Tomorrowland Is Not Your Friend

Historic photo of Disneyland’s original Tomorrowland in the 1950s featuring the America the Beautiful attraction, classic Tomorrowland pylon, and early park guests—capturing Walt Disney’s opening-year Tomorrowland design.

Happy 2025! I hope your holidays were filled with joy and that your New Year is off to a promising start. While none of us can predict exactly what the next twelve months will bring, I’m already anticipating and looking…

It All Started with a “Morse”

Have you ever wondered what Walt Disney would think of social media? From Facebook to Instagram, Snapchat to TikTok, it’s hard to imagine Walt having to deal with today’s technologies. But he did. At least in his own way. Earlier…

Winnie-the-Pooh and Which One Are You?

Pooh Bear turns fifty this month! No silly bear, not A. A. Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh. His birthday isn’t until August. August 21 to be exact. Deena Annette’s Pooh Bear! Deena is my “little” sister, and her birthday is this Friday, March…

Disagreeable Disney Part 3

Following the success of Steamboat Willie in late 1928, Walt set the standard for animators, animation studios, and short cartoons. It was one story after another—all filled with farm animals, gags, and belly laughs. Soon enough, Walt hated it. What…

Disagreeable Disney

I’m wrong. I’ve been wrong for years. This year marks the ten-year anniversary of me teaching, speaking, and writing on Disney. I’ve been reading and researching for more than thirty. All this time, I’ve had this image of Walt as…

Kevin on the Bridge

Happy Valentine’s Day! Lyndsey and I will be celebrating the day at Walt Disney World. We are here in Florida for another speaking engagement. When we first met, she had never been to Orlando. Now, this is her eighth trip…

Surrender to Serendipity

Now that it’s all behind us, Lyndsey and I are finally decompressing from our Long December and the craziness that was Fall 2023. Between my writing, speaking, and traveling, plus her schooling, working, graduating, and planning most of the wedding,…

Catastrophe Canyon

If you were a guest at Walt Disney World’s Hollywood Studios back in the day, you no doubt remember a section of the Backlot Tour called “Catastrophe Canyon.” There you experienced an elaborate special effects show in which Disney simulated…

A E I O U

Jeff Barnes wedding vows

Happy 2024! It feels like forever since my last email in mid-December. The past few weeks have been a wild whirlwind. Lyndsey graduated. Three days later we got married. The next day we flew to Walt Disney World and enjoyed…

Eight for You, Two for Me

flo's cafe disneyland jeff barnes

This might come as a shock, but not every day at Disneyland is great. In fact, I’ve even had a few that weren’t even good. It doesn’t happen often. But it does happen. May 25, 2022 was one of those…

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