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Jonas: Coming to a Nintendo DS Near You

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Nintendo has always been a guy thing, right? Not necessarily. The tides they are a turnin.’ Today’s game systems come equipped with all sorts of girl-friendly titles, featuring characters like Hannah Montana and Alex Russo, and now the Jonas Brothers are set to appear in Nintendo DS form as well.

GamersHell is reporting that the rumors of a JoBros video game have been confirmed. According to the article, the game will follow the format of the televsion show, featuring the brothers as their fictional TV likenesses as they “try to find a balance between their rockstar world and ordinary lives.”

Choose between Kevin, Joe and Nick, ane explore familiar locations such as the firehouse and school. Their friends Macy and Stella are also featured in the game, which is being released by Disney Interactive Studios.

Now if they could just incorporate the brothers into the next Street Fighter game, that would be something…

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Disney Accused of Hoarding Royalties for Winnie the Pooh

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The Disney Corporation is being accused of hoarding as much as $1 billion in royalties owed to the family of Steven Slesinger, who brought Winnie the Pooh to America, The Wrap reports.

“On Thursday,  November 5, Stephen Slesinger, Inc. filed a notice of appeal to obtain unpaid past royalties from Disney as well as redress for Disney’s past improper business practices,” the family said in a written statement. The family alleges that Disney owes 1.5-2.5% in royalties for the Winnie the Pooh character.

But Disney is contesting the claims. “The press release is a gross distortion,” said Disney spokeswoman Michelle Bergman. “SSI’s claims were dismissed in federal court. We’ve always acknowledged that the rights we obtained are royalty-bearing and continue to be so. I don’t know what the motivation is, but a decision was made awhile ago.”

The claims in fact were dismissed back in September, but the family is fighting on. “We are appealing the recent decision, and we are clarifying what the judge stated,” said family spokesman Lonnie Soury. “We did lose the case, but we are still owed royalties. Though the decision established that Disney is the licensee, we are still owed hundreds of millions of dollars. We don’t know exactly what that figure is, because Disney accounting is Hollywood accounting and that’s why we filed. They’ve been commingling Pooh revenue with Mickey Mouse.”

I don’t know whether the Slesinger family has a legitimate case, but there is one thing I know for sure. It’s really not good to be commingling pooh with anything.


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‘Jonas’ Renewed for Second Season

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Jonas Brothers fans rejoice! ABC News reports that Disney is renewing the popular tween sitcom ‘Jonas’ for a second season. The show, which portrays brothers Kevin, Joe and Nick as fictionalized versions of themselves, has proved to be a hit among key demographics and will return in 2010.

Production will likely begin in February with new episodes airing in the months that follow. Season 2 will follow the brothers as they embark on a summer vacation in Los Angeles and find themselves landing gigs in show business.

“These guys are the superstars of their generation,” said Gary Marsh, Disney Channels Worldwide entertainment president. “We had the opportunity to extend our relationship with them, which we did.”

In addition to ‘Jonas,’ the Disney Channel has also renewed the band’s short-form reality show ‘Jonas Brothers: Living the Dream’ for a second season. Filming has already begun for a premier in early 2010.

Disney has hired two new executive producers for the sitcom, to replace Michael Curtis and Roger S.H. Schulman. The second season will be executive produced by Lester Lewis (The Office) and director Paul Hoen, who has shot nine Disney Channel films.

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A Christmas Carol, Wizards, Suite Life, and a Partridge in a Pear Tree

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Today is a huge day for Disney fans, so try and keep up…

Disney’s long awaited digital 3D movie ‘A Christmas Carol’ hits theaters, so be sure to get your tickets! The movie stars Jim Carrey and recreates the classic Dickens tale for a new generation.

Then, starting at 8pm/7pm central, be sure to check out a whole slew of premiers on the Disney channel. Up first is a brand new ‘Wizards of Waverly Place,’ where Justin goes toe to toe with a real life mummy. Then, in a brand new ‘Suite Life on Deck,’ Zack and Cody write a song for American Idol winner Jordin Sparks. Finally at 9pm, Phineas and Ferb travel through time, exploring both the past and the future.

Is if that weren’t enough, Saturday and Sunday night also feature premiers for the hit shows ‘Jonas’ and ‘Sonny with a Chance.’ In other words, this weekend has everything you need to remain stimulated, entertained and unconcerned with silly matters like studying, exercising or experiencing sunlight.

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New ‘Sonny With a Chance’ Tonight at 8

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A new episode of Disney’s hit “Sonny with a Chance” airs tonight at 8/7 central. Starring Demi Lovato, Tiffany Thornton, and guest starring famed ventriloquist Jeff Dunham, tonight’s episode features possessed puppets, dumb blonde joke controversies and forbidden restrooms…in other words, it should be a blast. You can check out the promo at the Disney Channel homepage.

One thing that always impresses me about Sonny with a Chance is how they can pack thirty-seven storylines into a single twenty-two-minute episode. It’s truly amazing. Every time I watch an episode of this show, I feel like I’ve just watched an entire film. Anyway, looks like tonight is no exception, so be sure to tune in.

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Disney Seeks Revolution with “Dance Dance Chicago”

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Reuters reports that Disney is already hard at work on its next musically-themed comedy series, “Dance Dance Chicago.” Reuters describes the show as “contemporary tale of two kids working as back-up dancers on an ‘American Bandstand’-type show.”

This is a smart move for Disney, as their musically-based projects are always massively successful (think High School Musical, Camp Rock, Hannah Montana, Muppet Sweeney Todd, etc..). Disney is also reportedly working on a music-themed show for its much manlier Disney DX Channel, entitled “I’m in the Band.”

“Dance Dance Chicago” is now casting, and production will likely begin in January. Writing and executive producing is Chris Thompson, creator of “The Naked Truth,” “Action” and “Ladies Man.” Should be quite a hit. That is, if kids can frolick around the streets of Chicago singing and dancing without getting the crap beaten out of them.

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Disney Shows Tear Up the Nielsen Ratings

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So the Nielsen ratings are in for the week…and as it turns out, Disney is kicking butt…

Here is the complete list, courtesy of the Associated Press:

1. NFL Football: N.Y. Jets vs. Miami (Monday, 8:30 p.m.), ESPN, 9.65 million homes, 13.13 million viewers.

2. MLB National League Championship Series: Philadelphia vs. L.A. Dodgers, Game 1 (Thursday, 7:59 p.m.), TBS, 4.93 million homes, 6.83 million viewers.

3. “Hannah Montana” (Sunday, 7:30 p.m.), Disney, 3.95 million homes, 5.71 million viewers.

4. MLB Division Series: Philadelphia vs. Colorado, Game 4 (Monday, 6 p.m.), TBS, 3.71 million homes, 5.2 million viewers.

5. “NCIS” (Wednesday, 8 p.m.), USA, 3.56 million homes, 4.87 million viewers.

6. MLB National League Championship Series: L.A. Dodgers vs. Philadelphia, Game 3 (Sunday, 8 p.m.), TBS, 3.45 million homes, 5.03 million viewers.

7. “WWE Raw” (Monday, 9 p.m.), USA, 3.41 million homes, 4.84 million viewers.

8. MLB National League Championship Series: Philadelphia vs. L.A. Dodgers, Game 2 (Friday, 4 p.m.), TBS, 3.34 million homes, 4.42 million viewers.

9. “WWE Raw” (Monday, 10 p.m.), USA, 3.27 million homes, 4.73 million viewers.

10. College Football: S. Carolina vs. Clemson (Saturday, 7:41 p.m.), ESPN, 3.26 million homes, 4.61 million viewers.

11. “Suite Life on Deck” (Friday, 8:30 p.m.), Disney, 3.18 million homes, 4.65 million viewers.

12. “ICarly” (Saturday, 8 p.m.), Nickelodeon, 3.11 million homes, 4.67 million viewers.

13. “Wizards of Waverly Place” (Friday, 8 p.m.), Disney, 3.07 million homes, 4.55 million viewers.

14. “NCIS” (Wednesday, 7 p.m.), USA, 2.995 million homes, 3.93 million viewers.

15. “Phineas and Ferb” (Friday, 9 p.m.), Disney, 2.990 million homes, 4.44 million viewers.

Notice that not one, not two, but FOUR shows in the top 15 are Disney Channel originals: Hannah Montana (#3), Suite Life on Deck (#11), Wizards of Waverly Place (#13), and Phineas & Ferb (#15).

There was a time when cable shows couldn’t even reach the Nielsen top 50, and now the Disney Channel is absolutely killing in the ratings.

Now if Hannah Montana could just learn how to throw a football, she would be #1 in a heartbeat.

Image courtesy of Flickr

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Suite Life on Deck Renewed for Third Season

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Variety has just reported that Disney’s hit “The Suite Life on Deck” will return for a third season, with filming likely for early 2010. According to Variety:

Starring twins Dylan and Cole Sprouse, “Suite Life” is TV’s top-ranked series among kids 6-11 and No. 2 in the 9-14 demo, boasting nearly 25% growth compared with its first season.

On Oct. 2, the show drew its highest numbers to date with 6.8 million viewers overall.

…which should come as no surprise to anyone even vaguely familiar with the show. I mean, think about it: you’ve got two Dennis-the-Menace-style miscreants living on a luxury cruise ship with a southern belle (Debby Ryan, aka Bailey Pickett), a wealthy socialite (Brenda song, aka London Tipton), and a grumpy but overall-well-meaning chaperone/manager (Phill Lewis, aka Marion “Good luck with that” Moseby), complete with endless accommodations, around-the-clock buffets and apparently no parents in sight to tell them what to do. Isn’t this every kid’s fantasy? That life couldn’t be any more magical if they had magic wands and a giant named Hagrid.

But anyway, I digress. Congrats to the Suite Life!

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