Florida’s Fourth Estate: Abigail Disney tells all in new documentary

It’s a pretty tall order to live up to when you’re known as the Happiest Place on Earth.

Is it just hyperbole or do some people—young and not so young—experience a bit of nirvana topped with pixie dust as soon as they cross the threshold of a Disney theme park and get a glimpse of Mickey and Minnie?

Depends on who you ask.

On this episode of Florida’s Fourth Estate, hosts Ginger Gadsden and Matt Austin speak with Dr. Abigail Disney, whose grandfather was Roy Disney and great-uncle was Walt Disney. They are the two men who built Disneyland in Anaheim, California, and Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

Abigail Disney is quick to point out you would be hard-pressed to find anyone else who loves Disney more than she does.

But these days, her love hurts and is cutting to the core of Disney culture as she questions why some loyal employees can’t make ends meet. Some of them claim they can barely afford food while others say they know cast members who have slept in cars because they can’t afford an apartment or home.

She said it wasn’t always that way.

“I grew up with my grandfather going through the cast member entrance to the park and I remember the people who work there with incredible affection,” Disney said. “And there was a great deal of affection between them and my grandfather as well.”

Disney added she saw the relationship shift over the decades as management changed.

“I saw the nature of the way workers were treated there and frankly, everywhere else, in America over the last 50 years. And I wanted to make a film about why it changed so dramatically... and what we can do about it,” she said.

Her new documentary, “The American Dream and Other Fairy Tales” takes a walk down memory lane as she fondly recalls the early days of Disneyland.

The theme park in Anaheim, California opened in 1955. She has many happy memories of park visits there, so it is troubling when she hears stories about cast members who are struggling.

And while looking for answers, Disney has come across a lot of people who don’t appreciate her opening previously shut doors.

“I would say I probably love Disney more than any other super fan could possibly love Disney. It’s in my DNA, it’s down to my toes, and I remember every detail and every nuance of both of those parks,” she said. “I will tell you, though, if you really, really, really love something, then you have to see it truthfully and you have to speak the truth about it and it’s not perfect. I wish it were.”

Disney said she knows not everyone will understand her plight or even agree with it, but she believes the company she shares a name with can and must do better by its workers.

“Disney can make money and still be a visionary company, a company that supports the wellbeing of their employees. Both of these things can coexist,” she said. “Unfortunately, the way we run businesses in this country, we’ve come to believe these things are mutually exclusive, that managements must always get workers for as little as they can possibly get workers.”

Disney said it’s not the amount of money CEOs make that bothers her.

“I don’t have a problem with your $65 million, I really don’t. Bless you, you’re welcome to it. But don’t take it until everybody’s fed,” Disney said.

News 6 has also reached out to Walt Disney World for comment, but the company has not responded.