Anaheim Vacationland
Wrtten by Dave Oneal
2nd Edition 2009
245 pages
$55
Extinct Attraction Publishing
David Oneal has produced a gem of a book. Artfully designed by Mateo, Oneal presents the world that surrounded Disneyland. For those who wonder why Walt wanted the Florida project, this is compelling evidence. If you have lived in Southern California more than 15 years then you are going to want this book and be prepared to say, "I remember that!" numerous times. If you want to gained and understanding of the geographical cultural context for the birth of Disneyland then you must add this book to your library.
Dave Oneal runs the outstanding Extinct Attractions Club, which is a vital source of historic Disney theme park videos. He has a unique perspective on Disneyland having lived in the surrounding motels with his mother and younger brother in 1986 for two years before being abandoned by his mother. For those two years, he and his brother would go to the safety of Disneyland virtually everyday. Today the Club, and its 45,000 members raise money for the families who still live in the nearby hotels, the only "affordable" housing in a very expensive housing market.
Over the years, Dave has meet many of the talented people who designed, built and operated Disneyland. Bob Gurr, the man who invented virtually everything that moves in Disneyland, provides some perspective on just how remote a site Anaheim was from Los Angeles. The trip would take two hours on local roads. I like his description of various bits of local architecture as "California Corny". Don Ballard, author of the definitive book for the Disneyland Hotel, provides a summary history in Anaheim Vacationland. Marty Sklar contributes to the discussion about Vacationland Magazine, which could be found everywhere in the region for many years as a way to advertise Disneyland, Anaheim, and other Southern California attractions.
Filled with photos, pamphlets, and advertisements, the book shows the rise and fall of the Disneyland Resort area prior to its recent facelift of 2001. The area went from orange groves to pleasant local motels to a crime ridden, seedy district. This book is Oneal's journey to seek out the glory days.
You get a tour of the local motels, restaurants, and other local attractions. Many of the motels are group by the themes they adopted such as Tiki, space travel or "fantasy and frolic". Remember Sambos Restaurants? Then you will love this book. I especially enjoyed the look at Magic Mountain, Japanese Deer Park, Knotts Berry Farm, Lion Country Safari, Marineland, Busch Gardens, and many others.
My bias is simple. I was born and raised in Southern California. With that in mind, this is a wonderful book. It will bring back many memories. For those new to the Disneyland Resort or are students of WDW, for the first time you will clearly see why Walt wanted Walt Disney World and why the entrance to the Magic Kingdom was designed the way it was.
For those who have lived in the Southern California area for more than 20 years,
Please note that I purchased this book.
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