Disney's Land

Walt Disney and the Invention of the Amusement Park That Changed the World

By: Richard Snow

Narrated by: Jacques Roy

Length: 12 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

A propulsive and “entertaining” (The Wall Street Journal) history chronicling the conception and creation of the iconic Disneyland theme park, as told like never before by popular historian Richard Snow.

One day in the early 1950s, Walt Disney stood looking over 240 acres of farmland in Anaheim, California, and imagined building a park where people “could live among Mickey Mouse and Snow White in a world still powered by steam and fire for a day or a week or (if the visitor is slightly mad) forever”. Despite his wealth and fame, exactly no one wanted Disney to build such a park. Not his brother Roy, who ran the company’s finances; not the bankers; and not his wife, Lillian. Amusement parks at that time, such as Coney Island, were a generally despised business, sagging and sordid remnants of bygone days. Disney was told that he would only be heading toward financial ruin. But Walt persevered, initially financing the park against his own life insurance policy and later with sponsorship from ABC and the sale of thousands and thousands of Davy Crockett coonskin caps. Disney assembled a talented team of engineers, architects, artists, animators, landscapers, and even a retired admiral to transform his ideas into a soaring yet soothing wonderland of a park. The catch was that they had only a year and a day in which to build it.

On July 17, 1955, Disneyland opened its gates...and the first day was a disaster. Disney was nearly suicidal with grief that he had failed on a grand scale. But the curious masses kept coming, and the rest is entertainment history. Eight hundred million visitors have flocked to the park since then. In Disney’s Land, “Snow brings a historian’s eye and a child’s delight, not to mention superb writing, to the telling of this fascinating narrative” (Ken Burns) that “will entertain Disneyphiles and readers of popular American history” (Publishers Weekly).

©2019 Richard Snow (P)2019 Simon & Schuster Audio

great history

loved it. great story on the history of the park and how Walt came up with several ideas

Intriguing and fun

Loved all the stories. It’s a well researched and artfully told story of Disneyland, as well as some about Walt himself.

Fantastic history of Disneyland - great attention to detail

I have many Disney books in my collection. This is one of the better ones. Snow gives a great attention to details. Great read!

Very thorough, definitely in the top 3.

A very well put together compendium, and a silky smooth 12 hour yarn. I listened to it while building a frame for my 6 foot Abraham Lincoln audio animatronic blueprint, which came out far more detailed and perfected than previously planned, because Walt's story inspires inspiration itself. This telling of it deserves more eyes and ears. If you're new to Disney History, start here. If you're a Disney History veteran, there will be at least one thing you haven't heard before.

Excellent book and and performance!

Word to the wise; keep a notebook and pen handy to write a few notes about each person in the story as they are introduced. Helps to keep everyone straight as it progresses.

Took me down a rabbit hole long after finishing.

Loved this book. It had a fair amount of information not covered in other books about Disneyland. It also took em down a huge rabbit hole of other books and subjects because of how man hidden figures are mentioned. It gives a very detailed look at how obsessed Walt was with the idea of building Disneyland and where that obsession stemmed from.

Also, the narrator has a soothing tone that makes it easy to listen to while driving.

Interesting and Insightful

Loved it start to finish. Some almost seemed written through the eyes of a child with great attention to the concept of the then present days reality of life. Inspires me to listen to more books about all things Disney.

Very interesting content

Lovely story about the creation (idea, construction, challenges, etc.) of Disneyland, theme park that inspired many more parks to be created.

A very enjoyable listen

The narrator did a fantastic job, and the author presents subject matter in such a way as it is always interesting. If you have an interest in Disney history- this is a book to add toYour collection.

A carefully researched book written by an author who loved the subject.

Although this subject has been well documented to say the least, this author did a wonderful job of mixing historical facts with his own memories of Disneyland. A very conversational recording that puts you at ease. in today’s modern world, anything that can distract us from some of the doom and gloom we are inundated with is well worth 10 to 12 hours to listen to.