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Nick
Yetis, welcome back for part two of our Deep Dive episode of the Best Idea Yet.
Jack
It's all about Disneyland. Now, when we left off yesterday, Walt and Roy Disney were dealing with all the haters.
Nick
Yeah. But then they had that wild idea to turn the construction of their theme park into a TV show.
Jack
So the setting that we're about to drop you into is Walt and Roy about to pitch their documentary show to cbs.
Nick
Jack, as Walt Disney would say himself. Without further ado, on with the show.
Jack
Here is part two of our special Deep Dive vacation episode on the origin story of Disneyland. Airbnb.
Nick
Yetis, Our show actually started as a side hustle over 10 years ago. It began in secret outside of our bank jobs.
Jack
We were worried we'd get fired, so we didn't tell our bosses and we even left our names off the website.
Nick
Now, that was our side Hustle, a media startup. But there are other side hustles that are a lot less risky than that.
Jack
And that have 0% chance of getting you fired. Like being a host on Airbnb.
Nick
In this economy, it's a fun and rewarding way. Make money off the thing you're already paying for your house or your apartment.
Jack
I've hosted two previous apartments and my current chalet on Airbnb.
Nick
And when no one's using it, why not welcome a family, a couple that just got engaged.
Jack
You already have an Airbnb. You just didn't realize it yet.
Nick
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Jack
And the more that Roy thinks about it, the more it makes sense to him. So they take the pitch to America's biggest Network, NBC, But NBC says no. They love Disney's content, but they think the theme park is just too risky.
Nick
All right, Jack, let's give this another shot. Next stop, cbs. But same story. Great studio, great brand, but a theme park. They think it's too out there.
Jack
But all these setbacks, they actually get Roy fired up. And now he's about to give a big plus one to Walt's enthusiasm for tv. With one of the most important decisions in the history of Disney.
Nick
The brothers go and pitch the show to little abc, the underdog network. And you know what they say? Yes. You see, at the time, NBC is broadcasting on 63 stations. CBS, they got 60 stations. But ABC, they just have 14. They don't have an audience, but they're hungry to grow on. So maybe they'll see a Disneyland show as a way to do exactly that. They'll put Disneyland on a pedestal, maybe even the primetime slot.
Jack
And it turns out Roy is right. ABC jumps at the chance. Because if this Disneyland show causes a buzz, then kids and parents across the country are going to be clamoring for their local stations to become ABC affiliates, which means more advertising dollars and eventually, when cable comes, more affiliate fees.
Nick
So ABC agrees to produce the show. They invest $500,000 and guarantee 4 million in loans in exchange for a one third slice of Disneyland.
Jack
Disney gets airtime and investment dollars. ABC gets a show and equity in Disneyland.
Nick
Like we said, hakuna matata.
Jack
When news breaks of the deal, it shocks the movie and TV industries. Not because of the plan to build a park, but because of the plan for a Hollywood movie studio to produce a weekly TV show. You see, at this point, New York is the home of tv. Hollywood is the home of movies. So this deal is as disruptive to 1950s media as Uber was to 21st century taxis and Jack.
Nick
The first episode airs just weeks later on October 27th. Why don't you grab the remote and turn it on? Now, next year, our television show will be coming from this Disneyland.
Jack
That voice we just heard, that's Walt. It turns out he's a natural in front of the camera. Like a kind uncle who's genuinely excited to show you his model train set. But this is much more exciting. In each one hour episode, Walt gives viewers a front row seat to his dream in progress. It's like Mr. Rogers meets Extreme Makeover. Home Edition.
Nick
And the show is an instant hit. It is the first time ABC break Since the top 10 most watched shows on television. Actually, it's the first time any ABC show had ever Even cracked the top 25. It is this show that really gets Disney started in TV and paves the way for Mickey Mouse Club, the Disney Channel, and eventually even the modern day Disney.
Jack
The TV show feels relaxed and charming, but behind the scenes, it's all hands on deck. Because Walt makes a call bolder than one of Captain Jack Sparrow's plans. To keep the hype from fading, he sets Disneyland's opening date for July 17, 1955.
Nick
Well, Jack, I'm looking at the calendar. And that gives us just 10 months to transform 160 acres of sleepy orange groves into the happiest place on earth. That's less time than it takes to make a single animated movie. And if Walt and his team fail, it'll extinguish the magic for millions of Mouseketeers.
Jack
The sun is just beginning to rise over Anaheim, but construction noise is already echoing through the rubble strewn, half built streets of Disneyland. It's the spring of 1955, and Woody, the engineer, not the toy cowboy, is walking the site, clipboard in hand. Walt was so impressed by Woody's intelligence and problem solving capabilities that he hires him full time. Now Woody is overseeing the entire construction of Disneyland. In fact, Woody is officially Disneyland's employee number one.
Nick
You could say Woody is Walt's eyes and ears on the ground, but that's not exactly right, because Walt is everywhere. In fact, right now, Woody sees the big man coming right around the corner in his bathrobe.
Jack
Walt actually has his own apartment on Main Street, Disneyland, right above the fire building, just so he can stay close to the project. At any hour, day or night, he might show up next to a crew laying concrete or painting trim. Walt will sometimes even pitch in and help toss spackle on the castle. And quite often, he doesn't even take the time to swap his bathrobe for some proper workwear.
Nick
So Woody is standing here on Main street overseeing a work crew or fixing plastic railings to the upper floors of one of the buildings. And when Woody sees Walt making a beeline for him, he does a little inside groan. Because Walt is a perfectionist and Woody, he can guess what's coming.
Jack
Walt asks Woody why the railing that's going up is plastic. It should be metal. Woody explains that the railing is going to be on the second floor. No one's going to notice what it's made of. Walt pauses. And then he says, the thing that's going to make Disneyland unique and different is the detail. If we lose the detail, we lose it all. It's actually a concept. His Team later calls Plussing because Walt goes around asking employees, how can we plus it? Could this grass be greener? This castle stone here? The answer is actually yes. Once that Plussing attention is paid to it.
Nick
Walt takes notes on everything. And he's not shy about sharing them. For example, he thinks the carousel horses don't look like they're leaping enough, so he has the legs rebuilt on all of the horses. Well, then, Jack, there's the gravel under the railroad tracks. Apparently, that was too big. So he orders each rock ground down to the perfect scale.
Jack
Walt even takes a personal interest in the placement of every trash can. Walt loves eating hot dogs from the food stalls. And after he gets his hand on one hot dog, he paces off the exact number of steps it takes him to finish off that Frank. And he discovers it's about 30 steps. And then he orders a trash can installed at that very spot.
Nick
That's why Disneyland today has over a thousand trash cans. It's because of Walt's trash math.
Jack
And the payoff is really clean parks.
Nick
Well, Jack, Walt's not just sweating the small stuff. He's also constantly thinking about the big picture. It's important to him that Disneyland isn't just a collection of rides. He wants it to be an immersive, engineered world with a strategic layout.
Jack
Remember that trip to Tivoli Gardens in Denmark? Walt is putting everything he learned there to use. He wants the park to feel like a story that draws you through its narrative and delights you at each turn.
Nick
He is applying the storytelling model from his movies to the physical industry of parks.
Jack
This isn't a random collection of scenes. The park needs to follow a narrative arc from entrance to the climactic rides through to the exit.
Nick
And then, to keep people moving through the park, he comes up with a term for the tall, visual magnets that pull guests through the space. He calls them weenies.
Jack
Why weenies? Well, that's how Walt would get his poodle Duchess, to move when she wasn't being cooperative. Yeah, he would lay a trail of hot dog pieces to coax her along.
Nick
The next time you're wandering your way through Disney World, remember? Or it's because you're being led like a puppy.
Jack
And in Disneyland, the biggest visual magnet, or weenie, is Sleeping Beauties Castle. It's strategically placed in the center of the park so visitors are enticed further inward.
Nick
And like a lot of the other buildings, it is designed using forced perspective so that it actually seems taller than it really is.
Jack
But for all the clever designs in Walt's head. It's chaos on the ground for the teams of workers and engineers, or imagineers, as Walt likes to call them. They're working around the clock. The original budget of $5 million has now ballooned to $17 million.
Nick
Oh, Roy's not going to be happy.
Jack
No, he's not, Nick. All that overtime means labor costs are through the roof.
Nick
Well, here we are on Saturday, July 16, 1955, the day before the opening. And the park. It's still not finished. It's swarming with cement mixers, electricians, landscapers, and TV crews, all trying not to trip over each other.
Jack
And then, as if things aren intense enough already, Walt gets some bad news. There's a plumber strike, which means the park will have limited water on opening day. Walt has to make a choice. Does he want running toilets or running water fountains?
Nick
So Walt thinks it over, and he goes. Okay. Right now, Southern California is in the middle of a heat wave with temperatures hitting 100 degrees.
Jack
Another dose of bad luck.
Nick
But even so, Walt chooses the toilets. He figures worst case scenario, people can buy a soda to quench their thirst, but they can't hold it in all day long.
Jack
It's a gamble he hopes doesn't come back to haunt him. Because everything, the TV deal, his reputation, and the future of the Walt Disney Company is riding on what happens next. Because ready or not, the gates of Disneyland are about to open.
Nick
Ziprecruiter yet he's nothing worse than menu paralysis. You go to a restaurant and then you can't decide salmon or chicken.
Jack
Did you hear about the paella special? Wait a second. They have pizza, too.
Nick
It just stinks when you got too many options. Well, the same applies if you're a business owner who's hiring.
Jack
We've posted jobs before and gotten so many applications, we don't even know where to start.
Nick
True story.
Jack
We don't have an HR team. It's just us.
Nick
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Jack
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Nick
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Jack
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Nick
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Jack
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Nick
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Jack
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Nick
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Jack
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Nick
Yetis starting your own business. It ain't easy. When we first got our daily newsletter off the ground that led to this podcast a decade ago, we definitely did not get everything right.
Jack
Remember, we initially bummed wifi off of hotel lobbies.
Nick
Classic move.
Jack
And then the concierge kicked us out. So coffee shop free Wi fi became our godsend.
Nick
Another latte shout out to all the.
Jack
Small business cafe owners. Your wi fi is the real hero.
Nick
Oh, what's the code to the bathroom again? Honestly, if we could do it all over, we would probably invest in our less bootleggy Internet.
Jack
If you need to connect your small business, you need AT&T business. They make connecting easy. Actually, they make so many things easy.
Nick
Which is the main thing you want in a provider. Less time stressing, more time for you to work on your business.
Jack
And yetis, there's never enough time.
Nick
So start a business, live your dream, and wake up to the power of ATT business. Business.att.com.
Jack
It'S supposed to be the happiest place on earth. Instead, for thousands of people, it's one of the most miserable. Temperatures soar above 100 degrees. Cars clog the Santa Ana freeway, kids are crying, parents are fuming, and people are relieving themselves on the roadside. Welcome to Disneyland's grand opening, July 17, 1955.
Nick
Inside the gates, things are even worse, man. Only 11,000 guests were invited, including Hollywood stars, politicians and other VIPs. But counterfeit tickets and gate crashers. They flood the park with more than 28,000 people. One guy even slings a ladder over the fence and charges people five dollar entry to use his ladder.
Jack
The asphalt on Main street is still wet and it gets so gooey in the heat, people's shoes keep getting stuck in it. Even Walt gets caught in the chaos. He gets locked inside his apartment above the firehouse until workmen can come and break him out.
Nick
Oh, and jack the rides. The crowd is so thick that you are lucky if you even get near one, let alone on one. And as the day continues and the heat rises, many of the rides just keep breaking down. The hydraulics that made Dumbo fly, they start leaking foam. And the speed limiters on the Autopia cars, they fail. People are jumping curbs and one kid even loses some teeth.
Jack
The crowds are so big that people can't even get to the toilets that Walt diverted the water to. And with the water fountains out of action, some guests accuse Walt of turning them off on purpose in order to sell more soda. Meanwhile, trash piles up. It's spilling out of the bins and baking in the sun. This is sounding less like a magical kingdom, more dystopian hellscape.
Nick
It's like Ursula took over as COO running the operations. And not even future presidents are safe because movie star Ronald Reagan, one of the TV hosts for the live broadcast, is forced to scramble over a wall just to make it to his next on camera hit.
Jack
At one point, a gas leak shuts down a portion of the park and the Mark Twain Riverboat nearly capsizes from overcrowding.
Nick
Why stop there? Jack, I got more for you. Because it's all starting to feel like a flimsy facade. Literally. In some cases. Like Sleeping Beauty's castle. Because behind the battlements and spires, it's just an empty shell that's been open, overtaken by a colony of feral felines. That's right, cats are living up in the castle like the original Aristocats.
Jack
It's a day so dire that Disney historians will call it Black Sunday.
Nick
It's got to be the worst product launch we have ever covered on this show.
Jack
But here's the wild part. Even though the park is crawling with TV crews broadcasting a live opening day special on abc, none of the mishaps make it to air. For the record breaking 90 million people who tune in to watch, day one of Disneyland looks perfect.
Nick
If you are watching this on tv, then you'd see parades, confetti, gleaming rides, happy kids, and Walt himself smiling and giving his opening day speech like a man who just pulled off the impossible. On screen, Disneyland looks like a dream come true. In reality, it's a miracle it didn't collapse on day one. If social media had existed at the time, this would have gone viral for all the wrong reasons. And we probably wouldn't have had a Disneyland Day 2.
Jack
Or Disney World for that matter.
Nick
But instead, the crew at ABC Co, investors in the venture, shine the park in the best possible light.
Jack
So they survive day one. But Walt and his crew have no time to rest. Because at 2am Just hours after Disneyland closes the lid on its baptism of fire, families are already lining up outside for day two.
Nick
That's right. Despite this real life disaster, Walt's dream is still alive.
Jack
After the chaos of opening day, Disneyland finds its rhythm. The bugs are ironed out, the water Supply comes back and the park starts to work the way Walt has always imagined. That's five themed lands with 20 original attractions. And if you go today, you can still ride a few of the OGs like the Jungle Cruise, Peter Pan's Flight, Autopia, and Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.
Nick
Now, Jack, let's talk numbers here. By the end of 1955, Disneyland attracts 1 million visitors, paying a dollar entry for adults, 50 cents for kids, which.
Jack
Today feels like it's a million times more expensive.
Nick
Inflation. It's pretty magical. Well, the year after the park's first full year of operation, they bring in 4 million guests.
Jack
Over the years, Walt keeps on working on the park. He adds new rides and phases out old ones. Which brings us to Walt's final project, an eerie, fully immersive journey into a swashbuckling fantasy, Pirates of the Caribbean, which could be a case study on Disney's true innovation, the flywheel effect.
Nick
This ride inspired the Pirates of the Caribbean movie franchise 48 years later. And after the film came out, they added Captain Jack Sparrow onto the ride.
Jack
This is all part of a way bigger strategy that Walt himself devises. In 1957, he sketches out what might be the most profitable diagram of all time.
Nick
The drawing maps out how all of Disney's different assets are actually connected. At the center, you have Disney movies and then radiating out like spokes on a wheel. TV shows, theme parks, merch, comic books, music, publishing. Each one of them feeding off the movies and then each other in a flywheel effect that just keeps growing and growing and growing.
Jack
He drew the diagram in 1957, and it's amazingly accurate to Disney's business model still today. Take the Lion King, for example. The movie came out in 1994. Since then, there's been a Broadway show, a live action remake, endless merch, video Games. And in 2024, 30 years after the film first came out, Disney announced it's working on a brand new ride for its Paris Disneyland.
Nick
And even today, Disney's empire still runs on that same flywheel. We linked in the show notes of this episode to a picture of that 1957 sketch. You're going to want to see it. It was spot on.
Jack
Now, sadly, Walt Disney didn't get to see just how successful that plan would be. He passes away in December19, and Walt's brother Roy postpones his retirement again to finish another project that Walt had been working on, Disney World in Orlando, Florida, which Roy renames Walt Disney World as a tribute to his baby brother.
Nick
Today, there are six Disney Resort destinations worldwide with 12 theme parks, 55 hotels and a cruise line. But it's the parks that are now Disney's profit puppy. Get this. The theme parks drive over over a third of Disney's $91 billion in annual revenue.
Jack
And it all started with an idea from a depressed animator on a bench in Griffith park. And the stories that he wanted to tell.
Nick
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Jack
So, Nick, now that you've heard the story of Disneyland, what's your takeaway?
Nick
Here's my takeaway, Jack. Walt Disney's magic cloak against the word no. Because how many times did Walt's idea for Disneyland get rejected?
Jack
Think about it.
Nick
His brother investors, the TV executives, they all thought it was more for far fetched than a talking mouse. And we all know the many ups and downs of entrepreneurship. You and I have experienced them, Jack. The self doubt that can creep in. But after a thousand no's, you still only need one yes for your business ambition to become a reality.
Jack
The story of Disneyland is a reminder that you'll always get more no's than yeses. And you can still end up becoming the most successful person in media history. Despite all those no's.
Nick
Yeah, Walt Disney, he's got 32 Oscars. So don't ever forget Walt Disney's magic cloak against the word no. Jack, what about you? What's your takeaway?
Jack
Travel is the ultimate innovation hack. Walt Disney didn't come up with Disneyland at a boardroom whiteboard. Inspiration struck when he got out of the office and went on a day trip with his kids to Griffith Park. And to keep the ideas flowing, Walt visited tourist attractions across the US And Europe and made detailed notes of everything from what made people happy to the distance between trash cans. He then took those observations, threw in some Disney magic, put it together, and what did we get? Bibbidi bobbidi Boo. The world's greatest theme park. Sometimes the best ideas don't come from looking inward. They come from getting out there, getting out of your bubble and seeing how the rest of the world plays and then putting your own unique spin on it.
Nick
Okay, Jack, before we go, it is time for our absolute favorite part of the show, the best facts yet.
Jack
These are the hero stats, facts and surprises we discovered in our research, but couldn't fit in the story yet.
Nick
All right, Jack, kick us off. What do we got? Man?
Jack
Disneyland does not sell chewing gum. This was a Walt roll neck and it spoke to his obsession for the details. Nobody will ever step on chewing chewing gum at Disneyland unless it got smuggled in there as contraband.
Nick
Good call, Walt. You can't have Pluto walking around with a stick of melted Wrigley's on his paw. Here's another one for you that Walt himself probably never imagined. Disney created a professional sports team based on a movie.
Jack
You might not have realized this, but Disney owned and created the mighty ducks, the NHL team that existed from 1993 to 2005.
Nick
Quack, quack, quack. Mr. Ducksworth. We're talking purple, jade and silver. Their logo was a duck shaped goalie mask because of the movie.
Jack
And that is why Disneyland is the best idea yet.
Nick
Yetis, you look so fantastic right now. They should have cast you in Fantasia.
Jack
You'll never look at Epcot the same.
Nick
Way again, will ya? No, we won't, Jack. No, we won't. Now, if you've got a buddy who's building something and facing the odds right now, send them this episode.
Jack
If you got a buddy who's building a business with their brother, send them this episode.
Nick
And if you just loved our Disney story, then go follow our weekly show, the best idea yet.
Jack
We got a link in the episode description. Now, Nick and I are still on vacation for the rest of the week and for next week, but we have a bunch of awesome content prepped for you.
Nick
In fact, Tomorrow we're dropping an entire interview episode with a wild entrepreneur.
Jack
The guy behind most viral folks food product that launched so far this year.
Nick
Yeah. Should we tell them? Jack? You want to tell them?
Jack
We're interviewing the creator of the David Bar.
Nick
Yeah. Remember they launched the cod fish. Yeah, that David Bar wild story.
Jack
So stay tuned right here on the T boy feed all week. We got your back. Hope you're enjoying the week just like we are.
Nick
See you tomorrow. If you know, you know.
Jack
If you like the best one yet, you can listen ad free right now by joining Wondery plus and the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts prime members.
Nick
Can listen ad free on Amazon Music.
Jack
And before you go, tell us a little bit about yourself by filling out a short survey@wondery.com survey.
Nick
We want to get to know you.
Lawless Planet Narrator
How hard is it to kill a planet? Maybe all it takes is a little drilling, some mining, and a whole lot of carbon pumped into the atmosphere. When you see what's left, it starts to look like a crime scene.
Jack
Are we really safe?
Nick
Is our water safe? You destroyed our town.
Lawless Planet Narrator
And crimes like that, they don't just happen.
Jack
We call things accidents. There is no accident.
Nick
This was 100% preventable.
Lawless Planet Narrator
They're the result of choices by people. Ruthless oil tycoons, corrupt politicians, even organized crime. These are the stories we need to be telling about our changing planet. Stories of scams, murders and coverups that are about us. Us and the things we're doing to either protect the earth or destroy it. Follow Lawless Planet on the Wondry app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes of Lawless Planet early and ad free right now by joining Wondry plus in the Wondry app, Apple podcasts or Spotify.
Episode: PART 2 🏰 Disneyland: The Fantasy that Almost Flopped
Hosts: Jack Crivici-Kramer & Nick Martell
Date: August 27, 2025
Part two of this deep dive unpacks the turbulent, ingenious, and sometimes chaotic creation of Disneyland. Nick and Jack trace the story from the risky creation of the Disneyland TV show, through the frenzied park construction, to its infamously disastrous opening day, and reveal how Walt Disney's vision—and stubborn resistance to rejection—sparked the flywheel that powers Disney to this day.
[02:10-03:49]
[04:11-05:05]
[05:05-08:31]
[08:31-09:56]
[13:25-15:53]
[17:21-19:44]
[19:44–20:23]
On Detail Obsession:
On Crowds and Chaos:
On Storytelling-As-Design:
On the Power of Persistence:
On Travel as Inspiration:
Disneyland does not sell chewing gum – Walt didn’t want guests stepping in it.
The Mighty Ducks – Disney created and owned an NHL team named after the movie from 1993–2005.
Upbeat, playful, nerdy; Nick and Jack bring high energy, with lively banter, business wisdom disguised as entertainment, and a reverence for Disney’s magic and tenacity.
For anyone facing rejection, building with family, or dreaming big—this episode is a reminder that great ideas only need one enthusiastic yes, relentless attention to detail, and the willingness to step outside your comfort zone, just like Walt Disney.