An "late" article was posted today at Jim Hill Media, written by Jim, titled "The One That Got Away: The Disney/Comcast Story"

http://www.jimhillmedia.com/main/index.htm



Yeah, Burke had been one of Michael Eisner's most trusted lieutenants. One of the men whose name had been on a very short list as a possible successor for Eisner.

But then -- in June of 1998 -- Steve suddenly opted to bail out of the Mouse House. Some say that the opportunity to run Comcast Cable was just too tempting for Burke. Still others suggest that Steve had grown weary of dealing with Eisner on a daily basis, of constantly having his decisions over at ABC second-guessed or micro-managed by Michael. I've also heard that Steve was frustrated by the fact that Eisner was continually refusing to name an heir for his Magic Kingdom (I.E. designate a successor).



There is a lot more, check it out...

I like the "Comcast in Philadelphia"/"Disney Annual Meeting in Philadelphia"/"Coincidence?" story.

My deranged rumor, started now:
A few weeks ago, Comcast and Disney were in merger talks. At the time, it looked "done-deal" enough to announce the annual meeting location. Then, things soured (as Eisner negotiations generally go), and Comcast pulled out of nice-nice talks.
Comcast wanted it to be friendly, but Eisner wanted his chunk-o-change -- money, power, or both -- before he'd agree. Eisner is apparently unwanted in "NewCo."

Well, the Comcast rumors have been flying for a while, and where there is smoke....Roy seems to be fairly amenable to the idea of Burke running the WDC. If Eisner and Burke were in talks prior to this week, it makes me wonder about the Roy factor- did he know (and I'm sure he did) and if he and Burke have as friendly a relationship as he does with Jobs and Lasseter? I'll throw in my part to Sediments rumor: not only was this in the works, but Roy, Stan and Pixar knew about it , and Burke probably has never had any intention of actually making a deal with Mr. Eisner. It just seems that Burke, Roy, Stan, Jobs and Lasseter are on the same page, and probably have been for some time.

Then again, I have been reading a lot of mysteries lately....:rolleyes:

We have reached that part of the soap opera characters, story line and plot twists that this would play very well as a prime time series on TV. Who needs "reality TV"? Just pay attention to the Disney stuff going on!

2/11 may have been Disney's own "9/11". At least now we, and Disney, are all wide awake, aware, and knowing something has to be done. Long time in coming.

It's going to be a very good book. :rolleyes: Let's just hope there is a Disney ending involved....:)

Ick, it does have the feel of having Eisner being voted off Tom Sawyer's Island, doesn't it...

I keep hoping the guy will turn around, realize that he has erred and admit it, think to himself, "What Would Walt Do with $500 million dollars of Disney stock options?' and then get busy reinvesting himself into the parks and animation divisions, while working a deal to split off the media divisions and selling them to Comcast. Hey, I can dream...

:::sigh:::

Michael Eisner's been head of Disney since 1984. For a lot of people he is/was the only Disney head they ever knew of. Now that the dust of all the news on Wednesday is settling down there is a chance to think. Eisner did some good things for the company. Upon reflection, most of those things were done when Frank Wells was still alive. Since 1994, Wells' death year, a lot had continued to grow, but has it always been successful? The news this week has been overwhelming. The rumors are even more stunning: What did Roy Disney, Stanley Gold, Steve Jobs, Michael Eisner and the Board at Disney, and Comcast, among others, know and when did they know it? Who are the "white knights" to "save" Disney in all this? What is it that Comcast really wants out of Disney? I mean, there's just so much to take in here, not trying to harken to "The Lion King" lyrics, but truly it's just been so overwhelming this week! And it's begun to "hit" me, "Wow, Eisner really could go, soon, or maybe this mess will drag on for months or a year....and then what?" Who'll think of these charming movies and characters and places we love, preserve the spirit of them during negotiations to figure out what to do and where to go next? The way the business press talks, it's like what Disney owns is a commodity, like pork bellies or wheat futures, up for the highest bidder. This week's been so draining, it just takes time to absorb it all. --sigh-- What a week! Overwhelming! Unbelievable!

I'll have that beer, now. ;)

Anyone else feel the same way, a little drained and stunned? I'm not feeling sorry for Michael Eisner. I heard his Golden Parachute at today's stock prices would be worth $123 million. He'll be OK, materially speaking. But I am sorry he couldn't have done better at Disney. It would be 20 years in September 2004. It's sad in a way, but I also have some "tough love" about the man, too.

--sigh-- What a week......

I find this to be the most likely possibility: current Disney will be split in two:
1. Film, animation, library, vacations destinations, Disney brand name.
2. Networks.

Disney could do this before takeover. Comcast could do it after takeover. Makes no difference. I don't care much for the networks, as there was little they contributed to the Disney magic. Profits: some. Magic: zero.

Wild scenario:
Pixar, combined with Dreamworks, buys Disney portion.