tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5876061306737427582024-03-19T01:23:15.578-07:00One Man’s Dream: RetlawYensid.ComThe Unofficial Disney Fan PageRalphhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03802217722858425917noreply@blogger.comBlogger2986125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-26815645368666083172024-03-18T07:25:00.000-07:002024-03-18T07:25:00.243-07:00EPCOT Part Eight: Roy’s Folly <div><br></div><div>As the October 1st grand opening of Walt Disney World grew near, Roy Disney was riding high. He had canceled his brother’s plans for the experimental prototype community of tomorrow and was eager to open his vision of the Florida project, which consisted of just the parts that he deemed as being profitable- the Magic Kingdom theme park and three resorts. Eager to avoid the madness of Disneyland’s chaotic and overcrowded opening day, Roy strictly limited the number of tickets available for opening day and prepared for the onslaught that was sure to await the park on day two- when the real guests would finally experience his idea of a “Magic Kingdom.”</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_dea2_be11_faee_d133" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1lZnTdO2BXy4OBf6yLCdwz6jzSru0bm5_" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 315px; height: auto;"><br></div><div><br></div><div>In an effort to get good press, Roy planned an opening day that would only host half the number of guests who visited Disneyland on an average day at the time. This would allow the media to comfortably experience the park and declare it to be more polished than Disneyland. Imagine his shock when less than a third of the expected crowd showed up. Magic Kingdom park set a dubious record that it continues to hold to this day- as the Disney theme park with the lowest opening day attendance. Initially, Roy blamed the lack of attendance on guests remembering Disneyland’s disastrous and overcrowded opening day. Truly day two would be better.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8734_b54c_2ca5_2671" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1QdC_JtBCOm9IV5vIGoORNmd-bykG03jp" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 336px; height: auto;"><br></div><div><br></div><div>Except it wasn’t. The newly built theme park’s second day attendance was worse than the first day and a fraction of what Disneyland was attracting. As opening week continued, Roy reeled from the daily attendance reports. Magic Kingdom park was not attracting enough guests to justify the expense of building it. Weekend attendance wasn’t much better than weekday attendance. To the outside world, the company was confident that things would improve. Inside the company, however, was a different story. While Walt’s Imagineers smugly observed the disastrous attendance as Walt’s revenge for Roy disregarding his original plans, they also worried about their jobs. What would the rapidly growing Florida problem do to their job security and pensions?</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7609_bb44_e023_bbc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1PLjkeCElbSpWYIUMkp5AEk6rpG4skY-j" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 329px; height: auto;"><br></div><div><br></div><div>Days of poor attendance became weeks of poor attendance. Magic Kingdom’s abysmal attendance was quickly becoming a crisis. While Disneyland had been forced to step aside to let its newer sibling take the limelight, it was now propping up the looming disaster in Florida. If Disneyland’s attendance had mirrored that of Florida’s Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney Productions would have gone bankrupt as many had predicted before the original park opened in 1955. Lucky for Roy, Disneyland’s profits would keep the company solvent- for now. As October switched to November with no improvement, everyone knew that Roy would soon have to make some tough decisions- and things didn’t look good for the company’s Florida property. Layoffs and cutbacks were on the horizon.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_1035_8290_b4f6_821f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1rECBSy7pnw4GHaaem6WInZoZq_kZWdDd" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 295px; height: auto;"><br><br></div><div>This period of time was said to be stressful for Roy Disney. He was beginning to fear that he had doomed Walt Disney Productions to bankruptcy. Was the Florida project DOA regardless of what was built or would building EPCOT as his brother had originally planned have improved its fortunes? As a second month of poor attendance lurched forward, Roy decided that despite the bad optics of doing layoffs during the Christmas season, he would have no choice if he wanted to stave off bankruptcy. He decided to wait until after the Thanksgiving weekend to begin cutbacks, layoffs and closures, but was sadly certain that he would have to actually do them.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7d24_9440_3c12_9e06" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1pJy5zE7XYn-rjaCsUSwHNNw6YRrR_PDu" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 337px; height: auto;"><br></div><div><br></div><div>If this situation doesn’t sound familiar to you, it was due to the miracle that awaited park staff on the day after Thanksgiving. As the resort prepared to open that morning, staff encountered a welcome sight- backed up traffic at the parking lot toll booths. The crowds had finally showed up. Florida’s Magic Kingdom finally had its first full capacity day. The crowds continued to show up in the days and weeks ahead. If Walt had cursed the park because of the cancellation of EPCOT, he must have felt that his point had been made after two months of poor attendance. Roy could finally rest easy and Walt Disney Productions would pretend that Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom was always hugely successful.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_c23e_39fd_e8f5_9994" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1N7pmPZOiokhqGLk4lQtVnyA5zP-Uf03c" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 306px; height: auto;"><br><br></div><div>Sadly, Roy wouldn’t get to enjoy the success of his version of the Florida project for too long; he would pass away a few weeks later on December 20, 1971. While he had been afraid that he had doomed the company a month earlier, he would enter his eternal rest knowing that the company he built with his brother would be on firm ground.</div><div><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-47271075214698831952024-03-11T07:15:00.000-07:002024-03-11T07:15:00.142-07:00EPCOT Part Seven: The Dream Is Over <div><br></div><div>After Walt Disney’s shocking death, Roy Disney quickly took full control of the company. Dismissing talk of a sale, Roy insisted that the company would remain independent, Disneyland would stay open and he would personally see to it that his brother’s last dream- “Disney World” in Florida- would be built and open in five years. In fact, he officially started calling the Florida Project “Walt Disney World” to show the world that it was the fully realized dream of a real person- Walt Disney. Except- it wasn’t.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_325a_1f8d_757f_2c9a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1sdi9zr1skhvHNCIAjxqb8BiI3kWwLnex" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 299px; height: auto;"><br></div><div><br></div><div>While Roy claimed he was making his brother’s final dream come true, his very first action as the sole leader of Walt Disney Productions was to permanently cancel Walt Disney’s plans for an experimental prototype community of tomorrow. EPCOT, as designed and dreamed up by Walt Disney would NEVER see the light of day. Even though Walt’s imagineers hadn’t been too enthusiastic about EPCOT when he first started the development and design process, they had grown to accept and embrace it. They weren’t happy when Roy pulled the plug on the project and ordered them to start working on the theme park. They became even more disenchanted with Roy’s vision for the park itself.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9ad0_444b_7e35_7ea0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1sJo_MkHqPaY1XE4_d0qPMpuBeQ8Sz09z" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 289px; height: auto;"><br></div><div><br></div><div>By 1971, Disneyland had 16 years to “grow up” into the fully developed theme park that it had become. Walt Disney had planned to build out “Disneyland East” to be a mostly carbon copy of Disneyland with the same number of attractions. Roy, on the other hand, figured that the newer park could open with much fewer attractions than Disneyland had and build itself up over time. His most controversial decision was to build a bigger castle with a taller Main Street. In his mind, this would show everyone that the company now had more money to spend and could afford to build a bigger castle than the one at Disneyland. Except, the castle at Disneyland was not built the way it was because of money issues- it was built the way it was because Walt Disney wanted a friendly, accessible castle. He felt that only tyrants built large castles to intimidate the peasants and purposely had his castle designed to be kid-friendly.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cf2_a736_821_5da9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1kpaaPRi6RqLJsffr1SlUOiAK0wD1Qg-A" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 323px; height: auto;"><br><br></div><div>Even worse, Roy Disney chose to not fix the part of the park that Walt Disney was always self conscious about- Fantasyland. Walt had originally wanted Fantasyland to look like a European village. Budget cuts forced him to compromise and design what was referred to as a “Medieval Fair” look that featured brightly painted, flat decor. While Roy’s tyrannically sized castle loomed large, it concealed a Fantasyland that wasn’t all it could be. (Disneyland eventually fixed this issue in 1982. Florida’s Magic Kingdom has never bothered to fix it at all.) Rolly Crump, whose whimsical artwork inspired the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland left the company after he became disenchanted with the design of the Disney World project.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2ba3_1ca0_814d_52b5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/16gUdyiQHyqBvAT5PlySY6GkJ5QetEVQW" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 338px; height: auto;"><br></div><div><br></div><div>In 1971, Walt Disney World, which was more of Roy’s dream than Walt’s by this point, lurched towards its opening. Severely under-built, the resort only had two hotels and a campground in addition to its theme park with an underwhelming lineup of attractions. Would Roy’s EPCOT-less resort prove to be a successful draw? Only time would tell.</div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-44468539416286172692024-03-04T07:25:00.000-08:002024-03-04T07:25:00.145-08:00EPCOT Part Six: Walt vs. Roy <div><br></div><div>When Walt Disney first presented the idea of Disneyland to his brother Roy, Roy was firmly against it. Walt’s brother was certain that Disneyland would bankrupt the company and initially rejected the idea. Only after he realized that Walt was insistent on seeing his dream come true (and that the company had never gotten legal permission to use his brother’s name) did Roy reluctantly approve his brother’s plans. After Disneyland succeeded beyond Roy’s wildest dreams, he was eager to build a second park- but he didn’t want to build EPCOT. Roy allowed his brother to develop plans for EPCOT in the project’s early stages, but planned to put his foot down at some point to prevent the project from going forward. Veteran Disney employees braced for the upcoming battle.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_7256_cf4e_fa39_595" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/14dlHu5SVqRW1HYF68D8t3cr98UB4yaPT" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 267px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;">While Roy thought that he could eventually convince his brother that EPCOT was not feasible, others within the company thought that he would eventually acquiesce to Walt as he typically did and allow some version of EPCOT to get built. Either way, Disney staff had hoped that the battle would not be as intense as it was when Walt Disney wanted to build the Matterhorn, Disneyland Monorail and the Submarine Voyage attractions and Roy wanted to coast on Disneyland’s success for a few more years without building new projects. The wild success of the expansion eventually made Roy see that he was wrong, but the fight between the two was bitter nonetheless.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_49f5_bf7c_a7d3_ed9e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1w7Rp-Xo_yIsPBaFUoPqgTJ4a7W3V8T8j" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 279px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;">The first sign of stress between Walt and Roy happened when Roy visited Imagineering. He was looking for some concept maps and artwork for Disneyland East and its associated hotels that he could show to potential investors and financiers. He discovered that none existed. Walt had no interest in working on the theme park at this point and had his imagineers busy designing EPCOT. Roy requested that they start working on the theme park, an idea shut down by Walt. He assumed that if Disneyland East was built first his brother would find a way to shut down EPCOT. Roy enlisted the help of his sister-in-law Lillian Disney to try to talk some sense into his brother. Lillian suspected that if EPCOT became reality her husband would want to move to Florida, and she was not fond of the idea. This entreaty didn’t really accomplish much; Walt wasn’t convinced to drop EPCOT and Lillian wasn’t convinced that a move to Florida would be a good idea. The EPCOT question remained unresolved.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_290c_1520_484_8df9" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1X7YJ9_ByVN5yROyqUtGrcfzh3ZB7U6lC" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 274px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;">As 1966 went on, Walt’s Imagineers felt that he seemed oddly insistent at getting EPCOT planned out ASAP. While he had been eager to get his dreams out into the world in the past, this time it felt like there was an air of desperation around his efforts. For the first time ever, it felt like Walt thought he was running out of time. Walt decided to introduce the world to his idea of an Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow on his television show as a way to force his brother’s hand- after all, if he clearly laid out what the “Florida Project” would be like, Roy would have no choice but to follow through with it, regardless of what the future held. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6a3d_6e7d_9b8e_31ed" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/19q0dXs6f-TxkxvtiGxIgDL95Vehpb52d" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 294px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: left;">Unfortunately, fate would intervene in the saddest of ways. On December 15, 1966 Walt Disney passed away. Even the people who worked with him were shocked. To them, Walt Disney was an immortal force to be reckoned with. That he would no longer be around to supervise his Magic Kingdom or see his latest dream of EPCOT become reality was unthinkable. With Roy Disney at the helm, would he see fit to make his brother’s final dream come true? The answer to that question would be complicated.</div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-69216737146136224592024-02-26T07:30:00.000-08:002024-03-10T21:45:14.395-07:00EPCOT Part Five: Walt Disney’s Experimental Community <div><br></div><div>When Walt Disney decided to announce his latest project, the public was confused. They loved the idea of Disneyland East, but what was this EPCOT thing? Was it another theme park? For those of you who have been following along, you know that it was definitely NOT a theme park. But what exactly was Walt planning to build? Today we take a look at what EPCOT would have been like if Walt Disney had lived to see it open.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_90a7_dedc_eb69_a425" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1uJKsu-ANQcw4QDCIng56BkI3y8qX53bU" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 335px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Guests would have entered the massive property at its southern end, parking their cars in massive parking lots located where Disney’s Animal Kingdom and the All-Star Resorts are located today. They would then board monorails and peoplemovers that would whisk them north to Disneyland East through Walt Disney’s Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow- EPCOT. As guests pass through the city, a pre-recorded spiel would point out the important features of this real life city and encourage them to take a tour of it during their stay.</span></div><br><img id="id_d669_1a7f_ca47_aa2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1TfJhK1BoBpyNfMwPj6lgPtk3HzxMwEza" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 281px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">The city itself would feature working factories and mixed use development where people could actually live and work. The factories would be operated by some of the biggest names in American industry and permit guests to tour the grounds. Walt envisioned a place where people lived close to where they worked and shopped, predicting a future where mixed use development would be proposed as a way to reduce carbon emissions caused by lengthy commutes. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_728a_7e87_7d9f_de41" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1e1jbXZoqN4sZEZM2cVn6GdepTn1n3VkB" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 290px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Walt believed that he could convince the titans of industry to setup shop in EPCOT and he would start with the companies that already sponsored attractions in Disneyland- Monsanto, RCA, General Electric and McDonnell-Douglas. The hope was that guests of Disneyland East would head back home and encourage their hometown leadership to adopt the ideas and technology found at EPCOT. Even better, some guests might be inspired enough to pull up stakes and move to the futuristic city. While Disneyland East would be the weenie that attracted the world to Orlando, EPCOT would be the real life city that would truly inspire the world to look to a brighter future.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ff93_2822_fcd4_6a17" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1vJGSLOtXe5bruEdpQiwNY6VfAHqtdLrq" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 291px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">While Walt Disney enthusiastically pushed forward with his version of EPCOT, Roy Disney was enthusiastically pushing his brother to start work on designing Disneyland East. Walt cared little about the theme park and ordered his staff to not waste time on it. He reasoned that the original Disneyland was already perfect and he would just duplicate it in Florida without New Orleans Square and with more water. Would this impasse between Walt and Roy lead to their greatest argument ever? Sadly, fate would intervene in the most tragic way possible, forestalling the inevitable fight over Disney’s Florida Project.</span></div><br><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><br><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><br><br><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-67598632143396243102024-02-19T07:45:00.000-08:002024-02-19T07:45:00.138-08:00EPCOT Part Four: From NYC to Florida Swampland <div><br></div><div>By 1964, Walt Disney had set his sights on building “Disneyland East” somewhere in Florida where he could buy up vast tracts of land at a cheap price. Unlike his previous project in Anaheim, “Disneyland East” would not be the focus of this new development- that would be his Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow- EPCOT. “Disneyland East” would just be a way to get people to visit EPCOT- a spoonful of sugar to make the medicine go down. By this time, Roy Disney had seen the huge success that DISNEYLAND had been and relished the idea of re-creating it in Florida. He hated the idea of EPCOT, but figured he could convince his brother to scrap it as unworkable eventually. He would keep this plan close to the vest, however.</div><div><br></div><div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_eb87_c570_190b_82f" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1vxPsxmttQO_aEz_0BC88JQn9GtNaicj7" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 324px; height: auto;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">For now, Walt Disney wanted to prove that a Disney attraction could succeed far from Hollywood’s backyard. He decided that the best way to do this was to embrace New York’s 1964 World’s Fair. If Disney could successfully build and operate multiple attractions in the cosmopolitan city of New York, it would prove that a Disney theme park could work on the east coast. WDI quickly got the word out that it was ready and willing to work with American industry to build exciting new attractions.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_704_6d2c_24b7_a43b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1ispJNsmHD-fYudAQTGVIe_rXLOs18zCH" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 323px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Ford Motor Company, General Electric and the State of Illinois quickly lined up to have Walt Disney’s Imagineers work on new attractions. With three major projects underway plus extensive expansion at DISNEYLAND, Walt Disney Imagineering’s hands were full. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_f584_f1b3_c79b_a20c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1R0MZT6fQcPdtGWvgcLTFNVZ7cfzbv9gx" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 302px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Despite the huge amount of work already being undertaken on a staggering number of projects, Walt Disney decided to sign up one more project that would produce one of the company’s most beloved attractions- “it’s a small world”. PepsiCo’s board of directors had been fighting ever since Hollywood actress Joan Crawford had insisted on taking her late husband’s seat on the board. The internal war had delayed the planning of the company’s World’s Fair attraction that it had publicly announced would benefit UNICEF. Forced to compromise rather than suffer a PR black eye, the company enlisted Joan Crawford to appeal to her Hollywood friend Walt Disney to get a fast tracked attraction built- a ride that became “it’s a small world.” Yes folks, the ride beloved by generations of children exists in part because of Joan “Mommie Dearest” Crawford.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3908_faf8_be8e_4ad8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1dJkn906wceKSxLI-UwjLFJSfEblC8rj1" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 329px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Disney’s World’s Fair attractions were the highlight of the event and proved that DISNEYLAND’s magic would work even thousands of miles away from its main gate. With this success, the company went full speed ahead, acquiring thousands of acres of swampland in the middle of Florida. While Walt Disney saw a vast wilderness that he could tame into becoming a model (and real) city, his brother had an entirely different idea for a vacation kingdom.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><img id="id_3e14_1df3_582a_481e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1FBIQVL9V_iP12zx_iP8Vj-tU37MNm1MG" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 301px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">Walt and Roy were headed towards a battle over what this “Florida Project” would actually be. Come back next week as we take a look at what Walt’s Florida Project would have looked like if he had lived to see it open and won the battle against his brother Roy who was extremely skeptical of EPCOT’s viability.</span></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"> </span></div><br><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><br><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-31332499818279891352024-02-12T07:45:00.000-08:002024-02-12T07:45:00.132-08:00EPCOT Part Three: Walt Looks East- To Palm Springs <div><br></div><div>Upset with the urban sprawl that quickly surrounded his Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney began to think about ways to influence the way cities were being planned around the world. He attempted to show futuristic modes of transportation and technology in Tomorrowland, but the influencers of the time derided attempts to introduce any of these ideas to the real world as impractical amusement park rides. Walt’s best efforts to promote a great big beautiful tomorrow were actually standing in the way of these technologies making their way to the outside world.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_184a_1fe1_bd78_8c1a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1L8hVcctixSn1n9YQbInbLvKhL1pn5Pd4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 341px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: left;">Walt decided that he needed to build an actual city- an experimental prototype community of tomorrow- that would show everyone how monorails, technology and careful planning would solve the problems plaguing cities at the time. Suburban sprawl and its resultant decay, which the city of Anaheim regrettably allowed to surround Walt Disney’s perfect park, could hopefully be held at bay if guests took the things they learned from Walt’s experimental city back to their respective cities. But where could this city be built? Walt originally looked east- to Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_9db_4a86_7e19_966c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1gQJeAAAlnUB0uzbtm9mgk35xOi1V1xqn" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 323px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: left;">Walt Disney was very familiar with Palm Springs and its surrounding area. The city had become a desert getaway for much of Hollywood, Walt Disney included. In fact, he had mortgaged his own Palm Springs home at the area’s famed Smoke Tree Ranch to help finance Disneyland. Walt looked at various sites south of Palm Springs where he could build EPCOT. Walt wanted to do more than just build a city of tomorrow; he wanted to establish it as a city that Walt Disney Productions could fully own, operate and manage. This greatly concerned Roy Disney, who enlisted MCA/Universal’s Lew Wasserman to talk some sense into his brother.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_4226_4c3d_3c48_b89e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1MxpyWVZtL1bIEv6pZaLBSV6MQNlKgEuJ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 312px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: left;">In the 1920’s, Universal Pictures founder Carl Laemmle bought hundreds of acres in North Los Angeles to build his new studio. Laemmle incorporated “Universal City” as a privately owned and operated city that just so happened to produce motion pictures. His intent, however, wasn’t as noble as Walt’s- he used his private city’s status as a publicity stunt and a way to circumvent regulations. By the 1960’s, however, new CEO Lew Wasserman saw the city’s incorporation as an albatross and agreed to help his friend by meeting with Walt to discuss the headaches and pitfalls of establishing a private city. He was unsuccessful; Walt left the meeting even more emboldened to build his city.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ef00_503d_358_1880" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1-K7ICa8Yz-CPP2ClItFjEaS5nKtF7xDf" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 288px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: left;">After running the numbers, Walt Disney’s consultants pointed to an obvious problem; tourists would not flock to tour a “city of tomorrow” regardless of whether it had the Disney name attached. Walt Disney’s guests would be disappointed and possibly disenchanted with his company if they showed up to EPCOT and saw a city instead of a fun park. He would need to build something fun to attract the public then hope they stick around long enough to then tour the experimental city. If this enterprise were built in the Coachella Valley, it would draw guests away from Disneyland, diluting the park’s profits. So how could Walt try to avoid cannibalizing Disneyland’s business? By locating his new project on the opposite side of the United States. Thus he began planning out what he was now calling “The Florida Project” .</div></div><br></div></div></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-48783983380351440302024-02-05T07:30:00.000-08:002024-02-05T07:30:00.259-08:00EPCOT Part Two: Walt’s Misadventures in Vacationland <div><br></div><div>When DISNEYLAND started construction in 1954, there was very little development in Anaheim. The park was being built in the middle of an orange grove surrounded by open farmland. The Anaheim canvas was, for the most part, entirely blank.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_2f48_a75d_e58e_c62a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/12lzb-tIoTRaTLjXWwNiIsIijgSWGZPPe" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 281px; height: auto;"><br><br><div style="text-align: left;">Walt Disney purchased as much land as he could afford at the time- about 250 acres- and began asking his famous Hollywood friends for investment funds. Since few people believed that the park would succeed, he wasn’t successful in this effort. Moving on, Walt decided to ask his wealthy friends to purchase some of the large parcels of open land that would surround the future Magic Kingdom, promising to buy it all from them after Disneyland became profitable. This appeal was also unsuccessful.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: left;">Eventually, Walt gave up on the prospect of securing more land in Anaheim and decided to make an appeal to the city itself. Disneyland was going to be a jewel, attracting millions of tourists to the town, so the city had to be prepared to deal with the onslaught. Anaheim would need to put its best foot forward to impress the millions of guests who would find their way to Disneyland, so he advised them to be careful with their zoning. It should only allow tasteful and complementary development around Disneyland. Unfortunately, the city never took his advice.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_95de_cde6_b4f_8c06" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/16bSlX6Tp5tjLVUo2bbjCFIzHWBJTWuMX" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 297px; height: auto;"><br><br></div><div style="text-align: left;">It seemed like the only requirement the city of Anaheim had at the time for businesses in the area surrounding Disneyland was that the building didn’t fall down. The city even allowed housing to spring up mere feet away from the Disneyland Hotel, bringing in a wave of residents who would eventually complain about the noise and traffic. Walt Disney despised the “third rate Las Vegas” that surrounded his Magic Kingdom and he quickly pondered a solution to the urban decay that seemed to be endemic to large cities around the world. Maybe he could use all of the things he had learned when dreaming up Disneyland to show the world how its cities could be improved. The huge success of Disneyland could bankroll his experimental community of tomorrow- a project he called EPCOT.</div></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-3531693914514256062024-01-29T08:15:00.000-08:002024-02-11T22:12:28.065-08:00EPCOT Part One: In the Beginning… <div><br></div><div>EPCOT has always had a complicated history. Though Walt Disney’s original plans for the Florida Project would have put his version of EPCOT at the center of Disney World, the few guests who arrived at the resort in October of 1971 would not have found anything called or resembling Walt’s version of EPCOT. In this new series, we’ll take a look at the genesis of EPCOT, its troubled planning process, its complete cancellation and its eventual rebirth as a troubled theme park that bore no resemblance to Walt Disney’s original plans.</div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6824_6e99_47e8_b0b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1IcevuBwFXoP7yye6mDkzLydweXlpjhUB" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 334px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">EPCOT, as originally envisioned by Walt Disney, had its origins at DISNEYLAND. After the wild success of Walt’s original theme park, American industry welcomed Walt Disney and his imagineers into its research facilities. Many imagineers found wide open doors at companies such as Monsanto, General Electric and McDonnell-Douglas. These companies offered Walt Disney a chance to look at technological advances they were working on and new technology that they thought he might be able to use in DISNEYLAND. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_cb06_cbba_4321_d646" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1jArWpgEE6Ac2IepVjT1hty-ksAhOTmSz" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 337px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">These peeks at the amazing new technologies these companies were working on amazed Walt Disney, who became confident in American industry solving complex problems with science and research. Many of these technologies were highlighted in Tomorrowland and used behind the scenes throughout the rest of the park in its amazing attractions. The Peoplemover and Disneyland Monorail were intended to show the world how mass transit could be updated to solve the problem of pollution and smog.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6097_c212_1545_1769" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1nldRBJW4xA6vrgYldDsrHKwLcw2-Skcj" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 319px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);">As Walt Disney quickly discovered, however, the presence of alternate modes of transportation inside DISNEYLAND proved to work against their adoption in the real world. Any time a major monorail or Peoplemover project was proposed, detractors dismissed them as theme park rides that would prove to be a boondoggle for any city planning to build them. Walt Disney then sought to fix this perception problem- and he’d find inspiration just outside the gates of his Magic Kingdom.</span></div><br><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><br><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><br><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-79519717641089862512023-12-10T07:45:00.000-08:002024-01-29T23:38:22.712-08:00Did You Know? Disneyland’s “Population” <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_a18d_6344_102e_6af8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1Nc2B0O-YB2y9tcNSq4-u_XD2cWbLG9yj" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 351px; height: auto;"><br><br><br><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-21711940772397348742023-12-09T07:45:00.000-08:002024-01-29T23:39:04.477-08:00Did You Know? Anaheim Becomes A Vacationland <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_e67_1abb_e57b_5b13" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1H2pCQS--bSmNg-B08QHeo5mDct327Xp2" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br><br><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-89321649763818875592023-12-08T07:26:00.000-08:002024-01-29T23:39:42.308-08:00Did You Know? Disneyland and Mexican Food <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_62cb_b7d7_7f5b_fed4" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1NTSE4o4taYu_CG8R_pcRoaGAu1lX9fz1" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 360px; height: auto;"><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-68922700294677166012023-12-07T07:45:00.000-08:002024-01-29T23:40:11.890-08:00Did You Know? EPCOT <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_afc2_18a4_a65e_38c2" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1luvZ3IeEkMMMl_1WMAw0AxRIT3NcceCu" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 360px; height: auto;"><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-66112617804163398992023-12-06T07:30:00.000-08:002024-01-29T23:41:46.666-08:00Did You Know? Disneyland vs. Walt Disney Productions <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_b722_3ad_4231_f8aa" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/d/1WAnYXZKPdIniRROQwoMELhb26bU_gaQr" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-5180216723156054862023-12-05T07:45:00.000-08:002023-12-05T07:45:00.138-08:00Happy Birthday, Walt Disney! Born December 5, 1901<div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="text-align: center; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><img id="id_6972_502d_f0b4_a22d" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaBzFOkAz1nx_Efw7Aj400tU0ZPi6FSZhjik1ZGgaXq7QO3o2sHYG20jbZEkZQ1GwDbyR2qHyIPK-1nAalpRzNg0wJlKMw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 275px; height: auto;"><br><br></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">“Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls- in 1923 Walt Disney arrived in California to follow his dreams. Dreams which led to extraordinary achievements and wondrous adventures! Adventures where natural majesties, bustling communities and groundbreaking discoveries would all find a place in his heart. Today we invite you to explore your dreams as you experience your very own California Adventure!”</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">-Disney California Adventure Opening Announcement</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">“Every day in some small way, we are a part of Walt’s dream, whether walking through the park, watching amazing movies or television, or just spending time together. It all started with a young cartoonist landing in Los Angeles, his friend Mickey Mouse in his heart, a trunk full of dreams and ambitions, and most importantly, a lifetime of stories to tell.”</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">-Noah</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">“I do what I do because of Walt Disney- his films and his theme park and his characters and his joy in entertaining.”</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">-John Lasseter</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">“One of the things that I’ve learned from Walt that I use in my everyday work and life is that nothing is impossible. The quote of his that I love the best is, ‘Actually, it’s kind of fun to do the impossible.’ I try to remind myself and others of this every day.”</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">-Ralph Castaneda</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">“Walt Disney’s secret was to do things you don’t need, and do them well. And then you realize you needed them all along.”</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">-Ray Bradbury</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">“Think beyond your lifetime, if you want to do something truly great.”</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">-Walt Disney</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">“I still think about Mr. Disney all the time. It’s funny but sometimes when I feel discouraged or have a problem I can’t work out, I find myself thinking ‘If only Mr. Disney were here, he would know what to do.’ And I’m sure he would.”</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">-Annette Funicello</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">"I am so honored. You cannot have any idea what a feeling it is for me to be here at DISNEYLAND today to wish him a Happy Birthday. I know that you all love and enjoy and feel these wonderful experiences when you come to DISNEYLAND and you see his films and everything, but to have been part of the team- to have been part of the gang that put together some of these enchanting experiences- there’s no words to describe it."</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">-Richard Sherman</font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><div><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div><font face="Arial">"His dedication was not just making people smile- he taught in his very special way respect for life and land the world over making people realize if you wish upon a star, fantasies really can come true. Many times I visited his Magic Kingdom and believe me when I say my dreams came true."</font></div></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial"><br></font></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><font face="Arial">-Annette Funicello</font></div> Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-56074216184889243192023-12-05T07:15:00.001-08:002023-12-05T07:15:00.135-08:00Happy Birthday, Walt Disney! <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_de8d_8876_80f9_7431" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaDD-QncvEb51CUAPqsr7jeABFF-6vE0emGnYIzjBnqLLz8dKlnj97VOU66FQJp8wQEPh_GsQYyrYaw-4kdCmvKuOwbYcw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 346px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-70252247923676271532023-12-05T07:15:00.000-08:002023-12-05T07:15:00.136-08:00Happy Birthday, Walt Disney! <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_60de_e1ea_c7f7_887a" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaADmecZPiMQM8f-MOmiajz80cq2WdLTAE8bWLas5u6ojymzJpBWieAKEmannb2uVe7vm1wbEXx8e48P4HzvuYLnpuUMbw" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 337px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-80929858682018273622023-12-04T07:45:00.000-08:002023-12-04T07:45:00.148-08:00Walt Disney Birthday Week <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_bcf6_9a6b_1204_5e5c" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaDicBLwCxkThj6BzpAAkI7bb4hKvvJEjHpvtoaqsCLkOpNMyJ7RfU3ZZONkmwfcxbqp43hw0wM93bahGkbD-zW5aEeYRQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 304px; height: auto;"></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_36fc_90e0_fbb9_e6db" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaAdCMiqyunT5Fb-WzsPRS3X6pnM4NUHuX-kEZD8DFIzBDpN29tozKeg5IGhgqWAB6PDHNG8hVUZAxNbBdyKTqhdLIpvmQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 305px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-84570287540974737142023-12-03T07:45:00.000-08:002023-12-03T23:15:39.608-08:00Walt Disney Birthday Week <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_6b09_2816_533d_62bb" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaD-Y9uaJt4LvCLhn-WiqaleVwrAUmSCH0vHLXoSmybDXVgTERICbnNF5sIOOE1tpYag_zvYyf2VV7DpEn4TSftPLDl7AQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 301px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_18b8_f8bf_2308_edfa" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaD2tRHbAAm_3YzkxP58Lroo0mXIPbMl9n0Ifmt2o8i3bjgWCcb5oMv_R1XrPOZ6bF2EgJdoUud4_NP3eXI1SuMAvCag" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 310px; height: auto;"><br><br><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-7042440004477756152023-12-02T07:45:00.000-08:002023-12-02T17:59:23.179-08:00Walt Disney Birthday Week <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_878d_2ff1_a573_1700" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaC2N8nBF0zaFH_l3eV-kawpPmVcy8AIf1BohMgGdtz2_UyFLL3eBkm72jI5prpfD2I4DyyfF6dKBDNUHwOFvOpvBV4f" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 275px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_bbc5_ff23_76a3_ef53" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaCOuhQ7ko3QD3uLiFkHI-VntD_FfsXn81ZDDS3-LiUdKaYqd7Tlcbxrd8oXjOH6hymZOa5AhdX22hRG7FbloKpycVZqlA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 282px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-57125891124900632802023-12-01T07:45:00.000-08:002023-12-01T07:45:00.144-08:00Walt Disney Birthday Week <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_3194_2747_2158_f913" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaC0jkRQ8gl3eRHomCD9ktX5RqgDshkhXDFhntkk-_Li1_xp6eThPDn_SkUcb_aRr3Y9Ih8B6mhm0AD_kBq-fVawePwMUg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 297px; height: auto;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_ccbf_c43e_e938_9315" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaAOVVRCq7xQWhVAsV-Z6utrzARG5OVB5vqFgBvWgsXEJeYZmzrr9tOjERC5S9ajwCRGc9G76DpbvE25mk97e-Gm2G0Z" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 301px; height: auto;"><br><br><span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);"><br></span><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-61840680784387746422023-11-28T07:45:00.000-08:002023-11-28T07:45:00.145-08:00Disneyland! <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_32cb_2106_a5bc_ecdc" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaDh08RQz9TYHI2JyWbetWvSLc73_vG-eqVPt4bwKrsPEuNKzUnha-AICstfkQfIFWsYxBzeQqqCEW5STxuzXPKDOb6W9w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 341px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-9485073863232923172023-11-27T07:45:00.000-08:002023-11-27T07:45:00.143-08:00Disneyland! <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_67f_3156_144f_f597" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaAmkBJ_rfggMTd7286sRmcdpcfg9QXnIYcsaqNbDQTGO7txlnEIj1RW_PDoGA0xX9doXtFbOW6YJKiNjDYBKisxozL-6w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 345px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-69112364158996374882023-11-26T07:45:00.000-08:002023-11-26T07:45:00.132-08:00Disneyland! <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_38d3_50bf_44fa_41dd" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaAAJBHezCBrKjpg5CWd4hV75dQ_e_VPPACooDMbEXcA6UmkOBqiHb-exLPUKQjXp4zcLX3q2nT32q0tErFpYnrEyoK2xg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 336px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-88601506562925907052023-11-25T07:45:00.000-08:002023-11-25T07:45:00.128-08:00Disneyland! <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_8c56_38a4_2d1_d29e" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaBjDz2jY7UKfD5tDA4ldyY8UMsUsWyr88_u0pSq1TBXhMD6oF6zxjsfWVu89Gggz-S6ZN6l46q7jYh0CGIYfl2570l5HQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-587606130673742758.post-34230344525524760642023-11-24T07:48:00.000-08:002023-11-24T07:48:00.138-08:00Disneyland! <div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img id="id_312c_2011_c0c9_42d5" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/drive-viewer/AK7aPaAqxScLxhZXbyex-O7CIxowx4N-hwUuZglGvxUZ0CIBpji8eNt4Ffz2VgrosMP9xEgsKCmfTR__ePV8qq1grAZPDRIr" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 364px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div>Webmasterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332318177382385601noreply@blogger.com