I know, I know. The only Annie you care about has no retinas and a dog named Sandy.

But for animators, the Annies are just about the only chance their work has for recognition. Heck, I didn't even know they've been handed out for 36 years. You remember Robin Hood when he was a fox, and Charlotte's Web before Dakota Fanning, right?

Anyway, to the surprise of nobody, this year's Annie nominations for movies are dominated by Disney with eight nods to The Princess and the Frog, opening Dec. 11.

Funny that the L.A. Times story on this non-event doesn't count the three nominations for the Disney/Pixar production Up when noting the Mouse House grabbed 17 nominations (the other nine are for the upcoming ABC-TV special Prep and Landing.)

Wonder if this is a sign that Disney will be more interested in promoting Princess and the Frog for Academy Award consideration than a fine movie made by geniuses who Disney bought out when they couldn't beat them at the animation, box office or awards games?

Pixar and Disney play nice together in public but there have been reports of behind-the-scenes jealousies. You can imagine that Disney executives (who recently have been changing positions like a Nebraska Ave. hooker) are itching to prove they can win Academy Awards without Pixar's help.

If you're interested, a list of Annie nominees can be found here.