Last week, I discussed my disappointment with Disney's (DIS) A Christmas Carol. As a shareholder of the Mouse, I remain dissatisfied with the performance. However, this past weekend's theatrical take of the film makes me a little happier.

According to early estimates at Box Office Mojo, Carol scored about $22 million at domestic theaters, making it the second most popular film of the three-day period. Sure, it wasn't number one, but given the fact that Carol made $30 million last weekend, I'd say you have to give it some credit for avoiding a significant percentage drop. So far, it has generated more than $60 million in revenue.

The future investment stars are already with us. The NYSE Financial Future Challenge, operated by the NYSE Foundation, By Kids for Kids, K12 Inc. and the United Investors Association, is in full swing, with five finalists just identified. To reach this level, the participants had to develop a new product, idea or process that would "excite, educate and motivate their peers" to become interested in the financial marketplace. The eventual winner lurks within this subset and will receive a $2,500 prize -- a great way to get that portfolio started. And, he or she will be feted at a closing bell ceremony at the NYSE (NYX) on January 11, 2010.

The finalists presented a variety of ideas which are sure to generate some buzz. Kelsey Foss, a 12-year-old from Mountainville, NY, proposed a new television show, "Stock Market Tycoon Idol," which would harness the popularity of reality TV while amping up the content. The program would involve the journeys of 10 kids as they seek to make money or lose it, with the possibility of becoming virtual millionaires along the way. The show would be set at a mock NYSE studio on Wall Street, and exports would be brought out to mentor the contestants. The reality TV reach would help engage a younger audience.

Disney (DIS), the media company behind Mickey Mouse and Buzz Lightyear, and whose colleagues in the industry include CBS (CBS), General Electric's (GE) NBC Universal, News Corp. (NWS), Sony Corporation (SNE), Time Warner (TWX), and Viacom (VIA), reported results for Q4 and the full fiscal year on Thursday after the bell. While the bottom line came in ahead of expectations, I have to say that the release was disappointing to this shareholder.

Earnings on an adjusted basis for the quarter came in at 46 cents per share, higher than the number predicted by analysts. Unfortunately, as I go through the data, I don't think I'm too comforted by such income performance.

Disney (DIS), a media business that competes with Viacom (VIA), CBS (CBS), News Corp. (NWS), and General Electric's (GE) NBC Universal, will be talking up its fourth-quarter numbers on Thursday after the bell. Are you a shareholder? If so, are you excited? Well, don't get too excited, because we might not be getting any growth, even if the Mouse beats on the bottom line. According to Earnings.com, the call is for 40 cents per share versus the 43 cents per share made in the comparable period.

You know what, though? For the most part, I'm not so concerned with exactly how much Disney makes this quarter. I'm a shareholder, and I want to see management at least come in at the estimate, of course, but I'll be more interested in the conference call. Way more interested this time around, in fact.

When I discussed Lions Gate Entertainment's (LGF) first-quarter results, I noted the disappointing statement of cash flows. Unfortunately, the company didn't do much better in the second quarter. For the six-month period, Lions Gate used over $160 million for operations compared to the roughly $40 million used in the similar frame one year ago.

Of course, cash flow doesn't always get the most coverage. Investors tend to get more excited by a swing to profitability. On that count, Lions Gate scored admirably, earning 26 cents per diluted share versus losing 44 cents per diluted share twelve months prior. Earnings.com indicates that analysts were really underestimating the Q2 income potential here: the call was for 6 cents per share.

Disney (DIS) had high hopes for A Christmas Carol. It was supposed to be an unqualified blockbuster. Unfortunately, the film's first weekend at the box office was nothing short of a disaster.

Too strong? Hardly. According to early estimates at Box Office Mojo, Carol took in little more than $30 million at domestic screenings. It was wasn't supposed to be like this. Carol was supposed to be light-years ahead of the competition. Sony's (SNE) Michael Jackson's This Is It came in second. The Men Who Stare at Goats, distributed by Liberty Capital Group's (LCAPA) Overture Films, was third. And The Fourth Kind, from General Electric's (GE) Universal, is currently ranked, aptly enough, in fourth place. Each of the latter three pictures had a gross of somewhere between $12 million and $14 million. To me, Carol's take didn't seem as disproportionate as it should have been.

Shares of CBS (NYSE: CBS) are no longer rolling around in the pits of equity hell. Do you recall when they were trading around $3 per share? Nasty time it was. Amazingly, as I write this, CBS is hovering near a 52-week high. They are well over $12 in value.

Yet, when I look at the latest earnings report, I don't feel as upbeat as the market. According to the press release (the link goes to a .pdf file), revenues were flat for the third quarter and adjusted income dropped to 25 cents per share from the year-ago figure of 39 cents per share.

News Corp. (NASDAQ: NWS), the big media conglomerate that competes with Disney (NYSE: DIS), Time Warner (NYSE: TWX), and General Electric's (NYSE: GE) NBC Universal, issued Q1 data on Wednesday after regular trading was over. Revenues declined 4%, but earnings per share went up 10% to 22 cents. According to Bloomberg, that was enough to beat analysts by four pennies.

That's pretty decent for the company, but there are a couple of spots in need of serious help. It goes without saying that the newspaper industry is having a rough time, so it's not so hard to understand why the news groups experienced a significant decline in operating income.

Viacom (NYSE: VIA), a content player in competition with News Corp. (NASDAQ: NWS), Time Warner (NYSE: TWX), Sony (NYSE: SNE), and General Electric's (NYSE: GE) NBC Universal, issued Q3 numbers today. If we had a different market on our hands, I think the stock would have reacted better to the news. Revenues were down 3%, but adjusted income rose 25% to 69 cents per share. According to Bloomberg, the bottom line came in well ahead of estimates, which were pegged at 57 cents per share.

Sounds good, doesn't it? Well, the company's A shares are down slightly as I write this by about 0.6%, and the B shares are just about flat. Like I say, if the broader indexes were in an uptrend this afternoon, we probably would have seen a pop in the stock.

I don't believe it. I never thought it could happen. Lions Gate Entertainment (NYSE: LGF) released Saw VI this past weekend. Surely the latest cinematic celebration of cruelty would be the number-one picture at domestic theaters, right? Saw is a big brand when it comes to torture movies. Jigsaw is a Freddy Krueger (and beyond) for the new generation. The teens would be out in full force to support all the latest traps and sequences of dismemberment and bloodletting for sure.

Well, Saw VI didn't come out on top. Instead, Viacom's (NYSE: VIA) Paranormal Activity made the most money in the race for domination at the multiplex, scoring approximately $22 million according to early estimates from Box Office Mojo. The new Saw did come in second, though, so that was at least some consolation, correct?

What has Blackstone (NYSE: BX) been doing with all those theme parks it's been buying? Well, the answer is becoming a bit clearer now. The private equity firm is getting ready to take theme park operator Merlin Entertainments public early next year.

Several investment banks have already been called to advise on the transaction, including Citigroup (NYSE: C), Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), Deutsche Bank (NYSE: DB), UBS (NYSE: UBS), and Nomura (NYSE: NMR). If all goes as planned, the deal could be good for $3.33 billion.

In the U.S., the prevailing sentiment is that the consumer is tapped out. And, even for those that have money, there will continue to be a good deal of frugality.

So, it would seem that theme parks would suffer, right?

Perhaps not. This is the thinking of Stephen Schwarzman, who is the chief of the Blackstone Group (NYSE: BX). Interestingly enough, he's doubling down on theme park investments, according to Reuters.com.

A new executive team is trying to bring MySpace back to its former glory. By focusing on music, videos and games, it hopes to recapture some of its luster. With the MySpace refugees mounting, it's time for some new blood to make some brilliant, future-changing decisions. This week, the company is holding a conference for its global ad sales team to explore ways to bring in traffic and beef up ad spending.

MySpace is poised to haul in $495 million in ad revenue this year, down 15% from last year's $585 million, according to research firm eMarketer. In August, MySpace attracted 64.2 million unique visitors from the United States, off 15% from August 2008, according to comScore, while Facebook pulled in 92.2 million unique U.S. visitors – up more than 100% year-over-year.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the advertising market could be ready for an upswing. Michael Morris, an analyst at UBS, is making a connection between improved sales at retail stores and a robust environment for commercials and the like. His reasoning is sound: if retail businesses are doing better, then they might want want to take advantage of new cash levels to invest in marketing initiatives aimed at bringing in traffic.

Indeed, the advertising industry has been in the dumps. Any good news is welcome. Media entities such as Disney (NYSE: DIS), Time Warner (NYSE: TWX), Viacom (NYSE: VIA), CBS (NYSE: CBS), News Corp. (NASDAQ: NWS), and General Electric's (NYSE: GE) NBC Universal, are counting on increased opportunities to sell their respective inventories at better prices.

The markets had a relatively flat day to start the week, but there were some big name stocks that traded up to new 52 week highs in today's session. The DOW was up 0.2%, NASDAQ was down 0.01%, while the S&P saw the most change, closing up 0.4%.

Here are a couple of the bigger names that traded up to new 52 week highs in today's trading.

• Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC): Chipmaker Intel Corp. traded up to a new 52 week high today of $20.65. It set its 52 week low of $12.05 back on 2/23/09. The stock is trading higher today ahead of the company's third quarter earnings numbers, which are due out tomorrow following the market close. Analysts are expecting the company to show earnings of 27 cents per share. The company reported a loss of 7 cents per share for its second quarter. The stock closed the day up 1.1% at $20.40, up $0.23 on the day.