I miss Michael Eisner

[firefly_ris]

California Adventure aside, some of the best-themed buildings were built during Eisner's era. They unfortunately would not build another Team Disney building, Grand Floridian, or Boardwalk today -- we get Marriotts on steroids instead, see Poly DVC expansion and Reflections concepts. He went astray eventually but when Frank Wells was alive I'd take that team over either of the 2 Bobs ANY day.

 

[WDWEPCOT]

We could be the rest of our lives discussing Jeffrey and Michael - a lot went down on both sides
Michael built several hotels at WDW also - he saved Disney along with Frank no doubt about that in my eyes
I myself liked Michael but feel he lost his way and that was a shame
Jeffrey leaving hurt the studios
Joe leaving killed it
I was never a huge fan of Iger but omg he’s better than Bob - I would say anything is but I’m not so sure
Bob is putting Disney where it was when Frank & Michael were brought in to save it - who are they going to bring in this time ???? How are you going to undo this damage ?
I’ve stated before - I’ve read all the books several times - I still love Michael I think the Parks were never better but that is my opinion your mileage may very - but Disney showed they cared about ME as a customer and IF I’m going to throw MY cash at you Yes I want you to appreciate that I’m your customer - is that asking for too much ? I don’t think so

 

[RangerPooh]

It's nice to know that I'm not the only one who is missing Eisner, at least the early years of Eisner.

 

[dreamer17555]

There is a great book called 'Disney War' by James B Stewart, very readable and goes through Eisner's full time at Disney. It is very critical of Eisner but if you take the writing with a pinch of salt I found it a very enjoyable read. It goes through all of Eisner's decisions.

Disney War is a great read! I actually have both the book and the audio book- I found the audiobook much easier to digest all the information. I second your recommendation. A must read.

 

[john7994]

What it reminds me, is that as a leader, you are only as good as those you choose to be surrounded by in making decisions as well as by those that choose to work with you. A lot could go wrong / right based on that alone. With that said, in looking at the full legacy of Eisner, while I grant him some of his due, I am not as nostalgic as some.

 

[TLSnell1981]

Well....the food experience was much better during the Eisner years. IMO It is important when you are trapped in the World for a week!

 

[JLTraveling]

To me, what happened with 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea at WDW is iconic of the post-Wells Eisner era. He took a beloved ride, closed it with no warning, poured concrete over it, and replaced it with....a playground. A cheaply build kids playground that wouldn't have been out of place at your local McDonald's. Obviously that wasn't the only thing, and there are plenty of arguments to be made about whether the ride's closure was inevitable (maintenance issues, not disabled-accessible, etc). But replacing an E-ticket with a cheap playground, with no warning to fans, just shows his mindset at that time.

 

[BrianL]

I had some fun writing this

Eisner's 'good' decisions 1984 - 1994 (approx.):
When he joined the company it was in really bad shape, the movies were not doing well, only the parks were mostly profitable
He started the Touchstone live action films which started making profits
This allowed animation to start again with the Disney Renaissance
He made a deal with Tokyo for a 3rd Disney park
At WDW he started Downtown Disney for shopping and invested in the parks

Eisner's 'bad' decisions 1994 - 2005 (approx):
Euro Disney was built with far too many hotels, 1 park and 7 hotels! and took years to even break even.
Because of the issues with Disneyland Paris he scaled back and cut costs in all other parks
He cut the costs for the second gate at Disneyland aka California Adventure, same issue with the second park at Disneyland Paris.
He also started cutting animation budgets and began the cheap direct to video sequels
He refused to negotiate a fair deal with Pixar which means Steve Jobs stepped in for distribution deals.
There was the whole issue with Jeffery Katzenberg, which deserves a list of its own

Good post, however the Tokyo Disneyland deal went down before Eisner. It opened in 1983.

 

[stitch'sgirl]

I also kinda miss Eisner. He seemed to care, if in a cold kind of way. I don't know what to make of the current lot. The parks are a lot more expensive, but there IS a lot of regeneration going on.

I agree I always felt he was genuine and sincere, even if he made mistakes. Chapeck tries to act sincere and it comes off so phoney!!

 

[RamblingMad]

I liked WDW better when he was in charge. And I liked the Disney Sunday Movies. Different time. Less people. Less planning. And more fun.

 

[tvguy]

California Adventure aside, some of the best-themed buildings were built during Eisner's era. They unfortunately would not build another Team Disney building, Grand Floridian, or Boardwalk today -- we get Marriotts on steroids instead, see Poly DVC expansion and Reflections concepts. He went astray eventually but when Frank Wells was alive I'd take that team over either of the 2 Bobs ANY day.

Not sure what if any role Eisner had in the Grand Floridian. It was already under construction when he joined Disney.

 

[starlite_]

I can't really say I miss any of them since I was just a baby in the 90's but I do wish there was a balance in leadership. A creative lead and a financial lead hand in hand is quite needed for a company like Disney. Chapek could have been a good financial lead but without the balance he is terrible at his job imo.

 

[firefly_ris]

Not sure what if any role Eisner had in the Grand Floridian. It was already under construction when he joined Disney.

Plans for the concept had begun before his arrival, but they didn't get everything conceptually finalized and didn't break ground until 1986. Eisner became CEO in 1984.

 

[BrianL]

I can't really say I miss any of them since I was just a baby in the 90's but I do wish there was a balance in leadership. A creative lead and a financial lead hand in hand is quite needed for a company like Disney. Chapek could have been a good financial lead but without the balance he is terrible at his job imo.

The big problem is the lack of great creative leads right now. I mentioned Alan Horn before, but also there was John Lasseter who was running animation (despite problematic behavior). Right now they don't have anyone quite that strong, or perhaps they aren't quite being allowed to work to their full poitential by a micromanaging beurocracy.

 

[BagOLaughs]

Good post, however the Tokyo Disneyland deal went down before Eisner. It opened in 1983.

oh good spot! I'll have to check my sources...

 

[MillauFr]

I don't miss Eisner at all. He's the one that created the debacle of California Adventure. It was Bob Iger who fixed it.

Agreed. I mean rides like Superstar Limo? All time worst ride in Disney history. Bob fixed California Adventure.

 

[MillauFr]

Disneyland was run down and shabby back in the 1990s. The Bobs have revitalized it so it is now the crown jewel of the company. Just not sure why they don't show Magic Kingdom the same care.

 

[Jrb1979]

I miss Eisner its mainly cause he took risks and pushed boundaries on attractions. Extraterrestrial was a great attraction for its time. I would have loved to see Disney go more down that road of more adult oriented attractions mixed with family ones.

At least with Eisner you never had the dumpster fire that's going on now.

 

[disney-inspired]

I don't miss Eisner at all. He's the one that created the debacle of California Adventure. It was Bob Iger who fixed it.

Iger wasn't great from a parks perspective, but he had the studios making a lot of magic under his watch. Of course, I might chalk that up to Alan Horn, but it was absolutely working.

While I don't think Iger was focused enough on the parks, he did some awesome things with movies and IP acquisition. I keep thinking how horrible the super hero genre would still have been without Iron Man and then Disney's acquisition of Marvel. For me it really hit home with the Avengers, seeing all my favorite characters interacting with each other.
Now that Disney owns 21st Century Fox, I'm excited to see how they incorporate the X-Men. My 90s child self is gonna be so happy.

ETA - Under Iger, we got Carsland, Galaxy's Edge and Pandora. I'm not a huge fan of that Avatar, but my sister is and she was so excited to see it.
I can't believe it's been 10 years since Carsland opened.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Agreed. I mean rides like Superstar Limo? All time worst ride in Disney history. Bob fixed California Adventure.

LOL we called it supercheap lamos. It was the epitome of Eisner's vision. A park with a few generic cheap rides that was really a glorified shopping and eating and drinking mall. I think it originally had 3 really good attractions. Soarin, Grizzley River Run, and California Screamin. Of course one of them was not up to Disney theming standards, like the entirety of paradise pier. And it showed in the attendance. Disney parks 1 through 5.... DCA... 14th.