Chapter 183: Disney Cartoons

"Suzuki, keep an eye on the order status. We must expedite the toys and game consoles. I don't want to miss the Thanksgiving sales season."

"Sure thing, boss. I've been monitoring production progress every day."

"Mm, have Fujita pay extra attention to the Japanese market. These game consoles must first satisfy the North American market."

"Understood."

"After the Christmas season, they can do as they please. Inform them that North American sales are unique; consumers there have a shopping period habit."

...

Since the new leader took office, various economic policies had been introduced. Unfortunately, there hadn't been any substantial economic improvement. America was like a giant stuck in quicksand, unable to climb out.

This whole approach has a nickname: shock therapy. Economically, without it, outdated capacities and industries wouldn't be phased out.

The current Fed chairman was highly praised by future generations, almost compared to Franklin Roosevelt.

In William White's eyes, the old guy was bad news, far from a decent person.

If you just looked at the results, they were quite impressive: rapid growth in the following decades owed much to him.

But at what cost?

At one point, the unemployment rate hit 20%.

Under such economic conditions, unemployment was the least of your worries. Suicides -- people jumping off bridges and buildings -- were countless. Those were the costs.

Some later questioned if it was an American conspiracy to trap the Soviets.

It's safe to say that to bring down the Soviets, America paid dearly. They themselves almost couldn't bounce back. If it weren't for extracting gains from the Japanese, America wouldn't have fared too well.

...

William White's urgent orders had the Japanese working day and night.

Honestly, while they believed this game console would sell well, they felt the current order volumes were a bit excessive. Selling a million units in a year would already be impressive. Given the current demand, it seemed like they aimed to sell five million units in a year.

Well, perhaps they'd wait and see. If the consoles didn't sell well, they could turn around and sell them domestically, making money from just assembly fees.

The exasperated Japanese, faced with such massive orders, dared not slack off. If deadlines weren't met, did anyone think William wouldn't just contract a fourth-party manufacturer?

...

When William White came to inspect, Michael Eisner naturally had to accommodate him. Truthfully, this big boss was laid-back, having left Disney to its own devices for quite some time.

"Michael, how are the two animated films going?" William inquired.

"The comic books are doing okay, but they're not as popular as Viking Comics weekly. The animated series has six episodes ready, and we're planning to air them soon," Michael replied.

"Haha, different audiences. Viking Comics has a broader target, but yours is quite different," William said.

Everyone knew NBC was expanding rapidly, with both variety shows and sitcoms climbing the ratings ladder.

These programs might have great creativity, but the rising ratings of news shows surprised many because such viewership was usually stable.

Why was this happening?

The logic was simple: spending more money. That's how you get exclusive news.

NBC employees were elated, feeling lucky to have such a generous boss. The everyday benefits were increasing noticeably.

The project for White Plaza was also in the works. Before long, they would have their own headquarters.

NBC was thrilled, but Disney was a bit upset. Everyone wanted their share of benefits.

Not paying attention?

Don't be ridiculous. For decades to come, Disney would be a cash cow, and you bet William White cared. Michael Eisner was reorganizing things, but he couldn't rush it.

...

So are the Teletubbies really childish?

No kidding! They're meant for little kids in kindergarten, of course they're childish!

"That's right, very good, Michael. I'm satisfied with both these cartoons. Increase the publicity, will ya? Go talk with the folks in the education department and get their opinion."

"Okay, they have similar requests too."

"It's best to have some endorsement, like 'Recommended by So-and-So Educational Institution.'"

Michael Eisner nodded with a smile. He was no stranger to such tactics, but he wouldn't be as straightforward as William White.

Disney's two new cartoons were already drawing attention, and now with the animated versions, it was worth taking a look.

...

"Boss, looks like Disney's starting to make a move now."

"Tsk, everyone keeps going on about Stan Lee, but look at this guy. He's no worse than that old timer."

"Heh, boss, Marvel once tried to acquire Viking, but they haven't mentioned it for ages now."

"Ha, they got overtaken in the curve. Sure, Marvel isn't too shabby, but why couldn't they win? Can't you learn a thing or two from them?"

"Boss, they've been trying, they just haven't gotten it right yet."

It's kind of frustrating when you think about it. Marvel is the industry leader, an undisputed one at that. But by the time they realized they were being threatened, the competition had already pulled ahead by a wide margin.

The comic industry has its own traditions, and changing them isn't easy.

And now there's this fearless newcomer who doesn't care about the so-called tradition at all. Turns out, their approach works pretty well, and the audience certainly responds enthusiastically, and the efficiency is through the roof.

In fact, Stan Lee's role at Marvel was almost identical to William White's. Those thousands of comic characters were all concocted by that old guy himself.

Okay, some say he copied DC, with many things neither here nor there.

It's not about stealing ideas; it's borrowing them. The embarrassed Stan Lee's lifelong goal was to beat DC into the ground.

Here's a catch, even when Stan Lee borrowed ideas, he was so intelligent he outplayed DC. Marvel's superheroes have a unique trait -- unexpected turns. Captain America took a risky serum and succeeded, while Spider-Man got bitten and also succeeded.

Don't underestimate this setup. This kind of turnaround story feels more relatable than an alien like Superman.

Stan Lee brought down DC.

To many, this seemed like an impossible feat.

In this era, Stan Lee was indisputably a master of comics, a consensus within the industry. No one at DC dared to dispute it.

...

Disney's two cartoons, SpongeBob and Teletubbies, under a tsunami of ads, gradually gained popularity.

Americans love SpongeBob, and many folks think Teletubbies are just plain dumb, bordering on idiotic behavior.

But for British, it's the opposite. Teletubbies were prominently listed in the recommended reading material by the education department.

William White thought both sides were just overthinking it -- it's two completely different styles of comics, so what's the fuss?

Since the ratings were soaring, it was great. The newly acquired Disney quickly completed its transformation.

...

The Disney family was awkwardly told by William White that as long as the comics were good, they could make money. You've been playing Mickey Mouse your whole life, why abandon your roots?

I really don't get it. Could Mickey Mouse really be obsolete?

Let's not kid around, the thing has too massive an audience to just give up on.

Running out of ideas?

"Michael, get some seasoned writers from back in the day, and do a new take on the old scripts. Aren't they just stories? Watch out, anything with racial bias, change it completely."

"Got it, boss."

Given the earlier success, Michael Eisner certainly wasn't about to refuse the suggestion. Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck 2.0 it is, no big deal. As the boss said, in twenty years, when technology improves, he'll want a 3.0 version too.

Someday, there should even be a Mickey Mouse movie. With such a good IP, I don't know what those fools were thinking.

...

Alright, since the boss likes Mickey Mouse, even the little assistant got into it, wearing mouse costumes inside and out, quite the mischievous twist.

Want to make an adult version?

Mickey and Minnie.

Alright, two mice doing you-know-what, it's actually pretty fun. William White couldn't help but marvel, although her combat skills were lacking, the service attitude was impeccable.

*****

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