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 o