Categories
Disney

Disney’s D23 Charter Membership Gift

Putting a Smile on the World
Putting a Smile on the World

My exclusive D23 Membership Gift has arrived.

It’s a large (20″ x 30″) lithograph of Paul Felix’ piece entitled “Putting a Smile on the World” that he created for Mickey’s 80th birthday anniversary in November 2008.

The package also came with a letter from Steven Clark, head of Disney’s D23 program.  It reads:

Dear D23 Charter Member –

We are pleased to present you with this D23 member exclusive lithograph as your Charter Year gift from the new Walt Disney Archives Collection.  Walt Disney Animation Studios Art Director Paul Felix created “Putting a Smile on the World” in celebration of Mickey’s 80th birthday last November, capturing Mickey’s trademark charm, youthful exuberance and optimism.

Categories
Games

Flash Fun: Hex Empire

hexempireHEX EMPIRE is a Risk-like strategy game, where the object is to destroy your three computer opponents and take over their capital cities.

Unlike RISK, each map is randomly generated, which tends to keep the game fresh.  At the beginning of the game, you select which of the four capitals you want to defend.  Your capital, and every other city under your power, will automatically generate new armies each turn.

Each turn, you can move up to five army units.  You can move a unit up to two spaces away from their current location (either to an empty space or to initiate a fight by moving onto an enemy-occupied position), you can combine units into a larger single unit, or you can move units onto or off of a boat if you would like to attack by sea.

Each unit can grow up to 99 strength. There is also a secondary number associated with each unit: courage.  You will win a fight if your strength is higher than your opponents’, but if the opponents have more courage than your units have, then you may find yourself in trouble.

The gameplay is fairly straightforward, but there is a little strategy involved with how to best use your five moves each turn.  You’ll often find yourself with a bounty of 99-sized units sitting in the back of your defense area, but not enough moves to get them where they can be useful in a fight.

Still, if you’re looking for a few minutes of diversion, it’s a good implementation of a turn-based strategy game.  Each game can take up to 20 minutes or so to play.

Categories
News TV

TiVo Alert: Head Rush on Cartoon Network

Sure, it may not even be scheduled to air yet, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t set a TiVo reminder to record HEAD RUSH on Cartoon Network when it airs later this year (along with the rest of the new Cartoon Network shows planned for 2009, which – oddly enough – aren’t all cartoons).

What’s HEAD RUSH?

Only the coolest game show idea to come along in a long, long time: 

Categories
Funny Websites

Rules of the Internet

In case you were wondering, THE INTERNET DOES HAVE RULES

Sure, some would say that the Internet should be like the wild west of old, with the whooping and the hollering, the rustling and the stampeding… but all that is so 1998.

Still, there are a few Internet rules that should be shared and noted. One in particular, as it was brought up by someone after looking at the Lightning McQueen autopsy from yesterday.  Yes, that is Rule #34.  We’ll get to that in a moment.

Categories
Disney

Opening the D23 Membership Package

Today, I received my D23 Membership Packet.  Let’s look inside, shall we?

Opening up the impressively sized cardboard container was easy – just rip open the cardboard zipper and fold the back over the top.  In doing so, you release the flaps, protecting the precious D23 material.

Opening the D23 Package 
Opening the D23 Package
 The D23 Membership materials are enclosed in their own protective plastic wrapper, showing the back of the Disney twenty-three magazine.
 D23 contents (still in plastic)
D23 contents (still in plastic)
 
Categories
Disney Movies Websites

Really Inside Disney/Pixar’s CARS

Jake Parker is an artist.

Jake Parker also has a vivid imagination.

Jake Parker has taken the star of Disney/Pixar’s Cars franchise, Lightning McQueen, and cut him open lengthwise to see what makes him tick.  Basically, Jake Parker has done AN AUTOPSY ON LIGHTNING MCQUEEN.

Categories
Games

Flash Fun: DISINFECT THE CORE

disinfectcoreDISINFECT THE CORE is a quick little brain teaser/game that should keep you occupied for a few minutes over your lunch hour.

Your opponent is the red “virus” that has infected the computer’s core.  You are the green “antivirus” trying to prevent the red virus from taking over the 300+ spaces on the game board.

Each turn, all you have to do is click on one of your arrows.  The arrow will rotate clockwise 90 degrees, changing its connection from one dot to the next.  You can only click on arrows of your own color (neutral or opponent arrows won’t move for you).  Every connection you make has the potential of expanding your green influence across the game board – but remember, red is doing the same thing with its arrows.

If you run out of green arrows to click on, or if the gameboard turns completely red, then you have lost.

Strategy?  Make sure you always have an arrow or two pointed 90 degrees away from the red infection.  That way, you won’t waste a turn or two merely rotating an arrow into position.

Categories
Disney

Brand Fan Clubs

Michael Jones at the terrific business-oriented ALL THINGS DISNEY blog posed this question as he asked about GIVING DISNEY’S D23 MEMBERSHIP CLUB A CHANCE:   Can you name another company (besides Apple) that has a large a following as Disney and yet has no official outlet?

Disney has a large and rabid online fanbase.  No doubt about it.  Other companies do as well.

And in today’s world of TwitMyFace social marketing, any company that has a large and vocal fan base should be aware enough of their surroundings to monitor the online goings-on of their consumers.   In 2000, Coca-Cola issues a cease-and-desist order to a fan who had created a fan website, vintagecocacola.com (the site is currently down).   The claim was that the user was cybersquatting on Coca-Cola’s trademark, but ignores that there can exceptions if the trademarked name is not used for profit (as is the case with most fan-based sites).  Coca-Cola’s stance was that they were merely protecting their trademark… though they recognize that in doing so they may upset their most loyal, well-meaning fans.