Disney and American Idol are set to debut a massive new attraction at Disney's Hollywood Studios in Orlando, Florida ...
The American Idol Experience will debut in January 2009 ...
American Idol's reigning champ ... David Cook ... shot a commercial for the new attraction in Los Angeles on Thursday ...
~Papi Chulo~
The Friday night premiere of the new Disney Channel original movie Camp Rock averaged 8.9 million viewers ...
In comparison ... Camp Rock did better than the original High School Musical which brought in 7.7 million viewers ... but it failed to beat High School Musical 2 ... The HSM sequel drew 17.2 million viewers last August ...
High School Musical 2 is the most watched non-sports program to air on cable ...
Camp Rock's decent numbers pretty much have guaranteed a second outing for the Jonas Brothers ...
~Papi Chulo~
Fifty-three years ago ... and twenty-eight years before I was born ... my favorite Disney animated feature debuted in theaters ...
Lady and the Tramp premiered in Chicago on June 16, 1955 ... The film is Walt Disney Animation's fifteenth feature animated masterpiece ...
Lady and the Tramp became the first Disney film made in CinemaScope ...
~Papi Chulo~
Disney releases Sleeping Beauty on Blu-ray disc in October ... This will be the first Disney animated classic to appear on the high-definition format ... particularly with high-tech viewing options not possible on DVD ...
Sleeping Beauty will use technology known as BD Live (which connect to the Internet) ... once viewers pop in the disc ... they will get a customized version of the famed castle that serves as a background for the main menu ... the sky will reflect weather conditions in the viewer's hometown ...
Viewers will be able to chat with friends on the movie screen as they watch ... they will be able to insert customized video messages in the movie and send them to family/friends via a "movie mail" feature ...
Viewers will also be able to play trivia games with viewers across the country ... and they will receive a constant supply of new trailers ... and trade in "reward" points (earned from some of the disc's features) for ringtones and wallpapers ...
Bob Chapek (President of Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment): "[Sleeping Beauty] will revolutionize the way people will interact with and view movies in the home. We pulled out all the stops in launching this technology."
~Papi Chulo~
Hannah Montana's Miley Cyrus has had a whirlwind week ...
Monday :: The Hannah Montana star issued a statement in response to the news of a provocative picture featuring the star in Vanity Fair ... The photograph was shot by famed photographer Annie Leibovitz ... It shows the 15-year-old star topless ... covered only in a blanket ... exposing her back ...
Miley Cyrus: "I took part in a photo shoot that was supposed to be 'artistic' and now, seeing the photographs and reading the story, I feel so embarrassed. I never intended for any of this to happen and I apologize to my fans who I care so deeply about.'"
The Disney Channel said that "a situation was created to deliberately manipulate a 15-year-old in order to sell magazines" ...
Vanity Fair sticks by the photograph and said that "Miley's parents and/or minders were on the set all day. Since the photo was taken digitally, they saw it on the shoot and everyone thought it was a beautiful and natural portrait of Miley" ...
The Cyrus family though states that the parents left before the photo in question was taken ...
Annie Leibovitz even apologized for the photograph ...
"I'm sorry that my portrait of Miley has been misinterpreted. Miley and I looked at fashion photographs together and we discussed the picture in that context before we shot it. The photograph is a simple, classic portrait, shot with very little makeup, and I think it is very beautiful."
Tuesday :: Rumors started circulating that Miley Cyrus may no longer be the main focus of the Disney Channel ... Disney executives are getting ready to make Wizards of Waverly Place's Selena Gomez a big star ...
As they are saying ... "Selena sings and acts and is really young. She is going to be the next Miley Cyrus. [Disney executives] really want this."
Wednesday :: The Disney Channel confirmed that Cyrus was making her scheduled appearances after the photo scandal put the star in the spotlight ...
Cyrus' first public appearance ... after the headline-making scandal ... will be at Walt Disney World for a concert to be aired during the summer as part of the network's Disney Channel Games ...
Thursday :: Madonna added her two cents on the Miley Cyrus scandal ...
Madonna: "It's all too much. Just make it stop. Leave her alone. That's what I think. I don't know if people are thinking things through. Why are they offended? I mean, she's gonna be 16 soon, then 17, and then 18. And then she might show her knees, and then what's going happen?"
Friday :: It was announced that Cyrus would not be attending a network media party in Orlando ... Cyrus' name had been on the list for weeks but execs did confirm that she is "100 percent performing on Saturday night" ...
Saturday :: Miley Cyrus made her first public appearance after the photo scandal at the Walt Disney World Resort ...
Miley Cyrus: "First of all, I think all of us here can say thank you. I can't think of how many would stand in the rain to come in here. Thank you all for coming out tonight, you're all amazing. Thank you guys and I hope you all had an awesome time tonight And I see a sign back there with my name on it that says, 'Miley, I'm praying for you,' and I could not be more appreciative of that."
What a week ...
~Papi Chulo~
The teaser poster for Disney's high anticipated High School Musical 3: Senior Year has been revealed ...
The third installment of the obscenely popular franchise finds our favorite Wildcats graduating from high school ...
The film is scheduled for a theatrical release on October 24, 2008 ...
~Papi Chulo~
Brenda Song is not singing a happy tune ...
The Disney Channel star has filed a libel suit against a company claiming that it used a photo of her in a newspaper ad to promote its escort service without her permission ...
The advertisement was printed in the April 4 and 18 editions of L.A. Weekly ... It featured the 20-year-old Song superimposed with the name "Layla" ... a phone number and the catchphrase "Hawaiian beauty. Come get lei'd." ...
Brenda Song: "As a role model to millions of young people, I feel I have to take a stand against this company in regard to its exploitation of my image. In filing this lawsuit, I hope to prevent this company from doing this again to anyone else."
Song is seeking at least $100,000 in damages ...
Song is the star of the Disney Channel series The Suite Life of Zack & Cody ... and its spinoff The Suite Life on Deck ...
~Papi Chulo~
On April 22, 1998 ... the Walt Disney World Resort opened its fourth theme park ... Disney's Animal Kingdom ...
~Papi Chulo~
Disney's Hollywood Studios' Toy Story Mania! and Universal Studios Orlando's The Simpsons Ride are both set to open next month ... The construction walls haven't fallen but both rides are already battling for publicity ...
Both parks are eying May 15 and 16 as the grand opening/press event for their brand-new attractions ...
Universal Studios has invited journalists for The Simpsons Ride's grand opening on May 15 and 16 ...
Disney World has announced that annual passholders will get a passholder preview for Toy Story Mania! the weekend of May 10 and 11 ... Followed by a media event for the ride on May 16 ...
Toy Story Mania! reportedly cost $80 million and is an indoor dark ride through a Toy Story-themed carnival allowing riders to play 3D midway games ...
The Simpsons Ride reportedly cost between $30 to $40 million ... It was built in the building that formerly housed the Back to the Future: The Ride ... The state-of-the-art attraction is a cutting edge simulator that takes the guests on a ride through Krustyland as they help save Bart Simpson from his nemesis Sideshow Bob ...
~Papi Chulo~
Walt Disney Pictures and Pixar Animation Studios announced their animated theatrical release schedule through 2012 ...
During the three-hour presentation ... Disney-Pixar head John Lasseter announced that Tinker Bell would be getting her own direct-to-DVD franchise ... Miley Cyrus will lend her voice to this fall's Bolt ... and Toy Story and Cars will get sequels and a 3-D outing ...
Lasseter discussed Disney's return to the 2-D animated musical with The Princess and the Frog ... as well as Disney's first computer animated musical Rapunzel ...
Here is Disney-Pixar's complete release schedule ...
Continue reading "Disney-Pixar Announce Four-Year Release Schedule" »
High School Musical 3: Senior Year is just starting filming in Utah ... but there are already plans for a fourth installment in the highly popular Disney Channel franchise ...
Rich Ross (Disney Channel Worldwide): "We are writing High School Musical 4. We have learned that just putting a number next to a title is a very old idea. We have to have a new story. Are we going to have all of the cast back? Probably not. Will we have some of them? I hope so."
It is unclear if any of the original talent will return for another musical adventure ... Especially since Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Corbin Bleu, et al. are graduating from high school in the HSM3 ...
So far HSM4 is scheduled for a small-screen debut ... but that can change ...
HSM3 hits the theaters on October 24 ...
~Papi Chulo~
Disney-owned ABC is premiering a summer series that mixes reality television with the mega-successful High School Musical franchise ...
High School Musical: Summer Session premieres July 20 on ABC ... There are two open casting calls scheduled ... Contestants between the ages of 16 and 22 can audition in California (TBA) and Walt Disney World on May 7 ...
The grand prize, host and judges will be revealed at a later date ...
In other HSM-related news ... The third film in the successful High School Musical franchise is called High School Musical 3: Senior Year ... Filming will begin at the end of this month ...
~Papi Chulo~
Disney's Enchanted made had a narrow victory over I Am Legend to make the top spot on the latest DVD sales chart ...
At the box office I Am Legend made almost twice as Enchanted ... $256.2 million vs. $127.8 million ...
But the family title shot Disney to the #1 spot for the week that ended March 23 ...
Legend did win the Blu-ray sales chart ... nearly selling four times as many copies as Enchanted ...
~Papi Chulo~
