Save Small World, ride creator’s family begs Disneyland
An “idiotic plan” to add Mickey Mouse and other Disney characters as well as an American tribute scene to Disneyland’s It’s a Small World represents a “gross desecration” that would “bastardize” the stylized artwork and “marginalize” the original theme of the boat ride, wrote the family of the classic attraction’s creator in an open letter to Disney executives.
Disney Imagineers are considering changes to Small World that include adding Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Peter Pan, Belle, Simba, Nemo, Lilo and Stitch to locations throughout the ride while replacing the Papua, New Guinea, rain forest scene with an American tribute, reported MiceAge’s Al Lutz.
“Ripping out a rain forest (imaginary or otherwise) and replacing it with misplaced patriotism is a public relations blunder so big you could run a Monorail through it,” wrote Kevin Blair, son of Small World creator Mary Blair, on behalf of the family.
Disney officials said some additions — known as “plussing” in Imagineering parlance — will be made to Small World but that no decision had been made on specific creative changes to the 14-minute ride despite the speculation.
“No one approaches our classic attractions with more reverence than Disney Imagineers who take great care when refreshing beloved attractions,” said Marilyn Waters, a Disney Imagineering spokeswoman. “As with all our classics, any enhancements made to It’s a Small World will be in the original spirit of celebrating the children of the world.”
ReImagineering, an unofficial online forum for past and present Disney Imagineers to catalog missteps and debate solutions, called the “egregious and downright disgusting” proposed Small World changes a “brutal dismissal” of Mary Blair’s “profound and enduring influence on the Disney aesthetic.”
“This is not a change at Disneyland to take lightly,” the ReImagineering editorial stated. “Letters should go out to all corners of the company pleading for a halt to the desecration of Small World once and for all.”
MiceAge’s Dateline Disneyland columnist Andy Castro has championed an online campaign to “Save the Rainforest,” urging Small World fans to call, write or e-mail Disneyland, Walt Disney Imagineering or Disney’s corporate headquarters to put a halt to the proposed changes.
Kevin Blair sent snail-mail versions of his protest letter to Disneyland President Ed Grier, Disney Imagineering’s Marty Sklar and Tony Baxter and Pixar chief John Lasseter.
Small World went down for a 10-month rehab in January to replace the original flume and fleet of boats used at the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair, where the ride debuted.
The Mouse still insists the Small World overhaul has absolutely nothing to do with the ever-increasing waistlines of Americans.
Find the latest amusement and theme park news at the
Los Angeles Times Funland blog: www.latimes.com/funland.
— Brady MacDonald, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
[Image: Disney]
60 Comments on “Save Small World, ride creator’s family begs Disneyland”
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March 19th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
Yet again, treating Al Lutz’s paranoid ravings as fact. That’s some quality reportering, Brady.
March 19th, 2008 at 6:58 pm
[...] The letter was published on the Re-Imagineering blog, a blog which often speaks out when corporate Disney looks to dismantle authenticity from Walt Disney’s Disneyland. The LA Times picked up the letter and published a commentary on it in their Daily Travel and Deal Blog. [...]
March 19th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
Mr. Rumormonger: I didn’t exactly hear Marilyn Waters, a Disney Imagineering spokeswoman, actually deny Lutz’ rumors of Mickey and Co. invading Small World. Paranoid ravings, or not..this is a talker
March 19th, 2008 at 7:56 pm
“Yet again, treating Al Lutz’s paranoid ravings as fact. That’s some quality reportering, Brady.”
This is a blog, not a newspaper.
March 19th, 2008 at 8:32 pm
o yeh, sure, you want me to swallow your opinion that disney engineers are incapable of putting together an attraction that most of us would be more than willing to pay money to go see. like they have no experience at that at all, right?
and what is this “misplaced patriotism ” bull. interesting how that got into a disney story along with such lovely sentiments as “desecration” and “bastardize”.
wow, just wow.
March 19th, 2008 at 10:30 pm
If people want to see all those characters, just walk around the park and they’ll find them. They don’t need to put the characters on this ride, because they’re on every single other ride. That’s not what “It’s a Small World” is about.
March 20th, 2008 at 3:25 am
Oh God - there is a recession and an election and a war going on and THIS is worth our time? Seriously?
The Walt Disney Company has every right to do whatever it pleases with the properties it created and owns…
And let’s be frank - Mary Blair’s contributions, as any other Disney artist’s, are the property of the company. And this is a theme park attraction, not the David, people.
It would be nice, I think, to let the people hired to do their jobs (the Imagineers) do it - and, if we don’t like it, start taking art and engineering classes so we can make those changes ourselves when we are Imagineers.
March 20th, 2008 at 5:17 am
David, Small World is about national diversity and how we’re all alike in the world. Not about any one national patriotism. The axiom says there is a time and a place for everything. As Blair pointed out, Main Street USA, or even Frontierland would have been a more appropriate place for patriotic fervor, as opposed to an attraction celebrating international unity.
March 20th, 2008 at 7:21 am
Do what you want with Small World. Just DON’T put Hannah Montana and the Jones Bros. in the exhibit. Yecch!
March 20th, 2008 at 9:04 am
They should refurbish as needed, but leave small world the same…some things don’t need to change. I believe most people love it the way it is.
March 20th, 2008 at 9:06 am
If they need to add something to “Small World,” it’s a figure representing Filipinos. Filipinos and Filipino-Americans make up one of the largest groups in California, for heaven’s sakes.
March 20th, 2008 at 9:07 am
All I can say is if you ever get stuck in the ride for 45 minutes when the ride breaks you will never want to hear that music again.
It’s been many years since it happened to me and I still avoid the ride when I can. A change would be a good thing.
March 20th, 2008 at 9:27 am
Walt Disney Imagineering used to care about original design intent whenever the group would augment the cultural institution and public treasure that Disneyland is. But, adding random Disney characters to an attraction that is a faux-naif “prayer for peace,” in the words of its creators, can only detract from the essential nature of that, which is a widely-venerated artistic work. Surely, people within the Disney organization know this fact, but they, and their objections, are again being subjugated by a toxic bureaucracy that persists in making creative decisions for business reasons. Yet, each time The Walt Disney Company does so, it finds both artistic and commercial failure. That legacy of corporate hubris and irrationality is the gift of Michael Eisner that keeps on giving. His successor, Bob Iger, has to take decisive action in the next few months to return Disney to something that resembles the organization’s configuration before 1994. And, the best way to start is by preventing Eisner’s minions, chiefly Jay Rasulo, from continuing to mismanage the under-performing Parks & Resorts business segment.
March 20th, 2008 at 9:31 am
LEAVE SMALL WORLD ALONE. if it’s not broken, then don’t fix it.
March 20th, 2008 at 9:45 am
That won’t be the first peaceful ride to be “Bastardized”
At 6-Flags over Texas they replaced the calm, romantic Spelunker’s Cave with a Bugs Bunny ride.
Welcome to modern America.
March 20th, 2008 at 10:20 am
I first went to Disneyland when I was 33 years old. it was and still is one of the best days of my life. However, that aside, the only ride I found to be excruciating was the Small World ride. Forget waterboarding, just send them on a continuous loop of Its a Small World After All and they will tell us whatever it is we want to know. If they change this ride, in my book, its no loss.
March 20th, 2008 at 10:21 am
A little change is fine. The Imagineers can’t possibly mess up this ride. I’m “Disneyland Freak” myself, but some other Disneyland fans out there are a little too crazy about their personal “DON’T CHANGE ANYTHING” philosophy for Disneyland. This is a classic ride, and the Imagineers understand the significance of the ride and they know what they’re doing.
March 20th, 2008 at 10:23 am
DISNEY OUT OF DISNEYLAND NOW! When will people realize that Imagineering is at the root of everything that’s wrong at Disney’s theme parks? All new attractions should have their creative elements planned and approved by a council of pin collectors, “insider” bloggers, super-fans, embittered ex-Cast Members and puffy man-children, and we ought to hold our breath and threaten to run away from home until they do just that.
By the way, if everyone who said they’ve been stuck on “small world” for 45 minutes had actually been stuck on the ride for 45 minutes, the building would by now have a small population living in it full-time. Buck up, little camper! The tune’s not so bad.
March 20th, 2008 at 11:06 am
This is the same arguement made when they plussed the Pirates Of The Carribean ride with characters from the movies and that seemed have turned out pretty well while keeping to the spirit of the ride. Change at Disneyland is inevitable because it will never be finished. Imagineers are a creative group so while there are missteps occasionally let them be creative because no ride is untouchable. I am sure Walt would be doing exactly the same thing to the park if he were around today.
March 20th, 2008 at 11:12 am
Several people who follow Walt Disney do so as investors.
I’m one such person. And, I measure companies by two factors, principally: (1.) the value of the portfolio of assets; and, (2.) the quality of the management.
The Walt Disney Company has always excelled by the first measure, especially since intellectual property is so difficult to evaluate. “it’s a small world” happens to be one of the more outstanding pieces in a portfolio filled with greatness. So, I don’t especially care to see that extraordinary and rare value destroyed because of simple mismanagement.
Several other investors felt the same way in 2003 when they chose to fight Walt Disney’s board, instead of merely selling their shares. And, the same impulse prevails in these most recent criticisms of Disney’s ineffective leadership and creative bankruptcy.
March 20th, 2008 at 11:24 am
Its a Small World has been a joke for years, it needs to be updated. Adding the Pirates Movie into the Pirates ride has been a greate enhancement. I normally do not go on the Small World ride because it now seems so stale.
March 20th, 2008 at 11:29 am
Screamscape says: “I have to admit I am interested in seeing how Disney can add in a few Disney characters into the mix on It’s A Small World.”
— Brady MacDonald / Los Angeles Times staff writer + theme park blogger
March 20th, 2008 at 11:41 am
ITS NOT BROKEN.MY CHILDREN LOVED IT AND IT WOULD BE A NICE THING TO BE ABLE TO ENJOY THE SAME RIDE WITH ALL THE GRANDCHILDREN…..
March 20th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
This blog is as laughable as it is pathetic. Al Lutz is NOT the definitive word on all things Disney, altought he would like to think he is.
Mr. Lutz posts rumor and gossip as fact.
Walt Disney said himself that Disneyland would never be complete as long as there was imagination left in the world. Enough said.
I didn’t hear any belly-aching when Disney “plussed” Pirates or the Haunted Mansion, hummm?
When you quote Al Lutz, you have to consider the source.
March 20th, 2008 at 1:02 pm
Disney Blog says:
“I’m as patriotic as the next man, but the signal Disney sends by literally tearing down the rain forest to replace it with scenes of America’s strength is at best impolitic… I won’t even go into how absurd an idea it is to add Disney Characters to the classic attraction at Disneyland.”
Mouse Extra says:
“I understand the children of Mrs. Blair want her terrific creations to endure forever, but that is simply not the Disney way. For better or for worse, Walt wanted time to march on inside the park. I know this may not be a popular notion among Disney purists, but it is what it is.”
— Brady MacDonald / Los Angeles Times staff writer + theme park blogger
March 20th, 2008 at 1:23 pm
TMZ picks up the Small World story:
Disney Ruining the World? No, not our world, the Small one.
(Squeezed right between Hulk Hogan and Lindsay Lohan.)
— Brady MacDonald / Los Angeles Times staff writer + theme park blogger
March 20th, 2008 at 5:18 pm
[...] Yesterday I read another article in the LA Times that’s says the original designer of the ride is pissed at Disney for wanting to change the entire theme by removing some things and replacing them with new modern characters like Nemo and Mickey Mouse. My thoughts on this are why not? The Mouse owns the theme park so why the Mouse can’t be placed into the ride. [...]
March 20th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
what are you worrying about i have yet to see the imagineers do the wrong thing don’t worry .
March 20th, 2008 at 7:19 pm
I was a young boy in 1964 when I rode ‘It’s a Small World’ at the New York Worlds fair. All the riders were New Yorkers.
Twenty five years later, I rode it again at Disney World. I was the only American on the boat. It truly had become a small world and Disney has had a big part in helping bridge many international gaps.
It’s a Small World should be preserved as a piece of Art and Cultural History. It, in its own innocent way may have help prevent World War and planted seeds of peace for the millions of people that have been exposed to this amazing 10 minute experience.
Just based on that, we should preserve this experience for future generations.
I visited “It’s a Small World” with my 7 year old daughter in March 2008 and felt I had passed on a spiritual endowment to her. I hope she will do the same for her children.
David Baker
Galesburg, MI
March 21st, 2008 at 4:50 am
I took all my kids to Disneyland every year for many years and they always asked to ride on “Small World.” I don’t think it requires any “improvement” as the ride is perfect for its intended audience. There is enough Mickey and the other characters around the park as it is. I am retired US Army and if patriotism is needed in the minds of the imagineers, let them imagine it in Frontierland or Main Street. Leave Small World as it is.
March 21st, 2008 at 10:11 am
JD Says: “Oh God - there is a recession and an election and a war going on and THIS is worth our time? Seriously?”
Man, I hate this kind of argument. Yes, there are more important things, but we’re still allowed to be passionate about things like art and theme park attractions.
If you’re so high-minded as to be above it, why are you reading a theme park blog in the first place, let alone taking precious serious-worrying time to comment about it?
March 21st, 2008 at 12:48 pm
Blue Sky Disney says:
“The changes involved in adding the characters were supposed to be subtle with the style fitting more closely to that of Blair’s artwork, but it has a divided camp inside WDI as well. Some feel that they shouldn’t be messing with the classic attraction while others feel the need to tinker with the ride now that there is an opening during this long refurbishment.”
— Brady MacDonald / Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
March 21st, 2008 at 1:04 pm
[...] The Los Angeles Times Blog also claims that other characters might be going in. There’s also claims that Disney is ripping out the entire rain forest section and replacing it with an American tribute. The family of the ride’s original creator have started a protest against the changes. The family said, “Ripping out a rain forest (imaginary or otherwise) and replacing it with misplaced patriotism is a public relations blunder so big you could run a Monorail through it.” [...]
March 21st, 2008 at 1:31 pm
[...] The Los Angeles Times Blog also claims that other characters might be going in. There’s also claims that Disney is ripping out the entire rain forest section and replacing it with an American tribute. The family of the ride’s original creator have started a protest against the changes. The family said, “Ripping out a rain forest (imaginary or otherwise) and replacing it with misplaced patriotism is a public relations blunder so big you could run a Monorail through it.” [...]
March 21st, 2008 at 3:27 pm
[...] The Los Angeles Times Blog also claims that other characters might be going in. There’s also claims that Disney is ripping out the entire rain forest section and replacing it with an American tribute. The family of the ride’s original creator have started a protest against the changes. The family said, “Ripping out a rain forest (imaginary or otherwise) and replacing it with misplaced patriotism is a public relations blunder so big you could run a Monorail through it.” [...]
March 21st, 2008 at 4:54 pm
Why didn’t anyone scream bloody murder when Disney added the rain forest scene when the ride arrived in Anaheim? Probly because there were no self-styled internet know-it-alls who were trying to delude each other into thinking that they knew more about Imagineering than the Imagineers. That WAS a loss.
And don’t go see ‘it’s a small world’ in any other Disney Park. Each one is different. The best one, BTW, is in Paris. The Hong Kong version will be augmented with the characters to help the Chinese get to know them.
If you want to see Disney characters in DL, you can’t ‘just step outside’. You have to stand in line these days.
And the fact that they’re adding America does not make it a “patriotic diatribe”. To foreign visitors, there’s nothing exotic about seeing their own country represented. What they get excited about is seeing American traditions. Why do you think Tokyo DL insisted they have a Westernland included in their park, with signs everywhere in english?
And as regards the Blair family; they should be proud of Mary’s designs, something that contributed invaluably to the Disney brand. And we’re all grateful. She even got a doll of her put in the ride. But her name is not on the ride, because it isn’t hers. It belongs to the company, folks.
And, while it has BECOME a tribute to the children of the world, that would never have happened if it wasn’t created in order to sell Pepsi.
March 22nd, 2008 at 5:54 am
Revamping the ride to include disney characters will condition kids to further expect that in order for things to be “interesting” they must contain references to movies they like or favorite cartoon characters. The addition would likely (intentionally or otherwise) shift riders focus from celebrating cultural diversity to now playing a “where’s waldo” type game spotting each of the movie character in each of the dioramas, and likely young riders will be remembering less of the disney character’s backdrop, the original ride. While each of the Small World iterations — the original and the ‘disney-fied’, may offer enjoyable rider experiences, I’d argue the takeaways a young rider could potentially get from the ride “sans-nemo” would be more lasting and valuable.
March 22nd, 2008 at 12:35 pm
I still miss The Country Bear Jamboree!
March 23rd, 2008 at 11:41 pm
Sorry to all of you who are opposed to the remodeling, but the ride is IDIOTIC. I took my kids to Disneyland for their birthdays, and the ride was stopped. My 6 year old son started crying because the music was so annoying, and the dolls are creepy. That ride needed a HUGE facelift 10 years ago, but better late than never!
March 24th, 2008 at 10:40 am
Disney has done a super fantastic job in the past. Just let the imagineers do what they do best.However, if they want to make changes, why were the excuses of Fatter bodies used? March 2008, we were riding the horse drawn carrige down main street.A couple sitting in the seat behind us asked why Small World was closed. The disney worker then begin telling this big story about the ever so expanding waist lines of the fat people. How about not craming so many bodies into the ride. How about if you want to make changes make them. Why do they need an excuse.It was a bit offensive to me, and to my Mother.(We are of normal size, and she is 65 and this was her first trip to Disneyland.)
March 24th, 2008 at 12:24 pm
Don’t change a thing. The ride is a great way to sit in a/c for 15 minutes or so. Plus, my husband always falls asleep before the tunnel!
March 24th, 2008 at 1:02 pm
I think the Blairs shot themselves in the collective foot with their strident opposition to updating “it’s a small world” to include a reference to the United States (currently represented by one cowboy and one Indian at the very end). As popular as running down American patriotism may be in some quarters, the Disney suits know the country as a whole doesn’t go to quite those extremes.
The real travesty is the insertion of Disney characters into the ride. I sincerely hope that if that abortion of an idea comes to fruition, some good honest fellow plinks Simba, Stitch & Co. with a BB gun. Call it a boat-by shooting.
March 24th, 2008 at 1:35 pm
if a 6 year old boy started crying on this ride, it is not because of the ride…
March 24th, 2008 at 1:46 pm
biddieboo2 Says:
March 20th, 2008 at 10:20 am
“I first went to Disneyland when I was 33 years old. it was and still is one of the best days of my life. However, that aside, the only ride I found to be excruciating was the Small World ride. Forget waterboarding, just send them on a continuous loop of Its a Small World After All and they will tell us whatever it is we want to know. If they change this ride, in my book, its no loss.”
My thoughts exactly. I would jump into the water and drown myself if I got stuck on that ride.
March 24th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
Of course the only thing the “Save the Rain Forest” campaign is actually preserving is the Disney marketing budget. Disney is getting homepage LA Times free publicity to advertise their 99 cent enhancement of a forgotten ride, for which most parents will love their gleeful kids screaming “look Daddy… there’s Mickey and Nemo!”. The Blairs are playing right into the “Million Dreams” marketing strategy. Controversy. Did the Imagineers botch Small World? Find out by spending 60 bucks to come find out!
The “Save Small World” limited edition pins are leaving China as we speak.
March 24th, 2008 at 4:21 pm
Your kid needs to see a psychiatrist if they are crying and scared when they ride “Its a Smallworld”.
March 24th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
…does anyone have a life outside of Disneyland? …Dont like it? …go to Knotts Berry Farm.
March 24th, 2008 at 6:08 pm
[...] From TMZ.com: No, not our world, the Small one. According to the LA Times, the family of the woman who helped create “It’s a Small World” is begging Disney not to screw up the iconic ride with “idiotic” changes. [...]
March 24th, 2008 at 7:25 pm
My two cents. “Small World” seemed shabby in recent years. The acoustics were awful.
Sometimes an upgrade is in order. I think this is one of those times.
I remember first seeing “Small World” at the New York World’s Fair in 1965 (for age guessers, I’m 56). I then saw it again at Disneyland when my family moved to California in 1970.
Similarly, the “Carousel of Progress” was a New York World’s Fair staple. It was moved to Disneyland too, but was no longer functioning by the 1980s. I miss it. But I also miss the “wow” I used to think/feel when I took a boat ride through “Small World.”
With advances in technology during the last 47 years, I would thick we can have the best of both worlds: an iconic Disneyland attraction well maintained but also with higher quality animatronics and sounds.
March 24th, 2008 at 7:58 pm
Bring back Captain EO!
March 24th, 2008 at 8:02 pm
Ugh! I still get a headache when I think of that song. They can blow the whole thing up as far as I’m concerned… and no, I was never stuck on it for 45 minutes; 14 was enough!
Now, perhaps if they spiced up the tune with a little more cowbell…
March 25th, 2008 at 11:31 am
With the success of the 50th Anniversary Celebration, one would think the Disney Corporation would see that nostalgia is profitable, that the public is willing to pay to see their most adored rides taken care of and lovingly restored.
Disney can’t buy nostagia from a warehouse and install it. It has been built in the hearts and minds of over fifty years of visitor experiences in their park. They would be wise not to squandor such a precious commidiy. It is what makes them successful. After all, Six Flags has better rides. But Disney parks are living breathing works of art.
They have been created to stir emotions in those that visit. The colors, the shapes, the smells, the textures, they all create feelings of home and happiness.
That is art. Sure, Disney is profitable and accessible to the masses, but that is the genius of it. Profitable works of the highest creation.
The Victorian houses of San Francisco were once considered eyesores. Watch films of the 1980’s and the “white trash” houses are Craftsman era homes.
Let It’s a Small World exist as it is. Lovingly bring it back after the rehab to its original glory. Look at the success of the Tiki Room! It was let to rot in the hopes it could be bulldozed. Now, lines wrap around Adventureland for a Dole Whip. The art that Shag created for the 40th anniversary sells for $12,000+.
If an imagineer or an executive doesn’t understand why it is important to preserve It’s a Small World, maybe they should be working for Bugs Bunny.
March 25th, 2008 at 5:21 pm
[...] Officials confirmed that Alice is one of several Disney characters that will be added to Disneyland’s Small World in a controversial plan that has infuriated some purists. Officials have insisted that Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse will not appear in the Anaheim attraction. [...]
March 31st, 2008 at 8:53 am
I am for improvements at Disneyland but the Small World should be left alone. I am 65 and have grandchildren who have been on both the Small World rides. They say keep it the same.
June 16th, 2008 at 9:07 pm
It is a very sad world we live in! Will there be anything left from our childhood to share with our grandchildren? I think Walt Disney is rolling in his grave, IF ITS NOT BROKEN DON’T FIX IT!!!!!!!!
July 21st, 2008 at 8:18 pm
This ride is a disneyland classic and we think it should stay the same. I bet Walt Disney would not like this at all.
October 17th, 2008 at 3:44 pm
Jim-
I would like to point out that there is one Filippino woman in traditional dress located right after the mermaids. Not very much, but Phillipines are represented. They just don’t have enough room to thoroughly cover everything. I say lets double the size of the ride and expand it!
May 1st, 2009 at 1:20 pm
“No one approaches our classic attractions with more reverence than Disney Imagineers who take great care when refreshing beloved attractions,” said Marilyn Waters, a Disney Imagineering spokeswoman.
+++++++
These are just exceedingly empty words designed to conceal arrogance of the current Disney powers, pacify the public and dismiss its concerns. Going by their actions, the current Disney leadership has the most distain for the incredible work of Walt Disney and his hand-picked team. They have, one by one, been dismantling the best of Walt’s work and replacing it with something far less brillant. The Tiki Room - Under New Management was just one of their desasters. I think Walt would have fired some of these people in a heart beat.
May 1st, 2009 at 1:22 pm
“No one approaches our classic attractions with more reverence than Disney Imagineers who take great care when refreshing beloved attractions,” said Marilyn Waters, a Disney Imagineering spokeswoman.
+++++++++++
These are just empty words. To the contrary, I think no one has more distain for Walt Disney and his hand-picked team than the current Disney leadership. They have been dismantling Walt’s work piece by piece. The Tiki Room, Under New Management is just one of their disasters. I think Walt would have fired many of these 2nd Rate “Artists” a heart beat.
September 2nd, 2009 at 1:15 am
Imagineer Writes Book about Doing Business in China.
“The Tragic Kingdom, or; “Prisoner in a Chinese Theme Park”, (found on all bookstore websites such as amazon.com, borders, etc), is a behind-the-scenes look into the field of design and build in China. The book is a profile of the personalities, culture, and psychology of the world’s most massive looming superpower as seen through the eyes of an ex-pat American.
I have witnessed a formidable decade in which China has commanded a modern presence on the world stage and have participated in the planning, designing, and building of mega-theme parks in Beijing, world-class aquariums in Shanghai, gigantic malls in the Pearl Delta, resorts in Tibet, and panda relocation projects in the foothills of the Himalayas.
The stories and themes found in The Tragic Kingdom spring from one man’s journey. At the same time I believe they disclose truths about a globalization that eventually will impact every economy, lifestyle, and person on the planet.