ABC Family is a cable network that specializes in contemporary family programing, and it is one of the networks owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group (along with A&E, Lifetime, the former SOAPnet, and all of the ABC and Disney channels).
I recently finished a 40-episode Netflix marathon of one of ABC Family’s original series, Make It or Break It, and I gotta say, I loved it. The teen-centric series follows the lives of four elite gymnasts as they tumble their way through the gym, relationships, betrayals, injuries, eating disorders, and family dysfunction in their quest for Olympic gold.
Promotional image for Make It Or Break It, image copyright Disney-ABC
The four friends/frenemies are Payson Keeler (Ayla Kell), an intense and super-focused athlete who’s used to being number one until a major injury sidelines her; Kaylie Cruz (Josie Loren), a gymnast whose sudden rise up the ranks leads to self-doubt and an eating disorder; manipulative, boy-crazy Lauren Tanner (Cassie Scerbo) who will do whatever it takes to get her man, her father’s attention, and her place on the podium; and new girl from the wrong side of the tracks, Emily Kmetko (Chelsea Hobbs), who struggles to rise above her background and prove that she belongs with the elites.
Read More: http://www.disney-blog.com/?p=1420
With the school year wrapping up and summer finally here (in the northern hemisphere, anyway), it’s the perfect time for families to go outside and connect with their communities and get kids actively involved in changing the world for the better.
I recently completed volunteer orientation with New York Cares, New York City’s largest volunteer organization whose 50,000+ volunteers help more than 400,000 disadvantaged New Yorkers every year. I am excited about the opportunity to start volunteering with one of the hundreds of projects available every month, from sorting pantry foods to painting schools, knitting with senior citizens, organizing books at the local library, recording books for the blind, and weeding and planting community gardens.
New Yorkers aren’t the only ones who have embraced the volunteer spirit, and the Walt Disney Company is inspiring kids around the world to become more environmentally active through Disney Friends for Change: Project Green, an innovative multi-platform environmental initiative on Disney Channel, Radio Disney, and Disney.com that invites young people to join together to help the planet.
Read More: http://www.disney-blog.com/?p=1234
In 1986, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs purchased the computer graphics division of George Lucas’s Lucasfilm, Ltd. for $10 million and established the group as an independent company named “Pixar”. And now, 26 Oscars, 11 feature films, and more than 20 animated shorts later, Pixar Animation Studios is celebrating its 25th anniversary with the release of the company’s third sequel, Cars 2, which premieres in theaters on Friday, June 24th, 2011.
Screenshot from the official Cars 2 website, image copyright Disney
The original Cars was released in 2006, coinciding with Pixar’s 20th anniversary and grossed more than $244 million domestically for a worldwide total of almost $462 million. Cars is widely considered by critics to be the weakest of Pixar’s feature films with a 74% Fresh rating on Rottentomatoes.com, as compared with Monsters, Inc.‘s 95%, Wall-E‘s 96%, Up‘s 98%, and Toy Story 3‘s 99%. 74% Fresh is hardly shameful, and it’s a target that parent company Disney regularly misses (52% for Alice in Wonderland (2010), 35% for Mars Needs Moms), even with mega-hits like the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise (33% for On Stranger Tides).
Read More: http://www.disney-blog.com/?p=1362
Do Mondays get you feeling down? Could you use a dose of Disney but can’t afford to swing by Disney World on your commute home every night? What if Disney was in your very own backyard? Would you have time to enjoy it then?
Screenshot of one of the yard transformations in My Yard Goes Disney, image copyright Disney
HGTV’s new reality series, “My Yard Goes Disney”, is an extreme makeover series that surprises homeowners by transforming their backyards into Disney-inspired masterpieces. The series debuted on June 6th, and recent episodes have seen backyards transformed into a pirate adventure and an Animal Kingdom-inspired safari, while other backyards were given a Mickey-shaped pool and a hand-powered train to Grandma’s.
Read More: http://www.disney-blog.com/?p=1235
From Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to Tangled, there has been a long history of Disney characters who were motherless, fatherless, or orphaned, and characters who suffered the wrath of evil stepmothers and manipulative caretakers in place of parents who loved them. But today is Father’s Day (not Take Your Evil Stepmother to Work Day), and there are several wonderful Disney Dads who deserve to be recognized for their dedication to their families and the sacrifices that they have made for their children.
Simba's father Mufasa is one of several great Disney Dads, image copyright Disney
And so, I present you with ten of the best Disney Dads from some of Disney’s greatest classic and animated films. Are there any other Disney Dads you would add to the list?
Read More: http://www.disney-blog.com/?p=1329
