It really was just this side of magic. I imagine it's not too unlike when Walt Disney was blowing people away with his first animated features.

There's a business studies theory that the founders of new companies -- the entrepeneurs, the innovators -- must turn over the reins after the company they founded achieves a certain level of success. The axiom (note clever tie-in to Wall-E) is they aren't mentally equipped to run a complex, efficient organization. They're free-thinkers, not managers. Hopefully, Pixar will continue to prove this theory isn't absolute.

That's an interesting theory, Tom, and one that makes sense on the face of it. Broadly speaking, 'right-brain' visionaries concoct great idea, bring to market, it succeeds, then big question -- how to sustain as a business? Time to bring in 'left-brain' business experts.

Of course, it doesn't always work. Several years ago, Yahoo brought in some Warner Bros film execs, intent on turning Yahoo into a creative content provider. That proved to be an expensive no-go.

The thing about Pixar is that they have a viable business model right now, from the creative to the technical (animation) to distribution and marketing (Disney). If they continue to focus on what they do, it figures they'll continue to do well.

But I guess there must be another business theory -- "shiny object disease," where companies, probably out of boredom or lust for uber-profits or a combination of both, make a stretch into other business areas. That can work, many times it does not.

The WSJ had an article the other day about how only, as I recall, 15% of big corporate mergers / acquisitions resulted in greater value for stockholders; the rest were flops (eg., Time Warner / AOL).

Speaking of the devil, news of Microsoft interest again in Yahoo, this time with Time Warner and News Corp in tow.

"Shiny Object Disease" ought to appear in some MBA-level books.

As for the latest Microsoft hunt for Yahoo, it can't hurt to have Rupert Murdoch on your team. He seems to have found a vaccine against Shiny Object Disease.

I find it funny that no one complained about FIGHT CLUB, THE MATRIX, or AMERICAN BEAUTY for all having anti-commercialist themes.

And yet, in a children's movie, that will undoubtedly sell millions, if not billions, of dollars in Pixar / Wall - E merchadise the roars are rampant.