Walt Disney Think Tank Will Study Disneyland’s Impact on the World – Daily Breeze

A research university in Orange County, located in the shadow of Disneyland, could soon be home to an academic think tank dedicated to studying the work of Walt Disney and the Anaheim theme park’s impact on the world.

Disney historian Jeff Curtti and Chapman University professor Brian Alters are exploring the possibility of creating a Walt Disney think tank at the research university located 5 miles from Disneyland in Old Town Orange.

Disney historian Jeff Curtti (left) and Chapman University professor Brian Alters. (Courtesy of Chapman University)

The think tank will examine the life, legacy and global impact of Disneyland’s founder, as well as his impact on art, music, culture, business, economic development, transportation, urban planning, themed environments, placemaking, science, technology and innovation.

“The Walt Disney think tank is such an interesting and deep area,” Kurtti said during a phone interview. “Even today, almost 60 years after his death, what he intended is still relevant. People keep coming back to them. Our goal is to explore this aspect of Walt Disney’s personality – biographically, creatively and professionally.”

Walt Disney tells visitor Bob Thomas of the Associated Press in Anaheim where two Disneyland trains will stop to pick up passengers for a tour of the property. The train station in the background will be Disneyland's first attraction for visitors. There will be two entrances to the territory on both sides of the station. (Photo courtesy of Associated Press) — Walt Disney tells visitor Bob Thomas of the Associated Press in Anaheim where two Disneyland trains will stop to pick up passengers for a tour of the property. The train station in the background will be Disneyland’s first attraction for visitors. There will be two entrances to the territory on both sides of the station. (Photo courtesy of Associated Press)

Alters taught science and education at Chapman, Harvard and McGill universities. His most popular lesson at Chapman is “The Quest for Happiness and Knowledge: Charles Darwin and Walt Disney.”

“As a visionary whose career spanned multiple industries and continues to shape everyday life around the world, Walt Disney remains woefully understudied from an academic perspective,” Alters said in a statement released by Chapman.

Walt Disney, shown in December 1958, points out features of the technologically advanced monorail system that opened at Disneyland the following year. Disney's television shows and its theme parks often celebrated the wonders of scientific discovery. (File photo by Don Brinn, Associated Press) — Walt Disney, shown in December 1958, points out features of the technologically advanced monorail system that opened at Disneyland the following year. Disney’s television shows and its theme parks often celebrated the wonders of scientific discovery. (File photo by Don Brinn, Associated Press)

According to Kurtti, almost everything Walt Disney worked on either expanded a concept, developed an idea, or pushed it forward with a new impetus that still resonates today.

“Whether it’s movies, music, parks or landscaping, these are all things that Walt Disney still touches, long after he’s gone,” Curtti said.

Walt Disney looks at one of the figures that would become part of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland in this photo taken circa 1966. Disney died in December 1966 and never got to ride the completed attraction, which opened on March 18, 1967. (Photo credit: Walt Disney Imagineering and Disney Enterprises, Inc.)

Throughout his career, Kurtti worked for Walt Disney Imagineering, served as creative director of the Walt Disney Family Museum, and wrote dozens of books on Disney history.

Kurtti first visited Disneyland as a child in 1971 and instantly became a “huge Disney fan.” He was hired by Disney in 1986 and spent the next several decades working on projects at Disneyland.

“I always get this great feeling because it’s Walt’s park,” Curtti said. “This is the one he laid his hands on.”

ALSO SEE: Disneyland closes 5 attractions during busy Thanksgiving season

Kurtti can’t think of a better place for a Walt Disney think tank than Chapman University.

“In the evening I would sit and work on my laptop and hear the fireworks every night at 9:30 because it’s very close to Disneyland,” Curtti said. “It’s as if Chapman was created to have something important to do with the study of Walt Disney.”

Alters and Kurtti are expected to complete a feasibility study for the Walt Disney Think Tank in about a year.