Customer Reviews

Walt Disney and the Quest for Community (Design & the Built Environment)

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This is a great read about Walt Disney's EPCOT concept. It draws upon original interviews, research in archives, Disney company building experience, and history to tell a fascinating story of Walt's original ideas and how they evolved into later projects like Epcot and Celebration. Most important, it is clear that the author has a solid understanding of Walt Disney the man and uses it to put EPCOT into context. In addition, the author provides many references with which I was unfamiliar. Finally, the book is organized in such a way as to make it very accessible. I think that this book will be an important resource for both scholars and Disney fans in the future.

Mannheim gives an independent look at Walt Disney's last dream. Of a planned urban community that would not have the various ills common in American cities in the 60s. The text goes into many details of how EPCOT was designed. It draws key distinctions between the EPCOT of Walt's vision and the Epcot centre that actually was built in Florida.

The vision was for an experimental community. What the Disney Corp. later did was set up a planned community, "Celebration", in Florida that evoked Walt's ideas. The text describes how this community could well be seen as culturally stifling by some readers, with many restrictions on its inhabitants.

The textual portion of the book is only 70% of the pages. The remaining 30% has an extensive bibliography that indicates serious scholarship by Mannheim.

Steve Mannheim has written a wonderful academic treatise on Walt Disney and Walt's dream for Epcot. The focus of the book is the Epcot City, the development of the ideas and their ultimate fruition. Although the title is treated as an academic work, it can almost be considered a page-turner. Steve has done an impressive job of distilling New Urbanism concepts into a readable and understandable read (for us laymen).

The genesis for the book was when a friend of Mr. Mannheim had described Walt's plan for another project after Disneyland about a city of tomorrow--where Epcot Center is today. This was the mid-1980's and there was not a lot of published information at the time. So, Mr. Mannheim began his research. Steven Mannheim holds a doctorate in planning and development. His current professional practices include real estate economics and development.

As I stated in my review of Realityland, there is not a lot published on the history of Walt Disney World. This titles adds greatly to the literature and provides a solid focus on Epcot the City, its history, development and changes.

The work starts with a look at Walt and the germination of the idea. There is a lot of focus on where Walt was, mentally and sociologically, as he began planning the Florida Project (also known as Project X). Mr. Mannheim deftly takes us through the history and theories that Walt was discovering about New Cities, Garden Cities and urban development. With the success of Disneyland, Walt felt vindicated that he could cure the ails of modern society.

The biggest issue? Control.

With Disneyland, Walt was able to push through the City Council to meet a lot of the building demands of Disneyland. With the Florida Project, he knew he needed more control. The book outlines what Walt, Roy and the leaders of the Disney Company were able to secure and create after Walt's passing. Mr. Mannheim spent a lot of time interviewing key members of the Company, the State of Florida, local government and Disney cast members. He provides a detailed look at how Disney (the company) figured out what to do after building Phase I of Walt Disney World.

In looking at any historically-based research title, you have to consider the sources cited. Mr. Mannheim devotes 140 pages to the text and the remaining 59 to research notes and the bibliography. To a librarian and Disney Geek, this connotes a vast level of research on Mr. Mannheim's part. My only issue with the sources cited, is that a lot of the citations are from interviews conducted by the author. As of this review, the interviews have not been published. Talk about a dream publication! Mr. Mannheim, if you are out there, I would love to read the interviews that you have conducted.

Bottom Line: I really enjoyed this title. The book is presented as an academic work but it is still an enthralling read and you can't put it down. Mr. Mannheim easily presents mundane concepts about planning and design and correlates them into the foundations of Disneyland and what we can surmise about Epcot the City. I would love to read the transcripts for all of the interviews that were conducted--there must be a vast goldmine of Walt Disney World-related history on those interviews. After reading this title, you will gain a vast appreciation for Walt's original ideas and the presentation of Walt Disney World as we know it. This title is geared more towards the serious Walt fanatic and the Epcot junkie. But if you like city planning, the origins of Epcot or theories about what could have happened--you will enjoy this book.

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This well organized, well researched book provides great insight to the original dreams and plans Walt Disney had for the prototype community of tomorrow - the EPCOT that never was built.

A great read for any EPCOT fan, Walt Disney fan or those interested in city plannning.

'What if Walt Disney had lived 10 or 20 more years?' and 'What would Walt's EPCOT have been like?' are, to me, two of the most burning "What Ifs" of our time. Steve Mannheim's "Walt Disney and the Quest for Community" is a captivating and fascinating read. Excrutiatingly well-researched, well-written, and incredibly informative, it provides Disney fans and those interested in urban renewal with basic incites into the last great dream of the visionary Disney. But that's as far as it goes. Mannheim treads lightly around the basic questions of what life would have actually been like in the city of EPCOT and, sadly, never provides much more than a teasing glimpse of the "might-have-beens". According to Mannheim, Disney himself was only in the preliminary stages of planning and working out the details of his experimental city when he died and that we will likely never know for sure exactly what it would've been. Perhaps this is true, but seeing as how so much of the early planning/purchasing/contracting/construction/building stages of the proposed Disney World project were already a done deal (or, at least, well under way), it seems quite unlikely that Walt hadn't confided his plans to someone. He was a meticulous planner and not given to flying by the seat of his pants when realizing a vision of this scope. Not to mention the fact that EPCOT was going to be joint venture with several leaders in American Industry who would likely NOT invest in undisclosed ideas that existed only in someone's mind, even Disney's. Also, Mannheim seems to too strongly defend current Disney management in the closing chapter and states that, with the construction and population of Celebration, Florida, that somehow Walt's EPCOT truly lives and that the time has finally come for some slight realizations of his last unfullfilled dreams. Celebration, as any student of Disney's final dream can tell you, is a FAR cry from the EPCOT concept and that current Disney Company philosophies and standards show little resemblance to the high moral standards and belief system he held his company to during his lifetime. The book portrays today's EPCOT Center as a living tribute to the man and his bold vision, but even the most casual recent visitor to that park can see that this simply is not so. Stil, I'd highly recommend this book for anyone who's a Disney fan or, like me, still fascinated after all these years by Walt's ambitious vision, just be warned going in that you'll likely still have the same burning questions after finishing it.

Interesting discussion of Walt Disney's plans for the original Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, or EPCOT. Disney died before this project could break ground, making its academic exploration very, well, academic. Mannheim doesn't try to make much of an argument until the final chapter in which he says, correctly, in my view, that the Epcot Center theme park and nearby-but-unaffiliated New Urbanist community of Celebration effectively addressed the main points of Disney's plan while avoiding the probable pitfalls associated with simultaneously maintaining perfect order and individual liberty -- Walt's paramount goals. Very thoroughly researched and filled with nuggets sure to be of interest to serious Disneyphiles and students of urban planning.

Although a bit technical in places, this is simply the best book on Walt Disney that I have ever read. The author fearlessly draws upon many disciplines to help explain what the genius of Walt Disney was consumed with at the time of his death. Author Steve Mannheim used documents as well as interviews with Disney family and colleagues to paint a fascinating picture of the Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow (EPCOT). It is worth the academic book price and I would not be surprised if its collectors' value increases.

if you check my file you will see that i first ordered this book on 6/16 for my son's 30th birthday party on 7/30.
it arrived a week or so later with no dust jacket. i have spoken to many people by phone about this and a second one was overnighted to me on 6/29. still not right.
on 8/3 i spoke with Saurabh; he said he will fix the problem in less than ten days. i got nothing so on 8/13 i called and spoke with kultar. he said he had the problem under control and would personally see that i got the proper book and cover. the price has gone up from 47.96 to 59.95 but kultar will issue a promo discount of 11.99. on 8/21 the third book showed up with no cover; this time i spoke with lee; he said he will be sending me a fourth book and a label to return the third book so i can get my money back for that one. obviously my son's birthday has come and gone with no book. frankly there is no excuse for ten weeks to go by with no book.