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Eisner On The Edge?
"Right now, Michael Eisner seems to need better job security," states Jim Hill at the Orlando Weekly. "For months, there have been whispers around Hollywood that he has lost touch with what audiences want to watch.
Critics point to ABC's loss of 25 percent of its viewers last season. Not to mention Disney Studio's dismal performance at the box office during the past 12 months, including its latest big-budget bomb, Bad Company. As Disney's stock tumbled, investment firms like Merrill Lynch last week cut back on their earnings projections for the Walt Disney Co. Some Wall Street insiders suggested that it could be months -- years, even -- before Mickey is able to pull himself out of his hole.
No one on Disney's board has been willing to go on record about what all the bad news might mean for Eisner. Even so, the company reportedly has begun searching for a strong creative executive to serve as Eisner's new second-in command, to replace the current president and chief operating officer, Robert Iger. The idea is that the new exec might eventually fill Eisner's shoes.
Members of Disney's board were said to be mortified earlier this month when news leaked via the Internet that they were supposedly talking with Bob Pittman. Currently co-chief operating officer at AOL Time Warner, Pittman certainly seems to have the right credentials for the top spot at Disney.
A co-founder of MTV, Pittman also rode herd on Time Warner's Six Flags division. Given his extensive experience in broadcast and theme-park management, he could be an excellent candidate to replace Eisner. Not that Eisner, whose current contract doesn't run out until 2006, has any desire to go. If anything, over the past few months he has dug himself in even deeper at Disney, determined to do whatever he has to do to restore his reputation as one of Hollywood's most influential movers and shakers.
Everyone at Disney will be watching closely to see how the company's next three summer film releases--Reign of Fire, The Country Bears and Signs--perform at the box office. Should any of them hit big, Eisner may buy himself a little time. But, if ABC doesn't have at least one enormously successful TV series in its fall lineup, it's Michael Eisner who just might find himself getting canceled."
"Right now, Michael Eisner seems to need better job security," states Jim Hill at the Orlando Weekly. "For months, there have been whispers around Hollywood that he has lost touch with what audiences want to watch.
Critics point to ABC's loss of 25 percent of its viewers last season. Not to mention Disney Studio's dismal performance at the box office during the past 12 months, including its latest big-budget bomb, Bad Company. As Disney's stock tumbled, investment firms like Merrill Lynch last week cut back on their earnings projections for the Walt Disney Co. Some Wall Street insiders suggested that it could be months -- years, even -- before Mickey is able to pull himself out of his hole.
No one on Disney's board has been willing to go on record about what all the bad news might mean for Eisner. Even so, the company reportedly has begun searching for a strong creative executive to serve as Eisner's new second-in command, to replace the current president and chief operating officer, Robert Iger. The idea is that the new exec might eventually fill Eisner's shoes.
Members of Disney's board were said to be mortified earlier this month when news leaked via the Internet that they were supposedly talking with Bob Pittman. Currently co-chief operating officer at AOL Time Warner, Pittman certainly seems to have the right credentials for the top spot at Disney.
A co-founder of MTV, Pittman also rode herd on Time Warner's Six Flags division. Given his extensive experience in broadcast and theme-park management, he could be an excellent candidate to replace Eisner. Not that Eisner, whose current contract doesn't run out until 2006, has any desire to go. If anything, over the past few months he has dug himself in even deeper at Disney, determined to do whatever he has to do to restore his reputation as one of Hollywood's most influential movers and shakers.
Everyone at Disney will be watching closely to see how the company's next three summer film releases--Reign of Fire, The Country Bears and Signs--perform at the box office. Should any of them hit big, Eisner may buy himself a little time. But, if ABC doesn't have at least one enormously successful TV series in its fall lineup, it's Michael Eisner who just might find himself getting canceled."
