated for a May 30, 2014 release.

And - The Wall Street Journal confirms the unsurprising news that Pixar’s upcoming film Brave is dedicated to Steve Jobs, the founder and CEO of the company until its sale to Disney. In the credits he “is lauded as a partner, mentor and friend”.

Restoring Laugh-O-Gram Studio & New 2012 stamps to feature Disney/Pixar characters!

A group called Thank You Walt Disney Inc. are in the final stages of fundraising in an attempt to revitalize Laugh-O-Gram, Disney’s first professional animation studio, according to the Kansas City Star. The group’s plans include an interactive historical site, an educational museum, and, if they raise enough money, a working animation and digital media studio.

And - The First-Day-of-Issue dedication ceremony of the Mail a Smile Forever Stamps featuring Disney/Pixar characters will be held at 9 a.m. Friday, June 1 at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista.

The Postal Service celebrates the second of two stamp sheets featuring beloved Disney•Pixar characters. Following up on Send a Hello stamps issued in 2011, the Mail a Smile stamp sheet includes five different designs spotlighting:

Flik and Dot from “A Bug’s Life” (1998); Bob Parr (Mr. Incredible) and Dashiell “Dash” Parr from “The Incredibles” (2004), with “Dash” also shown running in the background; Nemo and Squirt from “Finding Nemo” (2003); Woody, Bullseye, and Jessie from “Toy Story 2” (1999); and Boo, Mike Wazowski, and James P. “Sulley” Sullivan from “Monsters, Inc.” (2001).

The back of the stamp pane shows blue-pencil sketches of characters from these movies interspersed among text that exhorts readers to “mail a smile” to a loved one. Art director William J. Gicker of Washington, DC, worked with Disney/Pixar to design the stamp art.

To attend the event, the public must RSVP by registering at the following website :http://www.rsvptrack.com/pixarstamps.

KH 10th Anniversary: 'Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance' (3DS) Shows Off New Locations!

It's Kingdom Hearts 10 Anniversary and in honor of it King Mickey and Yen Sid prepare for an impending threat by putting Sora and Riku through the Mark of Mastery exam. Sora and Riku are sent into the Sleeping Worlds, where they will face enemies and allies that have never been seen before. If they can successfully complete the task they are given, they will be deemed true Keyblade Masters. 

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance's story promises to be a fun backdrop to the colorful cast of Disney characters making their 3-D debut on a handheld title. In addition to new worlds, Kingdom Hearts 3D will feature never-before-seen gameplay elements for the series.


Our heroes Sora and Riku experience two new worlds never before seen in the KINGDOM HEARTS series, meeting Quasimodo and Esmeralda at a dazzling festival in La Cité Des Cloches, and encountering a trio of brave swordsmen and true Disney royalty in The Country of Musketeers

Game Cover.

Features

• Dual protagonists – Play as the two most popular characters of the franchise, Sora and Riku.
• “Free-flow” action – Enjoy fast and effortless movements while interacting with the environment and performing acrobatic attacks.
• Brand-new creatures –Dream Eaters inhabit the Sleeping Worlds, and are split into two categories: Spirits and Nightmares. Recruit over 50 different types of Spirits as allies to fight alongside Sora and Riku.
• New Disney worlds –Beloved Disney worlds and characters, such as La Cité des Cloches (The Hunchback of Notre Dame), make their series debut.
• Story progression – With updated looks for Sora and Riku, and the impending conflict made clear, this title is a big step forward in the series.

Happy Memorial Day! from "TDDF" (Disney soldier style)

Disney hopes Cars Land makes California Adventure a golden state!

From: latimes.com - For more than a decade, Disney California Adventure Park has been putt-putting along in the slow lane, trailing its neighbor Disneyland in the race for big attendance numbers.

A new 12-acre expansion called Cars Land, set to be unveiled June 15, is the latest and by far biggest attempt to get the laggard theme park up to speed.

Based on the hit animated "Cars" movies made by Walt Disney Co.'s Pixar studio, Cars Land will include a racing convertible ride, square-dancing tractors and plenty of opportunities to buy themed merchandise.

It's the crowning effort of a $1.1-billion, multiyear attempt to turn California Adventure into a park where visitors will want to stay at least an entire day.

"I believe the completion will result in a park that will both stand on its own," Disney Chief Executive Robert A. Igerrecently told financial analysts, "but also serve as an important and worthy neighbor to Disneyland."

The investment highlights the importance of theme parks as a powerful revenue engine for Disney. In the first three months of this year, parks and resorts generated nearly $2.9 billion, representing a 10% increase from the same period in 2011.

That strong performance helped Disney overcome a 12% drop in revenue from its movie studio division, which that quarter took a huge write-down from the disastrous "John Carter" flop.

Still, Disney's parks face aggressive competition in the race to create attendance-boosting attractions.

Universal Studios Hollywood last week opened a high-tech, 3-D ride — estimated to cost $100 million — based on the "Transformers" movies. Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia will debut a record 400-foot-tall drop-tower ride named for Superman's archenemy, Lex Luthor.

California Adventure has been an underperformer almost from the time it opened amid much hype in 2001. Visitors entered under a mock-up of the Golden Gate Bridge to the park that included a boardwalk-style roller coaster, river rafting ride and Ferris wheel, all themed to celebrate the culture and lifestyle of the Golden State.

What was missing, said many park guests as well as analysts, was Disney.

There was almost no trace of the studio's hallmark movie characters, such as Mickey, Goofy and Donald. And the high-tech wizardry that awed crowds at other Disney parks was mostly missing.

"The problem was that there was nothing iconic in that park," said Dennis Speigel, president of International Theme Park Services, a Cincinnati-based consultant to the industry. "Here is a company that knew how to build a spaceship but instead they built a Piper Cub" single-prop plane.

Over the years, attractions were added or adapted to Disney-fy the park more. One of the original rides, the Orange Stinger, was wrapped in a shell that looked like a giant orange. After a few years, the shell came off. The ride was redecorated with images of Mickey Mouse, and the name was changed to Silly Symphony Swings after an early Disney series of animated cartoons.

Two years ago, the park unveiled World of Color, an attraction that projects Disney movie scenes on hundreds of jets of water that shoot up from a man-made pool, highlighted by eruptions of fire.

Attendance still lagged. In 2010, California Adventure drew slightly more than 6 million visitors, while Disneyland welcomed about 17 million, according to estimates issued by the Themed Entertainment Assn. and the AECOM engineering and consulting firm. Disney does not release attendance figures.

To make matters worse, analysts said, many of those who visited California Adventure probably owned annual passes that gave them access to both parks. Disney had hoped visitors would spend a full day in each park and stay at a Disney hotel overnight. But pass holders such as Pam Wycliffe tend to visit California Adventure for only a few hours, diminishing the opportunities to sell them merchandise or food.

"I would only go for a handful of rides and then leave," said Wycliffe, a graphic designer from Novato, Calif.

Construction of the major overhaul and expansion of the park — including Cars Land, a new entryway depicting 1920s Los Angeles and the already opened World of Color — began in 2009.

Disney/UTV's "Arjun" opens worldwide, limited in USA!

The Indian Disney animated film Arjun: The Warrior Prince opens worldwide today, but just in a limited release in the United States -- only 10 theatres so far according to Box Office Mojo. The film, in Hindi with English subtitles, is a joint UTV Motion Pictures and Walt Disney Pictures production. Twitch has more about the movie, while the Los Angeles Times has a review. One can only hope that Disney gives this a proper DVD/Bluray release (dubbed in English, we would hope!) soon in the US.

TDDF Article's: My Disney Obsession!

Today we present TDDF's "Disney Fan Articles", and todays fan articles comes from a VERY nice lady (and friend on TDDF and "faMOUSE" Facebook person in the Disney fan community!) Barbara Naness! enJoy!

My first trip to Walt Disney World was in 1986 and it was love at first sight. Soon we started going every year, then twice a year, then more and more often.

Sure, we enjoyed the rides and shows, but it was so much more than that. Walking into any Disney park is like stepping into a fantastic show in which you are the star. You’re surrounded by the magic, the fun and the excitement of a whole new world. The atmosphere envelops you and you become a part of the fantasy.

In 1998 my husband Al and I moved from New York to Orlando just to be near The Mouse. We have since decorated our house inside and out, top to bottom in Disney. A friend  dubbed our home NanessWorld, and we truly feel as if we are surrounded, on a daily basis, by pixie dust, magical moments, and happily ever afters.

Because our Disney vacations had been so frequent, we were  annual passholders long before we moved to Orlando. But now we get to go to the parks VERY often - several times a week - and every time I walk under the train station at the Magic Kingdom and step out onto Main Street USA, I become four years old again.

I still enjoy everything from taking character pictures and looking for Hidden Mickeys, to riding It’s a Small World and just strolling through the park eating a Mickey Ice Cream Bar. My favorite rides are Tower of Terror, Soarin' and Splash Mountain.

I guess you can say I really do love all things Disney!

If you or another Disney fan you know would like to submit a "TDDF: Disney FAN Article" drop us a line on our FB Page! We'll be MORE than happy to share it here on the TDDF site!

Disney moves forward with ABC Studios project at Golden Oak Ranch!

From latimes.com - A half-century ago, Walt Disney leased a horse ranch in Placerita Canyon to shoot episodes of “The Adventures of Spin and Marty” from the classic ABC series “The Mickey Mouse Club.” 

Disney liked the property, with its rich variety of meadows, oak groves and mountains, so much that he began buying up land, eventually accumulating 890 acres. Over the decades, the storied Golden Oak Ranch, located in an unincorporated area of northeast Los Angeles County, has been used as backdrop for countless Disney TV shows and movies, including “Old Yeller” and “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End.”

Now Walt Disney Co. is moving closer to transforming part of the historic movie ranch into one of the largest high-tech production developments in the last decade – and the public will soon get its first say on the project.

Disney proposed plans in 2009 to build a multi-hundred-million-dollar production center for ABC Studios, complete with a dozen sound stages, offices, mill shops, writer bungalows and a commissary.

The Burbank-based entertainment conglomerate recently completed a key stage in the planning process – a draft environmental impact report – and will hold the first of several public hearings on the development and its impact on June 4. If approved by the regional planning commission and the county’s Board of Supervisors, Disney/ABC Studios at the Ranch could open by 2016.

Already, Disney has been promoting its plans to local residents, sending out brochures touting the economic benefits, saying the complex would create 3,152 construction jobs, in addition to 2,854 positions once completed, and contribute $533 million annually to the county’s economy.

“We believe it’s going to have a huge impact on our economy,’’ said Jonas Peterson, chief executive of the Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corp. “We’ve seen overwhelming positive support from the community.”

Disney said the development would affect only 6% of the ranch, on two mostly barren parcels of land, preserving most of the property as natural backdrop. Plans also call for restoring a portion of Placerita Creek with natural vegetation, planting 1,600 oak trees to replace 158 that will be removed, and adding a nature trail to connect to existing trails in the Los Angeles National Forest.

“We saw we could create what hasn’t existed since the 1930s – a major studio facility adjacent to a large-scale movie ranch,’’ said Richard Ballering, vice president of production operations for ABC Studios. “It creates a better economic model that hopefully provides us greater opportunities to shoot in Southern California.”

The complex would span 58 acres and up to half a million square feet of production and office space. Few large sound stages have been built in Southern California in the last decade because so much production has flocked to such states as Louisiana, Georgia and New York, which is opening five new sound stages at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

Still, demand for sound stage space remains tight in this region because of the growth of television programming, ABC’s Ballering said.

ABC Studios produces 14 to 18 TV shows at any given time in the L.A. area, including “Castle,” “Cougar Town” and “Private Practice." ABC has long since outgrown available space at its studio in Burbank and currently rents sound stages at various locations throughout the county to accommodate its shows.

Golden Oak Ranch, which gets its name from the mini gold rush that occurred nearby in the 1840s, already is a busy movie ranch that handles filming more than 300 days a year. Its versatile landscape makes it a popular shooting location for such TV shows  as “CSI,”  “Sons of Anarchy” and “Criminal Minds,” as well as feature films that have included “Pearl Harbor” and “The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement.” Another draw is that the ranch is within the so-called 30-mile zone from West Los Angeles. Productions that stay within the zone pay lower rates to crews.

New outdoor sets that have already been built on the ranch include a residential street with 13 steel-frame houses, each with different architectural styles; and a business district with brownstone buildings, shops and a courthouse. The buildings were designed with straight clear roof lines, making it easier to create “virtual set extensions” or digitally created backgrounds that can make the street appear as though it’s in the Rocky Mountains or in Boston.

The combination of the outdoor sets and ranch vistas with the proposed new sound stages will make it possible to shoot entire shows without having to leave the property. That can cut down the costs of shooting in residential neighborhoods and moving fleets of film trucks and trailers from one site to the next, Ballering said.

“By pairing sound stages with what the movie ranch has to offer,'' he said, “you’re creating efficiencies, which makes it more economical to produce television shows here.’’

A rendering of the proposed ABC Studios complex at Disney's Golden Oak Ranch. (Disney/ABC Studios/ May 22, 2012)

The Avengers tops all Disney films! & Disney Abruptly Pulls Plug on Action Epic "Order of the Seven"!

BusinessWeek reports that with $1.18 billion in global sales in the bank in just three weeks, The Avengers has become the highest-grossing film in Disney history — more than the $1.07 billion the previous leader, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, earned over it’s entire theatrical run. Domestically the film has just passed Star Wars to become the #5 grossing movie of all time, according to Hollywood.com.

And - Disney has abruptly shelved its China-set epic The Order of the Seven because of concerns over its sizable, but undisclosed,budget, Heat Vision reports. Sources attribute the studio’s sudden unease to renewed financial scrutiny in the aftermath of John Carter.

In development for more than a decade, the film began as a retelling of Snow White set in 19th-century China — it was initially called Snow and the Seven — but evolved into a more original story, with those fairy-tale elements minimized. The most recent version of the script followed a band of international warriors belonging to a centuries-old order who have their way. But when they’re tasked with protecting an Englishwoman pursued by an ancient evil, they begin their journey down the road to redemption.

The Order of the Seven was to mark the feature debut for commercials director Michael Gracey — reportedly another cause of nervousness — with Saoirse Ronan (The Lovely Bones, Hanna) set to star. Further indication of just how unexpected Disney’s decision was: Casting was already under way for the roles of the warriors, and the studio only last week hired screenwriting duo Mark Ferbus and Hawk Ostby (Children of Men, Iron Man) to polish the script.

Although the movie didn’t have a release date, it was expected to go into production this summer.

The Muppets on ABC's "The Bachelorette" (Video)

If you missed it, last night Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, and Statler appeared on ABC's The Bachelorette. 


Check out it below! EnJoy! 

Disney to sell 'Where's My Water' merchandise!

It was only a matter of time, but Disney's mobile division announced they will start selling merchandise based on their hit iOS and Android game Where's My Water in June.
Products launching next month include plush toys, consumer electronic accessories and apparel.

In the fall, Disney will introduce other merchandise such as a "face-to-face" game, home accessories and Halloween costumes.
Where's My Water is a physics-based puzzle game where players must guide water through sewers to help a pair of alligators.
The game has been a huge hit for Disney, topping 1 million downloads on Android's Google Play store. It's currently the #6 paid app on iTunes.
Where's My Water is also the latest mobile hit to expand its empire into the world of toys and other apparel. Titles such as Angry Birds, Fruit Ninja and Cut The Rope have unveiled similar merchandising lines.

Now comes the big test. While not yet committed to giving Swampy the full backing of its vaunted franchise-building machine, Disney is dipping its toe into those waters. It is introducing a related line of merchandise at Toys ‘R’ Us stores — stuffed animals, figurines, T-shirts, backpacks — and featuring the character in a 12-episode Web series. Swampy will also make cameo appearances on the Disney Channel.

The first line, available in June at retailers nationwide, will feature plush toys, consumer electronic accessories, and apparel. Select items can already be purchased at Disney Store locations and online.

‘Avengers’ Is No. 1 again and, Becomes Disney’s Highest-Grossing Film!

“Marvel’s The Avengers” was the No. 1 movie at theaters in the U.S. and Canada for a third straight weekend, taking in $55.1 million for Walt Disney Co. (DIS) (DIS), and making it the studio’s highest-grossing film ever.

“Battleship” was second with ticket sales of $25.4 million, researcher Hollywood.com Box-Office said today in an e- mailed statement. Sacha Baron Cohen’s “The Dictator” opened in third place with $17.4 million and “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” was fifth in its debut with $10.5 million.

“The Avengers” is benefiting from positive word-of-mouth among moviegoers after Disney’s major marketing push ended, Paul Dergarabedian, president of Hollywood.com’s box-office unit, said in an interview. Since its first weekend the movie has overcome challenges from two major releases, this week’s “Battleship,” from Comcast Corp. (CMCSA)’s Universal Pictures, and Warner Bros.’s “Dark Shadows” last week.

“Great marketing can buy you a big opening weekend, but only a crowd-pleasing and solid movie can get you to where ‘The Avengers’ has gone,” Dergarabedian said in an interview.

“The Avengers” opened over the weekend of May 4 with a record $207.4 million in sales and set another record a week later with $103.1 million, the most ever for a film in its second weekend. It has become the highest-grossing film in Disney’s history with $1.18 billion in global sales, surpassing “Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man’s Chest,” which had $1.07 billion in worldwide sales, according to Hollywood.com.

“The Avengers,” made for $220 million, has helped generate a 16 percent increase in 2012 domestic sales, Hollywood.com said. Attendance is up 18 percent.

In the film, a collection of Marvel heroes, including Iron Man, Thor and The Hulk, band together to fight an army of aliens led by Loki, also a character from Norse mythology. The movie stars Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, Chris Hemsworth as Thor and Mark Ruffalo as The Hulk.

Disney Sets Jesse Wigutow To Script ‘Peter And The Starcatchers’

Disney has hired writer Jesse Wigutow to adapt the best-selling children’s novel, Peter and the Starcatchers, the 2004 book published by Disney’s Hyperion which gives the backstory for the iconic Peter Pan character.


Co-authored by Dave Barry and Ridley Pierson, the book has become a hot property, with the current Broadway adaptation having just nabbed nine Tony Award nominations, including Best Play. Peter and the Starcatchers is the first in a series of books by the authors, giving franchise potential to the project.

Disney unveils new facts about Cars Land

Disney's Cars Land is meant to give visitors a feel of walking right into Radiator Springs, the town in the "Cars" movies.

And Disney is adding a lot of touches to bring the new 12-acre land to life when it officially opens June 15 at Disney California Adventure. Preview days for annual passholders, Disney fan club members and other guests will be held the weekend before.

“When you walk into Route 66, you feel like you’ve stepped into this movie, but it’s real,” said Mary Niven, vice president of Disney California Adventure.

Last week, Disney gave a group of about 30 writers a sneak peek into Cars Land, including a food sampling at Flo's V8 Cafe. Disney officials also revealed some new details at a showcase and during interviews.

Here are some features of Cars Land:

During the summer, Disney California Adventure will begin opening early at the same time as Disneyland, usually at 8 a.m. Early entrance into Cars Land will be allowed for some visitors.

The Mater and Lightning McQueen characters will move and talk, unlike the static cars that now are staged in Disney California Adventure. Mater and Lightning McQueen mostly will be based at the Cozy Cone Motel, but also will travel down Route 66.

Fastpasses for Radiator Springs Racers, the largest ride, will be available outside Cars Land by It's Tough to Be a Bug theater.

Radiator Springs Racers will have 23 full-size, animatronic figures from the first "Cars" movie. The height requirement is 42 inches.

A neon lighting, including the illumination of the mountain range, will be held each night.

A popcorn bucket shaped like Lightning McQueen and a drink cup shaped like a Cozy Cone Motel will be sold at the motel food stands.

Flo's V8 Cafe is based on MidPoint Cafe in Texas, famous for its "ugly crust" pies.

Flo's has retro light fixtures, 1950s music and juke boxes by the cash registers. Checkered flags line the windows. Artwork includes mechanic licenses and a diagram of a healthy combustion chamber.

Flo’s has retro decor, including a starburst-like light fixture surrounded by fading pink and blue lights at the entrance. Jukeboxes sit by cash registers. Artwork includes mechanic licenses and a diagram of a healthy combustion chamber.

Disney Epic Mickey 2: Behind the scenes with Warren Spector!

Take an exclusive behind the scenes look at the making of the Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two video game - see new gameplay features and take an exclusive behind the scenes look at the making of the game.


 Meet some of the key people behind the creation of the game, and get a deeper understanding into features, mechanics and storyline. In "Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two", gamers will play as Mickey Mouse and for the first time ever, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Walt Disney’s first cartoon star, in an all-new adventure of creativity and discovery. Mickey and Oswald will join forces as true partners - Mickey with his magical paint brush that allows him to wield paint and thinner, and Oswald with his powerful remote control that allows him to command electricity. All characters—most notably Oswald The Lucky Rabbit whose voice will be heard for the first time—will communicate by speaking to the player.

How 'Avengers' Silenced Critics of Disney's Marvel Deal & We remember MUPPET creator, Jim Henson today!

From THR.com - When Disney announced nearly three years ago that it had agreed to acquire Marvel Entertainment for $4.3 billion, some in the industry and on Wall Street fretted that the price was too high, given that it represented a 29 percent premium on a stock that already was trading near a 52-week high. Shares of Disney fell 3 percent that day, and Standard & Poor's placed the company's credit rating on its negative watch list.

"There was a huge amount of pessimism" about the deal, recallsTony Wible of Janney Capital Markets. "Now it looks like Disney might have underpaid."

What a difference a record-shattering opening makes. The Avengers earned $207 million domestically during its first weekend and crossed the global $1 billion mark in only 19 days. Disney stock was up 6 percent from the film's domestic bow through May 14. Now Wible thinks Disney chief Bob Iger's purchase of Marvel was smarter than his 2006 acquisition of Pixar for $7.4 billion. "They're just scratching the surface with the amount of intellectual property they have with Marvel," he says. "It's broader and deeper than people appreciate, and Disney will push that brand into TV, theme parks, cruise lines and merchandising."

A veteran industry executive agrees. "There are not only going to be three or four sequels to The Avengers, but this builds up the brand equity of all the characters in the movie," he says. "Mark Ruffalo actually has a shot at a Hulk movie. It's clear it was a good purchase."

On May 14, Wunderlich Securities analyst Matthew Harrigan sent clients a 32-page note about Disney titled, "Marvel Acquisition Suddenly Thor's Hammer." In it, he called Marvel -- along with Pixar -- "the bedrock for the studio," which he said "could credibly return up to $1 billion" in annual profits. He also called Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige "a top contender" to replace departed studio headRich Ross. (Feige told a Bloomberg reporter May 12 that he has "a very good job right now.")

Iger still faces significant challenges at the Disney studio, which suffered a $200 million write-down and the dismissal of Ross in the wake of John Carter. The CEO is seeking new film leadership amid plenty of industry criticism concerning Disney's limited homegrown slate.

But the Carter write-down looks far less painful through the lens of Avengers, which will throw off profits during the next few quarters and fuel licensing and theme park revenue (a Marvel-centric attraction is said to be under consideration for Disney's planned Shanghai park). More important, says BTIG analyst Richard Greenfield, "The key for Disney is that the film studio is not the be all, end all. The real driver of Disney and the reason it's been on a tear is that its brands are increasingly powerful."

And - today, May 16th, we remember MUPPET creator JIM HENSON!

ABC chief updates 'Incredible Hulk,' 'Jessica Jones,' more from Marvel

Hot off his successful Ruffalo-ed reboot in "The Avengers," Marvel's Incredible Hulk could get another makeover soon for the small screen.

In a conference call to discuss the network's new fall schedule, ABC Entertainment Group President Paul Lee said multiple Marvel projects are in active development. (Both ABC and Marvel are under the umbrella of The Walt Disney Company.)

"Of course we're immensely proud to be in a company with 'The Avengers,'" Lee said. "The Hulk is in development. It wasn't going to be ready for this season but we hope will be ready for next season."

Lee also acknowledged development on an unnamed Marvel project for Fox (most likely "The Punisher"). "We're going to continue to develop aggressively. We're very happy to make shows not just for our own network but for other networks too," Lee said. "Where the shows are more appropriate to our brand they'll go with us. Where they're more appropriate to brands like Fox or NBC, CBS, happy to do that too. We would like to see some Marvel projects move to television."

Although Lee wasn't willing to reveal titles of any other properties in development, he did provide an unencouraging update on the status of "AKA Jessica Jones." "Twilight" screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg was attached to a TV series based on Marvel's female P.I. hero, but Rosenberg has since moved on to a new series on ABC's midseason schedule: "Red Widow," starring Radha Mitchell as a mafia widow out to avenge her husband's death.

"I hope when you see 'Red Widow' you're going to be very excited about that," Lee said, noting the status of "Jessica Jones" as: "We have other development which probably is further at the front the queue."

Outside of animation, the history of Marvel properties on television is limited. An "Incredible Hulk" TV series starring Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno aired on CBS from 1978-82.

'Avengers' continues record-breaking box office run!

LOS ANGELES — "The Avengers" is taking a page out of Superman's comic book — flying faster than a speeding bullet to the billion-dollar mark at the box office.

The superhero blockbuster took in $103.2 million to lead for a second-straight weekend, raising its domestic total to $373.2 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

With $95.4 million more overseas, "The Avengers" lifted its international receipts to $628.9 million and a worldwide haul of just over $1 billion, only 19 days after it began rolling out in some markets.

"You never think that it can happen this quickly," said Dave Hollis, head of distribution for Disney, whose Marvel Studios unit produced the ensemble film after a long buildup in its solo superhero outings. "You hope you can get to this day, and the fact that it is happening this early is a testament to a lot of work that went in on the Marvel side over the last six years to get us to a place where people wanted to see the Avengers assemble."

"The Avengers" easily fended off Johnny Depp and Tim Burton's vampire romp "Dark Shadows," which had a so-so domestic start of $28.8 million to finish a distant No. 2.

That's far below such past Depp-Burton collaborations as "Alice in Wonderland," which opened with $116.1 million, and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," which debuted with $56.2 million.

"Dark Shadows" added $36.7 million in 42 overseas markets for a worldwide total of $65.5 million.

"The Avengers" was the first movie ever to pull in more than $100 million domestically in its second weekend, passing the previous best of $75.6 million for "Avatar." The film also topped $300 million domestically Saturday after just nine days in release, beating the previous record set by "The Dark Knight," which hit that mark in 10 days.

Already the year's biggest hit worldwide, "The Avengers" is on the verge of passing "The Hunger Games" at $386.9 million to become the top-grossing film domestically for 2012.

Revenue for "The Avengers" was off just 50 percent from the film's domestic debut of $207.4 million the previous weekend, a remarkable hold given how big it started.

A round-up of such Marvel idols as Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Captain America (Chris Evans) and Thor (Chris Hemsworth), "The Avengers" has shot past the revenues that its solo superhero predecessors took in for their entire runs. The best of those domestically was "Iron Man" with $318.4 million.

"There has been a surprise around every corner with this picture in terms of how high is high and how big is big," Disney's Hollis said.

Inspired by the supernatural soap opera that debuted on TV in the mid-1960s, "Dark Shadows" stars Depp as an 18th century vampire who is freed after two centuries of burial and returns to his ancestral homestead in the 1970s, aiming to rebuild the family fortunes.

The TV show has only a cult following, so the Warner Bros. update relied on the lure of a reunion between frequent collaborators Depp and Burton taking on another otherworldly tale. But "Dark Shadows" left both critics and audiences cold, failing to make much of a dent in the intense appeal of "The Avengers."

"Certainly, more is better, but it was a busy weekend, especially with 'Avengers' doing $100 million in its second weekend," said Dan Fellman, head of distribution at Warner Bros. "The box office can only expand so much, and that was a hard one to anticipate. Those numbers are staggering."

Fox Searchlight's crowd-pleaser "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" broke into the top-10 in its second weekend as it expanded from a handful of cinemas to 178 theaters. The film took in $2.7 million to finish at No. 8.

"The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" features Judi Dench, Bill Nighy, Maggie Smith and Tom Wilkinson in a tale of older Brits looking to retire to a cozy life in India.

Also in narrower release of 322 theaters, Eva Mendes' comic drama "Girl in Progress" opened at No. 10 with $1.4 million. The Lionsgate release stars Mendes as a nomadic single mom with a precocious teenage daughter.

"The Avengers" again provided the bulk of Hollywood's business. Overall domestic revenues totaled $172 million, up 23 percent from the same weekend last year, when "Thor" led with $34.7 million, according to box-office tracker Hollywood.com.

Domestic receipts for the year are at $3.83 billion, 17.6 percent ahead of last year's with a huge summer lineup yet to come.

Hollywood.com analyst Paul Dergarabedian said he expects Hollywood to break the summer revenue record of $4.4 billion it set last year and top its all-time annual high of $10.6 billion from 2009.

"I think we will surpass that given the strength of just the first two weeks of the summer and the strength of the films on the way," Dergarabedian said. "Records are just made to be broken this summer and this year."

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Where available, latest international numbers are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.

1. "The Avengers," $103.2 million ($95.4 million international).

2. "Dark Shadows," $28.8 million ($36.7 million international).

3. "Think Like a Man," $6.3 million.

4. "The Hunger Games," $4.4 million ($2.4 million international).

5. "The Lucky One," $4.1 million ($2.5 million international).

6. "The Pirates! Band of Misfits," $3.2 million ($2.2 million)

7. "The Five-Year Engagement," $3.1 million ($1.7 million international).

8. "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel," $2.7 million ($1.9 million international).

9. "Chimpanzee," $1.6 million.

10. "Girl in Progress," $1.4 million.

"Brave" gets PG rating!

Disney and Pixar’s Brave has been rated PG for “scary action and some rude humor,” according to ComingSoon.net. The movie marks only the third time that Pixar has gotten such a rating for one of their films. It opens everywhere this June.

JHM.com's "Why For aren't the Marvel characters appearing in any of the Disney theme parks yet?"

Over at Jim ill Media.com theres a good read on for "Why For aren't the Marvel characters appearing in any of the Disney theme parks yet?" Read the rest HERE.


**To be blunt, at least as far as the stateside situation is concerned, the news is mixed. There is supposedly something Marvel-related in the works for Disney's California parks in the works could debut later this year (More on that further on down in today's article). Likewise there are definitely Marvel-themed shows and attractions in the works when it comes to the Shanghai Disneyland project.

But when it comes to the Florida properties, that window remains firmly shut / locked up tight. Thanks -- in large part -- to those master licensing agreements which Universal signed with Marvel back in the late 1990s, which then allowed the theme park arm of that company  to build Marvel Super Hero Island area at Universal's Islands of Adventure.**

‘Avengers’ Proves Marvel Exceeds Iger’s $4.2 Billion Cost!

From - businessweek.com: Walt Disney Co.(DIS) Chairman and Chief Executive Robert Iger said Marvel Entertainment’s value “far exceeds” the $4.2 billion paid for the business after its latest film set a box-office record.

“‘Avengers’ I think speaks volumes in terms of, not only the value of Marvel, but the value that Marvel can create long- term,” Iger said in an interview yesterday with Bloomberg Television’s Carol Massar. “We sit here today with a very clear blueprint about how to create more value from Marvel over the years. Value that I believe will far exceed what we paid for Marvel a few years ago.”

“Marvel’s The Avengers” generated a best-ever $207 million in ticket sales in its domestic debut last weekend, and its worldwide total now exceeds $775 million, according to Box Office Mojo, a film research website. It is the first Marvel film Disney distributed since purchasing the comic book publisher in 2009.

Iger, 61, Chief Financial Officer Jay Rasulo and television group co-Chairman Anne Sweeney appear today on Bloomberg Television’s “Inside Disney,” broadcast live from the company’s Burbank, California, headquarters.

Disney’s CEO, once a TV weatherman, said every project in the hit-or-miss film business is a nail-bitter.

“People would be surprised how late in the life of some of these projects, there’s still so much work to be done,” Iger said. “The uncertainty about whether it will be great or not lasts, exists I guess, pretty late in the process.”

‘Give it a Shot’

Disney’s March science-fiction release “John Carter” led to an $84 million operating loss at the film studio for the second quarter ended March 31. Studio chairman Rich Ross resigned in April.

Iger said he felt the $250 million movie was “very challenged” after viewing it prior to release. The company continued to promote it.

“I felt that given the size of the investment that we owed it to ourselves to at least give it the shot it deserved,” he said.

Screening an early cut of the “The Avengers,” Iger said “we had a pretty good sense that we had a very strong movie on our hands. We didn’t know it was going to break all the records that it’s broken.”

Disney is working on a sequel to “The Avengers,” racing to get more movie-related merchandise in stores and planning to get the characters into its theme parks, Iger said May 8 when the company announced a 21 percent increase in quarterly profit.

Merchandise Potential

Iger, who also engineered the $7 billion purchase of the Pixar animation studio in 2006, said yesterday he doesn’t expect every film to have the sequel and merchandising potential of “The Avengers.”

“The creative process is best served by having a goal to just making something great, and if it happens to be something that works worldwide or something that spans multiple businesses here, or something that will live forever in multiple ways, fantastic,” he said. “Making a great movie is a difficult thing. I believe that we would only make it more difficult if we told all the movie makers that you have to check every box before we do this.”

Disney rose 0.6 percent yesterday to an all-time closing high of $45.28. The stock has gained 21 percent this year.