When fandom becomes obsession.
Let me start by saying that Disney is only one thing amongst many that draws my attention. Sometimes, and I am not ashamed to admit this, the line between fandom and obsession is one all too easily crossed.
If such a moment is a rare thing, it can be accepted. We all have had those experiences, moments when we were star struck. Carried away to be there. Fanboy or fangirl gushing over someone, something or someplace. And that is okay. Really.
The problem? It is when momentary becomes primary. For example, why do people spend good money to go to the Disney theme parks in search of peeling paint or burned out light bulbs? Is that to be the highlight of their day, experiencing joy in not only finding such, but sharing it with others similarly concerned?
I think if one had the chance to ask Walt, that kind of experience would be rather low on the scale of what he hoped that people would enjoy during a day at Disneyland. And to be fair, I am sure Walt would not tolerate some of the lapses in quality either. Yet if one looks back on how the Park operated during his lifetime, those moments when guests were not in the Park on stage were opportunities to address issues such as peeling paint and burned out light bulbs. Especially on days when the Park was closed. Work could be done without fear of prying eyes. And yes, I agree that the company can do better at paying attention to the details at theme parks, all around. Not just for special occasions.
Another point raised by someone recently was what Walt would have thought about the Internet and social media. Being interested in technology and communication, it wouldn’t surprise me if Walt would have been a lurker. Just as he liked to go out in the Park and be anonymous (when he could), I think he would have been out there listening and even responding to discussions to see what folks had to say. (And if one thinks Disney does not have people being paid by the company to do this, think again.)
It isn’t just the Disney fandom with this kind of mania. For example, the Union Pacific Railroad is in the middle of moving one of it’s Big Boy steam locomotives from Southern California to Cheyenne, Wyoming. The railroad had decades earlier donated the locomotive to a historical society for display. Corporate policy today had decided that the railroad would take on the project of restoring one of these locomotives – of which there were only 25 built; the biggest steam locomotives world wide.
Now for same railroad fans, this is the closest thing to the Second Coming that they could ever imagine. Something they never expected to see now or ever. So much so that for months, these railfans have been chomping at the bit for even the tiniest bit of information on this project. You name it and those tiny bits have become the focus of the obsession. Fans of this have watched by webcam from around the world as the locomotive was moved from it’s display site across a parking lot to the connection with the mainline railroad. And that will continue as the locomotive makes a very slow trip back to Wyoming.
Other examples? How about fans of the Star Wars films? Since production began on this series of sequels, rumors of this and that have been the stuff of big news. Even the smallest details were shared across the planet. And now, with filming under way in Abu Dhabi… well, let’s say that for some people it is just too much. They have to be there to see it as it happens. Even though they won’t actually see anything, they have to buck up and be there. On that off chance, they might.
If you try to understand why that line between fandom and obsession is so easily and so often crossed, you can get about as many opinions as stars in the night sky. I won’t take up space here adding to those. But I will say that on some level, I understand. Yet on another, I also can see the reality. The unvarnished side of the coin, if you will. Folks who create the products that give fans interest are just doing what they can to pay the bills. Disney, steam locomotives or Star Wars, all the same.
So if you enjoy something, good! All the better to have anything that gets you involved. Go Sports Team!!! But when you have that moment where the line is crossed between fandom and obsession? I hope you can step back and enjoy what it is really all about.
Sharing any experience makes it all the more enjoyable because of those you share it with. Be it Disney theme parks, steam locomotives or science fantasy motion pictures.
Disney: Why I worry about it.
Let me begin by saying that I have no fiscal interest in the activities of the Walt Disney Company. I am neither an employee or a stockholder. I am strictly a consumer of the products produced by the Company. Finally, as a consumer, I am appreciative of the quality that the Disney name has come to represent. Yes, I easily admit it. I am a fan. Even a Disneyland Premium Annual Passholder.
So, what does that get me? Not much. I can, if I so choose, to give the Company part of my disposable income, contributing to the bottom line; a.k.a. profit.
I have opinions though, readily expressed if sought by anyone. In the overall scheme, they do not count for much. Yet, if enough folks share similar opinions and act in a similar manner, that becomes a trend. Good or bad, trends do tend to draw attention. And sometimes that attention results in action.
Now if I were a stockholder with a sufficient investment in the Company, I might be seriously considering if now is the right time to reconsider that investment. As things go, profits are in line with expectations. Right now, that is. But as one of the Company’s recent acquisitions reminds us, “Always in motion, is the future.”
If one looks at the motion picture projects of the Company in recent times, there is indeed cause for concern. Even with the successes such as “Frozen”, the playing field is littered with some spectacular failures. “John Carter”, “The Lone Ranger” and “Pirates: On Stranger Tides” leading the way. And no one will say it, but even Pixar has seen less than impressive “successes” in “Cars 2” and other projects. The bloom is off the rose, so to speak. Where once was genius, now is just another link coming from the sausage factory that is the world of motion picture production.
If all goes to plan, there are projects in the works that could reverse fortunes. Specifically, projects in the Star Wars universe as well as the Marvel one. Yet, one has to wonder what may take place if these don’t meet the lofty goals set in their paths. Careers stand to be made or broken at all levels.
As part of the entertainment industry, the theme park world is not immune from the future either. The juggernaut that is Harry Potter is coming, to both the east and west coast of the USA. And not at Disney. So, what do the suits in Burbank have to counter? Avatar. Sure, it did numbers at the box office, but it has not joined the pop-culture scene in the ways of the boy wizard, the ways of the Jedi or even where no one has gone before.
I am not saying that Disney should not be concerned about this. No matter what, people still will shell out those monthly payments for Annual Passes; especially those cheaper Southern California Select Passes. Hotel rooms on property will continue to be sold and the typical 4.3 family will continue to make that “once in a lifetime” trip to a Disney resort – be it Anaheim, Orlando, Ko’Olina or voyage aboard a Disney cruise. Because no matter how vocal the many fans may be, they will always constitute a minority in the overall numbers of Disney guests. Face it folks. Disney raises prices not simply because it can, but it does so because guests continue to pay those prices. No matter how large the raises, people keep shelling out the dollars.
Until such time as consumers cease giving Disney their disposable income in sufficient numbers and a sizable drop in revenues rings alarm bells for Accountanteers, the Walt Disney Company will continue right on doing what they have the last few years. Sure, we will see the occasional bone tossed towards the fans. Something to drool over, along with promises. Some to be kept and others just to keep us salivating. Don’t believe me? Look back a few years and you see the path littered with examples. Everything from the Disney Decade to Disney Sea and Westcot all promised. All fan excitement at the moment but not delivered. Even what we did get finally less than expected. DCA 1.0, a shining example.
Okay, all good points. But as long as the consumers continue to give the Company their disposable income, not much will change. Odds are better than good that when Bob Iger sails off into the sunset after his term as CEO, his replacement will continue on the same course. The kind of person who will take the chances and dream the kind of dreams Walt Disney did is not in the cards. You don’t get to the top of a company today by doing those kind of things. People like Walt or Steve Jobs don’t have that kind of freedom any more. Play it safe, increase shareholder value through the tried and true and you will be rewarded with all of the proper stock options.
And if you think the “Save Disney” efforts really effected the Disney Company, think again. It wasn’t the fan base that had any effect. It was the institutional stockholders who made the Disney Board of Directors take the actions they did.
I would love to be proven wrong. But the problem is that folks have come to expect those double digit profits, year after year after year. Not that there is anything wrong with a goal like that. How you reach it should be a matter of taking the chances on quality, not quantity.
“We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” Walt Disney
A multitude of stuff.
There and back again… and without hobbits, too! Did anybody notice it is 2014 yet?
Ah, the Mac turned 30 years old last week. As one can see above, the faithful still believe. Count me as one of them, with my own amusing history with products of the multi-colored or not fruit. From an Apple ][e up to an iPhone and then some, I am not making the transition to Windows 8 any time soon.
And the Super Bowl is this coming Sunday. At least commercials promise some interesting moments.
I started an interesting discussion over on Facebook. Something to excite various Disney dweebs as the rumors of various changes at Disneyland swirl about. With Universal about to launch expansions of Harry Potter on both coasts, it appears the Mouse is putting its efforts behind the Force. At least that’s the rumors on the street. I don’t know which gets more excitement going – rumors of the revival of an old attraction or rumors of the demolition of one. I say, bring back the Viewliner at Disneyland!!!
Hey, what do you know? We might get rain this week here in Northern California. And more than a sprinkle or three. Someone remind folks of those years when we had rain well into May, would you?
Is this year the most bland of award crops or what? So far, nothing worth missing and it sure looks like more of the same.
So, saw Mr. Banks and the latest Hobbit. Entertained but nothing major came from both. Still have no interest in Frozen. Guess I am just not in the demographic for it. Didn’t see the big hair effort or even the Monsters prequel last year either. Or many other movies for that matter. More the pity as I used to fall into local multiplexes once or twice a week way back when. Now, you kids be quiet and stay off my lawn while you’re at it!
In a little more than two weeks, pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training. Baseball season is just around the corner.
Meanwhile, over at the Presidio… I don’t get it. Establish criteria for potential projects and then reject the one that meets them because it might be too popular? Sure. The City has been attracting folks for almost 250 years and now you’re worried about it?
Speaking of San Francisco, better get those ear plugs ready cause Fleet Week will be back this fall. That means the Blue Angels flying above. Bringing tourists and sailors and dollars to be spent. After the black hole that was the Americas Cup, income is good all around.
A couple of favorite restaurants have closed their doors in the City, with promises to reopen. Good memories of meals at both. And speaking of favorite dining, Fogo de Chao comes to San Jose any time. Meat, meat and more meat. Did I mention meat?
Can you believe it? 36 years of train porn. Mostly in Stockton. Yes, Winterail goes on.
Looking ahead, it is hard not to look back. Good folks, good times, great memories. 2014 promises more of all three. Who knew?
Thoughts on railroads and modelling
So, I’ve been into railroads as a hobby for a long time. Yes, I clearly recall taking a ride in the cab of a General Motors F-series diesel locomotive with my father and great-grandfather (a retired locomotive engineer with a seniority date of December 1906) around the freight yard of the Southern Pacific Railroad at Sparks, Nevada. I was all of 3 years old at the time, but it was memorable enough to have lasted a lifetime.
While I have not taken things to the level shown above – with Diane Disney Miller sharing the interior of the caboose built for her dad’s backyard Carolwood Pacific Railroad – I have been a member of a number of model railroad clubs and railway museums. From fantasy to history and back again.
Impressive as they may be, I have less appreciation for the model railroad that fills space with track like spaghetti overflowing from a pasta bowl than I do for the railroad that is simple and functional. Giving thought to what the railroad is to represent gets a better grade from me.
Being clear, railroads were tools of transportation built to make use of the easiest route available to get from point A to point B. They moved people and freight to make money doing so. Following the lay of the land with as little effort as possible was the rule of construction. Cheaper costs meant bigger profits.
So, when you see multiple levels of track crisscrossing canyons of mountain rivers and passes in a model, fantasy is more prevalent than reality. Sure, it looks good. Especially indoors. And yes I know, indoor space may be a premium and layout designers may be trying to take advantage when they can. All very nice, but not very prototypical.
Oh, that word! “Prototypical“.
But what is the hobby again? Model Railroading. Not fantasy railroading. Not playing with toy trains. Save that for Gomez Addams. And yes, I have strong feelings on the subject. Especially when manufacturers of scale railway models produce something decidedly out of scale or not prototypical. Call those toys or fantasy items if you must, but they are not scale models.
One of the best examples of a true scale model railroad is that built by Jack Burgess. He very convincingly modeled the Yosemite Valley Railroad, between Merced and El Portal, CA as it operated in August of 1939. While he does not recreate every inch of the railroad from end to end, he has modeled scenes en route that give visitors the enough of a sense of realism. When you follow a train in operation from Merced to El Portal, you don’t see that spaghetti bowl of track, with trains criss-crossing one another along the way.
A tool used by some in design of their model railroads is that of selective compression. Instead of modelling a full sized structure or facility, the choice is to give the flavor or enough of an appearance to suggest the full item. As an example, I have always thought that I would someday like to model the Virginia & Truckee Railroad’s Carson City Engine House. Following the lines of thinking of Jack Burgess, I would set my modelling efforts between 1946 and 1950. Now at that time, the full engine house may have existed, but the railroad did not use all of it. In fact, they limited the active use for locomotives to a few tracks on the south end of the building. So, perhaps I need only model that particular corner of the the structure. Considering that the full engine house took up the better part of two blocks in Carson City, I would need a big space to fully model the entire structure, to say nothing of the trackage that accompanied it. As you can guess, this is a “someday” project. I have some pieces that may eventually find homes in a scene or two when that model is done.
To me, the suggestion of something can be greater than recreation of an entire item or scene. Take any postcard image of the famed Golden Gate Bridge. Do you need to build it in every detail in miniature, down to the last rivet in International Safety Orange? Or would a smaller model that suggests the scene to the eyes of the viewer be as effective in evoking the greater structure? Yes, debates about the success of Disney Imagineers work for the original California Adventure theme park recreation not withstanding, guests did know what bridge it was supposed to be.
Gone now, but I gave the Disney team that designed the California Zephyr recreation for DCA high marks. It gave enough of the flavor of the real thing to suggest the whole train to guests, without taking up all the space that a real locomotive and passenger cars would have.
Part of the entertainment of this particular hobby can be the recall of things long gone. Travel aboard trains of the past or putting yourself in the role of someone at work, going from point A to point B. Not bad as it goes, especially if you can’t go one better and take on the role at a museum, bringing the past to life.
Another year, more tales
Ah, the turning of the pages of calendars…
So, have you made that first correction of 2014? You know, such as the changing of the date on a check from 2013 to 2014. Yup, been there, done that.
Finally saw “Saving Mr. Banks”. I enjoyed it, despite knowing that much of what the story tells is just that; a fabricated story. But it is a docu-drama, not a documentary. If the project gets folks to learn more about Walt, the truth behind the brand, I am all in favor of it. And while I never had the pleasure of meeting Walt, the time spent with Diane Disney Miller, listening to her share about her dad was something I will always recall with great fondness.
And while on the subject of the Walt Disney Family Museum, if you have not yet seen the Tyrus Wong exhibition, GO! Looking forward to the upcoming Mary Blair exhibition and events along with other great events in 2014. Despite the untimely passing of Diane, the WDFM will continue to offer guests a great look at her father and his legacy.
Private Car Service will be offering a great trip from Los Angeles to Oakland (and back) for an event at the WDFM this fall. Promises to be a wonderful time for those who join us. More details to come.
Sad to hear of the final performances by Billy Hill and the Hillbillies at Disneyland. Live music has always been something special at the Park, despite the costs involved. Here’s hoping the Accountanteers don’t cut the budget for entertainment to the point where it sunsets. Always enjoy taking a few minutes to listen in. Rod Miller, Ernie McLean, the original (and sadly imitated) Royal Street Bachelors, to name a few.
Don’t get me wrong. I am not among those who wail in panic at any change in their personal, beloved Disneyland. It was never meant to be a museum. Never a moment to be captured in amber. Am I sad to see changes such as the impending demolition of the Fantasyland Skyway station or the rennovation/expansion of Club 33? Actually, quite the opposite. In the case of the Skyway, it is long gone, never to return. The station serves no purpose and has become a hazard; home to more termites than anything useful. In the case of Club 33, I am glad to see that funding finally came through to make long needed changes. Looking forward to a renovated location as well as a new menu under Executive Chef Andrew Sutton. It needs to reclaim that spot as the best dining experience in the Park, lost some time ago.
Enjoyed a fun evening at the Oakland Paramount over the holidays, viewing “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.” Another great series of films to come, including “Dirty Harry”. Can’t go wrong for only $5!
So, more fun in the coming year! Thanks for checking in.