Growing up in Disneyland by Ron DeFore


Publisher:  Waldorf Publishing (July 15, 2019)
Category: Memoir, Disneyland, Entertainer Biographies, Coming of Age
Tour dates: Oct-Nov, 2019
ISBN: 1643166263
Available in Print and ebook, 348 pages

Description Growing up in Disneyland by Ron DeFore

Part biography about TV and movie star, Don DeFore, and his son’s accounts of life in a celebrity family and beyond. Don DeFore made more than 35 movies in the ‘40s through the ‘60s and co-starred in more than a dozen.  He is best known for his role as “Thorny” the first next-door-neighbor on “The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet” and “Mr.B” in the 1960s TV sitcom, “Hazel.” The book includes much of Don’s unpublished autobiography, ‘Hollywood-DeFore ‘n After.’

‘Growing up in Disneyland’ is a metaphor for Ron’s life growing up in a celebrity family filled with Fantasyland adventures he equates to a Forest Gump type life, from meeting the Beatles, Beach Boys, Led Zeppelin, and other celebrities as Associate Director of the Steve Allen Show. His nearly 20 careers include a mid-life crisis as the Flying DJ at an L.A. discotheque to political positions within the Reagan Presidential Administration to establishing his own company. ‘Growing up in Disneyland’ is also to be taken literally, as Ron spent much of his youth in Disneyland where his father owned “Don DeFore’s Silver Banjo Barbecue” restaurant in Frontierland. Ron and his brother, Dave, have given presentations to various Disneyland interest groups after which many attendees suggested, you should write a book.

‘Growing up in Disneyland’ will be enjoyed by any age group from baby-boomers that remember Don DeFore’s many beloved acting roles to those that don’t but are curious how life was in the good-old-days, especially growing up in a Hollywood celebrity family. Ron has had so many careers and adventures along the way that readers will have much to keep them from putting the book down.

Praise Growing up in Disneyland by Ron DeFore

“I enjoyed the flow of the book and how the author kept the momentum going, allowed the reader to adjust and then took them on a journey where they experienced the larger than life personality of Don DeFore. The language was simple yet encouraging. Ron DeFore draws the reader in and once they have entered the colorful world of the DeFore family, they won’t want to leave. Incredibly vivid and entertaining!” – Rabia Tanveer for Readers’ Favorite

“I found the life and works of both author Ron DeFore and his father Don to be a truly fascinating tale of legacy, the surreal nature of fame and the bubble-like existence which that kind of family life brings with it. Ron writes with a candid nature and kind words, recalling many adventures with a nostalgic tone that is sure to hit the hearts of those who were living during the time of the Beatles and the Beach Boys, to name but a few. For me, it was a glimpse into a past I’d no experience of, and the recollections by both Don and Ron brought everything to life with fascinating detail and authentic voices. I learned an awful lot during this heartfelt tale, and I would certainly recommend ‘Growing Up in Disneyland’ to readers who remember the fifties, but also those who would like a true portrait of Hollywood lives at the time.”-K.C. Finn for Readers’ Favorite

“A must Read Biography of a Film Star and Television Icon.  A fascinating read to hear his story from the viewpoint of his son, Ron who experienced every kid’s dream/ a wonderful childhood who had a golden pass to Disneyland”-Rick Lertzman, Amazon Review

Interview With Ron DeFore

TR: Please tell us something about the book that is not in the summary.  (About the book, character you particularly enjoyed writing etc.)

RD4: I mention several key events in the forward to pique the interest of the reader but one that I wish I had included was perhaps the most important thing my Dad did, historically speaking: As president of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences in 1954 he sold the first nationally broadcast Emmy Awards Show to NBC.  This accomplishment surely played a role in his being re-elected for a second term, 1955-1956 and it also led Walt Disney to want to meet the guy that was able to make that happen.

TR: What are some of the ways that your childhood with a famous father and your vast exposure to Disneyland influenced you as an adult?

RD4: I’m not sure the Disneyland exposure played much, if any, role in my adult life other than I have absolutely no desire to go to Disneyland.  In fact, one of the chapters is titled, “Gee Do We Have to Go to Disneyland Again.”  Growing up with a father that was always recognized in public, adored, and sought for autographs definitely influenced me my entire life.  It made me feel special and as if I was always being watched which added an extra incentive to do well.  After Dad passed away, I went through a period, while my company started doing very well, when I owned a pretty fancy house and some pretty fancy cars including (all at one time) a Ferrari, Lamborghini, Rolls Royce, and for my wife, a Corvette, and Cadillac.  I got over that obsession with materialism the day I realized that I was just trying to fill a hole that used to be filled with my Dad’s adoring fans giving him and me so much special attention.  Shortly after that epiphany I got rid of all the toys.

TR: Though ‘Growing Up in Disneyland’ is not a work of fiction, I imagine you knew some real life “characters’”.  Can you tell us about one or two that really stood out for you as a child?

RD4: The most unusual character in my life was a friend of the family, “Bow Wow.”  Not the rapper.  I briefly mention him in the book and that it would take an entire book to explain him.  His real name was Wojciechowicz S. Wojtkiewicz.  I asked him one time what the “S” stood for.  Stanislavnovich was the response. Bow Wow was certainly a lot easier.  Nobody knew where he lived or what he really did for a living but he claimed to know almost every famous celebrity and sports star.  My Dad learned not to question him because he showed up at the house one time with a very famous person.  He was so well known, well-liked, by both the UCLA sports department and Philadelphia Eagles that he was often on the field with them as an unofficial coach.  He was also married, for a few years, to the famous Hollywood gossip columnist, Sheila Graham.  He was well-known for his wild practical jokes he pulled on some very famous people.

TR: What was the first major news story you remember as a child?

RD4: The first news story I recall was in elementary school.  It was the Russians launching Sputnik, hence gaining the lead against America in the race for space.

TR: How much time and effort went into your research for the book?

RD4: I spent nearly two years researching and writing the book.  Amazingly, I was about a month into researching my Dad’s early film productions (all of which were before I was born in 1950) before it dawned on me that I had his unpublished memoirs on my computer!  It was one of those, “duh” moments as well as an indescribable rush of delight–like finding a treasure chest of jewels.  Although the family had previously decided never to attempt to publish it, this was an usual exception–I would include appropriate excerpts (with minor editing) into my book. This was completely acceptable to the family and nothing less than a Godsend.

TR: How long did it take you to complete?

RD4: Research and writing the book was just the first step that took about nine months.  Then it took another three months of finding and scanning the many photographs I included.  These were spread out among more than 20 boxes in my basement.  This process also included cataloguing all of them and drafting appropriate captions for each.  The scariest part was submitting about ten to the Disney Legal Department.  After doing several presentations to various Disney enthusiast groups over the years, I knew the Disney folks do not like several of the stories told in the book.  So, they took their sweet time–nearly ten weeks–to respond to my request and they denied the use of about a half dozen photos.  Fortunately, it really doesn’t affect the overall enjoyment of the book.  A common comment in the many five-star reviews is that people love all the photos.

TR: Where did you get the inspiration for your cover?

RD4: The cover design was not an easy process for me.  It was fairly simple for the publisher’s graphic artist once I gave him directions.  But I had to decide how to depict what is not a common book structure–it is part biography but much of that is in my Dad’s own words so it’s also an autobiography.  But as the author I’m really writing my Dad’s biography and especially the later half of the book which is my own autobiography!  (You’ll probably have to read that twice to fully absorb the complexity!) 

One thing I knew for sure is that the most important element is my Dad and his notoriety.  However, it’s been a half century since he was well-known and even when he was known it was his face, not his name, that most often jogged one’s memory.  So without a doubt, the cover had to include pictures of Dad and I chose photos of his most memorable roles: “Mr. B” in the 1960s TV sitcom, “Hazel,” and “Thorny” the next-door-neighbor role for the first five years of “The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.”  To tie in the Disneyland connection, originally, I chose a photo of me, my sister Dawn, and Walt Disney riding in a horse-drawn carriage in a Disneyland Christmas parade.  However, this is one of the photos for which Disney Legal Department claimed they held copyrights and denied my use of it.  So, I replaced it with a photo of our family riding in Disneyland’s opening day parade in the Autopia cars on Main Street July 17, 1955.

TR: What was your first job?

RD4: That’s not an easy question to answer.  I have a chapter titled, “My 20 Careers” that explains how it depends how you define career or in this case “job.”  We DeFore kids had many jobs around the house for which we’d get paid and I had a pretty lucrative lemonade stand business.  But I guess the first official job, outside the house was as an extra on my Dad’s Hazel TV show but that was just for one day.  The first real on-going job (but only part-time) was as a box boy at a local super market.  I learned how to earn a buck at a very early age and that was due to a fairly conservative upbringing.

TR: What are you currently working on?

RD4:  I’m currently spending most of my time promoting the book which consists of book signings, media interviews, and a lot of activity on more than 75 Facebook pages and groups.  Social media has made promotion of a book far more effective and easier than it would have been prior to the social networking age.

TR: Which actor/actress would you like to see playing the lead characters from ‘Growing Up In Disneyland’?

RD4: Well, first, it would be a very difficult book to convert to a screenplay just because the way I’ve weaved together my Dad’s writings and my own.  It’s non-linear.  And actually, that’s one of the most common positive comments the book has received–that people like the way it is written.  But if I were to cast a couple actors it would be me playing my Dad and “Mr. B” and Gwyneth Paltrow playing my Mom just because I know where she lives (across from the house I grew up in), well, and because I think she’s hot!

TR: Is there a question that you would have liked me or another blogger to ask but didn’t?

RD4:  Yes.  “Why did you wait so long to write this book?” 

RD4: Good question.

About Ron DeFore

Ron DeFore is the second son of movie, television and Broadway star, Don DeFore. He has one brother, David and three sisters, Penny, Dawn, and Autumn.

He has had nearly 20 careers from TV and film production, real estate, Disc Jockey, senior executive in the Reagan Administration, to forming his own successful public relations firm in Washington, D.C.

Ron has since retired from his firm and continues to consult and write, “Growing up in Disneyland” being his major project since 2018. Ron is married to Laurie Gambino

Website: https://growingupindisneyland.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrowingUpinDisneyland
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Moviestarson
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sonofmoviestar/

Actor Don DeFore Fan Club

Website: https://www.defore.net/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/DonDeFore/members/

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Giveaway Growing up in Disneyland by Ron DeFore

This giveaway is for the winner’s choice of one print or ebook copy of the book. Print is open to the U.S. only and ebook is available worldwide. There will be 3 winners. This giveaway ends November 1, 2019, midnight pacific time.

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