Disneyland Story: The Unofficial Guide to the Evolution of Walt Disney's Dream (Unofficial Guides) - Softcover

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Sam Gennawey is the author of "Walt and the Promise of Progress City," a contributor to "Planning Los Angeles" and other books, as well as a columnist for the popular MiceChat website. His unique point of view built on his passion for history, his professional training as an urban planner, and his obsession with theme parks has brought speaking invitations from Walt Disney Imagineering, the Walt Disney Family Museum, Disney Creative, the American Planning Association, the California Preservation Foundation, the California League of Cities, and many Disneyana clubs, libraries, and podcasts. He is currently a Senior Associate at the planning firm of Katherine Padilla and Associates. Jeff Kurtti is author of more than 30 books, a writer-director-producer of award-winning documentaries, and a respected public speaker, host, and moderator. Kurtti is an expert on pop culture and entertainment. He is a consultant to clients in the motion picture, theater, museum/exhibit and themed-entertainment industries. He was creative director, content consultant, and media producer for the cornerstone exhibit of The Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco that opened in 2009. In 2012, he served as a content consultant and media producer for the touring exhibit The Dream of Walt Disney on behalf of Disney Japan. He lives in Langley, WA.

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IDEAS EXCITE ME
Why would Walt want to build something so unlikely as an amusement park? Industrial trainer Van Arsdale France wrote of the park’s early history for the training programs he created, and he speculated that Walt built Disneyland for three primary reasons: taxes, tourism, and the opportunity to reinvent something familiar―the amusement park―into something he, his family, and his friends would enjoy.

Walt was politically conservative, and he was not fond of taxes. Anytime he produced a hit film he had to give some money to the government, and he knew that if he could reinvest his profits, he would pay less in taxes. But Walt did not want to pay fewer taxes to accumulate wealth; he wanted the money available to fund his dreams. “Money is something I understand only vaguely, and think about it only when I don’t have enough to finance my current enthusiasm, whatever it may be,” he said. “Money―or, rather the lack of it to carry out my ideas―may worry me, but it does not excite me. Ideas excite me.”

Prior to the opening of Disneyland, studies had determined that tourism was California’s third-largest industry. Typically, most tourists to Southern California would go to the beach, pick an orange, or try to visit a movie studio. Walt felt that a movie-related destination would be a natural attraction.

The post–World War II timing was perfect. The middle class was growing, and they began to purchase automobiles and have more leisure time. They were also restless. Former Disneyland marketing director Edwin Ettinger said, “They felt awkward about all that leisure time thrust onto them and they weren’t sure what to really do with it.” Walt’s amusement park idea could offer something that seemed familiar, predictable, and reassuring.

“Walt had that instinct, that gut feeling of what people wanted, when they wanted it and how much,” said Tommy Walker, Disneyland’s first entertainment director. “He was tremendously creative, yet he was a practical and common-sense guy.” His desire to exceed his guests’ expectations was central to the park’s success. “I think the reason that Disneyland worked was because Walt Disney liked people in the first place,” said John Hench. “He was always trying for better communication, of linking with the audience, of touching them. He said that the only thing wrong with people, if they were acting badly, was because of poor communication. They simply didn’t have the right information. Walt blamed all the trouble in the world on wrong information.”

Disneyland emerged at a very special moment. After World War II, people were looking for an escape, and the mild weather of Southern California beckoned. The Los Angeles region was ripe for a movie-based tourist attraction. The fact that the metropolitan region was going through a population boom did not go unnoticed. Disneyland would become a pedestrian-friendly urban center surrounded by auto-centric suburban sprawl.

Walt also wanted to create an amusement park that his wife could enjoy. When Lillian asked him, “Why would you want to get involved with an amusement park? They’re so dirty and not fun at all for grown-ups. Why would you want to get involved in a business like that?” Walt said, “That’s exactly my point. Mine isn’t going to be that way. Mine’s going to be a place that’s clean, where the whole family can do things together.” He figured that if she enjoyed herself at his amusement park, he would be doing OK.