时事资讯:第一届迪士尼粉丝大会幕后花絮_时事

时事资讯:第一届迪士尼粉丝大会幕后花絮

I strolled D23 Expo on Saturday, the third day of the event, and probably the biggest in terms of attendance. (Officially, the company would only say that "tens of thousands" were on hand).

Having written extensively about Disney, it was interesting to see disparate elements of what I've observed internally at the company -- such as showrooms of Disney-branded furniture and folks from its hush-hush "Imagineering" division that builds theme-park attractions -- assembled in one place.

The convention floor itself did not feel crowded and was lower-key than you might expect, though there was a mini-stampede at a booth when a plate of mouse-ear-shaped chicken nuggets came out. Some exhibits were better than others (a shout-out to the the Lego mural and booth for "Lost University", a clever new online spin-off of the hit TV show on Disney's ABC network.)

Amid all the Disney and Pixar fare you'd expect stood a fairly anachronistic white "Action News" van from ABC's owned and operated Fresno, Ca. TV station tucked next to a far more heavily trafficked interactive games area. "We're just happy to be here," said the man minding the van.

Notably absent from the festivities was ESPN, the sports programming juggernaut that accounts for roughly a third of Disney's profits. There was, however, a subtle nod to Disney's partner in ESPN, 20% owner Hearst Corp., which also is a partners with Disney on other cable channels including AE and Lifetime: signage on a barbecue concession outside noted that it served only "grass-fed beef from Hearst Ranch".