Joe Sergi's Cup of Geek
 
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The first D23 Expo concluded Sunday.  The show was a huge success as Diney fans and big name guests came together to celebrate the magic that is Disney, including Johnny Depp, the Cast of Dancing with the Stars, John Travolta, Nicolas Cage, Tim Burton and Miley Cyrus. There were a lot of announcements over the weekend.  I already posted about President and Chief Executive Bob Iger’s promise not to Disneyfy Marvel and the theme park expansion.   Now, I have scoured the web to find the rest of the announcements (at least the most interesting ones.)  This part focuses on the Muppets.

More are after the jump:
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I’m not sure if you are aware that when the Muppets were purchased by Disney there were still a lot of licensing deals in place.  Like the recent marvel acquisition, Disney agreed to honor those arrangements.  Most, if not all, of them have expired and now Disney can finally embrace the Muppets franchise without fear of restrictions.  As a result, there was an hour long presentation where the following projects were announced (the list is from the Latino Review)  First, a musical interlude:
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Continuing with their YouTube videos such as Ode to Joy, look for more Muppet interpretations of songs like Bohemian Rhapsody, Stand By Me, Dust in the Wind , holiday songs and more.

A new Muppets Halloween special will air next year on TV.

Muppet pre-show designs will be updated for The Muppet*Vision 3-D attraction at Disney’s California Adventure. New posters such as Hamma Montana and other posters spoofing Pixar movies. The movie itself will be re-rendered in Dolby Digital 3-D.
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Look for a brand new Statler and Waldorf – From the Balcony book coming out next year. This title will join such books as It’s Hard Out Here For A Shrimp and Before You Leap: A Frog’s Eye View of Life’s Greatest Lessons.

Some cool new iPhone Muppets apps will be released. Look for Animal’s Drum Kit this October. Then Pepe’s Love Meter around Valentine’s Day followed by Gonzo Grams (you can launch Gonzo and send it to someone and anywhere from 1-30 days, depending on what you choose, Gonzo will show up on the recipient’s phone.) and a Statler and Waldorf theater app that you take with you to the movies. An app where these two guys rag on a film? Sounds like fun!

Look for more music cd’s.
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Steiff will start a new line of plush Muppet stuffed animals starting with Kermit the Frog.

Tonner dolls will have a Muppets line including a Pigs in Space version coming out soon.

Muppet Whatnot workshops, right now in the FAO Schwarz store in New York, will make its way into the Disney Parks.

Disney Consumer Products is coming out with a Green And Lovin’ It Organic line of products like shirts, dishes, etc. They will have a new line of products each year.
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Look for more graphic novels based off of your favorite Muppet films and stories. A Pigs In Space series will be next to come out. They will also have motion comics coming out in the future that you can download to your portable media device like your iPhone.

The Cheapest Muppet Movie Ever Made will be the next feature length Muppet movie. Don’t know if it’s based off of a Henson idea from 1985 or if Jason Segel (Forgetting Sarah Marshall) will be doing something new.

The Muppet Mobile Lab, a popular attraction in Disney resorts such as Hong Kong (it’s still there because it’s so popular, that they’ll build new ones for the parks here), will have a new mobile addition, an Electric Mayhem version of the popular attraction.

 Here is a video of the Lab taken by Orlando Attraction's Magazine:
 


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