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Archive for March, 2007
Category: Movies
From imdb.com:
Warner Bros. could shout “cowabunga!” following the victory of TMNT, the latest film incarnation of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, at the box-office over the weekend. The film took in an estimated $25.5 million, but analysts noted that the studio had conservatively forecast Sunday’s potential take and that the figure could go higher. The computer-animated film topped five other new releases, all of which landed in the top ten.
I saw TMNT this weekend and loved it. I doubt it’ll become a “classic” film but it’s definitely what I expected… lots of Turtle power!
Link
Posted by Ricky on March 27, 2007 at 12:46 pm · Permalink
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Category: Misc
What to do when you need to defrost over 1,089 pounds of colossal squid? Haul out an industrial microwave oven, that’s what. The 33-foot sub-adult colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni) in question was netted in Antarctic waters by New Zealand fishermen in February. After the fishing boat’s crew spent two hours reeling it in, the squid was immediately frozen for preservation onboard the ship. Now, after a two-hour flight back to New Zealand, scientists wish to study the creature in detail (and eventually, embalm it in preservative), but they fear that in the time it would take to defrost the entire squid at room temperature—days—the outer skin of the animal would begin to rot while the internal organs remained frozen. One possible solution is a sort of microwave oven used by the timber industry to improve wood permeability to preservative. Whatever they use, it’d better be big. A calamari ring from the kraken would be the size of a tractor tire. Alas, it would also taste strongly of ammonia, a prevalent chemical in giant-squid flesh that helps maintain neutral buoyancy underwater. Yum. —Martha Harbison BBC
Posted by Dr. Disney on March 27, 2007 at 5:42 am · Permalink
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Category: Misc, Technology
In just six years, Wikipedia has mushroomed into one of the Web’s most astonishing successes, with 1.7 million articles in English alone. The downside is that the free encyclopedia has its share of errors and juvenile vandalism, and sometimes the writing is incomprehensibly arcane.
To Wikipedia fans, these blemishes are an unavoidable — and relatively small — price to pay for the dazzling breadth spawned by its “anyone can edit” open design.
But Larry Sanger doesn’t buy it. To Sanger — who was present at the creation of Wikipedia (in fact, call him a co-founder, although that, like many things within Wikipedia, is disputed) — its charms seem to outweigh its warts simply because it has no competition.
And that’s precisely what Sanger hopes to change.
This week, Sanger takes the wraps off a Wikipedia alternative, Citizendium. His goal is to capture Wikipedia’s bustle but this time, avoid the vandalism and inconsistency that are its pitfalls.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Dr. Disney on March 27, 2007 at 5:35 am · Permalink
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Category: Technology, Video Games
‘Us.Wii.com — The Global Wii Experience Website in English
In the Internet Channel, you can view websites and surf the Web on Wii. You can download the trial version from the Shopping Channel right now, and we’re working very hard as we’re in the final process in developing its full version, which is scheduled to be released very soon.
Posted by kurt on March 26, 2007 at 3:59 pm · Permalink
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Category: Disney, News
WILLMAR, Minn. — Allison Jeffords, the 10-year-old girl Willmar girl who was injured by a slab falling ice on Christmas Day, is going to Disney World.She will receive a $5,000 travel voucher on Saturday to send her and her family to the theme park in Orlando, Fla.
Allison was playing among the ice heaves along the shore of Lake Minnewaska in Glenwood when her head was pinned underneath a slab of ice weighing hundreds of pounds.
The slabs, which were jutting up to 3 feet in the air, were formed when the ice broke up, then were pushed onto the shoreline by wind and waves.
The Disney trip was the idea of Jim Palmer of Glenwood. He heard about Allison’s accident and started raising money for the trip.
Palmer said he’ll give the voucher to the family at the Lakeside Ballroom in Glenwood on Saturday. Allison’s family also will honor the people who helped rescue her at the event.
Palmer said the Jeffords family told him they aren’t sure when they’ll be able to make the trip. But the Disney World vouchers don’t have an expiration date. AP
Posted by Dr. Disney on March 23, 2007 at 3:53 pm · Permalink
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Category: Video Games
BBC NEWS | Technology | PlayStation 3 launched in Europe
The company trails Microsoft and Nintendo in sales of next generation consoles and the launch has been beset with problems in the last year.
But the PlayStation brand remains strong with gamers and one million PS3s will hit shops on day one.
At the London launch everyone who bought a PS3 also received a free 46-inch HD television and a taxi home.
In total, the giveaway amounted to £250,000 worth of televisons to more than 100 gamers.
At the head of the queue, 17-year-old Ritatsu Thomas said the giveaway and PS3 had been worth the 36-hour wait.
He said: “I feel fantastic. I’m delighted that everyone here also gets a television.”
Sony has declared its launch of PlayStation 3 to date as a success, saying early sales are faster than those of its predecessor PS2.
It believes that the combination of a high-definition Blu-ray DVD player, online capabilities and gaming powered by the Cell processor will convince gamers to spend £425 (599 Euros) on the machine.
“High definition is very important to people,” said Ray Maguire, head of Sony Computer Entertainment in the UK.
“A lot of people have bought flat panel TVs and they want content to go on it and PlayStation 3 is one of the few places they can get that kind of experience.”
Mr Maguire said the TV giveaway in the UK was a reward for gamers’ patience.
If Sony did this in America, I would have been first in line. Is this a sign of desperation?
Posted by RavenG4 on March 23, 2007 at 12:32 pm · Permalink
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Category: Disney
The Columbus Dispatch - Local/State
>>Although the children and Mrs. Winget are big Disney fans (”Eeyore was always my favorite,” Mrs. Winget said), the family hadn’t planned to visit Walt Disney World until the children were a bit older. But those plans changed when Brent went for a drink at the water fountain at the Downtown Disney Marketplace mall near Orlando. His drink “the right place at the right time” marked him and his family as the winner of the day’s Disney Dream Giveaway. Before you could say “Bippity boppity boo,” the family was whisked away for an all-expenses paid overnight stay in Cinderella’s Castle at Disney World.<<
I think every time I’m at Downtown Disney, I’m going to stop at every water fountain for a drink.
Posted by Matt on March 23, 2007 at 8:37 am · Permalink
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Category: Disney, News, Travel
A funny part from an article by Stephen King in Entertainment Weekly. He writes about different ways to make life more fun. Funny thing is, I could see Disney trying to make this a reality, at least at the Orlando airport.
All In Good Fun | The Pop of King | News + Notes | Entertainment Weekly
AIRPORT SECURITY: Everybody hates it, so why not pay security personnel extra to dress up as Disney cartoons? Wouldn’t you feel more cheerful if it were Snow White giving you the wand and the Seven Dwarfs telling you to take off your shoes? Wouldn’t your comfort level jump if it were Goofy scoping out your bod in the X-ray machine? Sure, these costumes would be uncomfortable for the staff, but even that would cheer up travelers; ”There you go, turkey,” they’d think, ”now you know how we feel.”
Posted by Matt on March 23, 2007 at 8:27 am · Permalink
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Category: Travel, Universal Studios
I went to Universal last night to ride the Back To The Future ride one last time before it closes next week. While there, I took some pictures of some new things I saw. (At least, they were new to me.)
This new sign at Universal Studios shows you the wait times and directions on the right and information and ads on the left.
This TV and Movie Preview Center is in the middle of the park. I’ve never noticed it before. I assume it’s where guests can preview new NBC shows and give their opinions.
The walkway to the Blue Man Group show appears to be finished, as does the outside paint job of the old Nick building.
There are some new stores as you make your way up the stairs in Citywalk. This one isn’t open yet. It’s a real tattoo parlor called Hart & Huntington.
I think this one’s been there a while but it’s the first time I noticed it. Across the way from the tattoo parlor is TCBY (The Country’s Best Yogurt).
This one’s at the top of the stairs. It’s a new cigar store. My picture came out a bit blurry so I don’t know the name of it. Notice the large cigar sticking out.
Posted by Matt on March 22, 2007 at 10:09 am · Permalink
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Category: Misc, Disney
Nearly two decades ago, former Walt Disney Co. Chairman Michael Eisner ordered up a grand plan for Southern California. “Amaze me,” he told his staff.
They brought him visions of a massive expansion near Disneyland that included an international theme park, three resort hotels and a 6-acre lake.
That vision never came to fruition, but Disney did open a second theme park in 2001 — part of a larger goal to build up the Disney Resort and entice tourists to stay longer, like they do in Orlando.
Now, Disney is once again mulling its third act.
Disney won’t say what the latest plan is for Anaheim, but sources familiar with the planning process said Disney wants to mimic its Florida blueprint in Anaheim: add time-share units, bring its popular cruise line to the West Coast and zero in on high-end consumers with boutique hotels. New attractions for its lackluster California Adventure are in the works, and Disney is giving fresh consideration to its long-promised third theme park.
Now in complete recovery from 9/11 — and sitting on a pile of cash after posting 30% revenue increases following its successful 50th anniversary — Disney is looking ambitiously toward the future.
“It’s about changing Anaheim into Orlando — making this into a national and international tourist space,” said blogger Jim Hill, a Disney watchdog.
But Disney’s ambitions are ruffling feathers in Anaheim, where some city leaders believe the corporate giant has tried to bully a town that has been its ally for more than 50 years.
The Walt Disney Co. sued the city last month to protect zoning in the 2.2-square-mile Resort District and block construction of a residential project that includes affordable housing. This week, it joined business leaders in seeking a ballot initiative that would lock in the resort-themed zoning it desired and require a citywide vote before changes could be made.
Corporate attorneys succeeded in forcing a councilwoman to abstain from voting on the housing proposal. And it held confidential meetings with city officials, presenting to council members a preview of some of their closely guarded plans.
Disneyland President Ed Grier declined to give specifics but noted that some plans are “around the corner.”
“It is very, very important for us,” Grier said. “I don’t think that can be underestimated…. There’s much more of an opportunity for us here.”
Disneyland may be where it all started, but it was long ago outpaced by its Florida counterpart, with four theme parks, two water parks, six golf courses and 22 hotel resorts. Walt Disney World accounts for about 80% of the company’s theme park operating income, said David Miller, an analyst with Sanders Morris Harris.
“Florida means so much more to the company than Southern California,” Miller said.
Still, it was Disneyland’s 50th anniversary that spurred people to the parks in 2005 and 2006, contributing to a 30% increase in the parks’ income in 2006.
In Anaheim, there’s no shortage of demand. Disney’s three hotels — the original Disneyland Hotel, Paradise Pier and the Grand Californian — are operating at an extraordinary 93% occupancy. Citywide occupancy rates hover around 72%.
The company has slowly but steadily amassed 460 acres in Anaheim, including a prime chunk of strawberry fields down Harbor Boulevard from Disneyland that is the designated site of a third park.
And someone is approaching the field’s neighboring landowners, trying to buy up land. Corona del Mar resident Benjamin Kraut, 81, said Disney offered to buy his 5 acres several years ago. Then, six months ago, a suitor Kraut declined to name offered him $14.5 million for the land where he co-owns a 90-unit apartment complex. He said it is not for sale.
Disney hasn’t unveiled plans for the Disney Resort — those typically come amid fanfare and orchestration — but top executives have hinted at expanding existing markets and increasing its time-share offerings.
Sequestered in a Glendale office building, Disneyland executives privately told Anaheim City Council members recently about “changing the shows, and remodeling or adding rooms” to hotels, Councilman Harry Sidhu said. “They wanted to show us what they were doing to improve the operation.”
Source Los Angeles Times
By Dave McKibben and Kimi Yoshino, Times Staff Writers
March 22, 2007
Posted by Dr. Disney on March 22, 2007 at 8:09 am · Permalink
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