Books about the Construction of WDW?

Red devil

Red devil

Member
Original Poster
Just wondering if anyone has read or knows of any books that deal specifically with the planning and more importantly the construction of WDW. I have read a few Walt Disney Biographies and they all touch on it but none go into any depth beyond initial planning because Walt died before any actual construction started. I am very interested in this phase of WDW and would appreciate any info.
 
Aurora23

Aurora23

Member
My favorite is Walt Disney Imagineering. More of a "coffee table" book with lots of pictures.

Also, Since the World Began.
 
wolf359

wolf359

Well-Known Member
Thanks for the tip on Realityland, I'll have to check it out! :)

From my own collection I also really like Since The World Began, which give a pretty good overview of the whole property up until 1996.

Two other books I really like are Building A Dream and Designing Disney Theme Parks, both focused on an Architect's view of the Disney parks. They cover pretty similar ground, and my personal preference in Since The World Began if you only picked one of them up.

The book Walt Disney's EPCOT is still pretty much THE book to get if you are interested in EPCOT Center's early design and construction, and since it was written and released at the time of EPCOT's opening, and only covers EPCOT it does so in much more detail than any other book I've seen. Just be aware there is a 127 page and a 248 page version of the same book. Hold out for the longer version.

By the early 90s Disney stopped putting any real information beyond the standard company line in their souvenir theme park books, but the ones from earlier on aren't bad, and you'll often see pictures of long extinct shows and attractions in these old books. My favorite is Walt Disney World: The First Decade.
 
D

dakben

New Member
Might I suggest "Vinyl Leaves: Walt Disney World and America" (http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Vinyl-Leaves/Stephen-M-Fjellman/e/9780813314723/?itm=1)

It has a lot of fascinating information, and the bibliography is a treasure trove of source materials relating to the construction of Walt Disney World. Sadly I've lent my copy out, and I can't remember the one book in particular that was really good, published in the mid-1970s.

I agree with Wolf359 about "Since the World Began," "Building a Dream," and "Designing Disney's Theme Parks."
 
Missing20K

Missing20K

Well-Known Member
I have not had the pleasure of reading the other titles suggested, but I'm a design student (architecture) and if you are interested in that phase of construction, then I second Wolf359 for Designing Disney's Theme Parks: The Architecture of Reasurrance. It was the companion book to the museum tour a few years back. Lot's of great pictures as well as articles from both insiders and critics, including a great piece by Frank Gehry on theming. Now I'm excited to pick up Building a Dream, never heard of that one......
 
marni1971

marni1971

Park History nut
Premium Member
Specifically Phase One construction?

Master Planning for Walt DIsney World, Walt Disney Productions 1969
Since the World Began 1996 07868 8219 0 (pb) 6248 3 (hb)
Building a Dream - The Art of Disney Architecture 1996 0 8109 3142 7
Designing Disneys Theme Parks - The architecture of reassurance 1997 2 08013 639 9
What would Walt do? An insiders story about the design and construction of WDW 2001 0 595 17203 2
Married to the Mouse 2001 0 300 087071 hb 098286 pb
Floridas Disney World - Promises and Problems 1975
 
Red devil

Red devil

Member
Original Poster
Thanks for all the replies, I will definetly check some of them out in preparation for my return to the world in september.
 

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