Bob Iger

Annette Funicello, the dark-haired darling of TV's “The Mickey Mouse Club” in the 1950s who further cemented her status as a pop-culture icon in the '60s by teaming with Frankie Avalon in a popular series of “beach” movies, died Monday. She was 70. Funicello, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1987 and became a spokeswoman for treatment of the chronic, often-debilitating disease of the central nervous system, died at Mercy Southwest Hospital in Bakersfield, Walt Disney Co. spokesman Howard Green said.

Annette Funicello, the dark-haired darling of TV's “The Mickey Mouse Club” in the 1950s who further cemented her status as a pop-culture icon in the '60s by teaming with Frankie Avalon in a popular series of “beach” movies, died Monday. She was 70. Funicello, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1987 and became a spokeswoman for treatment of the chronic, often-debilitating disease of the central nervous system, died at Mercy Southwest Hospital in Bakersfield, Walt Disney Co. spokesman Howard Green said.

In a year when Bank of America Corp.'s stock plunged 58% and the company announced plans to lay off 30,000 employees, Chief Executive Brian Moynihan's compensation package more than quadrupled to nearly $8.1 million. Here's why: In 2011, the Charlotte, N.C., bank recorded $1.4 billion in profit after losing $2.2 billion the year before. So although the bank's compensation and benefits committee kept Moynihan's salary the same at $950,000, he landed $6.1 million in performance-reliant stock.

SACRAMENTO -- The country's second-largest public pension fund is opposing the reelection of Walt Disney Co. Chairman and Chief Executive Robert Iger to the entertainment and theme-park giant's board of directors. Citing concerns about the company's corporate governance, the $158-billion California State Teachers' Retirement System, known as CalSTRS, announced Thursday that it will vote its 5.3 million shares of Disney stock against Iger and five other board members who are up for election at an annual meeting March 6. CalSTRS' holdings in Disney are worth $263 million and represent 0.3% of the company's outstanding shares.

Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Michael Eisner spent his last day at the Burbank entertainment giant Friday. As promised, he sent a farewell e-mail to the company's 129,000 employees. Here are the highlights of the eight-paragraph letter: Dear All, I'm sitting in my office thinking about how much I have enjoyed working with the people who make up this company.

After the coffee. Before wondering how to get the journalistic equivalent of Joss Whedon's Marvel deal. The Skinny: Last night I saw "The Dark Knight Rises" for the second time, and while it's still a great movie - I'm an admitted Nolan fanatic - let's just say that the less time you spend thinking about the villain's plot, the better. Today I woke up to a smorgasbord of media news, with headlines including Liberty spinning off Starz, blockbuster Disney earnings, and details on Ron Meyer's slow fade.

Walt Disney Co. more than doubled its annual payout to Robert Iger in 2006 after his role was expanded from president to chief executive. The Burbank entertainment powerhouse spent about $25 million on Iger's compensation during his first year atop Disney. His base salary rose to $2 million from $1.5 million, and his bonus jumped to $15 million from less than $8 million, according to a proxy statement Disney filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday.

John Pepper lives outside Cincinnati, has few Hollywood connections and rarely speaks to the press. That gives the new chairman of Walt Disney Co. something in common with Chief Executive Robert Iger: He prefers keeping a low profile. But The Times recently spoke to Pepper about his early impressions of Disney and his forthcoming book from Yale University Press that provides lessons from his lauded career as chief executive of Procter & Gamble Co.

Bob Iger has a message for Steve Jobs: Let's talk. On Monday, the day after he was named the next chief executive of Walt Disney Co., Iger said a top priority was to reach out to the Pixar Animation Studios chief in hopes of repairing a fractured partnership that over the years produced such blockbusters as "The Incredibles," "Finding Nemo" and the "Toy Story" films.

Thanks to good timing and intensive networking, Walt Disney Co. President Robert Iger's bid to win the company's No. 1 job is gaining momentum on Wall Street, with some investors and analysts now calling his elevation all but inevitable. In recent months, Iger has broadened his base beyond longtime supporters in the investment community to those who'd once dismissed him as damaged goods, tarnished by the controversy surrounding his boss, Disney Chief Executive Michael Eisner.

Robert Iger, chief executive of Walt Disney Co., got a big pay raise last year. Iger, 61, who also serves as chairman of the Burbank-based entertainment company, received total compensation valued at $40.2 million in the last fiscal year, a 20% increase over the prior year, according to a regulatory filing. The pay package included a bonus of $16.5 million, and $9.53 million in stock awards, in addition to $2.5 million in salary and nearly $4 million in other compensation, a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission shows.

After the coffee. Before wondering how to get the journalistic equivalent of Joss Whedon's Marvel deal. The Skinny: Last night I saw "The Dark Knight Rises" for the second time, and while it's still a great movie - I'm an admitted Nolan fanatic - let's just say that the less time you spend thinking about the villain's plot, the better. Today I woke up to a smorgasbord of media news, with headlines including Liberty spinning off Starz, blockbuster Disney earnings, and details on Ron Meyer's slow fade.

In a year when Bank of America Corp.'s stock plunged 58% and the company announced plans to lay off 30,000 employees, Chief Executive Brian Moynihan's compensation package more than quadrupled to nearly $8.1 million. Here's why: In 2011, the Charlotte, N.C., bank recorded $1.4 billion in profit after losing $2.2 billion the year before. So although the bank's compensation and benefits committee kept Moynihan's salary the same at $950,000, he landed $6.1 million in performance-reliant stock.

Walt Disney Co. is looking to bring some Marvel muscle to Disney theme parks. Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger told shareholders attending the annual meeting Tuesday in Kansas City, Mo., that the company has done preliminary design work that will one day lead to Marvel superheroes appearing in the theme parks along with Disney's other familiar characters. "We haven't announced anything yet," Iger said. "But we're working on some concepts. " When Disney acquired Marvel Entertainment Inc. for $4.3 billion in 2009, the Burbank entertainment company talked about incorporating the comic book giant's library of 5,000 characters throughout its various businesses.

Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Bob Iger received nearly $31.4 million in total compensation last year, a 13.6% increase from 2010, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The board's compensation committee laid out the case for Iger's package, noting that 90% is tied to Disney's performance. It said the Burbank entertainment giant achieved record net income, revenue and earnings per share in fiscal 2011, and initiated a number of projects that would contribute to the company's' future growth — including expanding attractions at Disney theme parks in California, Florida and Hong Kong, and the joint venture to create a new park in Shanghai.

Bob Iger has signed a new five-year contract with the Walt Disney Co. that will keep him at the helm until 2015, when he will step down as chief executive and leave the entertainment giant the following year at age 65. In March, Iger will assume the additional role of chairman with the retirement of Disney's current board chairman, John E. Pepper Jr. Iger will serve in the dual capacity as chairman and chief executive for three years, until a...

Robert Iger, chief executive of Walt Disney Co., got a big pay raise last year. Iger, 61, who also serves as chairman of the Burbank-based entertainment company, received total compensation valued at $40.2 million in the last fiscal year, a 20% increase over the prior year, according to a regulatory filing. The pay package included a bonus of $16.5 million, and $9.53 million in stock awards, in addition to $2.5 million in salary and nearly $4 million in other compensation, a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission shows.

I'm assuming that the giant pillars of the Seven Dwarfs are still atop the Team Disney building, but hearing the news Tuesday that Oren Aviv has been ousted as studio production chief, I'm getting the feeling that everything else at Bob Iger's Mouse House is up for grabs these days. Since Iger ousted studio chief Dick Cook and installed Rich Ross as his replacement in early October, Iger and the former Disney Channel president haven't lost any time in reshaping the studio's executive hierarchy.

I'm assuming that the giant pillars of the Seven Dwarfs are still atop the Team Disney building, but hearing the news Tuesday that Oren Aviv has been ousted as studio production chief, I'm getting the feeling that everything else at Bob Iger's Mouse House is up for grabs these days. Since Iger ousted studio chief Dick Cook and installed Rich Ross as his replacement in early October, Iger and the former Disney Channel president haven't lost any time in reshaping the studio's executive hierarchy.

Walt Disney Co.'s chief executive, Bob Iger, received a total compensation package worth $29 million in 2009, less than the $30.6 million he made last year. Iger's base salary of $2 million remained effectively unchanged, although he collected an extra week's salary in 2009. He received stock valued at $6.3 million and options worth an additional $8.3 million. But Iger's bonus of $9.3 million was down 33% from a year earlier, reflecting the company's weaker financial performance, according to Disney's proxy statement filed Wednesday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.