NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR AND FOOD NETWORK STAR SANDRA LEE SIGNS MULTI-PLATFORM DEAL WITH HYPERION AND DISNEY INTERACTIVE MEDIA GROUP (DIMG)

HYPERION ANNOUNCES UNPRECEDENTED FIVE-BOOK DEAL TO PUBLISH ACROSS GENRES - NON-FICTION, LIFESTYLE AND FICTION

DIMG TO PRODUCE ORIGINAL 15-EPISODE ONLINE VIDEO SERIES FOR 2011 HOLIDAY SEASON

May 26, 2011 - Hyperion and Disney Interactive Media Group (DIMG) today announced signing bestselling author, Food Network star and lifestyle expert Sandra Lee, along with her imprint, SL Books, to major contracts with their respective divisions. These complementary deals mark a strategic partnership across Disney/ABC business units that draw on each company's promotional and marketing strengths. The projects will complement each other in tone, theme and branding as they begin to launch in Fall 2011.

The sweeping five-book deal - comprising two cookbooks focusing on healthful, quick-scratch meals, an entertaining/lifestyle book, and two novels - is an unprecedented contract for Hyperion, both in volume and scope. The first two books will be published Fall 2011 in tandem with the re-launch of Food Network's fifth season of Lee's "Sandra's Money Saving Meals" television show. Book one, Money-Saving Meals and Round-2 Recipes, which offers main-dish recipes and an additional "Round 2" recipe using the same base ingredient as the main dish, will release in October 2011. Book two, Easy Entertaining at Home, will release in November 2011. Books three and five, to be published in Summer 2012 and Summer 2013, mark Sandra Lee's first foray into fiction. The novels will be loosely based on fictional food characters with a peppering of recipes to coincide with the characters throughout the book. Book four, the second cookbook entitled 365 Easy Family Meals, will release in 2012. Ellen Archer, President and Publisher of Hyperion, acquired World rights.

"Sandra Lee is a creative force of nature," said Archer. "We are thrilled to be publishing her cooking and entertainment books, and are looking forward to expanding her brand to fiction, adding a new genre to her impressive repertoire, and introducing her to a whole new audience."

To help women create magical experiences at home this holiday season, DIMG will be working with Sandra Lee to develop a 15-episode original online video series inspired by her upcoming books this Fall. Kicking off for Halloween and running throughout the winter holidays, the videos will feature simple and affordable solutions with dramatic results! The series will run across the Disney Online network of sites for moms and families, including DisneyFamily.com, FamilyFun.com, Kaboose.com, among others. Accompanying the videos online will be spectacular photo galleries and easy, step-by-step directions by Sandra Lee for celebrating any occasion.

"Sandra is an unstoppable talent," said Margie Gilmore, Vice President, Online Originals for the Disney Interactive Media Group. "We're thrilled to be collaborating with her on this new digital initiative."

Lee said, "I am so pleased to join both Hyperion and DIMG. It's a dream come true to align with such smart divisions adept at co-branding and collaboration. It's an ideal match for me."

A multi-Emmy-nominated and internationally-acclaimed expert in all things kitchen and home, Sandra Lee has predicted and changed the trajectory of American lifestyle with her signature "smart and simple" philosophy. The only lifestyle/culinary talent with her own publishing imprint, SL Books, she is the New York Times bestselling author of 23 cookbooks and a critically-acclaimed memoir, Made from Scratch. Lee has sold more than four million books since 2002 and has been awarded the prestigious International French Gourmand Award for "Best Easy Cookbook." Her multi-Emmy-nominated Food Network program, "Semi-Homemade Cooking with Sandra Lee," is now in its 15th season, and the fifth season of "Sandra Lee's Money Saving Meals" is currently in production. Lee also hosts a series of primetime holiday specials, "Sandra Lee Celebrates," on HGTV, and is editor-in-chief of Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade magazine. Her shows are now seen in 64 countries.

Lee attended the world's leading culinary art institute, Le Cordon Bleu, and applies her philosophy and savvy shortcuts to gourmet recipes so that anyone can create and savor extraordinary food more conveniently and economically at home. Her philosophy grew out of necessity and the challenges she faced as the oldest of five children responsible for caring for her younger siblings and helping to manage the household on welfare and food stamps. She quickly learned how to turn budget-friendly foods into delicious and special meals for her siblings while stretching every dollar and savoring every moment.

ABOUT HYPERION: Hyperion, founded in 1991, publishes general-interest fiction and non-fiction hardcover, trade, and mass-market paperback books for adults, and includes the Voice, Hyperion eBook, and Hyperion Audio imprints. Hyperion is the adult trade book publishing unit of the Disney/ABC Television Group, which is part of The Walt Disney Company. For further information, please visit www.hyperionbooks.com.

ABOUT DIMG: Disney Interactive Media Group (DIMG) is one of the world's largest creators of high-quality interactive entertainment across all current and emerging digital media platforms. Products and content released and operated by DIMG include blockbuster online virtual worlds, No. 1-ranked web destinations Disney.com and the Disney Family network of websites, mobile applications and video games. Disney Interactive Media Group is the interactive entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS).

ABOUT SANDRA LEE: Widely-respected for anticipating the needs of the modern homemaker and consumers, Sandra Lee has launched several lines of home, garden and craft products and produced a successful DIY home improvement series. Her new home products line, entitled Sandra by Sandra Lee, will be available at Sears and Kmart in Spring 2012. With a commitment to service and charity, Lee works with numerous philanthropic organizations including UNICEF�, Share Our Strength� and Feeding America�. For more information, visit www.SandraLee.com