Disney Headlines for September 10th, 2024
A couple spent hundreds of thousands of dollars because one of them got drunk at Disney. That’s a real thing that happened.
And we’ll discuss the true absurdity of the DirectTV feud. It’s a weird week for Disney Headlines.
Money to Burn
Photo Credit: DisneyNerds.com
Are you familiar with Club 33? I first wrote about the exclusive club in 2018, and I wasn’t even the first MickeyBlog writer to do so. Or the second.
For years now, we’ve been telling you about this private club hidden in plain sight at Disney theme parks.
Photo Credit: Tim Rue – TravelandLeisure.com
The original Club 33 opened at Disneyland in 1967. In fact, it opened at New Orleans Square just two months after Pirates of the Caribbean.
Since then, loyal Disney fans have spent hundreds of millions of dollars for membership at Club 33.
To join Club 33, you must pay $25,000-$33,000 upfront plus $10,000-$15,000 annually, depending on which park is your home.
So, a ten-year membership costs at least $125,00 and is typically quite a bit higher.
This seems like a good time to mention that the meals aren’t free. You’ll pay for those as well.
Thus, anyone who eats here has paid a pretty penny for the privilege.
Some people must get addicted to that sensation of getting past the velvet rope at Disney, too.
I say this because of this couple whose story MickeyBlog tracked the other day.
Photo by Don Bartletti/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Their story has gone viral since we first covered it, as the media loves any and all tales of entitlement.
Still, as a loyal Disney fan myself, I kinda feel bad for these people.
In their own words, Scott and Diana Anderson visit Disneyland Resort at least 60 times a year. That’s more than once a week.
So, we’re talking about superfans, and that’s before we factor in that they live in Arizona. They’re flying that often to get their Disney fix.
Photo: Getty
According to the LA Times, the couple estimates that Disney fandom costs them $125,000 a year.
Drunk at Disney
The source of their heartache comes from this part of the story:
“Disney revoked their membership in the club after an allegation that Scott Anderson was drunk in public.”
Photo: Wall Street Journal
Now, he’s far from the only person guilty of this particular crime at Disney.
Remember a Disney Headline from January about Binny the Trash Can? Still, that’s a huge no-no that Anderson committed.
Photo: Disney
According to trial records, “At about 9:50 p.m. on Sept. 3, 2017, security guards found Scott Anderson near the entrance of California Adventure displaying signs of what they took to be intoxication, including slurred speech and trouble standing.”
Disney revoked the couple’s Club 33 membership, which sounds like it punished Diana Anderson more than her husband.
The iconic entrance of Disneyland Park
According to interviews, she’s been a fan of Disney all her life with her attorney describing Disneyland like this:
“That was their spot. That was their happy place, their home.”
I totally believe that The Happiest Place on Earth fully lived up to its billing for them.
So, when Disney canceled their membership, the couple sued to regain their lost Club 33 status.
Photo:ofx.ie
That attempt ultimately failed after several years of court battles and hundreds of thousands in legal fees.
Now, they’re just like the rest of us, which is to say, unable to enter Club 33.
Disney
On the bright side, they’re not banned from the parks, which is really all that should matter.
Welcome to the hoi polloi, Andersons!
DirecTV Is Shameless
Deadline
By the time you read this, my hope is that the DirecTV/Disney kerfuffle will have ended.
I’m writing this on Sunday while awaiting the start of the 2024 NFL season and exciting new ways for the Atlanta Falcons to disappoint me.
So, I don’t know for sure what’s happened, even though I’m tracking this story on an hourly basis.
I’d expected the situation to resolve itself in time for Monday Night Football.
Then, DirecTV did something unexpected. The company offered a $30 credit for its subscribers to sign up for Fubo TV or Sling TV.
Disney quickly countered with a $30 credit for Hulu + Live TV, an expected move since the company did the same thing last year during the Charter squabble.
Photo: DirecTV
The DirecTV part bears mention just because of how stunning and shameless it is, though.
Let me be clear. DirecTV is a poorly run company and has been since AT&T bought it in 2015.
Photo: Variety
This latest move is absolutely ridiculous, though. DirecTV has promised customers $20 credits as an apology for losing Disney content.
Now, the service promises another $30 to sign up for Sling TV, whose owner is…Dish Network. That’s DirecTV’s mortal enemy for 30 years now.
Photo: Wikimedia
I guess DirecTV agrees with the philosophy that the enemy of my enemy is my friend. The fine print of the deal is what’s funny, though.
A Quick Bit of Math
Photo:nbjobs.ca
Should you take DirecTV at its word on the promised $20 credit, you’ll only get $10 more for Sling TV/Fubo TV rather than $30.
Also, you won’t receive any of these credits for two billing cycles. And guess what!
Photo: Center Watch
DirecTV, in a truly bold move, announced price increases this week!
Their services will cost $6-$10 more per month even though they currently lack Disney/ESPN content.
Photo: skillastics.com
Over the course of two months, that’s an increase of $12 to $20. So, that $20 credit isn’t even a credit.
The so-called make-good just pays for the first two months of price increases.
Photo: Disney
Make no mistake on this point, my friends. DirecTV is the villain in this story.
They’re trying to squeeze Disney AND their own subscribers during the same week. It’s pure corporate greed.
ESPN
For Disney’s part, the DirecTV blackout isn’t impacting live sports much at all.
As Justin Hermes noted the other day, ESPN’s college football ratings were outstanding during week one.
Photo: ESPN
We’re talking about a 44 percent increase from last year, which had already set a high bar.
The USC-LSU game also became the most streamed college football game ever, although that record probably gets broken multiple times this season.
Photo: Disney+
This brings me back to the Hulu + Live TV deal Disney offered.
That’s the company’s way of guiding former cable subscribers into the future.
There’s just no way for DirecTV to compete with that, and its management team knows that.
So, DirecTV’s plan at this point is to bleed customers for every penny as their business heads toward oblivion.
Photo: simplemost.com
Oh, and they’re gonna claim Disney is being anti-competitive.
Thanks for visiting MickeyBlog.com! Want to go to Disney? For a FREE quote on your next Disney vacation, please fill out the form below, and one of the agents from MickeyTravels, a Diamond Level Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, will be in touch soon!
Photo: Disney
