by David Smith
Quote before Chapter 6: “To all who come to this happy place welcome…” The opening lines from Walt Disney’s dedication of Disneyland on opening day, July 17th, 1955. (As found on the plaque placed on the Square at the base of the Flag Pole on Main Street in Disneyland.)
Chapter 6: 1964 Flashback: Haunted Mansion details: Disneyland: The Nickel Tour; Pages 260-265.
Quote before Chapter 8: “I wanted something alive, something that could grow, something I could keep plussing with ideas. The Park is that.” Disneyland, The First Quarter Century, Walt Disney Productions, Page 108
Chapter 10: Petrified Wood: ‘The Oldest Attraction Ever’; Disneyland: The Nickel Tour; Page 55.
Chapters 12 & 14: Walt’s death: These details were researched through Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination; Pages 630-633; And, Inside The Dream: The Personal Story of Walt Disney;178- 180.
Quote before Chapter 12: “He was just a guy from Missouri who believed in his stuff and never gave up. To me, [Walt Disney] represented someone who, against a lot of odds, made a place in the world that was his, forever.” Quoted by Frank Gehry, in Inside the Dream: The Personal Story of Walt Disney by Katherine and Richard Greene; Page187
Quote before Chapter 13: “We were all sworn to secrecy about this area…” Art Linkletter Quoted in Mouse Tales by David Koenig; Page 11
Quote before Chapter 14: “He was an original…” Eric Sevareid, CBS Evening News, December 1966. (Partial quote) from Disneyland: The First Quarter Century; Walt Disney Productions, Page 83
Chapter 16: Quote: I don’t want the public to see the world they live in while they’re in Disneyland. I want them to feel they’re in another world.” Disneyland: The First Quarter Century; Walt Disney Productions; Page 7.
Chapter 16: References to the Swiss Family Tree House-Tarzan Tree House: Disneyland: Then, Now & Forever; Pages 62 & 63, and Disneyland: The Nickel Tour; Page 183
Quote before Chapter 19: “Not only can I add things, but even the trees will keep growing. The things will get more beautiful each year.” Disneyland, The First Quarter Century, Walt Disney Productions, Page 108
Chapter 22: Quote from the 1965 Disney Souvenir book as quoted in Chris Strodder’s The Disneyland Encyclopedia; the Unofficial, Unauthorized, and Unprecedented History of Every Land, Attraction, Restaurant, Shop, and Event in the Original Magic Kingdom. Santa Monica Press, 2008
Chapter 25: Disneyland Deaths: Out of respect, I changed the name of the victim in the first example, the event is an actual event as reported in: alt.folklore.urban and en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incidents_at_Disney_parks
Quote before Chapter 28: “Walt knew where every nail in the Park was located,” Inside The Dream: The Personal Story of Walt Disney; 124
Chapter 28: Club 33 information about audio animatronic characters inside: A Visit to Club 33: Disneyland: The Nickel Tour; Page 255.
Chapter 30: 1960 Flashback: Enchanted Tiki Room details: “Where Birds Talk and People Whistle” Disneyland: The Nickel Tour; Page 188-189.
Quote before Chapter 37: “The general shape of the island, the way it curves and so forth, was Walt’s idea. The idea for Pirate’s Cove on the island was also Walt’s.” 101 Things You Never Knew About Disneyland by Kevin Yee and Jason schultz
Chapter 38: Tom Sawyer information: Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TheAdventures ofTomSawyer
About The Author
David W. Smith
In addition to the co-authorship of the first two Hidden Mickey Novels, and now the author of this NEW Hidden Mickey novel, David is also the author of two of the top-selling tennis instructional books, Tennis Mastery (2004) & Coaching Mastery (2008). David W. Smith is also the Senior Editor for one of the top-rated tennis web sites in the world. (TennisOne.com) Considered as one of the premier tennis teachers in the U.S., David has been selected by Wilson Racquet Sports, Prince Sports and Dunlop Racquet Sports to be one of their Premier, Elite and Master Tennis Professionals (respectfully) representing each company at various times over the past fifteen years. David is one of about 20 tennis pros to have reached this level of recognition in the world.
David has published over 300 articles in a wide range of domestic and European publications. He has produced the DVDs, “Building a World-Class Volley” and “The Ultimate Serve Tune-Up.” In addition, David has given lectures and workshops all around the U.S. on tennis as well as on writing.
In addition to writing, like the character Blain in this novel, Dave is a professional musician playing bass and guitar. Most recently Dave has played bass guitar with the teen sensation, Carlie Wall on her first concert tour in 2010. In the early 1980’s David played guitar and bass for a number of bands, including his own band MAX, a band that played many venues around Disneyland and throughout Southern California.
David is also a professional magician, having performed for large and small audiences. Specializing in close up magic, David also has formed many programs for teaching magic to youngsters and adults alike.
The idea for Hidden Mickey grew out of a love for Disneyland and a deep appreciation for the vision that Walt Disney had in the face of adversity and lack of popular opinion of the day. Having worked at Disneyland in California in the late 1970’s and early 80’s, David learned firsthand, the inner workings of not just Disneyland but, as most all cast members learn, he learned about Walt Disney through those years.
David has been married for 24 years to Dr. Kerri Smith, a pediatrician. David, Kerri and their two children, Kyla Marie who is twelve and Keaton Bruce who is seven, along with three dogs, two guinea pigs and one cat, all reside in the beautiful red-rock scenery of St. George, Utah.