Total Merchandising

While this may not be the exact thing required to blog about, I feel that total merchandising is one of the most important and prevalent things to arise out of the Magic Kingdom. Much of Disney's work can be seen in the businesses we see today. While it may not come in the form of an actual product created by a company, it my come in the form of a likeness or character being used to promote various different products. For example, yesterday I was watching a documentary about the creation of Star Wars and the trouble Lucas went through to create this film. In the beginning, it seemed as though this dream would simply stay that way, and the film would never get off the ground. However, with the release of "A New Hope" the popularity of this film was booming and people couldn't keep their hands off it. I distinctly remember a quote by Carrie Fisher saying "I wasn't famous, Princess Leia was famous." These people were buying up the images created by George Lucas. Kids could go to their local movie theater, watch the film while eating Star Wars endorsed M&Ms, Pepsi, and Popcorn, go to their local Wal-Mart, purchase Force-O's and make a mask out of the picture of Luke printed on the side while the creators ride the money train all the way to the bank. 

Although this idea of endorsement isn't EXACTLY total merchandising, I believe it plays a much larger role in our society today than the ideas created by Walt Disney. However, this idea of endorsement will not last forever. The figure who is being featured on the product still needs to be considered both popular and wanted by the buyers or else their worth will plummet.