Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

7 hours ago

Trump Says He’s Willing to Let Migrant Farm Laborers Stay in US

7 hours ago

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

1 day ago

Eyeing Arctic Dominance, Trump Bill Earmarks $8.6 Billion for US Coast Guard Icebreakers

1 day ago

Trump’s Sweeping Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Wins Congressional Approval

1 day ago

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

1 day ago

US Supreme Court to Decide Legality of Transgender School Sports Bans

1 day ago

Nvidia Set to Become the World’s Most Valuable Company in History

1 day ago

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

1 day ago
Disney Fans Will Enjoy 'Disney's Land' by Richard Snow
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
December 17, 2019

Share

Photo of the cover of "Disney's Land"
This cover image released by Scribner shows “Disney’s Land: Walt Disney and the Invention of the Amusement Park That Changed the World” by Richard Snow. (Scribner via AP)
“Disney’s Land: Walt Disney and the Invention of the Amusement Park that Changed the World,” Scribner, by Richard Snow
Scores of books have been written on Walt Disney and the entertainment colossus he created, but author Richard Snow finds some new running room, delivering an elegantly written chronicle focusing on how Disney created and funded the famed park that bears his name in “Disney’s Land: Walt Disney and the Invention of the Amusement Park that Changed the World.”
Disney knew the importance of characters in storytelling and so does Snow, examining many of the people who helped Disney on his passage from idea to game-changing park.
One such character is Buzz Price, who completed some early research on the economic feasibility of Disney’s park. A jogger, Price had tabulated the distance of every run and the costs of socks, shoes and other running-related expenses to get his per-mile running cost.
Price was the right man for the Disneyland feasibility job.
Snow also thoroughly explores Disney’s older brother Roy’s role in the creation of Disneyland. “Walt . . . was the creative one,” he writes. “But he could not have brought forth his creations without Roy’s business acumen.”

Disney Clearly Was the Visionary

The book suggests lessons that extend to today: Passion for an idea and a plan are important, but so is research. Disney’s focus and self-confidence allowed him to push on despite family and friends who told him that an amusement park was folly.
He leveraged everything he owned to build an amusement park the likes of which the world had never seen. But Disney not only had research to bolster his confidence but he also had the wisdom to hire people of superior skill who shared his vision. Perhaps most important, he gave his team creative freedom.
However, Disney clearly was the visionary and his staffers learned to read the arched eyebrow (disapproval) and to live with stingy praise, seemingly incongruous traits for a man who wanted to create an idyllic place of wonder and limitless imagination.
The last Disneyland employee remaining from when Walt ran the place retired years ago but Disney remains nearly mythical figure to employees – “cast members” in Disney parlance.
“Walt would like it” remains the highest praise bestowed on a Disney employee.
Disney fans will enjoy this rendering of the founder and entrepreneurs will find their time well spent inside the covers of Snow’s book.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Fresno Crash Involving Unlicensed Teen Driver Sends Woman to Hospital

DON'T MISS

Madre Fire Burns More Than 52,000 Acres in San Luis Obispo County

DON'T MISS

RIP John Harris: Fresno County Rancher, Racehorse Breeder Was a Visionary Leader Who Leaves a ‘Profound Legacy’

DON'T MISS

Valadao, Costa Spar on What Passage of Trump’s Bill Means for Medicaid Recipients

DON'T MISS

US Military Says 200 Marines Being Sent to Support ICE in Florida

DON'T MISS

Boeing Secures $2.8 Billion US Satellite Contract

DON'T MISS

Kaweah Health Names Its New Chief Nurse. She’s From Texas

DON'T MISS

Clovis Police Say At-Risk Missing Woman Found Dead in Mariposa County

DON'T MISS

Over 100 Former Senior Officials Warn Against Planned Staff Cuts at US State Department

DON'T MISS

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

UP NEXT

There Are Fresno Area Fireworks Shows Galore Through Sunday

UP NEXT

What’s Next for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs After His Sex Trafficking Trial?

UP NEXT

The Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Story: From Recording Studio to Criminal Trial

UP NEXT

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Convicted on Prostitution Counts, but Cleared of More Serious Charges

UP NEXT

Jury Reaches Verdict on Some Counts at Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ Sex Trafficking Trial

UP NEXT

The Chainsmokers to Headline Dog Daze Festival at Chukchansi Park

UP NEXT

Shaver Lake and Reedley 4th of July Shows Are Wednesday. Who Else Is Celebrating?

UP NEXT

Jury in Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ Sex Trafficking Trial to Start Deliberating

UP NEXT

Fourth of July Celebrations Begin Saturday. Here’s Your Fresno Area Guide

UP NEXT

Anna Wintour to Step Down From Vogue Editor-in-Chief Role, Media Reports Say

Oil Dips Ahead of Expected OPEC+ Output Increase

6 hours ago

613 Killed at Gaza Aid Distribution Sites, Near Humanitarian Covoys, Says UN

6 hours ago

Fresno County Authorities Investigating Suspicious Death of Transient Man

7 hours ago

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

7 hours ago

Israeli Military Kills 20 in Gaza as Trump Awaits Hamas Reply to Truce Proposal

7 hours ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Rachelle Maria Blanco

7 hours ago

Russia Pounds Kyiv With Largest Drone Attack, Hours After Trump-Putin Call

7 hours ago

Boxer Chavez Jr Expected to Be Deported to Mexico to Serve Sentence, Mexican President Says

7 hours ago

Markets’ 90-Day Tariff Pause Rollercoaster Nears an Uncertain End

7 hours ago

Trump Says He’s Willing to Let Migrant Farm Laborers Stay in US

7 hours ago

Trump to Sign Tax-Cut and Spending Bill in July 4 Ceremony

President Donald Trump is scheduled to sign a massive package of tax and spending cuts into law at a ceremony at the White House on Friday, ...

5 hours ago

President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2025. (Reuters File)
5 hours ago

Trump to Sign Tax-Cut and Spending Bill in July 4 Ceremony

The Madre Fire burning near New Cuyama has scorched 70,801 acres as of Friday, July 4, 2025, afternoon, making it California’s largest wildfire of the year, with only 10% containment and multiple evacuation zones in place. (CalFire)
6 hours ago

Madre Fire Spurs Evacuations Across 3 Counties, Grows to More Than 70,000 Acres

6 hours ago

Clovis, Sanger, Madera, and Bass Lake Will Light the Sky With Fireworks Shows Tonight

A pumpjack operates at the Vermilion Energy site in Trigueres, France, June 14, 2024. (Reuters File)
6 hours ago

Oil Dips Ahead of Expected OPEC+ Output Increase

Palestinians gather to collect what remains of relief supplies from the distribution center of the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, June 5, 2025. (Reuters File)
6 hours ago

613 Killed at Gaza Aid Distribution Sites, Near Humanitarian Covoys, Says UN

Billy Wayne Sinisgalli, a 54-year-old transient known locally as Wayne, was found dead along a rural Fresno road Wednesday in what authorities are investigating as a suspicious death. (Fresno County SO)
7 hours ago

Fresno County Authorities Investigating Suspicious Death of Transient Man

Israel Builds a Fence Around the West Bank
7 hours ago

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

A view of the site of Thursday's Israeli strike that damaged and destroyed residential buildings, at Shati (Beach) refugee camp, in Gaza City, July 4, 2025. (Reuters/Mahmoud Issa)
7 hours ago

Israeli Military Kills 20 in Gaza as Trump Awaits Hamas Reply to Truce Proposal

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend