Window on Main Street: 35 Years of Creating Happiness at Disneyland Park

Even with being lucky in both my personal and professional life, I am fascinated by stories of men and women who have managed to continue working at their current companies for decades because it is common knowledge that planning to stay with a current company for decades is far from usual andor far from being guaranteed even if a person prefers it. Additionally, I’m lucky to be married to an amazing husband who loves me regardless of my career status while still encouraging me to pursue my career dreams and he is in a career role that he can see himself doing for long term. Obviously, I find this admirable and I figured that maybe obtaining this kindlebook that is Window On Main Street 35 Years of Creating Happiness At Disneyland Park by Van Arsdale France (foreword by Dick Nunis former chairman Walt Disney Attractions)would also help me garner increased understanding on how a long term employee who specializes in a particular career track thinks and sees the world even from the vantage point of one career profile. Some of the multiple details included in Window On Main Street by Van Arsdale France: the author;s pre-Disneyland days included being involved in creating several new organizations, the WED Imagineers who were gathered as an elite group for creating Disneyland and all future outdoor projects formed the eventual basis of Walt Disney Imagineering (WED was originally and acronym for Walter Elias Disney), another group of creative entertainment talents were selected on the basis of their abilities and loyalty, one of the former managers of Tomorrowland has been a Navy engineering officer, The Disneyland Recreation Club which eventually became Cast Activities included bowling leagues parties and even classes in art and design, Knott’s Berry Farm referenced, the period in the authors life when he made the challenging decision to quit Disneyland and some of the circumstances that indirectly influenced him to return to working at Disneyland, the author’s re-orientation after the second time he was re-hired at Disneyland, some of the multiple circumstances that contributed to Disneyland University, the author’s journey taking two communications college courses at a university in Denver Colorado, a section titled “Progress in Orlando” and more. I already logically knew that I was outside the target audience for this kindlebook because I intend to reside on the east coast of the U.S. and at most maybe be a visitor to the Disney Parks in California andor Florida. However, this kindlebook is perfect for a reader who enjoys looking at Disneyland andor Disneyworld details regardless of current place of residence andor eventual long term residence because the author gives a plethora of details on multiple events leading up to before the opening of Disneyland and after the opening of Disneyland including some details on Walt Disney World.

A diverse cast of characters, interesting backstory anecdotes, and very readable prose. Only thing keeping it from five stars is a lack of quality control, and a bit of disjointedness in the stories. I would have appreciated more insight into the park's operations, more detail about the training sessions, and more conflict overall, to help me understand what makes Van and the others tick. It still felt too superficially positive at times, but I did find the humor and anecdotes relatable and enjoyable.Here are some of the highlights I annotated during my second reading:"Originally, the idea was to have free admission. Then, four months before opening, they decided to charge an admission price of 25 cents for adults and 15 cents for children, just to keep the undesirables out.""You can dream, create, and build the most wonderful place in the world, but it still takes people to operate it.""To explain the importance of a smile, Dick came up with the idea that a smile is a 'magic mirror' helping to create smiles from others.""Dorothy Manes came up with a response for when we are thanked: 'it's been my pleasure.'""Budgets, forms, procedures? I can't remember any. We got the job done, and that was what mattered.""MONEY. It takes a lot of money to make dreams come true.""If you do big things, you make big mistakes.""We have no geniuses at the studio.""People come to Disneyland to spend money, not to save it. If they are standing in long lines, they can't spend their money.""Today Disneyland is just the tail on the studio dog; at some point, the situation may be reversed.""Like the old farmer, you've got to pour it back in the ground if you want it to grow.""For Walt, there was an important message in 'small world.' Children of all nations, creeds, and colors are happy together. It's the adults who mess things up.""Disneyland will never be completed as long as there is imagination left in the world.""I want Disneyland to be most of all a happy place - a place where adults and children can experience some of the wonders of life, of adventure, and feel better because of it.""This is the real world as it should be. It is well-planned for the enjoyment of people. It is clean, safe, and a place for families. It's a friendly place where people can enjoy their lives.""If I was mad about something, I'd go home and write a note, on yellow paper, venting my frustration. Rather than ignoring these 'veepograms,' Dick encouraged them. He might disagree, but he'd read them.""Show. Disneyland is a spectaular show, and we are show people. We may work 'on stage' or 'backstage,' but all our efforts combine to create the world's greatest show."

The first edition is better. It has some really nice historic photos of the construction of Disneyland. This later edition has no photos. I'm a little disappointed.

I bought this book at Disneyland years ago. It had since gone out of print, and my own copy was long gone to the sands of time (multiple moves and all that, or maybe I loaned it to someone who never returned it).I was *thrilled* to see if as an eBook here on Amazon.It's a great resource for any Disneyland fan, written by the man who Walt entrusted with training all new hires. There are some fantastic stories -- from Van Arsdale France walking through back areas to unwind, to a day where...well, I don't want to spoil it, but there's a fantastic story about a day where Parking Lot attendants decided to make it hard for certain people to find their cars at the end of the day.A great look into Disneyland history from a man who lived it, but whose name isn't as well-known as Walt's or many of the Imagineers. I highly recommend this book.

It was a nice read with lot's of details stories on how it went 60-70 years ago. Fun little details and anecdotes. It is not a must read on Disney if you're looking for Mickey Mouse and princesses stuff. However for those who want to have a closer look on how it went these days, it is a great addition to the Disney Legends literature.