Book Review: Walt Disney's Imagineering Legends

While not a die-hard Disney fan, I certainly have an affinity for the wonderful theme parks that the company has produced over the years. In reading and visiting these parks, and Disneyland in particular, it's hard not to bump into the story of the Imagineers who created it.

Names like Herb Ryman, Marvin Davis, Claude Coats, Yale Gracey - I've come across them many times but never paid too much attention. That's why Walt Disney's Imagineering Legends And The Genesis Of The Disney Theme Park was a complete and wonderful history lesson for me on the individuals who helped create Disneyland so many years ago.

The book is broken down into sections that characterize people by their talents; designers, artists, story and song writers, model builders, machinists, and even business men are covered in details. Imagineering doesn't just lightly list a series of accomplishments for each person, either. Instead it really provides a short biography for them and in the end you feel like you could do a book report on each of them. I love details, so that quality suited me well.

Of course any Disney theme park fan will love the anecdotes that are told throughout the book of how our favorites attractions came into being. There's plenty of "insider" stories and details to be found here!

If you are interested, here is a link to the book on Amazon.