The Middle Week Linkage

An eclectic mix of links as you slog over the top of Hump Day.

First we got special collector editions of the old features (On VHS, then DVD, then Blu Ray) and now we get collector editions of video game EPIC MICK!

... Disney Interactive Studios today announced that the internationally acclaimed upcoming video game Disney Epic Mickey will also be released as a Collectors' Edition in limited quantities. Available for pre-order beginning today in North America and alongside the standard edition at retail this holiday, the Collectors' Edition of Disney Epic Mickey will include the full version of the game, a five inch collectible Disney Epic Mickey figurine, Wii(TM) console skins and remote faceplate, and a bonus DVD with behind-the-scenes video and more. ...

I'm buying it for the more (whatever that is.) ...

One more animated feature, this one a U.S.-Japanese joint venture.

A joint Japan-U.S. production of a full-length feature animated film based on the "Dragon Age" videogame is due out in 2011. The game title has sold about four million copies worldwide.

Japanese film production company T.O Entertainment Inc. and CG production house Oxybot have inked a deal with U.S.-based anime distributor FUNimation Entertainment Inc. Fumihiko Sori, who directed the live-action film "Ping Pong" and produced "Appleseed," will take the helm as director. ...

While we're on the subject of the Mouse, here's a Mickey short that never found its way to full color or theatrical release. (H/t Bronwen Barry and Eric Keys).

Animation Insider details various executive hirings at various animation, commercial and visual effects houses, to wit:

... Over at Nickelodeon, Keith Dawkins obtained the title Senior Vice President of TeenNick, in addition to his current role as General Manager, Nicktoons. TeennNick was previously broadcast as The N. Dawkins' oversight includes the day-to-day operations of the network and its affiliate sales, as well as related programming, scheduling, and marketing responsibilities. Also, actor/musician/businessman Nick Cannon extends his contract with TeenNick to continue serving as Chairman, through January 2012. ...

Okay then. Maybe the jobs are going to Indiana?

A Kokomo-based developer of interactive children's toys and media announced its plans Tuesday to make a $2.4 million animated film. Bach Morris Technologies Corp. will produce the 3-D modeled animated film "Whoever Heard of a Herd of Fird," which is based on author Othello Bach's 1984 book "Whoever Heard of a Fird." The 78-minute movie, like the book, is about a magical creature that is part fish and part bird and takes place in a mystical place. This is the company's first film project.

The company is investing more than $2.2 million, or 91 percent, of its budget to be spent in Indiana ...

And who can overlook today's Steve Jobs press rollout? (Off-topic though it may be?)

There are two cultural events that will persuade geeks to play “Wookie Hookie” — to call in sick at school or work: a new installment of “Star Wars” and a Steve Jobs keynote.

All over the world, from London to China, Apple fans are preparing to feign illness in order to tune into Jobs’ Apple announcement today, which is being live streamed over the internet for the first time in many years. ..

Story artist Mark Kennedy fills us in on the hues found in the rainbow.

... [N]ot all watercolors are transparent .... They all have different levels of transparency. I use Winsor & Newton Artists' watercolors, and they have an awesome chart on their website here that you can also download as a pdf. The great part is that if you click on a color, it will take you to another page that will tell you if the color is transparent, semi-transparent, semi-opaque or opaque (the four levels of transparency). ...

... [T]he pigments marked "Staining" are very intense and stronger than other colors and tend to overpower them in mixes. So it's helpful to know all of that stuff about each color when you're trying to mix a certain color. Which is why it's always a good thing to keep as small a palette as possible...

Ratings for TeeVee Cartoons in Cableland:

... Adult Swim -- Across the its August 2010 monthly performance, Adult Swim once again ranked #1 among all basic cable networks for Total Day Delivery of key young adults and young men, earning gains across key demos vs. the same August 2009 time period. Total day delivery of adults 18-34 (496,000) grew by 9%, adults 18-24 delivery (284,000) grew by 24%, men 18-34 delivery (297,000) grew by 6%, and men 18-24 delivery (172,000) grew by 17%. Additionally, adults 18-49 delivery (679,000) grew by 8% and men 18-49 delivery (399,000) grew by 6%.

For the 5th week of August, Adult Swim telecasts—including Family Guy, The Boondocks and Robot Chicken—accounted for 16 of the top 50 telecasts of the week on ad-supported basic cable among adults 18-34.

Cartoon Network -- Cartoon Network scored solid double-digit prime time delivery and ratings growth among kids 2-11 across the month of August, according to initial data from Nielsen Media Research. Versus the same 2009 time period, the monthly average kids 2-11 delivery (762,000) grew by 22% and ratings (1.9) by 27%. Also in prime time, kids 6-11 delivery (484,000) grew by 6% while ratings (2.0) increased by 5%. In Total Day, average monthly kids 2-11 delivery (640,000) improved by 9% and ratings (1.6) grew by 14%. ...

Enjoy your Thursday and Friday just as much as you can.