Head of MHC fired by new Disney CEO!!

[Kimp the Shrimp]

if sometnng happened we will find out monday or tues

 

[beaker]

Only one question: How will this affect the relaunch and future of the Mupept brand? PLEASE let them never incorporate the Muppets into Disneyana canon.

 

[Kimp the Shrimp]

http://www.detnews.com/2005/business/0509/30/C03-332534.htm
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/9531584/
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/features/20050929-0014-ca-disney-igerera.html
http://www.usatoday.com/money/media/2005-10-02-disney-cover-usat_x.htm
http://www.mickeynews.com/News/DisplayPressRelease.asp_Q_id_E_1025Talent

HERE'S FIVE STORIES FORM TODAY NOT ONE MENTIONS FIRINGS AT DISNEY

 

[Phantom]

Either way, Disney is trying to maximize Muppet saturation in the market. This means more merchandise, more stuff that's been locked away for 30 years, more movies...hopefully better than Wiz of Oz. The down side is that Disney is not a non-profit organization and have in recent years strayed away from quality for quantity (of profit). But keep in mind, this is a new start for both companies and their bottom line is driven by us, the consumer.

I hate to see anyone lose their job, but a little shake up at the top is not necessarily a bad thing...

 

[ravagefrackle]

hey! DON'T belive any of that B.S on Jim Hills website. everybody here knows that!

It is true, and might i suggest that not everything on his site is B.S., as you so quaintly put it,

 

[Kimp the Shrimp]

where do you get the proof it's true?

 

[GelflingWaldo]

I never blame Jim Hill for sharing information nor do I hold it against the site for getting information out there (it would get out there one way or another). I don't think JHM is doing anything immoral or wrong – but the people who follow every word on the site blindly, carelessly and unfailingly that are wrong or bad. The site is a collection of editorials. Most of the things stated on the site are speculation, interpretation, and personal opinion. Most information on the site is not unbiased or 100% factually based (and if the read the articles, Jim Hill is not claiming that every word is direct "news", but rather editorials on the events happening; it is the author's personal opinion about what's going on).

This is news mainly Disney office politics, and it will affect how the entire company runs - the change from Eisner to Iger is a big transition for the Disney Company and will affect almost all of their characters, properties, and enterprises – including the Muppets.

But what happened within the Muppet Holding Company is still really unclear and how it will affect the characters and outputs we all experience is completely unknown at this point and anything said would be 110% speculation. How many times did the Henson Company change leadership? Did we ever get all worked that a new CEO or a new general manager would ruin everything and that the loss of the previous guy would ruin everything?

There is also a lot of "spin" in this article that may make things seem worse then they are. For example, by Jim Hill's definition, who is considered a "senior staff member"? Only 3 are left, but how many (according to his definition) did the company have before and what were the jobs of the one's removed? (I mean we could be talking about people not involved with the creative side of the company at all.

Chris Curtin did a lot for the Muppets in the past year, and who knows if a lot of his plans will be canned or not. Some may end up being sacked (who knows what will happen with America's Next Muppet or Kermit's Christmas Caper at this point); some plans are already in too far along that it would be unlikely for the next guy to scrap them entirely (such as Kermit's 50-stop trip around the world); and some Muppet projects were handed off to control of other Disney branches such as records, home-entertainment, ect (such as TMS DVDs, and the Christmas Album) so the MHC management change does not really effect the output of some of the projects current in the works. Also the Jim Henson Co. ties that the characters are under right now will help in a way by protecting them and cushioning them from a lot of the internal change at Disney. Things inside are changing but it does not mean it will get worse in there.

It is not very likely that the next guy will come in and just wipe the board clean and erase everything that Curtin had worked on did up to this point. However if the new general manger strongly disagreed with one of Chris' ideas then it may be pushed to the side; and if they have new ideas they may push them forward – but the Muppets and many of the current plans can still live on without Chris. Jim Hill said that "Disney is now looking to put someone much more dynamic in charge of MHC". This could be a good thing for the characters. Getting someone that is willing to take more risks (like make a movie, a TV show, and a major comeback) and someone with more creativity and more ideas could be a good idea too. It does not mean that they are looking for someone to help the Muppets sell out, become watered down, or weaken the brand. A new manager does not mean doom for the Muppets -- it could mean even better things for them -- who knows at this point?

There's really no reason for us, the Muppet fans, to sit here try to speculate on what these firing means for the Muppets' future. It could be a good thing or it could be a bad thing. Other than Curtin, we don't know who was let go, what they did, why they were let go, and what is being done to replace them, or fill the jobs. A lot of this is pure office politics - something that has been happening behind the scenes of the Muppets for decades and will continue to happen for the rest of time (regardless of who owns them).

This type of news does nothing but make people argue, spread rumors, speculate, and get themselves depressed for no reason. We're all getting worried about things that are 100% out of our control, none of our business, and will probably not result in any major change in the franchise (I mean, looking back five years from now, will fans unaware of this management change be able to tell something happened to the Muppets in late 2005?).

I mean, "Kermit's Christmas Capers" may get canceled (it may not), but let's say the new guy doesn't like the idea that Curtin was a big backer of. Ok, maybe a new special will be made instead for 2006, maybe a feature film, maybe a TV show, maybe not. How many times have productions been announced and then the fell thought? Just take a look at the Muppet Central news archives; there are about 10 big projects announced since 1998 in there that never happened. It happens all the time, and in a year we all forget about the productions that never was and enjoy the new ones that there are instead.

Danny Horn of ToughPigs said it great when he said; "We're audience members. Jim should stop talking to us like we're stockholders". This will affect the company, but trying to speculate how this will affect Kermit and the gang's integrity, personality, and reception is futile, pointless, and basically impossible. Give Disney time to publicly announce the change in leadership at the MHC and see how this affects the products and productions coming our way. It could mean good things, it could mean bad things, or it could be a neutral change for us. Only time will tell.

But remember that Jim Hill is not all lies and fabrications; but the articles are not unbiased and totally truthful. Don’t blow things out of proportions, we should be aware of this, we should not be scared of this (at least not yet).

 

[Kimp the Shrimp]

we just need proof

 

[ravagefrackle]

well , you dont need proof you want it, and i will not site my sources here, but needless to say, i am a professional, im involved in the industry, and i have spoken to more than a few of my collegues,and its true, you can choose to believe it or not, i dont really care,

and when you find out the truth.iether thru the trades, or regular papers you will see that Jim Hill ,and Faz, and i were speaking the truth, i dont know details, and i wont speculate on them, all you need to know is that it has happend and we will all have to wait and see what comes next.

well put by the way Waldo

 

[Kimp the Shrimp]

well thats fine all i said was i would like tangable evidance