Friday Morning Coffee — 9/7/18

Ralph Breaks the Internet

In my Friday Morning Coffee – 8/17/18, there is a look at the Disney princesses in new garb.  The above trailer gives you a sneak peak into their thoughts.  When Vanellope tries to convince them she, too, is a princess, she is asked “Do people assume that just because a big, strong man shows up that all your problems are solved?”  There are no doubts after she replies, “Yeh.  What’s up with that?”

 

Lies

Just last week Friday Morning Coffee – 8/24/18 reported that City of Lies would hit the big screen today.  “Not so fast,” as  Lee Corso might say.  What do AXL, Home Again, Midnight Sun, Hotel Artemis, and Show Dogs have in common?  All are flops or substantially underperforming under the Global Road banner.  This company is on the verge of collapse after less than one year and needs at least $200 million.   And so, you will not see Johnny Depp and Forrest Whitaker this weekend.  Our loss but not as big as their loss.

Divorce

Take it from me, divorce is messy.  Most of you will remember the wonderfully-talented Stuart Scott from SportsCenter.   It seems he divorced in 2007 agreeing to provide $169,000 in his retirement to his ex-wife by way of a Qualified Domestic Relations Order.   Given the growth in the stock market, think of its value today.

Since he died without executing a QDRO, his ex is now suing Fidelity Investments and Disney for allowing the transfer to a trust bypassing her interest.  The claim is that she advised the companies prior to the transfer.  It is not clear why she didn’t sue the estate, the trust, or her attorney, if either failed to follow through with the QDRO.   The message is clear.  To avoid complications and/or loss, finish the paperwork!

I Can’t Keep Up

No sooner than the Oscars will have a category Best Popular Film does word come that it may be scrapped.  Not only is the public unimpressed, supporters of Black Panther worry that the category will upset its chances at winning Best Picture.  Stay tuned, or not.  For a public relations community, Hollywood gets 0 Gavels on this one.

Thought Police

Please examine the above picture carefully; I think it VERY funny considering how customers actually use these accounts.  But, that is not what caught my attention about dear old Netflix.  It seems they are advising their actors to avoid the use of the phrase “binge watching.”  Their own survey in 2014 indicated that 61% of their audience watch 2-6 episodes of the same show in one sitting.  Of course, we do!  If you don’t want us to binge watch, then don’t download the series all at once.

Netflix gives no reason for the “advice,” but some suspect it relates to other binge addictions, like binge drinking or binge eating.  Does Netflix think that lawyers are going to bring a class action against them for psychological damages caused by binge watching?  That is just so silly.  Or, is it?

Not-so Crazy Soon-to-be Wealthier Asians

If you haven’t seen Crazy Rich Asians yet, you will.  Like any successful movie, get ready for the sequels as the books are already on the best-sellers lists.  If you didn’t know, Crazy Rich Asians was published in 2013, followed quickly by China Rich Girlfriend in 2015, and Rich People Problems in 2017.

The New York Times writes that author Kevin Kwan “knows how to deliver guilty pleasures. He keeps the repartee nicely outrageous, the excess wretched and the details wickedly delectable.”  That sounds like a winning combination.

Robert the Bruce

Once in a while, I chance upon a trailer that really piques my interest, as does Smallfoot.  Here is another, The Outlaw King, starring Chris Pine.  It appears to be a Braveheart-type movie, a very favorable comparison since Braveheart won an Oscar for Best Picture.  Beating the Mighty English army and becoming a national Scottish hero is not bad for a life’s work.  It streams on Netflix on November 9.