What did I get out of the Allen and Company Sun Valley Conference this year?  The answer:  something said about me which has never been said before; Puck voted me and my Peter Millar on-line purchases the best dressed. No investment awards, however 😊

Congratulations to Josh D’Amaro for becoming the CEO of the Walt Disney Company, and congratulations to Chairman James Gorman for making such a wise pick as well as promoting Dana Walden to president and chief creative officer.  My advice to Josh is continue Bob Iger’s strategy that creativity will handle profits, always protect the brand, and keep close the words of Walt Disney: "We love to entertain kings and queens, but the vital thing to remember is this—every guest receives the VIP treatment.” Good luck.

It is hard to believe that within 8 days two architects who were engulfed by American culture, who embraced that culture, and advanced it, have passed away.  Frank Gehry has followed Bob Stern, two men operating on two different coasts in America. Frank, very early, worked with us at the Walt Disney Company creating excellence in Anaheim and Paris. Frank was honored by everybody: clients, the public, the press as the most important architect worldwide because he was the most important architect. You can point to at least twenty+ buildings that can only be described as amazing, a legacy that one must see with their own eyes. From a hockey rink for the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim to Walt Disney Concert Hall, from a museum in Bilbao Spain to a soaring tower in NYC, and from a meeting/convening  building that Frank designed for our family in Colorado to millions of square feet of “can you believe that” around the world, we have lost someone who was super super super special. RIP Frank

Robert Stern’s Architecture Work for Disney: From 1984, Bob Stern helped changed the image of the company outside of the interiors of Disney parks (Disney Imagineers worked inside the parks) as he designed the following buildings for the Walt Disney Company. The Feature Animation building in Burbank; The casting Center Building in Orlando;  the Yacht and Beach Hotels in Walt Disney World; The Boardwalk Hotel in Walt Disney World; the Celebration Town Center buildings at Orlando; the Celebration Hospital in Orlando; the renovation of Anaheim Angel Stadium; the Tokyo Ambassador Hotel; the Paris Newport Bay Hotel and Convention Center; the Paris Cheyenne Hotel; the Paris Town Center Buildings In 1995, because of Bob Stern’s leadership in the Times Square redevelopment, Disney acquired the New Amsterdam Theater on 42nd street, which premiered THE LION KING on Broadway in 1997.

One of Bob Stern’s first jobs in the 1960s was my parents’ apartment in NYC. He astonished my father and annoyed him by refusing to be easy.  He joined the board of The Walt Disney Company and helped us strive for excellence, building 80 buildings over 20 years.  He was an inspiration and critic positioning Disney as a beacon of architectural splendor. RIP my friend. Bob at Fratton Park in Portsmouth, England advising on stadium renovations. December 2017.

Where has all the leadership gone?  If not for university presidents, law firm managing partners, and corporate chief executives standing up against bullies, who then will step up for the first amendment?  The “suspending indefinitely” of Jimmy Kimmel immediately after the Chairman of the FCC's aggressive yet hollow threatening of the Disney Company is yet another example of out-of-control intimidation.  Maybe the Constitution should have said, “Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, except in one’s political or financial self-interest.” By-the-way, for the record, this ex-CEO finds Jimmy Kimmel very talented and funny.

A momentous occasion celebrating both the women’s and men’s teams achieving promotion to the Championship League on the 125th anniversary of #Pompey

Congrats to Andrew Cullen, Rich Hughes and John Mousinho for putting together a super group of footballers. That has made all the difference. #Pompey

Thank you iFollow for the great coverage of this magnificent Pompey win of the league today and for their coverage all season long. #Pompey

Congratulations to all of Pompey! From the players to all of the staff to the fans - what an accomplishment to celebrate with the city of Portsmouth! #Pompey

Congratulations to @PompeyWomen for winning the league! What a fantastic season. We are very proud of Jay Sadler and the team!

Peter Schneider’s WATER FOR ELEPHANTS, the new musical on Broadway, is a massive hit. My great respect for Peter as a creative force has again been confirmed. Congratulations to the whole company for an outstanding, eventful musical! @W4Emusical nytimes.com/2024/03/21/theat…

As I told @nytimes @dealbook, in 1983, Disney was under attack by corporate raiders trying to take over the company. That would have ended the Disney Company as we know it, for the studio, theme parks, and hotels were suggested to be sold off. The board turned to me and Frank Wells, and a different story was written, one that was continued by Bob Iger and his executive team. Today, a similar situation exists, so let’s remember the lessons from 40 years ago. Bringing in someone who doesn’t have experience in the company or the industry to disrupt Bob and his eventual successor is playing not only with fire but earthquakes and hurricanes as well. The company is now in excellent hands and Disney shareholders should vote for the Disney slate.

14 goals between 2 @Pompey men’s matches and 1 @PompeyWomen’s match during our week in Portsmouth 👏

Fantastic match, @PompeyWomen! 7-0! Very well played and I am looking forward to next week’s big match against Newcastle.

Warren Buffett said in my book WORKING TOGETHER when he saw Charlie Munger “rolling around on the floor laughing at his own jokes” Warren knew they’d get along great. He had brain power and moral power;  “He has the best thirty-second mind I’ve ever seen.” RIP Charlie Munger.

Impressive win, @PompeyWomen! – at Manhattan, NY