Thanks for the review. I'm excited about reading the book. The only thing that struck me a little strange was this comment:

>Plus the stories about how Disney was losing interest in both Disneyland and feature animation in the early 1960s, as Walt's dream of constructing a futuristic city out there in the swamps of Central Florida totally consumed the man ... is almost certain to ruffle the feathers of the Disney faithful.

Is this controversial? Is there any doubt that Disney lost most of his interest in animation--and even Disneyland--by the end of his life?

I consider myself a decent authority on Walt Disney. I've read all the existing bios of him and I've even talked to his nephew Roy about him (albeit briefly). Even so, I pre-ordered this book from Amazon the minute I first heard about it and I'm anxiously awaiting its arrival.

I, for one, hope ALL the Disney Dweebs out there read it, so I will no longer have to read the tiresome rants of people who insist on blathering fallacies like, "Walt didn't care about money!" and "Walt never would have treated his Cast like this!"

The fact is, Walt was a complicated and not altogether reasonable man who most CERTAINLY cared about money. He may have had unique ideas about how to make it, but trust me ... he loved and enjoyed his money as much as anyone else ever did.

If reading this book sheds some light on the real Walt to some of these uninformed, pollyana types then I'm all for it. I tire of listening to them ...

Of course Walt cared about  money. You can do things with money - like make better animated movies or build theme parks.

Here's a review of Gabler's book from USA Today. On this review alone I might - MIGHT - consider buying the book:

"According to Neal Gabler's masterful new book, Walt Disney was not the warm and wise patriarch, not the cynical Hydra-headed purveyor of crass entertainment loathed by intellectuals, nor the vice-ridden, alcoholic anti-Semite depicted in recent biographies.
In Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination, Gabler presents his subject as a driven, moody, brilliant, emotionally vulnerable and often lonely man who took the dreams in his heart and his mind and made them real.

His extraordinary ability to escape from harsh reality into the realm of his own imagination would give the world films such as Snow White, create Disneyland with its cultural connotations of fantasy and shape how the world sees the United States. Love him or hate him, Mickey Mouse is a global symbol.

The best aspect of Gabler's portrait is its coherence. The admired author of An Empire of Their Own: How the Jews Invented Hollywood and a bio on Walter Winchell, Gabler is an expert on Hollywood.

Hence, his book is not simply a recitation of facts. Rather, it offers clear-headed analysis.

Without simplifying a complicated man, Gabler argues convincingly that Disney was motivated by neither money nor fame nor a love of showbiz. It was his desire for control, a hunger to create a utopia filled with the innocent joys of childhood mixed with the wonder of technology, that drove him to animation, toy railroads and his fantasy theme park.

Disney's dreams were forged in his poverty-stricken, work-filled, unhappy childhood, where the sensitive Walt never had the fun, the attention, the laughter he desperately craved from his harsh, disappointed father.

The deepest, most interesting relationship described in the biography existed between Walt and his older brother and business partner, Roy, with whom he fought together and against his whole life.

Throughout Walt's career, Roy handled the money and protected his often high-handed and impulsive brother.

In his personal life, Disney truly was the down-to-earth Midwesterner he appeared. He liked simple food, adored his two daughters and grandchildren, and never cheated on his wife of five decades.

Gabler presents a more disturbing Disney at the studio. From the beginning, Disney was a demanding perfectionist, driving his employees but also inspiring them with his dream and rewarding their work.

But after union woes shut down his studio in the 1940s, he changed, becoming abusive and paranoid. Gabler says Disney was no racist but became known as an anti-Semite because of his very conservative political attitudes.

This exhaustive, serious biography does not gloss over Disney's faults. Yet it is clear Gabler ended up with a wistful affection for his subject and his dreams of a perfect childhood."

"gigglesock said:
Of course Walt cared about  money. You can do things with money - like make better animated movies or build theme parks."

And he wanted to make better animated movies and build theme parks, so he could .... ?

I'll give you a hint ... the answer is make more money ...

Great review of this book! I read a different one where the critic was just being too much of a critic. He focused too much on the dark side, and seemed to be looking to make his own article more juicy, instead of focusing on what the book is about. After reading his, I didn't want to bother. After reading this review (and the one above from USA Today), I definitely want to get it.
"Demanding", "perfectionist"... lead to great quality. Then, and today, even with what is going on company-wide, and in specific divisions, people still want to be a part of it all, and help to "make the magic."

I've had the book for a week and I'm about halfway through it. I agree with both Jim and the USA Today reviews.

But, about the money thing, it's interesting to see that Walt REALLY didn't care about money. If he had cared more about money, he wouldn't have risked everything he owned over and over again to fulfill his dreams.

He frequently poured everything he earned -- and more (which upset Roy and forced more bank negotiations and credit extensions) -- back into the company. Now, Walt did care about getting ripped off -- working for strong licensing deals with Kay Kamen and later getting advice from Charlie Chaplin to assure that the distribution deal and accounting of box office receipts from "Snow White" would benefit the studio.

He frequently made decisions that cost the studio money -- such as re-inking "Flowers and Trees" for production as a "Technicolor" film. These decisions -- as smart as they were in hindsight -- certainly created additional financial burdens that Roy had to deal with.

Walt is portrayed as someone who was unhappy with shortcuts (rotoscoping on "Snow White" for example) and not one to compromise his own vision irregardless the cost.

During the production of the shorts and "Snow White," Walt paid his top animators more than he and Roy were taking home.  It's sort of a model of today's professional sports -- the coaches earn less than the athletes.

Flush with cash after the success of "Snow White," he paid out handsome bonuses to his artists and retired the company's debt -- only to then go back into debt to build his dream studio and finance his future slate of animated films.

Walt and Roy both lived modestly -- especially considering the intrinsic value of his ideas and in comparison to what today's studio chiefs, CEOs and CFOs take home in the way of compensation.

I haven't got to the Disneyland portion of Gabler's book ... but I'm sure that he continued to plow most of his company's profits back into his dreams. I've read just about every biography of Walt, so I know that was his pattern and his way.

I'm also looking forward to reading more about the studio strike -- and the strikers' justifications for the walkout -- the death of Walt and his EPCOT dream.

Yes, if you consider yourself a student of Walt Disney and his life, Neal Gabler's biography of Walt Disney is one great read. I haven't learned a lot of new things about Walt thus far, but there's far more depth and nitty gritty detail in this biography than in previous efforts.

I'm also looking forward to plunging myself into this-the best book so far on the Man himself ever done (based on reviews and a quick in-store skim).

Without knowing for sure, it seems to me in the final analyisis that the Walt that will emerge from these pages is the Walt we have already (mostly) known, just truer, richer more complex and perhaps complete.

What bothers me is terms like "driven" and "perfectionist" tossed around as though those are bad qualities to have in their work.  If every single person in the U.S had those same qualities, one can't even imagine how truly great America could be.

Got an advanced copy of the book a month ago and flew through it.  Pretty light reading, with little new to add on any subject. Mostly the company line with a bit of misguided conjecture.   Light on any real research, and light on ANY insight. Great pics from the family, though.  

The Steven Watts book "The Magic Kingdom:  Walt Disney and the American Way of Life" is a FAR superior, and definative book, on the subject.

Even so, next year's Walt Disney bio by Michael Barrier, is going to be the real deal.  Barrier's opinions are shared by very few, but not many can deny that his research is impeccable.  

Oh--btw, here's a link to pre-order the most eagerly awaited of all Disney bios:

http://www.ucpress.edu/books/pages/10093.html