Originally Posted By disneymusic So upon taking a look at the new merch for 2014, it appears as though the sorcerer's hat in Hollywood Studios is finally departing. Has this been confirmed by any sources? (And yes, I've been living under a rock for the past few months, that's music college for ya!)
Originally Posted By Fantasmicmagic82 I see a demolition of it. That is it they remove it. Too heavy to move by a helicopter or by crane. It was a waste of money when they built it
Originally Posted By FerretAfros Without seeing the merchandise myself, I think this could be a sign of one of two things: either they are actually getting rid of it, or they have simply decided to go with merchandise that's even more generic than what they're currently selling. I personally hope that they're tearing it down; realistically, they're probably going the generic merchandise route that they've tried so many times before (those infamous Disney Parks shits) As for the process of removing it, whenever that may be, it will be done with a crane. It was assembled with a crane, and can be disassembled just the same. If you look at the hat itself, it's not hard to see where the pieces meet up; it's even visible in some photos (especially the daytime one below where different panels have faded differently). <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tTeSH0xjOEs/TQce6fl9MII/AAAAAAAAFjc/HZ0XxKK2Swc/s1600/IMG_9321.JPG">http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_tTeS...9321.JPG</a> <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pasant/3219772338/sizes/l/">http://www.flickr.com/photos/p...sizes/l/</a> It was created from six 'layers' including the brim and the tip; I believe that the exterior shell was attached to the structural pieces before they were assembled, helping to construct it quickly for the 100 Years of Magic promotion. Similar to how quickly the wand in Epcot came down, I wouldn't expect it to take more than a week or two to remove the structure itself, whenever its time comes
Originally Posted By Witches of Morva ORDDU: My sisters and I created another topic about this same subject several months ago when a good friend of ours--who works at DHS--was told by his supervisor that the Sorcerer Hat was to be gone by the end of 2013. ORWEN: Since that time we've talked with other cast members who say there's been some kind of delay in taking the hat away--but that it is still going away at some point. ORGOCH: Can't go soon 'nuff fer me! ORDDU: One cast member suggested that the hat will go after the current insurance policy covering it expires in 2016. But we'll just have to wait to see how true that is...
Originally Posted By FerretAfros >>Was the hat mentioned at D23 or any of those gatherings you have?<< I doubt it. I don't think there's any way that Disney would have publically hinted at its removal, without the online community latching on to it. Given how widely disliked it is, I think that people would celebrate any indication that it might be getting removed As for the insurance that expires in 2016, that might make some sense, as it would be 15 years after the structure was built. I don't have any insight into the types of insurance that Disney has for any of its assets, but at least it's a nice round number
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt The insurance story sounds bogus. If the policy is paid and covers the structure until 2015 it's a sunk cost, so why not remove it now if that's what they want to do? It's not like they're going to save any money by waiting until the policy expires.
Originally Posted By Witches of Morva ORDDU: You may be correct, Dr. Hans. This insurance theory didn't sit right with us, either, but that was what we were told. The person who told us was a Supervisor, too. Still...
Originally Posted By dizneed Most of Mickey’s Sorcerer hat is hidden by a huge stage anyway. Why not just let the beauty of The Chinese Movie Theatre shine through?
Originally Posted By FerretAfros >>Most of Mickey’s Sorcerer hat is hidden by a huge stage anyway<< Maybe it's because the Studios is Disney's only park that doesn't have 2 large indoor theater-type venues that isn't used on a daily basis...oh wait, nevermind... I know that they couldn't do something like the Monsters U party in the Sounds Dangerous or Backlot Theater, but either of those venues could work for a lot of the stuff that happens on that stage. It's just such a weird park that still has no idea what it wants to be when it grows up
Originally Posted By Goofyernmost Wouldn't it be funny if they replaced the hat with a gigantic Wreck-It Ralph. Well, maybe funny isn't the right word, but it wouldn't surprise me at all. After all they have the foundation, they have the right park. All they need are fans and strobe lights.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip <<The insurance story sounds bogus. If the policy is paid and covers the structure until 2015 it's a sunk cost, so why not remove it now if that's what they want to do? It's not like they're going to save any money by waiting until the policy expires.>> Maybe they are hoping something destroys it in the next two years and then they can use the insurance proceeds to pay for the removal... ;-)
Originally Posted By SuperDry <<< One cast member suggested that the hat will go after the current insurance policy covering it expires in 2016. >>> <<< The insurance story sounds bogus. If the policy is paid and covers the structure until 2015 it's a sunk cost, so why not remove it now if that's what they want to do? >>> There may be accounting reasons that the sharp pencil boys care about. Hypothetically, the insurance may have been paid for all up front, but the costs amortized over 15-year life span. That is, they may have paid cash for it up front, but that's just the cash. On the other hand, the charge against earnings may be amortized over the 15-year period. If they take it down early, then they may have to take a charge for the remaining years against this year's earnings. That would be something that would have to be made up elsewhere, or just lived with and potentially negatively affect the share price. I have no idea of any of the above is true specifically with the hat, but it's the kind of thing that can be true with accounting for publicly-traded companies that's counter-intuitive for those used to dealing with money in the normal way.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt Yeah, but how much could insurance on something like that cost annually? A few hundred dollars? Whatever it is it can't be so steep that it would prohibit Disney from moving forward with another project.
Originally Posted By sjhym333 My understanding is that Disney self-insures. The insurance thing seems silly to me. I actually like the hat, just not where it is. Again, what the park needs is a strong guiding hand to make sense of the hodge podge feel to it all. It is the most disjointed of all the Disney parks in my opinion. There is no rhyme or reason to its flow and the "studio" setting seem dated, especially when it isn't really a studio at all anymore.
Originally Posted By Alltwelve Remember back when people on this board started saying that, based on retro merchandise coming out at the time, that Disney had decided to change the name of Epcot back to Epcot Center? Or when they started saying that, again, based on new merchandise coming out at the time, that Disney decided to go back to the old retro "square-D" Walt Disney World Logo for the 40th? I think this more of the same thing; just wishful thinking. Don't get me wrong, I agree with all of you that the hat should have been removed long ago, but when you think back to all the posts where people supposedly "in the know" have claimed it would be gone by now, I just wonder if this is more of the same. Still, I hope for our sake its true!!!
