Our
View: Last family member bites the dust
at Disney Corp.
The
last tie between Walt Disney and his company
has been severed for good it seems. In the
past week we have waited for the make up
letter from anybody that may help heal the
wounds of Roy Disney and Michael Eisner.
But now the truth is out, Disney Corporation
is really just that, a big corporation with
a lot less soul than it had a week ago.
Disney
has had a hard few years it seems. Their
famed animation department has barely put
out a halfway decent movie in years, that
is without the ingenuity of Pixar pumping
out flixs like "Monsters, Inc."
and "Finding Nemo." In their live
action department they did manage "Pirates
of the Caribbean," but missed out big
time apparently with their next ride-themed
movie, "Haunted Mansion." What's
next, an "Autopia" movie? Seems
like the wells of creativity have run dry
and now Disney Corporation is really scraping
bottom.
But
is Roy Disney's claim that it can all be
pinpointed on Eisner really fair? Roy was
the one that brought Eisner into power in
1984, in another boardroom coup staged by
Disney. So is Roy really just a nagging
detractor who the board members almost seem
happy to be rid of? How could the Disney
legacy come down to a quibble and a nasty
letter and that's it?
Disney Corporation's tentacles are in all
sorts of strange places now too. Between
owning ABC or Miramax, and putting out questionable
fare, questions have been raised by parents
and morality police everywhere, what has
happened to Disney? When we were kids we
watch specials like "The Painted Desert,"
and other television specials meant to inform
and entertain young people. Now Disney puts
out movies like "Bad Santa" through
it's company Miramax, which has created
a maelstrom of criticism around Eisner,
even outside of the boardroom.
Now
a new member of the board has been appointed,
you would never guess who it is. Is it someone
active in entertainment and family media?
Is it a central figure in the Disney empire?
No, it is a CEO from Sybase Inc. That sounds
festive doesn't it.
It
should since John Chen, the newly appointed
director is chairman and CEO from a large
database software firm known for coming
in and cutting costs. According to the Los
Angeles Times business section article when
he became CEO there were 4,200 jobs at Sybase,
he has thrashed and burned down the job
count to 3,900. Hmmm, something to look
forward to at Disney Corporation.
All
in all Disney Corporation's heritage has
been sullied recently. It can't seem to
keep it up between having fallen attendance
to its parks or putting out a few off-color
films. It needs to hire a few new scriptwriters
after flops like "Haunted Mansion,"
which only has its special effects to boast
about. If it weren't for the summer success
of "Finding Nemo" and "Pirates
of the Caribbean," perhaps Eisner would
have been ousted, since surely stock prices
would have continued to fall.
Unfortunately
for Roy Disney, the almighty dollar will
continue to rule Disney Corporation's choices
in coming years, and as long as the stocks
are up a few cents then change will continue
to stay away. But then again, maybe Disney
Corporation's goal should be to try staying
the way it once was.
Between
contract disputes with Pixar, movies that
stink up the box office and now this boardroom
brawl, the public may start forming its
own views about Eisner. Maybe he sould start
funneling more money into his public relations
department because he may just need them
real soon.
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