Universal Versus Disney

The Unofficial Guide to American Theme Parks' Greatest Rivalry

By: Sam Gennawey

Narrated by: Robert Feifar

Universal Studios never really wanted to get into the theme park business. They wanted to be the anti-Disney. But when forced to do so, they did it in a big way. Despite the fits and starts of multiple owners, the parks have finally gained the momentum to mount a serious challenge to the Walt Disney Company. How did this happen? Who made it happen? What does this mean for the theme park industry? In Universal Versus Disney, his newest work to investigate the histories of America's favorite theme parks, seasoned Disney-author Sam Gennawey has thoroughly researched how Universal Studios shook up the multi-billion dollar theme park industry, one so long dominated by Walt Disney and his legacy.

©2015 Sam Gennawey (P)2015 Audible Inc.

Please Remain Seated At All Times

While the tittle stresses the rivalry between Disney and Universal this book is more a history of the Universal Theme Parks. Don't get me wrong as there is plenty of stories during the Disney CEO Eisner Era of the two companies battling it out. However the history and how many times the company changed hands is fascinating. if you are a fan of theme parks and like to look behind the curtain then this book is for you!

Former universal tour guide gives us a thumbs up

As a former Universal Studios Hollywood tour guide, I was trained to know the history of universal. Everything that I knew about universal was in here and a lot more. Very well written, and read.

History of Universal(with some mentions of Disney)

This book was interesting and I learned a lot about Universal. However, the title is a bit misleading as there is really no rivalry discussed and 90% of the book is about Universal.
The audiobook production is rough. There are a few times where multiple takes of the same sentence are included as well as some questionable pronunciations.
Still, overall the audiobook was enjoyable and it is always nice to see more theme park books produced in audiobook form.

Mispronunciation

Overall, an interesting story about Universal’s history but with a misleading title. It is 99.8% Universal with the occasional mention of Disney. The mispronunciation of words used constantly like “industry” is hard to listen to. I just ended the book when “hermoine” was said because it’s really not hard to do a little research but inDustry every 5 seconds is so hard to listen to.

Wanted equal parts Universal and Disney and didn't get it

His pronunciation of certain words drove me crazy and the book started slow. Thankfully, it did get better towards the latter half. And I was a little disappointed that it really only focuses on Universal. It mentions Disney quite a bit, but its main focus is Universal for sure. Overall, an interesting look at the key differences between the two theme park giants.