Walt Disney's Disneyland

Description

Walt Disney dreamed for decades about opening the ultimate entertainment venue, but it wasn't until the early 1950s that his handpicked team began to bring his vision to life. Together, artists, architects, and engineers transformed a dusty tract of orange groves about an hour south of Los Angeles into one of the world's most beloved destinations. Today, there are Disney resorts from Paris to Shanghai, but the original Disneyland in Anaheim, California, which has been visited by more than 800 million people to-date, remains one of America's most popular attractions. From the day it opened on July 17, 1955, Disneyland brought history and fairy tales to life, the future into the present, and exciting cultures and galaxies unknown to our imaginations. This bountiful visual history draws on Disney's vast historical collections, private archives, and the golden age of photojournalism to provide unique access to the concept, development, launch, and enjoyment of this sun-drenched oasis of fun and fantasy. Disneyland documents Walt's earliest inspirations and ideas; the park's extraordinary feats of design and engineering; its grand opening; each of its immersive "lands" from Main Street, U.S.A., to Tomorrowland; and the park's evolution through the six decades since it opened. It is a treasure trove of original Disney documentation and expertise, with award-winning writer Chris Nichols drawing on his extensive knowledge of both Disneyland and Southern California history to reveal the fascinating tale of "the happiest place on Earth." Pendant des dizaines d'annees, Walt Disney a reve d'ouvrir le lieu de divertissement ultime, et ce n'est qu'au debut des annees 1950 qu'il chargea une equipe triee sur le volet de transformer sa desir en realite. Ensemble, artistes, architectes et ingenieurs transformerent un terrain poussiereux plante d'orangers, a une heure environ de Los Angeles, en une destination parmi les plus populaires au monde. Aujourd'hui, des parcs Disney sont sortis de terre, de Paris a Shanghai, mais le Disneyland d'origine, a Anaheim en Californie, demeure l'une des attractions les plus populaires d'Amerique, ayant attire plus de 800 millions de visiteurs a ce jour. Depuis son inauguration, le 17 juillet 1955, Disneyland donne vie aux histoires et aux contes, ouvre le present sur l'avenir, et met en scene des cultures lointaines, parfois d'autres galaxies, sous nos yeux ebahis. Cette histoire visuelle foisonnante puise dans les collections historiques de Disney, des archives privees et l'age d'or du photojournalisme pour composer un recit unique du concept, du developpement et du lancement de cette oasis d'amusement, d'imagination et de plaisir gorgee de soleil. Disneyland retrace les inspirations et idees premieres de Walt, les exploits extraordinaires accomplis durant la conception et la construction du parc, et son inauguration; il decrit chacun de ses "territains" d'immersion, de Main Street (Etats-Unis) a Tomorrowland, et raconte l'evolution du parc depuis 60 ans. Un tresor documentaire sur Disney realise par l'expert et auteur prime Chris Nichols, qui s'est appuye sur ses inepuisables connaissances a propos de Disneyland et de la Californie du Sud pour narrer l'epopee fascinante de "l'endroit le plus joyeux sur Terre".

Chris Nichols is a writer and historian specializing in Southern Californian architecture and culture. He is the author of The Leisure Architecture of Wayne McAllister and a long-time historic preservationist whose work has been profiled in Smithsonian magazine, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and LA Weekly. Nichols serves on the board of directors of the Hollywood Heritage Museum, and his live appearances, lectures, exhibitions, and tours have enjoyed sell-out crowds. He currently writes Los Angeles magazine's "Ask Chris" column.

To all who come to this happy place: Welcome. * Walt Disney * "Walt Disney's Disneyland is by far the best book about Disneyland... Finally we get a magnificent high quality book, perfectly balancing history and art, text and visual material... What a magical experience!" * The Disney Bookshop *