Fame & Fortune

The following is an account, arranged chronologically, of most of the press the Save Toad movement got. Some stories have just disappeared into the ether and I know of a few of them I haven't linked in yet, but I think this gives you a pretty good idea.

Such a pity that we didn't get the Big Time press we needed until Toad's fate was sealed...

When the press questioned Disney about us, they denied any outcry over the closing of The Ride, which, they added, was just a rumor anyway.

This proved to be an extremely successful way of dealing with us. It's disarming, it makes people disbelieve us, and, more importantly, it makes for a much less interesting news story.

In fact, by denying everything, there is no story. Some people are protesting, Disney has no response. There's no conflict, just some loons who are protesting something that doesn't exist. And the press isn't interested enough to actually investigate, since this is not a very sexy scandal.

Disney just silently waited us out.

The Media

Is Mr. Toad about to drive out of Disney?
Mr. Toad makes front page news in the October 22, 1997 edition of The Orlando Sentinel. The gauntlet is thrown down.
Toad or Pooh? Celebrities Take Sides
From the October 24, 1997 Orlando Sentinel article. Includes conclusive proof that Hootie is pure evil (but you knew that already).
Is it over for Mr. Toad's Wild Ride?
Online and print coverage of the Save Mr. Toad cause in the Atlanta-Journal Constitution's November 2, 1997 Sunday edition.
Web site vows to save Toad
Online and print coverage of the Save Mr. Toad cause in the November 7, 1997 Friday Extra edition of The Tampa Tribune.
Keep Mr. Toad
Toad supporter Rich Rotondo of Little Falls, NJ voices his support for Toad Hall with a letter to the editor, published both online and in print in the November 9, 1997 Sunday edition of The Orlando Sentinel.
Mr. Toad Outrage
Print coverage of the Save Mr. Toad cause in the November 10, 1997 edition of The Orlando Sentinel.
Showdown in the Mouse House
The best (and most entertaining) article to take a look at Team Toad's efforts so far. Published in the November 19-25, 1997 edition of City Link Magazine. Note that Disney admits the ride is very popular and well-liked, but they just don't care.
Cool Site of the Day
Selected as TUTIC's ("That's Useful, This Is Cool!") Cool Site of the Day for November 24, 1997.
Wild about Mr. Toad / Time to Panic
Two different Letters to the Editor in support Mr. Toad's Wild Ride in the same day (November 24, 1997)! Thanks to Brad Grant of San Francisco and Sandy Melillo of Fort Lauderdale.
Warts and All, Fans Stand Up for Their Toad
The Toad cause receives online coverage in the December 5, 1997 edition of Wired News, but unfortunately they confuse Disneyland with Walt Disney World several times.
Disney ride's fan not ready to kiss Mr. Toad goodbye
This article ran on the front page of the Miami Herald on December 6, 1997. It was originally accompanied by a ridiculous picture of JT with a rubber toad on his head. A version of this article went out over the AP wire and appeared in several other newspapers and on television and radio stations all over the place.
Hopping Mad
The Cause is mentioned in the December 8, 1997 issue of the Tampa Tribune. We're sort of in the middle of this guy's column, so don't think you're in the wrong place.
The Mining Company's Guide to Theme Parks
A nice write-up in the December 11, 1997 issue of The Mining Company's Guide to Theme Parks, featuring a nice plug for our site.
Best bets on the Net
The Save Mr. Toad's Wild Ride web page is declared a "best bet" by Ed Stansel's Web Watch in the December 12, 1997 edition of the Florida Times-Union.
Hopping Mad: UM student leads Toady revolt to save Wild Ride at Disney
This article was featured on the front page of the Accent Section of the December 13, 1997 edition of the Palm Beach Post. It also featured a picture of JT wearing one of the fine Save Mr. Toad's Wild Ride t-shirts (and not a rubber toad in sight).
Warts and All
RockDaily.com picks the Save Toad cause as the Cause of the Day for December 18, 1997.
An Ill Wind in the Willows
A detailed report of the December 7 Toad In, featured in the December 18-24, 1997 edition of the Orlando Weekly.
Mr. Toad Needs Your Help!
The Save Toad cause is highlighted in the January/February 1998 issue of the New Horizons newsletter. New Horizons also named the Save Toad site January's Site of the Month.
Users wild over Disney ride
National coverage for the Save Toad cause on c|net's News.Com on January 8, 1998.
Paddekampanje mot Disney
International recognition for Team Toad on Scandinavia Online, the largest online service in Norway, on January 20, 1998. The article was the top story on the front page all day, but since none of us could figure out how to get past the first page, this little blurb is all we have. We have since come up with a rough translation of the blurb. Kinda ruins the magic if you ask me, but there it is.
Resident goes into cyberspace to save Disney's Mr. Toad ride
From Norway to my backyard, local paper the Kendall Gazette ran this article on the front page of their February 5-11, 1998 edition.
Wish upon the Net...
National coverage in the March 1998 issue Yahoo! Internet Life magazine (the real world magazine, not the web site). It's not entirely accurate, but it is in color.
Save-the-Toadies Launch Amphibious Assault
A durn fine article in the April 17-23, 1998 edition of the Orlando Business Journal. So, they spelled the last name wrong, but at least they were consistent. AND they printed the cool Motormania logo.
Toad Kill?
Wired News ran this little ditty on May 1, 1998 and I almost missed it!
Save Mr. Toad
This Letter to the Editor was penned by Daniel Mart of Mountain View, California and was printed in the May 14, 1998 edition of the Palo Alto Daily News.
Fox News Story on Toad Protest - 3.5M (MPEG)
Fox News finally reports on us! This report aired on May 17, 1998, a few hours after the Toad In. It also made it to at least one other Fox affiliate that we know of.
Toad on Local News Station - 2.1M (MPEG)
An e-mail of mine is read over the air on a local news station on May 22, 1998. They asked what you'd do if you won the Powerball Lottery and I submitted my opinion. Their reaction is kinda funny.
Net aflame with Disney protests
c|net's News.Com reports on us (along with our Save the Enchanted Tiki Room friends) on June 1, 1998.
Talking parrots, not chicken salad
Wired News screws up again in this article about our friends trying to Save the Enchanted Tiki Room in Disneyland. The Iago and Zazu update of the Tiki Room was made to the Disney World version of the Tiki Room, not the Disneyland version. The author makes light of the fact that, at the time, there were "only" 338 signatures on the online petition, without any idea of how long the site has been up. (There's been more than 200 new signatures in the last couple of days, by the way.) There was a quote attributed to a Disney official spokesperson...probably about the Tiki Room, but the article said it was about Pooh. When some people wrote Wired to clear this up, they just removed the line entirely. Oh well. This story ran on June 2, 1998. (Just page down past that stuff about rental erotica.)
Mountain View Speaks Out - 1.1M (QuickTime, video/audio)
Mountain View Speaks Out - 416K (QuickTime, audio only)
Daniel Mart submitted this letter which was read on KMVT teevee on July 6, 1998. The video is not very interesting (just white letters on a blue background), so the audio-only option is a good one if your pipe is small. If you are really concerned about bandwidth, this is an extended version of the letter Daniel got published in the Palo Alto Daily news, which you can see here. (Sorry about the audio fuzzing out in the middle, the source tape was bad.)
Net protest can't save Mr. Toad
More national coverage for the Save Toad cause on c|net's News.Com on August 28, 1998. Too little, too late, but we're not going down quietly!
Mr. Toad Appears To Be Roadkill
This is the Big Time press coverage we needed months ago. This AP story is from September 1, 1998. Note that less than a week before they planned on closing the ride, Disney is still not being forthcoming to the press or its customers.
End of Wild Ride for Disney's Mr. Toad?
The Big Time press continues to snowball in this CNN article from September 1, 1998.
Toad Story on CNN - 366K (QuickTime)
CNN also runs a little blurb on their teevee news network September 1, 1998. In case you can't read the text, it says "Protest campaign fails to save 'Mr. Toad's Wild Ride' at Walt Disney World". Our failure is broadcast nationwide. The picture quality ain't so great because it's optimized for file size, but you get the idea.
End of the Road, Toad
Still more Big Time press in this September 3, 1998 blurb in USA Today.
Fans Are Hopping Mad as Toad's 27-Year Ride Ends
Yet another article about the closing of the Wild Ride in the September 3, 1998 edition of the Washington Post. Folks do love that "hopping mad" pun, don't they? Now that Disney has announced The Ride is closing, it's easy to get press...too late!
Mickey Mouse Cleans House
This E! Online article from September 5, 1998 also mentions the demise of the Submarine Voyage in Disneyland. It's all so sad.

Fox News Story, The Day Before - 2.1M (QuickTime, regular screen)
Fox News Story, The Day Before - 780K (QuickTime, half-size screen)

The Fox newscast on September 6, 1998, the day before Toad Hall closed. It's got a clip of me and my goofball voice and explains that there's going to be a protest and everyone is invited. Not bad.
NPR Story on the Toad Campaign - 442K (QuickTime, audio only)
This story played on September 7's NPR Morning Edition. Hear what my voice sounds like after getting almost no sleep and doing almost nothing but interviews when awake. It also features Mr. Toad himself. Note that while it is in QuickTime (over 75% more efficient than a .wav file), there is no picture, because this is only radio.
Requiem for Mr. Toad
Mr. Toad is given his due on almost two full pages of the Palm Beach Post on September 7, 1998 -- the day of the Last Wild Ride. I wrote the major article here and supplied most of the pictures.

ABC News Story, Before the Closing - 8.8M (QuickTime, regular screen)
ABC News Story, Before the Closing - 3.1M (QuickTime, half-size screen)

The Orlando ABC affiliate (ha!) reports on the Toad closing and the controversy. This report takes place on September 7, 1998, before The Ride is closed down for good. It's preceded by some stuff about future rides. The final line is entertainingly ironic. Again, it features my ugly puss.

ABC News Story, After the Closing - 6M (QuickTime, regular screen)
ABC News Story, After the Closing - 2.3M (QuickTime, half-size screen)

The Orlando ABC affiliate's story on September 7, 1998, after The Ride is closed down. It's got better protest footage and is followed by a report on the Submarine Voyage closing in Disneyland. It's also got some Disney suit claiming that they are "enhancing the value" by closing The Ride. (Hmmm.) And it's got me. You've been warned.

CFN News Story, After the Closing - 7.2M (QuickTime, regular screen)
CFN News Story, After the Closing - 2.7M (QuickTime, half-size screen)

Central Florida News 13 (a 24 news station) made this report on September 7, 1998. The report was repeated many times during the day. It's got some different footage and doesn't focus as much on the protestors, but we are still represented and the bit is pretty good.

Fox News Story, After the Closing - 2.4M (QuickTime, regular screen)
Fox News Story, After the Closing - 911K (QuickTime, half-size screen)

The Fox news story on September 7, 1998. It mostly reuses their stock footage of The Ride and our protest, but it also mentions the closing of the Submarine Voyage, complete with a clip of Walt and Nixon together at the opening of the Voyage. Happily, this clip does not feature me!
Fans don't go gentle on that last wild ride
Front page coverage of the final Toad In in the September 8, 1998 edition of the Orlando Sentinel. I dig the wacky quote about Rock Hudson. Huh?
Have the weasels won?
A good editorial written about the Toad situation in the September 8, 1998 edition of the Cape Cod Times. I certainly approve of the title.
Mr. Toad squashed in the name of Pooh
A columnist vents after he learns of Toad's demise in the September 18, 1998 issue of the Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Save Mr. Toad's Wild Ride
Hey, check it out! I'm quoted in the same magazine JD Salinger used to publish in! It's a great article too, in the September 21, 1998 edition of the New Yorker. Cool.
The Week in TV Sports
Toad's demise also get mentioned in the September 21, 1998 issue of Sports Illustrated, of all places.
Beam Me Up
Disney's feel-good spin on The Ride's closing in the thoroughly unbiased Spring issue of Disney Magazine.
Winnie Pooh Poohed
Our more final than final Toad In (which took place the day of the grand opening of the Pooh ride) goes out on the June 18, 1999 Associated Press wire.

Know of a Toad story we're missing?
Well sir, let us know!

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