Park officials say the famed robot statesman will be part of an attraction called "The Disneyland Story, featuring Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln," sometime later this year. The figure had made appearances at the theme park in various forms from 1966 through 2004.

Simon Wells will direct this adaptation of the Berkeley Breathed children's novel, which follows Milo, a boy who stows away aboard a spaceship to rescue his mom after she is kidnapped by aliens. Fogler will play Gribble, who is a friend of Milo (played by Green).

The network announced its three-year deal with FIBA through 2011 on Thursday. ESPN or ESPN2 will air all U.S. national team games and the semifinal, bronze and gold medal games for the world championships from Turkey along with the FIBA Americas Championship in 2009 and 2011.

The gold medal game from the FIBA EuroBasket Championship in 2009 and 2011 will also be broadcast.

Other games will be shown on the ESPN360.com broadband channel.

Now the reel comes in four sizes -- from ultra-light to tarpon-strength -- and it has been made the official reel of none other than Walt Disney World.

Hannon celebrated the honor recently by -- what else -- going to Disney World. He brought along a few friends and members of his pro staff for a fishing excursion on the attraction's man-made Bay Lake and Seven Seas Lagoon.

Disney World fishing guide Travis Brumbelow said the WaveSpin is the only reel used by the resort's guides.

''A lot of our fishermen, the only fishing they might do is at Disney,'' Brumbelow said. ``We get guests who reel backwards and we might get a lot of tangles.''

Because guests can't tangle line, Brumbelow said he doesn't have to waste fishing time untying knots, and he doesn't need as much prep time before going out on the water.

The WaveSpin casts line using blunted ''teeth'' in the shape of ocean waves on the lip of the spool. The line bounces off the wave tops, making less contact with the spool, thereby preventing knots and allowing for easier casting.

But one thing it is not guaranteed to do is make fish bite when they aren't in the mood.

On the morning Hannon's party went fishing, water temperatures in Bay Lake hovered in the mid 50s -- cool enough to make the liveliest bass feel lethargic.

At the first spot where they stopped, the group caught and released only three largemouth bass -- none large -- using live shiners, which usually are guaranteed to provoke vicious strikes.

Hannon said evasive shiners could elude bass that are not feeding aggressively, so Brumbelow suggested the party switch to plastic worms.

His four-inch green pumpkin/chartreuse Wave Worms worked much better, producing twice the strikes, including a 2-pounder for Jacksonville outdoors writer Bob McNally.

''You have to fish them real slow,'' McNally advised after releasing his fish.

Water temperatures were a bit higher in several sunlit spots in Seven Seas Lagoon, where the party released about a half-dozen small bass. WaveSpin pro-staffer Don Watts of Gowen, Mich., caught and released several using a Poor Boys Gobi on a Mojo Wiggle Rig drop-shot.

Watts said he casts nothing but WaveSpin on the tournament trail -- and when fishing for fun.

'There's less birds' nests, less time spent dealing with your line -- especially in a tournament situation,'' Watts said.

Hannon said he has made some improvements to the reel's drag system so that it operates more smoothly during long fights with big fish.

The four-year agreement with the union that represents employees that operate Disneyland rides and attractions, store operations and custodians, among other roles, was reached in less than a month, ahead of the March 15 expiration date.

The contract includes annual wage increases through 2012 for the 4,500 Master Services union members who work inside Disneyland. Union leadership also negotiated the same contract for the union’s 2,000 employees who work inside California Adventure. That contract wasn’t set to expire until October.

The quick resolution to the Master Services Council contract stands in sharp contrast to the ongoing and sometimes bitter negotiations with Unite Here 11, the union that represents 2,300 dishwashers, bell workers, room attendants and cooks.

They have been working without a contract since February 2008 and have staged several protests outside the park, dressing in homemade Disney character costumes and bringing in workers’ children to help protest. In one protest, 23 people were arrested after traffic was blocked on busy Harbor Boulevard.
The major sticking point in contract negotiations has been health-care benefits. Unite Here 11 is the only union at Disneyland that still operates a separate health-care trust that Disney pays into. Other unions select from a choice of company provided medical plans.

Disney officials and leaders of the Master Services Council said they are pleased to have reached a quick agreement.

“(We) worked diligently and cooperatively to reach an agreement that is fair and competitive – particularly during these challenging economic times,” Steve Eisenhardt, vice president and labor negotiator, said in a statement. “The timely contract ratification demonstrates that when company and union leadership work as unified partners … the outcome can be favorable for everyone.”

The outcome could put more pressure on the hotel workers’ union to find agreement.
But leaders of Unite Here 11 said they will continue to work for their own issues and feel no additional pressure. They will be talking to Disney representatives again Thursday.

“Dreamgirls” star Anika Noni Rose lends her voice to the title character, Princess Tiana, and Access Hollywood was with the actress for the unveiling of her character’s doll in New York City.
“This is so silly,” a tearful Rose said as she saw the precious plastic figure for the first time. “I’ve seen dolls, I wasn’t even a doll kid, but this is mine.”

Rose said she is thrilled that the Princess Tiana doll has features true to her heritage.

“We made sure that she has a nice curl in her hair,” Rose explained of the doll’s elegant up 'do. “She’s a little browner than I am. That’s because my natural skin color could be misconstrued as anything, and they wanted to make sure that she really looked like a brown girl.

“She’s got a nice little round nose and she’s got full lips,” Rose added as she marveled at the plastic creation.

And, Rose revealed, she already has an idea of who she thinks should be able to get their hands on the Princess Tiana dolls first.

Chris Tomlin, Flyleaf, Jars of Clay, Newsboys, Superchick, more in Disney World's Night of Joy lineup

Theme Park Rangers - Disney has released the lineup for this year's Night of Joy, set for Sept. 11 and 12 at Disney's Hollywood Studios.

Perfect World's 'Hot Dance Party' adds Disney Content

SYS-CON Media - Perfect World Co., Ltd. (Nasdaq: PWRD) (''Perfect World'' or the ''Company''), a leading online game developer and operator in China, today announced that it has recently signed an agreement with Disney Interactive Media Group (''Disney'') which allows Perfect World to integrate certain Disney themes in its 3D online casual game, ''Hot Dance Party''.

''Hot Dance Party'' is Perfect World's first online casual dancing game. It has been well received by players since its launch. Under the agreement, Perfect World will be authorized to use classic Disney characters in the game. It is believed that the Disney elements in the online game will bring more fun, more excitement, and a deeper level of engagement to the players. By blending Disney's beloved classic characters and Chinese culture, ''Hot Dance Party'' will be more appealing to players.

''It is very exciting to have Disney characters featured in Hot Dance Party, a fantastic and fun game. Working with Perfect World provides a vast interactive platform to engage consumers in new and exciting ways, and at the same time add to our online offerings in China.'' Victor Yip, Director of Online Virtual Worlds, Disney Interactive Media Group China commented.

Mr. Michael Chi, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Perfect World, commented, ''Our cooperation with a company with such a positive legacy as Disney will be beneficial to Perfect World as we look to expanding our business. I believe the cooperation not only will help open more markets for ''Hot Dance Party'', but also enhance Perfect World's influence in international markets.''

About Perfect World Co., Ltd. ( http://www.pwrd.com )

Perfect World Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ: PWRD) is a leading online game developer and operator in China. Perfect World primarily develops three-dimensional (''3D'') online games based on the proprietary Angelica 3D game engine and game development platform. The Company's strong technology and creative game design capabilities, combined with extensive local knowledge and experience, enable it to frequently and rapidly introduce popular games that are designed to cater to changing customer preferences and market trends in China. The Company's current portfolio of self-developed online games includes 3D massively multiplayer online role playing games (''MMORPGs''): ''Perfect World,'' ''Legend of Martial Arts,'' ''Perfect World II,'' ''Zhu Xian,'' ''Chi Bi'' and ''Pocketpet Journey West''; and a 3D online casual game: ''Hot Dance Party''. While a substantial portion of the revenues are generated in China, the Company's games have been licensed to leading game operators in a number of countries and regions in Asia, Europe and South America. The Company also generates revenues from game operation in North America. The Company plans to continue to explore new and innovative business models and remains deeply committed to maximizing shareholder value over time.

Safe Harbor Statements

Recession blurs outlook for 3-D movie expansion

Reuters - Hollywood is turning to 3-D movies more than at any time since the 1950s to boost ticket sales, but the recession has created a distribution logjam that has blurred the current box office outlook for 3-D.

This Friday, Walt Disney Co will release its new "Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience" in theatres equipped for 3-D. But that means Focus Features' "Coraline," which has been a 3-D hit, must cut its 3-D presence to some 300 screens, probably before it has played to all potential fans.

"It's a statement about how the industry is just so behind an opportunity to make more money, at a time that we've been told constantly the economy is bad. It's ridiculous," said Jack Foley, president of distribution for Focus, a division of General Electric Co's NBC Universal media wing.

The roll-out of expensive digital equipment needed to show 3-D movies began early this decade and picked up steam after Disney's 3-D version of 2005's "Chicken Little" became a hit.

Hollywood sees 3-D movies as a way to lure audiences out of their home entertainment "cocoons," and the major studios will release more than a dozen movies in 3-D before the year is out, about twice as many as in 2007 and 2008 combined.

No movie studio has turned to 3-D as aggressively as DreamWorks Animation SKG, whose Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Katzenberg has pledged to release all the company's movies in 3-D. But even Katzenberg has acknowledged the dampening effect of the recession on his push for 3-D.

"There's the practical world that you can't ignore, which is we've just had a complete and total meltdown of our financial markets, which has made the financing of this much more challenging and has slowed it down," Katzenberg said.

DreamWorks hopes its animated movie "Monsters vs. Aliens" can play on 2,200 3-D screens in the U.S. and Canada when it opens March 27, but right now that appears unlikely.

The National Association of Theatre Owners says only 1,700 3-D screens exist, up from less than 1,000 six months ago, said Patrick Corcoran, director of media and research for NATO.

Converting the vast majority of the 38,900 screens in the U.S. will cost $2 billion (1.4 billion pounds), he said.

"It's a large capital investment and large capital investors are just not out there right now, so it's going to have to happen screen-by-screen, fairly piecemeal," he said.

The recession, however, has not seemed to dampen consumer interest in 3-D, which can cost from $2 to $5 more per ticket.

"Coraline" opened No. 3 at U.S. and Canadian box offices earlier this month with $16.3 million, and nearly 75 percent of that total came from 3-D screens.

"No matter how you look at it, people are willing to pay more money to go see 3-D," Foley said.

Chuck Viane, president of domestic film distribution for Disney movies also acknowledged the credit crunch's squeeze on the 3-D conversion, but was hopeful it might soon pick up.

"Everybody anticipates that somewhere in the next few months that logjam may open up a bit," he said.

Major 3-D releases for 2009 include "Up" on May 29 from Disney-Pixar, "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" on July 1 from News Corp's 20th Century Fox, and director James Cameron's "Avatar," also from Fox and in theatres on December 18.

Mickey Luke, Minnie Leia, Goofy Chewie, and Donald in Carbonite are each being made available in an edition size of 600 each, and will be released around the second week in June. 500 of each will be available at Disney's Hollywood Studios, with the remaining 100 of each being sent to Disneyland.

Disney Rumors - With no new details about what D23 will offer, rumors have it that there will be an enrollment fee, a yearly convention, exclusive merchandise, and an online community. All the details will be revealed on March 10th.

The story of a young dog on a quest to save his owner from evil took 2.8 million pounds on its debut last weekend.

Another Disney offering, "Confessions of a Shopaholic," was new at No. 2 with Isla Fisher spending her way to fame and fortune.

"Slumdog Millionaire," which won eight Oscars at the weekend including best picture, slipped a place to three while Emma Roberts and Jake T. Austin with their inner city pet shelter "Hotel for Dogs" was up one at four.

Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett were down one at five after briefly topping the chart with age-reversal film: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button."

"He's Just Not That Into You," with Jennifer Aniston and Ben Affleck was down three places to six.

Sci-fi thriller "Push," with its class of paranormal pupils, was new at seven, just above Steve Martin as the bungling Inspector Clouseau in "Pink Panther 2" which stayed at eight.

Bolt and his friend Rhino greet visitors throughout the day in the Animation Building at the Studio. You can also see a selection of memorabilia from the making of the film, including some early concept drawings by Chris Sanders. Sanders, of "Lilo and Stitch" fame, was removed from the Bolt project by John Lassiter, but you can see his influence in the original storyboards. The early Penny looks suspiciously like Lilo, while Bolt has an odd resemblance to Stitch.

Magical Moment: A rose for a princess

Disney News - Little girls often dream of becoming a princess, a fairy-tale fascination that Walt Disney World Cast Members help make a reality. It can be as simple as a Cast Member calling them “princess” to something more elaborate like a trip to the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, complete with a sparkling ball gown, sequined slippers and a shining crown that brings the fantasy to life. And other times, it takes a prince, which is never too hard to find here.
 

"While Texas is an attractive market, we have no plans for that region," said John J. Nicoletti, the external communications director for Disney parks.

There are plenty of Disney doubters.

Last week, Disney announced that it's reorganizing its U.S. resort operation and cutting jobs to streamline decision-making and reduce costs. The company offered voluntary buyouts to about 600 parks-unit executives last month and extended discounts through Aug. 15 to lure visitors.

Disney dalliances have hopped around Texas like tornadoes. San Antonio seemed certain to be the landing spot for a Disney resort in 2006 based on press reports and land speculation; nothing happened.

Even if Disney had big plans for this region, it might be hard to tell. When acquiring property for Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, the company apparently used dozens of intermediaries to buy up orange groves and swamp land to avoid attracting speculators. Some argue that Disney might be doing the same thing here.

The North Texas case for a megaresort isn't completely goofy.

Piracy remains a huge problem in South Korea for Disney, and indeed other major content providers, which have been abandoning the market's home video and DVD business as they can't compete. Disney, however, still believes that consumers will respond to legal services given the "right" one. Speaking of its new mobile partnership, Disney-ABC International Television Asia-Pacific SVP and MD Robert Gilby told the Korea Times, "I am a firm believer, that when given the choice, consumers would choose legitimate services over illegal copies. What we need to do is build those legitimate services, and as the industry grows and we continue to enforce the rights to protect content, I believe customers will move increasingly to legitimate services."

Aside from its SK Telecom mobile deal, Disney also provides its content to internet protocol television (IPTV) operators KT and SK Broadband and cable television operator Home Choice for VOD services. But the VOD market isn't faring much better in the face of piracy; SK Broadband chief executive Cho Shin recently conceded the success of IPTV in Korea would depend on getting rid of illegal downloads.

Nine years after the last Indy 200 sped around the 1-mile Walt Disney World Speedway, Indy Racing has returned in the form of an attraction that leaves other Disney car adventures in its dust. For $109, thrill seekers can take a minute trip in comfort, hurtling three times around the track at speeds of up to 165 mph.

If the idea sounds familiar, it may be because the Richard Petty Driving Experience shares the same track, offering NASCAR vehicles as its ride. The Indy Racing Experience picks up when the Richard Petty experience stops, operating from 4 p.m. to dusk each day.

Aside from the fact that Indy’s open-wheel cars also sport open cockpits, a big difference between the attractions is that Indy’s vehicles are driven by veteran race car drivers. Last week, Davey Hamilton, whose first Indy race was at the Walt Disney World Speedway, took the wheel.

“I’ve been doing this game a long time and I’m very fortunate to race when I want, where I want,” Hamilton said. “As you get older in your career, it’s all about championships and the bigger events.”

Hamilton has raced in the past two Indiannapolis 500’s following a devastating crash in 2001 that left him sidelined for six years and nearly two dozen operations. He has driven fans and media on Indy Racing Experience rides in the past at the Brickyard and before other races.

“I do all the Indy Car events with these cars,” Hamilton said. “I probably do 50-60 events a year. Sometimes more than 100 rides a day – so there’s a lot of rides a year that go on. It’s great to give everyone just a little tase of what we go through, kind of give them a taste of our sport. It’s a lot of fun.”

Hamilton has spent a lot of time at the Disney Speedway. In addition to being one of five drivers in an inagural ‘V’ formation for the first lap, he raced in every Indy 200. He also spent five weeks at the track as they set up for the official launch at Disney.

“I ‘ve always enjoy this track. It’s pretty unique and difficult, really,” he said. “We run 26 or 27 seconds with a rider and we ran 19 seconds around here at the race pace. So it’s not all that different. You definitely have a chance to feel the G-forces.”

The rider sits in a second cockpit behind the driver in a modified Indy car. Wearing a flame-proof coverall and a flame-retardant hood under a racing helmet, the small hole can quickly heat up. As soon as the car takes off, the air starts flowing through the helmet and by the time the car hits the first turn, the feeling is a pure adrenaline thrill.

Hamilton said most riders are surprised by the feeling of being so low to the ground and the car’s grip on the asphalt.

As Mr. Menken, sitting at a piano, performed about two-dozen of them at the Allen Room on Friday evening as part of Lincoln Center’s American Songbook series, you had to admire the consistency of his craft while shivering at the impersonality of it all. Mr. Menken, who told mildly diverting anecdotes about the background of this or that song, was accompanied by a stylistically anonymous band and three backup singers.

Like most composers who dare to perform their own work, Mr. Menken is not his own best interpreter. He can carry a tune and adopt reasonable facsimiles of cartoon characters’ voices and dialects, but he couldn’t bring his music to life. Without singers who could infuse his songs with personality, the Menken oeuvre came across as a mass-market product line hawked to potential investors at a backers’ audition.

Mr. Menken’s songs roughly divide into three categories: his early show tunes; his Disney songs composed with his greatest collaborator, the lyricist Howard Ashman who died in 1991, while they were writing “Aladdin” (Tim Rice completed the job); and later songs written with others, most notably Stephen Schwartz who provided lyrics for “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” and “Pocahontas.”

Even in his early years Mr. Menken had a talent for comic pastiche. His rock ’n’ roll parodies for “Little Shop of Horrors,” with lyrics by Mr. Ashman, have a saucy impertinence that the Disney factory later squelched. In his three animated Disney musicals with Mr. Ashman, however, he was somehow able to transcend formula. In the song “Beauty and the Beast” for instance, two perfect lines — “tale as old as time/song as old as rhyme” — joined to a seamless melodic hook, achieve an expressive, even eloquent songwriting shorthand.

That song is matched in ingenuity by the Maurice Chevalier-inspired number “Be Our Guest” from the same film and the light rock ’n’ roll calypso “Under the Sea” from “The Little Mermaid,” both of which were heard on Friday.

Cleaning crews reported early this morning that they had spotted an unusual white substance at the windows of several ticket booths. Police were called in at 7:30 a.m.

Some guests entered Disneyland and California Adventure when the parks opened at 8 a.m., Disney spokeswoman Suzi Brown said. But when the powder was found on more ticket booths, park officials decided to temporarily hold back all guests from the ticketing area until police could investigate the powder. The booths were shuttered at 8:45 a.m.

The parks were never closed, as some guests were allowed into them. The ticket areas were closed down for a while, though, keeping other guests out.

"We thought it would be best to close off all ticket booths until we could make sure there was nothing hazardous," Brown said.

Anaheim police called in a hazardous-materials unit from the Anaheim Fire Department. Samples were tested and soon determined to be nothing more than a fine, nonhazardous sand, said police Sgt. Rick Martinez.

Guests and employees who were held back for more than an hour were allowed to enter the ticket area and the amusement parks at 9:45 a.m. Martinez said. 

"The safety of our guests and our cast members is our top priority," Brown said. "The measures that were taken today were done so in an abundance of caution."

Investigators were working with park officials to review surveillance video, looking for who might have deposited the substance on the ticket booths. No arrests had been made.

Recruiters were on hand near the Monorail station soliciting families for new episodes of "Supernanny," and the male-led spinoff "Supermanny." Both shows revolve around a nanny stepping in to correct the behavior of both parents and their children.

The latter show, featuring child psychologist Mike Ruggles, had a single episode air in 2008. Directors are looking to air a least one, if not more, this year because dads can relate to a man better, said casting producer Allison Deutch.

However, many prospective families walked right past the casting table on their way to other destinations. Occasionally, a person would comment while walking by.

"My kid is great, but my sister's kid is another story," one passerby joked.

Deutch said her staff is searching for new stories and family situations for the fifth season of "Supernanny," which is currently airing on ABC at 9 p.m. on Fridays. One thing they really want is a family comprised of children from previous relationships now living in a new family as a result of a new marriage.

"One thing we're looking for is desperation," Deutch added. "We're looking for parents that have tried other things like talking to their kids' teachers, maybe the school counselor, read the parenting books, and now they're calling in Supernanny as a last resort."

Parents looking to be cast were required to fill out a form about their home life, including the question "What's the worst thing your kid has done this week?" They also posed for a family picture with their children.

Julie Orchard, of Fremont, which is in the Bay Area, was one of those who signed up for the casting. She said her 6-year-old daughter doesn't do her homework and her 2-year-old son throws things, though the situation could be worse.

"I'm a single parent. Actually, my kids are quite good, but first thing in the morning, things are quite crazy," she said. "If (the cameras) could fit inside my house, it would be great, but I have a little tiny house."

Eddie Masferrer, of Boston, stood with his three kids and read about the "Supernanny" casting from a distance.