AHC and WI: Steinberg Takes Disney

How could Saul Steinberg have successfully taken over Disney in 1984? What would have become of the company if he had thus succeeded? And how would this affect pop culture?

CONSOLIDATION: To start, would it be the end of Disney itself (liquidation of it's assets, etc)? I'd think this at least means no Disney Renaissance...
 
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Well, for one, there would probably a much larger diversity in animation studios, which might be better. There would have been none of those god awful direct to video sequels. Pixar might have still made it, as long as they cozied up to another company that did not interfere much.
 
Well, for one, there would probably a much larger diversity in animation studios, which might be better.

I'd imagine Don Bluth would be leading such a mix, no?

Pixar might have still made it, as long as they cozied up to another company that did not interfere much.

Or they could make the animation industry that much more diverse if they stay independent -- actually scratch that, if they go independent in a world without Disney, they could dominate the realm of CGI Animated Features for years to come, in effect becoming the second Disney... :rolleyes:
 
Pixar was originally part of Lucasfilm, but they got spun off, and wound up doing commercials. It wasn't until "Beauty and the Beast" that they began doing some theatrical animation.
 

Archibald

Banned
Folks - it seems that Lucas divorce has profund repercussions over Steve Jobs, Pixar, and Star Wars prequels respective fates. The consequences were far reaching !
(I didn't wanted to necromance the thread linked above ; and I found this article, which deals with Marcia lucas and their divorce)
 
Does anyone have any (non-Pixar*) thoughts on how Steinberg buying out Disney might play out? Could this be the end of the Magic Kingdom? If not, what becomes of them and their brand?

*since they have they kind of have their own thread
 
I am sorry, but I laughed at the title - because in Canada, a famous Hungarian(?) jew and his familly created decades ago the first big supermarkets chain this side of the country with the same name. It was a bit funny to a quebie. :D;):p

Now, make THAT happen and this would be epic. Sam Steinberg. :eek::D
 
I happened across a helpful book on this today -- an Eisner bio, Prince of the Magic Kingdom, by Joe Flower -- and read through it's section on Steinberg's attempted take over. It answered a lot of questions I had about this episode and its potential.

Here's what I can say: Saul may well have had good intentions for Disney, but given that he would have sell assets to pay the debts he incurs for the purpose, not to mention the current management talking about going "scorched earth" to stop him, the company likely, at the very least, would not do nearly as well in the medium term. That a lot of said resistance had more than a tinge of anti-semitism likely wouldn't help to make the picture any prettier.

Steinberg's plans for Disney (AIR) included expanding Disney's theme parks (with expedited development in Europe), greater development of Disney owned lands (esp in Florida), and a greater presence on network TV. While (I believe) he also said he wanted to see more animated features and such, that struck me as the less passionate of his plans, and seeing as he'd have to go in making quick money (selling assets, etc) anyway, I'd say this is the big change TTL is likely to see -- less focus on Disney films, more on expanding parks and land development, as well as an earlier foray into Television. Combined with above mentioned resistance and damage done to the company in takeover, I'd say that unless Steinberg's changes somehow produce the same kind of profits that Eisner managed OTL, Disney could once again be in very serious trouble -- holding, basically, a lot of developed land and a TV network -- by, say, the early 1990's. After that...
 
Disney in 1984 was far more valuable in separate parts than as a whole. The land in Florida was under used and Disney had 300+ acres in NE Los Angeles County (Golden Oak Ranch) plus production facilities and office buildings next to Burbank Airport. Ted Turner was buying the major studios pre 1950 film libraries and the Disney films titles while small in numbers were very valuable. The big prize was the trademarks and license for the Disney characters, the next big prize in the Disney universe is Buena Vista Film Distribution, at the time there was independent film companies who had uneven distribution contracts with the major studios and with BVFD they could have more control and keep more of the profits for themselves. Orion Pictures could have bought BVFD and still be in business today.
 
Disney didn't develop a lot of land in Florida to ensure the parks are protected from outside stuff, as well as to preserve the natural environment.
 
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