RETAIL / TOURISM : Slick Presentation Draws Stockholders to Disney Meeting

Judging from the questions, a lot of the 11,000 stockholders who attended the Walt Disney Co.’s annual meeting Tuesday were more interested in the razzle-dazzle presentation than the financial statements of the nearly $6-billion entertainment giant.

Disney officials say the company has a high proportion of stockholders who own a single share. But why not? Each stockholder attending the meeting in Anaheim was given a free pass to Disneyland--a $27.50 value. They got to watch the antics of Disney characters and were treated to a slick multimedia presentation. Not a bad deal, considering that Disney’s stock price and earnings have steadily risen for years. Still, some stockholders were restless.

One woman asked why stockholders weren’t shown a Disney movie after the meeting as they have in past years? Another woman said she arrived late and asked Eisner, one of the nation’s highest-paid executives, whom to see about getting her a free Disneyland pass. One girl wanted to know how to land an acting job in a Disney movie.

After fielding one frivolous question after another, Eisner finally cut off the queries with one stipulation: the last question would be from a child.