Disney Origin Stories

I’m a longtime comic book fan, and one of my favorite issues of any comic series is the origin issue.  Finding out how these characters became who they are, how they got their powers and what motivates them was, and is, always interesting to me.  The same is true for talking to people about how they became such huge Disney fans. 

For everyone Disney World nut that you meet, you’re likely to hear a different story about why they became such a huge fan.  Some went with their parents or grandparents and had such a good time they tried to relive it when they got older.  Others never went to Disney as a kid, but enjoyed the magic as an adult and were hooked.  The common theme that everyone shares is that one day they were in the parks and just ended up being taken in by the magic.

 My story is sort of a hybrid of the two.  My first trips to Disney World were as a kid, much like I’m sure many people experienced.  The difference was, I went with my grandfather.  He was an amazing man, who had been out in California on business around the time Disneyland opened.  One day he managed to get away from his group and head over to Walt’s park, and from that day forward he was hooked.

My grandpa used to take my cousins and I to Disney World, picking them up in Virginia, then driving down and spending the night at our house in Atlanta.  I didn’t know it at the time, but my Mom and Dad have told me he never slept the night before we would leave.  They would hear him pacing the floor on the balcony upstairs, muttering through his plans for the next day.  My grandfather was the original obsessive Disney planner.

We went several times as a kid, including right after EPCOT Center opened.  I remember the wonder of the video phones, the amazing animatronic attractions, and Communicore!  I even got my picture taken with SMRT-1, and it ended up in Southern Living Magazine.  

Like anyone, though, as I grew up and got “cooler,” my Disney days fell behind me.  Until I met a girl, of course.  My wife re-introduced me to the Disney films, and it was a no-brainer that we would go to Walt Disney World for our honeymoon.  Since we were poor, just out of school kids at the time, though, we couldn’t afford another big trip for 3 long years. 

When we ended up taking another big Disney trip, though, it wasn’t to Walt Disney World.  No, instead, we flew across the country to Disneyland.  You see, in the three years in between trips, I had started reading and learning about Walt, his vision and how Disneyland had come to be.  I had to see the original.

That was my eye opening experience.  Seeing Disneyland came after a long and hard year for me, with deaths in the family, horrible work troubles, cancer scares and more.  The feeling I had when I walked through those gates and under the train tracks is something I cannot describe.  I’m sure you all understand why I cried when I first caught sight of Sleeping Beauty Castle. 

Since I returned from that trip, I’ve gone to either Disneyland or Walt Disney World at least twice a year every year.  That was 10 years ago.  Illness, the births of my two children, lack of funds and any other obstacle did not and will not stand in the way of my trips.  I’m an AP holder now, and don’t see myself taking less trips any time soon. 

So…that’s my Disney origin story?  What’s yours?  What was the one thing that turned you from a one or two time Disney World visitor to a lifelong fan or lover of the World?

Thanks to Widen Your World for the SMRT-1 image.