Disney to get Spider-Man, Iron Man and other Marvel characters in $4 billion deal

September 30th, 2009 LONDON - Walt Disney has won a nearly two-decade-old legal battle over royalty rights to the cartoon character Winnie The Pooh. Late New York television and film producer Stephen Slesinger who held the exclusive merchandising rights to Winnie the Pooh works had transferred them to Disney in 1969 for a regular royalty, reports The Daily Express.

September 21st, 2009 LOS ANGELES - Johnny Depp may walk away from a fourth installment of "Pirates of the Caribbean" after Disney ousted the veteran studio chief who first backed his vision for the role of Captain Jack Sparrow, Los Angeles Times reported. Studio chief Dick Cook left the company Friday following a string of disappointing box office results and the studio's failure to consistently create popular films for the crucial teenage audience.

September 11th, 2009 Radio Disney's 'Next Big Thing' returnsLOS ANGELES — Radio Disney is again looking for the "Next Big Thing." The new 10-week edition of the talent search introduces five artists age 12 to 17 vying for a singles record deal with Disney Music Group. The first singer will be featured Sept.

September 4th, 2009 Tim Gunn: Comic crimefighter against fashion evilsNEW YORK — Tim Gunn is taking his fight against fashion crimes from the workrooms of "Project Runway" to the pages of a comic book. And, wow, does he get to wear a power suit.

September 3rd, 2009 LONDON - Caped crusader Batman has been voted Britain's favourite super hero in a new poll. The 'Dark Knight' pushed webslinger 'Spider-Man' at the second place followed by the 'Superman' at third.

September 1st, 2009 Bosses at entertainment powerhouse Walt Disney have agreed a multi-billion dollar deal to buy Marvel Entertainment - giving the company the rights to superheroes including IRON MAN, SPIDER-MAN and the X-MEN Through the agreement, valued at around $4 billion, the company will take on the extensive library of over 5,000 Marvel Comics characters, which also include the Fantastic Four, the Hulk, Thor and Captain America. Robert A. Iger, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company, says, "We believe that adding Marvel to Disney's unique portfolio of brands provides significant opportunities for long-term growth and value creation.

August 31st, 2009 LOS ANGELES - Walt Disney Co is to buy Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion, the companies announced Monday, giving the family entertainment conglomerate a powerful squad of movie superheroes such as Spider-Man, the X-Men, The Incredible Hulk and The Fabulous Four. In a statement, Disney chief executive Bob Iger said that "adding Marvel to Disney's unique portfolio of brands provides significant opportunities for long-term growth and value creation." "We are pleased to bring this talent and these great assets to Disney." Under the terms of the deal, Marvel shareholders will receive a total of $30 per share in cash plus approximately 0.745 Disney shares for each Marvel share they own.

August 27th, 2009 A&E Television to acquire LifetimeLOS ANGELES — A&E Television Networks said Thursday it is acquiring Lifetime Entertainment Services, bringing the home of "Project Runway" into a stable of profitable channels that includes A&E and the History channel. Terms of the deal, which is expected to be completed by the end of the year, were not disclosed.

August 22nd, 2009 LON - Spider-Man creator Stan Lee will come up with an animated comic book, which will be available online and on mobile phones. His company Purveyors Of Wonder has linked up with Disney to produce Time Jumper, which he says is "a comic, but it has sound, it has music, it has some motion, although it isn't fully-animated." Lee has further plans to turn the comic into a film if it does well.

August 4th, 2009 LONDON - Michael Jackson wanted to act in Spider-Man movies, the creator of the superhero has revealed. Stan Lee, former president and chairman of Marvel Comics, disclosed that MJ had plans to produce the movie.

July 31st, 2009 Disney 3Q profit falls 26 pct, cites tough economyLOS ANGELES — The Walt Disney Co. said Thursday its fiscal third-quarter profit fell 26 percent as slower DVD sales pushed its movie studio into the red while the weakening market for TV ads stabilized.

July 27th, 2009 Earnings Preview: Viacom 2Q seen downNEW YORK — Viacom Inc., the media conglomerate controlled by Sumner Redstone and which owns Paramount Pictures and the "Rock Band" video-game franchise, reports its second-quarter earnings before the market opens on Tuesday. The following is a summary of key developments and analyst opinion related to the period.

July 23rd, 2009 Sam Raimi to direct 'World of Warcraft' film LOS ANGELES — The director of the "Spider-Man" film franchise is set to transform "World of Warcraft" into a movie. Blizzard Entertainment Inc.

July 13th, 2009 Natalie Portman joins the cast of 'Thor'LOS ANGELES — "Star Wars" co-star Natalie Portman is storming back into action films with a role in the comic-book adaptation "Thor." The 28-year-old Portman has been cast as Jane Foster, who was a nurse and first love of the title character in the Marvel Comics. According to Marvel Studios, the character is being updated for the movie version of "Thor," in which the Norse warrior is cast down to Earth to live among humans.

July 4th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Spider-Man has found life outside of comic-book pages, says an associate humanities librarian for Texas Tech University Libraries. In an article published in the International Journal of Comic Art, pop-culture guru Rob Weiner basically says that Spider-Man and his costumed peers have entered mankind's collective consciousness, filling a shared need for heroes.