"Restore the Magic" banners framed the large gathering on the eve of Disney's shareholder meeting.
Over 900 enthused audience members packed the ballroom of the Loews Hotel -- and 600 more were turned away at the door.
The crowd gathered to hear Roy Disney and Stanley Gold, who were both members of the board of the Walt Disney Co. until they resigned several months ago. The two are leading a public campaign to oust current Disney Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael Eisner.
"People were here [waiting in line] from 11 a.m." for the 4 p.m. event, SaveDisney.com-affiliated security officer Thomas Pfund said.
Kurt Kaufmann, a resident of Salem, N.J., was among the last 20 members of the public to be admitted to the event.
"Right now, I'm supporting Roy [Disney] because Eisner has not delivered as far as earnings go," the Disney stockholder said.
Another Disney stockholder was similarly unhappy with Eisner's leadership.
Stephen Starr of Ambler, Pa., who was holding the stock for his son, said, "I would bet that at least 90 percent of the people here will vote 'no' tomorrow" on re-electing Eisner and three other Disney board members.
Starr then underscored the differences between Disney and other companies.
"People are really in [the stock] for the long term," Starr said. "Especially if you bought it for your children, it was really something they could believe in as well ... . And the whole way the company has been run for the last five years is all for short-term profit rather than building shareholder value and keeping the magic that Disney's name represents."
Penn students also attended the meeting.
"I have relatives at Disney, so I was just interested in listening to [Roy Disney and Gold's] case because it affects my family," Wharton freshman and former Disney shareholder Ian Goldstein said. "This current management made me feel like I didn't want to hold the share. In my opinion, the last 10 years of Disney have been entirely focused on the past. ... They can only rerelease The Lion King so many times before you realize you need new ideas."
Students unaffiliated with Disney also braved the long lines -- which extended past several blocks -- mostly because of curiosity.
"I've never really been to something like this," Wharton freshman Mark Weinberger said. "It's really an important crossroads in the company's history, so it should be interesting to see what happens."
Audience members were greeted with a video in which emotional letters from Roy Disney and Gold's supporters were read.
The solemn atmosphere brightened as upbeat music heralded the entrance of Gold.
"The outpouring of concern has truly moved us," said Gold, who explained that the gift bags distributed earlier contained notebooks and pens for writing down questions to be answered during the question-and-answer session.
"It's fitting we're meeting here in the city they call the 'cradle of liberty,'" Gold said.
Roy Disney, nephew of the late Walt Disney, received a standing ovation as he took the stage.
Roy Disney listed improvements that needed to be made to the company, including "putting smiles back on the faces of guests and the cast."
Creativity was continuously stressed as the foundation upon which Disney was based.
Naturally, this topic brought on questions of the company's falling out with Pixar.
"Pixar and [Pixar Chairman and CEO] Steve Jobs and [Pixar Creative Executive Vice President] John Lasseter ... I can tell you ... that all of them would -- in a blink of an eye -- come back to Disney if Michael [Eisner] wasn't there anymore," Roy Disney said.
