SAMLAND

This week I am joined by historian Richard Harris as we explore another of Southern California’s long lost tourist attractions. We are about to visit state’s oldest zoological attraction - the California Alligator Farm.

The original Alligator Farm dates back to 1906 and was located in Hot Springs, Arkansas. The Farm was started by Joseph ‘Alligator Joe’ Campbell and Francis Victor, Sr. The ...

In the book, DisneyWar, author James B. Stewart suggests that the definition of the Disney ‘magic’ is that point when the guest’s apprehension turns into awe and delight. You can frequently see this moment as you watch a child’s eyes as they meet their favorite character or when an adult laughs because they made it through a thrill ride unharmed. I feel that one of the most reliable places to find this magic is ...

The past week was spent touring around Central Florida. It has been an amazing experience and I want to thank everybody who came out for one of my talks in support of Walt and the Promise of Progress City. You saw the extended version of those talks in last week’s column: Walt Disney's Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow. I had a blast.

I also want to send a special shout out to all of the podcasters, ...

It's been a busy week for me. I was in Florida for a series of over 15 talks, podcasts and events. One of which I'd like to share with you today. On Saturday, I spoke to the Disneyana World Chapter Meeting about Walt Disney and how he changed the public's expectations with regards to the public realm.

In his early days, Walt forever changed animation, and animal documentaries, and television, ...

Time to cut to the chase as they say in Hollywood. The soon to officially open Transformers at Universal Studios Hollywood is a home run and one of the most exciting thrill ride additions to the Southern California theme park scene in years. The ride should drive record numbers of people to Universal the same way the addition of the King Kong experience on the tram tour did a couple of years ago. ...