Overview
A history of the engineering marvels behind one of America's most innovative and beloved entertainment experiences When Disneyland opened to the public in 1955, it demystified the hidden world of factory automation through its extraordinary new attractions. In this fascinating book, Roland Betancourt tells the story of how the visionary engineers and designers at Disney transformed the technologies of the postwar assembly line into an entertainment experience unlike anything the world had ever seen. Disneyland and the Rise of Automation traces the origins and evolution of these technical innovations during the theme park's first three decades in operation, exploring how engineers reimagined the systems and machines of industrial manufacturing and the military. The magnetic tape used to test ballistic missiles was repurposed to animate the talking macaws in the Enchanted Tiki Room. Programmable Logic Controllers, widely used on automotive assembly lines, brought to life the spectacular rides of the Matterhorn Bobsleds and Space Mountain. Betancourt shows how these and other attractions helped to allay fears about automation and job displacement in 1950s America. Along the way, he situates Disneyland's remarkable creations within a broader history of the technologies that increasingly order and construct the world around us, from the Fordist factory to artificial intelligence. Essential reading for anyone interested in engineering, corporate histories, or popular culture, Disneyland and the Rise of Automation invites us to consider how technology and the logic of automation become integrated into our lives through entertainment.
Full Product Details
Author: Roland Betancourt
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Imprint: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 9780691255873
ISBN 10: 0691255873
Pages: 416
Publication Date: 28 April 2026
Audience:
College/higher education
,
Professional and scholarly
,
General/trade
,
Tertiary & Higher Education
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: Not yet available
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Reviews
""Richly supported by advertisements, comics, TV documentaries, magazine articles, technical drawings, and more, Betancourt's history contextualizes the public’s changing attitudes toward automation and how its gradual popularity affected—and devalued—human labor, specialization, and unions. . . . The parallels between automation history and today’s anxiety about AI do make for a timely read. "" * Booklist *
Author Information
Roland Betancourt is Chancellor's Professor in the Department of Art History at the University of California, Irvine, and a 2023 Guggenheim Fellow. His books include the prize-winning Byzantine Intersectionality: Sexuality, Gender, and Race in the Middle Ages (Princeton) and Performing the Gospels in Byzantium: Sight, Sound, and Space in the Divine Liturgy.
