Matt Ouimet Leaves Disney

[disneyfreak62]

...a woman and a lesbian. Now there's something to chew on.

Umm...no thanks, I'll pass.

[dlfreak]

Yea yea, I was gonna go take myself out of context edit the thread and what not :-p

[Mickeyman187]

But it's a first for the DLR.

[jonvn]

I've never met a numbers guy that had one ounce of creative instinct

You guys really need to get it through your heads, ALL OF THESE GUYS are numbers people. That's why they are in the position they are in.

[Dignan]

Yeah but there's a difference between someone who can understand something's show potential while being, at the same time, fiscally responsible and a.......CPA.

CPA

Yuck!

[Nemo88]

They are ALL numbers guys,CM Matt certainly didnt graduate from art school,he got his degree in ACCOUNTING,yet most of you think he did a fine job.Its possible to be a numbers guy and still understand the imporantance of creativity.I think Bob Iger is a perfect example of that,which by the way was another exec that was judged before he was able to show what he was made of,and now hes hailed as Disneys savior,go figure.

[ismael flores]

How about this one:

"Ouimet is moving to Connecticut, near the headquarters of Starwood in White Plains, N.Y. He said he plans to keep his family's home in Coto de Caza because he likes Orange County so much."


Maybe Mrs. Matt just wants to be on "Real Housewives of Orange County".

remember when either Al or jim said that Matt was leaving to become President of WDW, One of the reasons that the writer said was because Matt hated orange County and prefered to be back in Florida.

[ismael flores]

see! and you guys are all worried,lets give the guy a chance before we start to judge him.Ya know I didnt care for Ouimet but I waited until I saw what he did before I started criticzing the man,lets give Ed the same respect.

We are not worried, Its just the "rights of initiation" for any new President of the Disneyland resort. since we do not know much about him it is even more fun trying to make him out by what ever is printed about him.

If we say we like him and expect alot from him we will be extremely dissapointed if he turns out to be the worst thing that ever happened to anaheim.

If we start picking him apart from the start we would be greatly surprised and humble about our intial bad behavior and love him for the great things he accomplishes.

[ismael flores]

Because, as KNRG pointed out, I doubt anyone would see a picture of Matt and go "oh my god, he's got blue eyes and gray hair", however they ARE commenting on the fact that he's black.


Is it a big deal? No. Is it a good thing? Yes.

Funny thing happen this afternoon. One of my co-workers came up to me and said "You probably know this but did you hear Disneyland has a new president?" --- Yes "Did you know he is black?" ----Yes "This must be the first black President for them huh?" --- Yup

[ismael flores]

for those of you that couldn't read the La times newspaper

Disneyland Resort President Resigns

The park loses Matt Ouimet to Starwood Hotels. His successor is a Tokyo Disney executive.
By Kimi Yoshino, Times Staff Writer
July 26, 2006


Disneyland Resort President Matt Ouimet, credited with overhauling the Anaheim theme park leading up to its successful 50th anniversary celebration, was named Tuesday to run the hotel operations of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc.

Ouimet, 47, will be replaced by Ed Grier, a 25-year Walt Disney Co. veteran who most recently headed Tokyo Disney Resort. Grier's portfolio will include Disneyland, California Adventure, Downtown Disney and the resort's three hotels.

ADVERTISEMENT

Jay Rasulo, Disney's theme park chief, said having seasoned executives poached by other companies came with the territory.

"You can't have the luxury of managing a strong team and not occasionally see great opportunities come up for them on the outside," Rasulo said.

Rasulo said he considered "a wealth of choices" before deciding on Grier. One of the highest-ranking African American executives at Burbank-based Disney, Grier, 51, has been in Tokyo for the last two years. Before that, he served as general manager of Epcot and Disney-MGM Studios in Orlando, Fla. "He's been a masterful leader," Rasulo said. "He is steeped in Disney and knows how to create Disney magic all over the world."

Grier has a hard act to follow. Ouimet was a popular executive who spent hours walking through the park and talking to visitors and employees. He took the reins in late 2003 after a series of cost cuts had hurt park morale.

"Matt's reputation is that he walks on the Rivers of America," said park watcher and author David Koenig, referring to the waterway that cuts through Frontierland. "Everything turned around when he came on board. Disneyland's biggest problem is that it was falling apart. All the cameras were rolling to the park for the 50th and in less than two years, he got the place looking beautiful."

Despite his lengthy career with Disney, Grier is relatively unknown to Disneyland fans, said Alex Stroup, chief executive of MousePlanet.com, a website that monitors the parks.

"He's pretty much an X-factor at this point," Stroup said. If the parks in Japan are any indicator, Grier comes with good credentials. "They do enjoy a reputation of being very well-managed, very strong in the Disney ethos," Stroup said.

In a statement, Grier said he was "honored to have the opportunity to lead such a special place."

Ouimet's job with White Plains, N.Y.-based Starwood includes supervision of 850 hotels worldwide operating under such well-known names as Sheraton, Westin, W and St. Regis.

Before joining Disneyland, Ouimet served as president of Disney Cruise Line. Ouimet worked at Disney for 17 years.

As head of the resort, Ouimet is credited with helping to conceive such ideas as a new parade and fireworks show for the 50th anniversary and overseeing the building of a Finding Nemo attraction inside the defunct Submarine Voyage.

In a letter to the Disneyland staff, Ouimet wrote: "From my office window, I can clearly see the Matterhorn, Space Mountain and the Tower of Terror — and I am certain my new office will have a much less compelling view. In a three-minute walk I can enter Toontown and wander the park. Most of the time I'm just enjoying our guests and our cast ... and that is what I will miss most of all."

story was found::
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-f...ck=1&cset=true



still trying to find a picture to post. I left the paper in my office and that had a picture of Ed Grier