[BDANtheman29]

Just when it appeared the pixie dust had settled after Disney's (NYSE: DIS) home wrecker of an annual meeting, five state pension funds asked to meet with the entertainment giant's top brass. It looks like the institutional investors will get their wish next month.

Disney? What took you so long?

When 43% of the company's shares voted in favor of booting CEO Michael Eisner from the board, I would have thought that taking the time to meet with Dottie in Duluth with her round lot of 100 shares and grievances would have been a no-brainer. This is a time to mend fences, not give dissidents time and cause to add glitter to their "Remember The Alamo" banners for next year's meeting.

Given that Disney dabbles in so many areas, mixed results are a given, but the company has a lot of things working in its favor. Last year's box office hits are working their way through home distribution channels, the ad market is picking up, and theme park turnstiles are clicking again. Why not shout it from the rooftops?

Earlier this week, the company announced that it is looking to grow profits by 40% this fiscal year. Surely, that's good news worth spreading.

Granted, the pension funds will be quick to question Disney's long-term performance. These folks manage serious money and won't be hurling softballs. But delaying the meeting will mean even more and harder questions now that Home on the Range and The Alamo have failed to become multiplex magnets.

Here are three questions I would love to see answered:

When Motley Fool Stock Advisor recommendation Pixar (Nasdaq: PIXR) walked away from the bargaining table, it was clear that the upstart was asking for too much. What made Pixar think Disney was vulnerable enough to pay its asking price?


ABC must play an important role in Disney's recovery. The fall season schedule needs to be packed with can't-miss hits. How goes it on that programming front?


Disney is finally adding E-ticket attractions to its latest stateside parks. Why did it take Disney so long to realize that these weren't full-day destinations, and what pre-emptive moves will the company make to ensure that such misjudgments don't happen again?
And, while we're at it, Dottie wants to know when the Magic Kingdom Club will come back.



Did you go check out The Alamo or Home on the Range? Do you think Disney took too long to set up the meeting with disappointed pension fund managers? How about growth in fiscal 2005? All this and more -- in the Disney discussion board. Only on Fool.com.

Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz owns shares in Disney and Pixar. As a matter of fact, he just came back from Disney World last night.
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Three Questions for Disney

By Rick Aristotle Munarriz (TMF Edible)
April 14, 2004

http://www.fool.com/Server/FoolPrint...ft04041401.htm
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Brendan

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Nice article, thanks!