From: cscon134@uoft02.utoledo.edu (John Heiden UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney
Subject: Re: DIS Stock - early 80's (The break up of Disney)
Date: 6 Jan 93 09:27:26 EST
Organization: University of Toledo, Computer Services

In article <1993Jan2.061756.28246@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu>, kresse@helios.phy.ohiou.edu (Tim Kresse) writes:
> For more complete information on what Disney went through -- you can check
> out _Storming the Magic Kingdom_, it tells the story of the takeover bids
> and such, but here's a brief run down - off the top of my head.
>
Yeah, it does look like a good book.

> In the early 80's Disney stock was valued at approx. $60 -- where it had bee
> for the longest time.  Some speculators Saul somebody amongst them - began
> to figure in their head that the bits and pieces of Disney (theme parks,
> studio operations, film and tv libraries) were worth much more than the
> stock was valued at - especially since Disney was a financially conservative
> company, generally speaking, and didn't carry much debt around.
>
You must mean Saul "Greenmail" Steinberg.  There were a number of individuals
who made a great deal of money off of Disney through this deal, even though
it didn't even go through.

> So, the plan was hatched to buy Disney out - using junk bonds (yep, Boesky and
> Milken both had bit parts in this drama).  Disney got nervous, dumped E. Card
> Walker and Ron Miller, picked up some other guy as CHair of the board (an architect, I belive).  And Roy Disney (Walt's nephew and large shareowner in Disney
> as well as Shamrock productions -- began making bids to get the management
> changed at Disney -- working for Eisner and Katzenberg.
> 
> During this time, Disney bought out Arvida Corp (mostly in Florida - land
> developer) and a greeting card company (Gibson, I think) to increase debt
> and make themselves less attractive to takeover.  The speculators eventually
> lost out to Roy Disney and the Hunt Bros. of Texas (silver fortune) who came
> into Disney as "white knights."  
>
Well, this isn't completely true.  First, their deal with Gibson never did
go through.  The deal was dropped.  (I heard Disney was pressured to drop
the deal by various sources.)

Second, I'm pretty sure the reason they bought Arvida was AFTER all of
this.  Disney bought it basically to make their biggest investor happy.
At the time, Disney claimed the deal made great sense due to real estate
planning and other reasons.  Yet, about 2 years later, Disney had sold
most of Arvida off.

> The stock went from $60 to around $45, and then after Eisner and Katzenberg
> were in place and Disney was safe, it started it's big time climb.  Also,
> at some point it re-organized from Walt Disney Productions to Walt Disney
> Company - this was after Eisner/Katzenberg were in place.
> 
> Hope that answers the questions.
-- 
================================================================================
In February of 1986, the Disney annual meeting had a vote on the name
change.  (I believe there was a vote, anyway.  I'd have to check.)
Immediately following the meeting, Walt Disney Productions became
The Walt Disney Company.

It's really kind of weird to later learn just how many people were
involved with the planned breakup of Disney.

Kirk Kerkorian and Ted Turner were involved, I might add.  Kerkorian
wanted The Disney Studios to add to MGM and United Artists.  And Ted
Turner was interested in The Disney Channel and Disney's film library.

Somebody else was interested in the resorts.  And believe it or not, I
heard that plans were made to CLOSE WED Enterprises.  WED Enterprises
is now WDI - Walt Disney Imagineering.  They believe that the design
work could be done much more cheaply by outsiders.

I don't really believe much of this plan made sense.  And I also
believe that there would be no Disney anywhere if the deal had gone
through.


John Heiden
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
John Heiden

                                       Dept. of Computer Services

CSCON134@Uoft02.UTOLEDO.EDU            The University of Toledo
CSCON134@Uoft02.BITNET                 Toledo, Ohio     U.S.A.