We kick-off the second half of 2025 by returning back to the waning days of 2023, where Danny posed with Dopey at the Exhibition Hub Art Center for Disney 100: The Exhibition, celebrating the 100th anniversary of what would eventually become the Walt Disney Company.
Tag / Disney
Fifty Years Of Music – 1992
Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth. In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.
We continue our look back at the music of my lifetime with 1992, the year I graduated high school, went away to college, and turned 18, in that order. My musical landscape was changing, as I had gotten my first CD player for Christmas in 1991 and my tastes were moving somewhat away from pop music and toward alternative rock thanks in part to Q101, who switched formats during the year. I also spent part of the year in the middle of Indiana, which didn’t always feature the same types of artists that I was exposed to back home in the Chicagoland area. At the same time, Billboard’s was changing as well, with the Hot 100 switched to electronic sales and radio airplay metrics rather than written reports at the end of November in 1991. A whopping 70 of the Hot 100 are familiar to me now, with 50 of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.
#98: Def Leppard – Let’s Get Rocked
iTunes stats: 34 plays
The band’s first release after the death of guitarist Steve Clark, the first single from their first album in over four years hit #15 on the Hot 100 and topped the Album Rock Tracks chart.
#96: Amy Grant – I Will Remember You
iTunes stats: N/A
Peaking at #20, it became the first single from Grant’s ninth studio album to not break the top ten.
#93: En Vogue – Free Your Mind
iTunes stats: N/A
After spending 16 weeks in the Top 40, topping out at #8, the song garnered two Grammy nominations in 1993, for Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group and Best Music Video, Short Form.
#91: Amy Grant – That’s What Love Is For
iTunes stats: N/A
The only song from Grant’s ninth studio album to be released to both pop and Christian radio, it reached #7 on the Hot 100.
#88: TLC – What About Your Friends
iTunes stats:27 plays
The third single from the group’s debut album, it peaked at #7 on the charts.
#86: The KLF – Justified and Ancient
iTunes stats: 13 plays
Released in late 1991, the song became an international hit, reaching #2 on the US dance chart while stalling out at #11 on the Hot 100.
#85: Mary J. Blige – Real Love
iTunes stats: N/A
The first top ten hit for Blige, it reached #7 as the second single from her debut album.
#84: Boyz II Men – Uhh Ahh
iTunes stats: 12 pays
The first single from the group to not crack the top ten, it peaked at #16.
#82: Firehouse – When I Look into Your Eyes
iTunes stats: 14 plays
The group’s second, and final, top ten hit, it reached #8 in October.
#80: Def Leppard – Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad
iTunes stats: 17 plays
The highest charting single from the band’s fifth studio album, it stalled out at #12 on the Hot 100.
#77: Michael Bolton – Missing You Know
iTunes stats: N/A
Thanks in part to a video featuring Teri Hatcher and a sax solo from Kenny G, it peaked at #12 in March.
#76: Hammer – Addams Groove
iTunes stats: 29 plays
Featured on the soundtrack to The Addams Family, it was the fifth and final top ten hit for the rapper, reaching #7.
#75: Snap! – Rhythm is a Dancer
iTunes stats: 11 plays
The final single from the German troupe to chart in the US, it topped out at #5 and spent 39 weeks on the Hot 100.
#74: Bryan Adams – Thought I’d Died and Gone to Heaven
iTunes stats: N/A
Topping the charts in his native Canada, Adams peaked at #13 in the US with this track from his sixth studio album.
#73: Paula Abdul – Blowing Kisses in the Wind
iTunes stats: N/A
The final top ten hit of Abdul’s career, it spent three weeks stuck at #6, becoming just the second of her singles to enter the top ten and not hit #1.
#72: Ugly Kid Joe – Everything About You
iTunes stats: 25 plays
The band reached #9 with their debut single, which was featured in the Wayne’s World movie.
#71: The Cure – Friday I’m In Love
iTunes stats: 30 plays
The first song played on Q101 after transitioning to alternative rock, it topped the Modern Rock Tracks chart and made it to #18 on the Hot 100.
#70: Bryan Adams – Do I Have to Say the Words?
iTunes stats: N/A
The sixth single from his sixth studio album, it peaked at #11
#69: Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch – Wildside
iTunes stats: N/A
The second single from Mark Wahlberg and company, it borrows heavily from Lou Reed’s Walk on the Wild Side and topped out at #10, the group’s final top ten hit.
#68: Genesis – No Son of Mine
iTunes stats: 1 play
The band’s first single to not enter the top ten since 1984, it peaked at #12 on the Hot 100.
#67: Arrested Development – People Everyday
iTunes stats: 28 plays
The second single from the group’s debut album, it topped the Hot Rap Singles chart while reaching #8 on the Hot 100.
#65: Kris Kross – Warm It Up
iTunes stats: 31 plays
Used as the walkup music by Kris Bryant during his tenure with the Cubs, it topped out at #13.
#64: Celine Dion and Peabo Bryson – Beauty and the Beast
iTunes stats: N/A
Performed by Angela Landsbury in the film of the same name, this version for pop audiences reached #9, the first Disney song to reach the charts in 30 years.
#60: U2 – One
iTunes stats: 21 plays
Peaking at #10, proceeds from the single were donated towards AIDS research.
#59: The Heights – How Do You Talk to an Angel
iTunes stats: 22 plays
The theme song to the FOX television program The Heights, it spent two weeks at #1 in November, and the show was cancelled the following week.
#57: U2 – Mysterious Ways
iTunes stats: 21 plays
The second single from Achtung Baby, it topped the Modern Rock Tracks and Album Rock Tracks charts while hitting #9 on the Hot 100.
#55: Genesis – I Can’t Dance
iTunes stats: 15 plays
Hitting #7, the song earned the band a Grammy nom for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals.
#54: Michael Bolton – When a Man Loves a Woman
iTunes stats: N/A
Originally hitting #1 in 1966 when performed by Percy Sledge, this cover spent a week atop the charts in November of 1991, the final #1 under the old reporting system.
#53: Toad the Wet Sprocket – All I Want
iTunes stats: 27 plays
The first single from the band to chart, it reached #15.
#51: P.M. Dawn – I’d Die Without You
iTunes stats: 28 plays
Featured on the Boomerang soundtrack, it peaked at #3 on the Hot 100.
#50: Hi-Five – She’s Playing Hard to Get
iTunes stats: 10 plays
The lead single from the group’s sophomore effort, it reached #5, becoming their final top ten hit.
2023: The Year In Live Performances
2023 was a slow year for live performances. I only managed to get to one concert and one exhibition, both since the start of November.
On April 10, 1994, while watching 120 Minutes in my dorm room late on a Sunday night, I saw the video for Liz Phair’s Never Said, the lead single from her debut album, for the first time. Nearly 30 years later, she came to the Chicago Theatre for the 30th anniversary of the release of Exile in Guyville.
This was my third time seeing Phair perform live, and the first in nearly twenty years. She’s become a more confident performer, finally getting over the stage fright that plagued her early career. She performed every song from the album, many I haven’t heard in years, if not decades. Overall, a good experience. Here’s hoping to more live music in 2024.
In the waning days of 2023, the family headed into the city to the Exhibition Hub Art Center for Disney 100: The Exhibition. To celebrate the 100th anniversary of what would become the Walt Disney Company, the company has opened its archives, showcasing more than 250 artifacts and works of art, costumes and props, and incredible memorabilia. Unfortunately, Michael was unable to join us, but the rest of us took a trip through Disney’s past, including more recent additions like the Star Wars and Marvel universes.
Post Mortem – Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.
The seventh and final season of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. aired last summer, wrapping up in August on ABC. The first series set in, but not completely part of, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it took a while to find its footing before eventually setting into a nice groove. The connection to the movie franchise was stronger in the first season, with a couple cameos and events in the movies impacting the plot of the show, but that waned as the seasons went on, to the point that the blip caused by Thanos wasn’t even addressed.
With Marvel (and Disney) looking to more tightly integrate their television shows with the movies, they’ve shifted their internal reporting structure and cancelled all of their existing shows. AOS, the first and longest running of those shows, was the final piece of that puzzle prior to the new offerings from Disney+, which will be much more tightly connected to the MCU. That said, seven seasons is a good run (and much more than the Netflix shows received) and hopefully we’ll see some of these characters again.
Post Mortem – The Punisher
On February 18, 2019, Netflix announced that they were cancelling The Punisher after 2 seasons. The move coincides with the ending of most of the Marvel shows produced for Netflix at a time when the studio’s parent company, Disney, is looking to launch their own streaming service.
The Punisher was the last of a burgeoning stable of Marvel shows on Netflix, spun off from Daredevil after appearing in the second season of that show. While technically set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Netflix shows only tangentially referenced the events and the heroes of the movies, sometimes going to great lengths to avoid it.
New Marvel shows will be moving to Disney+ after it launches later this year and those are expected to be more closely tied to the MCU. Per the original deal between Marvel and Netflix for the series, the characters cannot appear in any non-Netflix series or films for at least two years following the show’s cancellation, so it may be awhile before the character shows back up in the MCU, if at all.
Post Mortem – Luke Cage
On October 19, 2018, Netflix announced that they were cancelling Luke Cage after 2 seasons, claiming creative differences on the direction of season 3. The move coincides with the ending of most of the Marvel shows produced for Netflix at a time when the studio’s parent company, Disney, is looking to launch their own streaming service.
Luke Cage was the third of a burgeoning stable of Marvel shows on Netflix, following Daredevil and Jessica Jones. While technically set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Netflix shows only tangentially referenced the events and the heroes of the movies, sometimes going to great lengths to avoid it.
New Marvel shows will be moving to Disney+ after it launches later this year and those are expected to be more closely tied to the MCU. Per the original deal between Marvel and Netflix for the series, the characters cannot appear in any non-Netflix series or films for at least two years following the show’s cancellation, so it may be awhile before the character shows back up in the MCU, if at all.
Post Mortem – Daredevil
On November 29, 2018, Netflix announced that they were cancelling Daredevil after 3 seasons. The move coincides with the ending of most of the Marvel shows produced for Netflix at a time when the studio’s parent company, Disney, is looking to launch their own streaming service.
Daredevil was the first of a burgeoning stable of Marvel shows on Netflix, leading the way for Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Punisher, and The Defenders. While technically set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Netflix shows only tangentially referenced the events and the heroes of the movies, sometimes going to great lengths to avoid it.
New Marvel shows will be moving to Disney+ after it launches later this year and those are expected to be more closely tied to the MCU. While it is technically possible for Daredevil to continue on that service, odds are against it.
Post Mortem – Once Upon A Time
After 6 seasons, and with most of the main cast announcing that they were leaving the show, Once Upon A Time wrapped up its story and looked like it was ready to call it a day. Unfortunately, ABC wasn’t quite ready to let it go just yet, so it was brought back for a 7th season, with a time jump, a new storyline, a new curse, and a move to Seattle. In February, ABC announced that this would be the final season of the show.
While never a great show, Once Upon A Time was usually a reliable way to spend an hour, up until the last season, despite basically being a way for Disney to re-use its existing intellectual property.
Those Non-Acting Oscars
The 90th Academy Awards are going down next Sunday night, so here’s my uneducated predictions for the non-acting awards. I have seen a couple of these movies, so I will still mostly be going on gut feel and word of mouth with just a little bit of personal experience.
Best Original Screenplay
Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani, The Big Sick
Jordan Peele, Get Out
Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird
Guillermo del Toro and Vanessa Taylor, The Shape Of Water
Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
I’ve actually seen three of these films, and, while I would love for Emily and Kumail to win, my money is going on Jordan Peele for Get Out.
Best Adapted Screenplay
James Ivory, Call Me By Your Name
Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, The Disaster Artist
Scott Frank, James Mangold, and Michael Green, Logan
Aaron Sorkin, Molly’s Game
Virgil Williams and Dee Rees, Mudbound
I’ve only seen one of these, but my guess is that the legend behind the story of The Disaster Artist will earn it the nod.
Best Animated Feature
The Boss Baby
The Breadwinner
Coco
Ferdinand
Loving Vincent
I’ve only heard of two of these, one of which is from the good folks at Pixar, so I’ll go with that.
Best Cinematography
Roger A. Deakins, Blade Runner 2049
Bruno Delbonnel, Darkest Hour
Hoyte van Hoytema, Dunkirk
Rachel Morrison, Mudbound
Dan Laustsen, The Shape Of Water
Well, again I’ve seen none of these, so I will go with the war epic Dunkirk.
Best Costume Design
Jacqueline Durran, Beauty And The Beast
Jacqueline Durran, Darkest Hour
Mark Bridges, Phantom Thread
Luis Sequeira, The Shape Of Water
Consolata Boyle, Victoria & Abdul
Another category where I’m at a loss, so I’ll go with the live action Disney hit.
Continue reading →
The Force Awakens
The first Star Wars film under Disney’s purview, Episode VII, has finished principle photography and now has a name. The Force Awakens hits theaters next Christmas, and, to date, I have managed to stay mostly spoiler free.
Part of the reason for that is the utter disappointment that was the last trilogy of films. Thanks to those, I have no real burning desire for the new films, so there has been little build up that I have been paying attention to. Maybe things will change as we get closer to the film’s release date.