When Disney didn’t *quite* tell the truth

It’s fascinating to me just how many “tall tales” are out there when it comes to the Disney 😂
The root of this rumor likely comes from a (not quite serious) letter sent from Phil Donnelly, the governor of Missouri, to Governor Goodwin Knight of California. The letter asked the California governer to “take appropriate action which will cause the Tom Sawyer Island in Disneyland, California, to be deeded to the sovereign state of Missouri, the only true and rightful possessor of any and all Tom Sawyer Islands in the world.” From this, Disney likely ran with the story that all the Tom Sawyer Islands should belong to Missouri (where the book takes place and Mark Twain’s home state).
Considering that the petrified tree “anniversary present” was also meant to be joke, it seems fitting that the island’s Missouri ownership was just a fun story as well. Somewhere along the way, though, people took it to be fact, and then the rumors spun out from there as all crazy Disney rumors tend to do 😂
(Btw when it comes to purchasing food on the island… Nesbitt’s operated a concession stand on Tom Sawyer Island starting in 1957, and there was also a canteen located in Fort
Wilderness that served hot dogs, cider, and candy 🍭)
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#disney #disneystories #disneyland #disneyfacts #disneyrumors #disneytrivia #disneyhistory #tomsawyerisland #frontierland #obscuredisney #retrodisney #disneyattractions #waltdisney #disneyparks #imagineering #disneylandcalifornia #disneynerd #disneynerds #disneyfun #disneyhistorian #distory #disneyyoutube

[@disneycicerone]

It’s fascinating to me just how many “tall tales” are out there when it comes to the Disney 😂 The root of this rumor likely comes from a (not quite serious) letter sent from Phil Donnelly, the governor of Missouri, to Governor Goodwin Knight of California. The letter asked the California governer to “take appropriate action which will cause the Tom Sawyer Island in Disneyland, California, to be deeded to the sovereign state of Missouri, the only true and rightful possessor of any and all Tom Sawyer Islands in the world.” From this, Disney likely ran with the story that all the Tom Sawyer Islands should belong to Missouri (where the book takes place and Mark Twain’s home state). Considering that the petrified tree “anniversary present” was also meant to be joke, it seems fitting that the island’s Missouri ownership was just a fun story as well. Somewhere along the way, though, people took it to be fact, and then the rumors spun out from there as all crazy Disney rumors tend to do 😂 (Btw when it comes to purchasing food on the island… Nesbitt’s operated a concession stand on Tom Sawyer Island starting in 1957, and there was also a canteen located in Fort Wilderness that served hot dogs, cider, and candy 🍭)

[@krypticproc767]

Cool thanks. had a nice read

[@resevoirdog]

They lie constantly from day 1. It's their brand identity at this point

[@bcaye]

It's why we're the Show Me state. Fun fact, the author's name was Samuel Clemens. He was a riverboat pilot for some time and "Mark Twain" is riverboat jargon related to the depth of the water.

[@WhiTEwaLL_GamINg]

Talk about the DAN SCHNIDER “tall tale”

[@WhiTEwaLL_GamINg]

Talk about the DAN SCHNIDER “tall tale”

[@krystalschlecht9076]

Knowing the story of Tom Sawyer, this is probably the most legitimate way to advertise the island. Tom Sawyer was famous for his tall tes

[@disneycicerone]

Fair 😂

[@e-mananimates2274]

Since you mentioned it, this sounds like something Walt would try.

[@thedeependrap2135]

Wait so it’s legitimate advertising be illegitimate means, yet it fits the canon of why they would perfectly. That’s wild

[@bcgrote]

Oh, I knew every trail on that island, could run like a deer across it end to end. Sigh.

[@harridan.]

Disney corrupted, truncated, homogenized and twisted every book he ever "adapted" Keep the mice, Walt, i would prefer to read an unabridged book.

[@pyography]

"Do you remember the time when Disney didn't tell the truth and almost everybody believed them?" My first thought was, "which one?" For another, look up Disney and the documentary about lemmings. Hint, lemmings don't generally throw themselves off cliffs. There was a reason the ones in the "documentary" did, but it's not family friendly.

[@robertbeisert3315]

And almost everything financial over the last few years. And Reedy Creek. How the SEC hasn't come down on that boggles the mind.

[@pyography]

@@robertbeisert3315 I guess it really is the magic kingdom. Maybe all the evil step mothers got together with the king of the SEC and brought a good size bag of gold from the Walt vault.

[@JohnHudert1]

Mark Twain would have been proud of such an exemplary embellishment 😉

[@ronaldkonkoma4356]

I wonder if they had problems with alligators in that part of the Mississippi. Or maybe people would see that well-known steamer that sailed after it sank.

[@MoreLifePlease]

Note: It couldn't have had a "Missouri zip code" because zip codes weren't in use in 1956.

[@disneycicerone]

Yeah that’s part of the tall tale that people added over the years.

[@ronaldkonkoma4356]

RFD

[@thomashughes_teh]

In 1979 I got kicked out of Disneyland for smoking weed on Tom Sawyer island. It was Disney security dressed like Union cavalry that escorted us out. There were no criminal charges.

[@disneycicerone]

🙈

[@ronaldkonkoma4356]

They were territorial guard. Missouri was a state so they had no jurisdiction

[@DavidWRyan]

Disney spread something that was untrue!? Never!

[@LeBasfondMusic]

okay, but that is HILARIOUS

[@disneycicerone]

I love how people just ran with it 😂

[@rachelp5447]

You could make a great Disney trivia game with all the Disney facts you know!

[@disneycicerone]

That’s a fun idea! I’d probably make it too hard though 😂😂

[@zachpayne3533]

I thought you were gonna talk about the whole "the turkey legs are actually emu or ostrich legs" false fact people believed for years lol

[@disneycicerone]

Hahaha there are SO many rumors out there this could be a whole series 😂

[@SmallSpoonBrigade]

@@disneycicerone Yep, considering the myth making that Disney is known for, its not surprising that we pretty much all fall for at least a few of these myths. And some of the weirder things are true, like the basketball court at the top of the Matterhorn.

[@angrytheclown801]

@@SmallSpoonBrigade That one makes sense when you know the logic behind it.

[@michellehawkins1027]

@@angrytheclown801 Yeah, I don't find a basketball hoop in a breakroom weird personally.🤷‍♀️

[@bluegynger]

I'm from Missouri & I have family that lives in Silex, which is literally nothing so just about the only thing to do is go to Hannibal to visit Mark Twain's home. I've been there so many times I've lost count. Anyway, I remember like the second time going through, this exhibit stood out to me because it had clearly been renovated, but like.... not very well. Like it was an empty pedestal & a poorly removed plaque. I asked the tour lady what had been there & she said "Oh, it was a display about the Tom Sawyer island, but we took it down." I think they had just found out the rumor about it being a part if MO wasn't true. 😂

[@disneycicerone]

Omg I love that 😂😂

[@ScorchieCritter]

"Do you remember that time Disney didn't quite tell the truth?" You mean every time, all the time? 😂

[@Dargonhuman]

The phrase "could you be a little more specific" has never hit so hard before...

[@REJohns]

That's nothing. Look up their animal documentary, White Wilderness and the specific section of it on Lemmings. The animals mass unaliving of themselves was actually done by humans. The abhorrent behavior was exposed 24 years after the film had debuted and had won an Academy Award. Of course, Disney proclaimed they hadn't known nor had they been involved with the obscene level of animal cruelty, in the film. The only person who could have truly said, what had been known and/or how involved Disney had been, was Walt Disney himself-unfortunately he'd died 16 years before the exposé.

[@lorenperozzi6494]

Tomsaylaur island was the best. I wish they would bring this back so fun for kids. I went in the height of my childhood eight it was awesome.

[@disneycicerone]

It is still open for kids and adults alike, everyday. The fort is closed though, and some of the exhibits need some TLC.

[@ronaldkonkoma4356]

They had a little problem with a traumatic brain injury

[@Lizardgrad89]

I think Cali would have had to agree as well and states don’t normally give bits away.

[@sawyerdogs71]

Thank you for sharing this. My dad, brother and nephew are all named Tom Sawyer and I’m sure will enjoy this.

[@disneycicerone]

How fun!

[@brianhenry7983]

I've never heard this rumor, but I kinda of wish it was true

[@SmallSpoonBrigade]

Same here, although, I'd have a very hard time believing that it would be that simple and unilateral.

[@unbearifiedbear1885]

I almost don't believe the 50s even happened 😂❤ Must've been an incredible time to be alive

[@LordMondegrene]

Yah, unless you were black, brown, poor, female, or disabled. Then the 50's was a nightmare.

[@kissthepickkitywitch8112]

@@LordMondegrenethere was also polio 😅

[@LordMondegrene]

@@kissthepickkitywitch8112 Yah, had a friend who was one of the 60 lucky kids to get polio FROM THE VACCINE. The 50's were a shit time for her.

[@whatsup7253]

@@LordMondegrene Standard of living for black,brown,female and disabled were higher than now. Not all bad.

[@LordMondegrene]

@@whatsup7253 You can't be that dense. The living standard has been falling since 1981, when Reagan gutted unions and sold jobs overseas.

[@gardnerhill9073]

I still remember buying those giant dill pickles in the fort.

[@superpilotdude]

If I remember correctly, the boat tried to move while tied to the dock. Caused a part of the dock to go flying and hit a lady in the head. Killed almost instantly.

[@jefferytillis8309]

Don't know about that one but did see a woman at Disney World try to jump off the raft too early and got her foot pinned between the raft and dock. We left her and her family sitting on the dock waiting for medical care while they took us to another dock.

[@NarffetWerlz]

Dammit, Sawyer! Crossing the state line to get a federal trial didn't work like you said!

[@disneycicerone]

😂😂😂

[@alison2649]

I’ve bought many pickles on the island back in the day

[@td3053]

But Disney never tells the truth, remember when they said Tiana's Bayou Adventure would be a worthy successor to Splash Mountain?

[@darshanr2369]

Wait. Disney LYING?! NO!!

[@troublewithweebles]

This is Cosplay before Cosplay

[@vinyllotus]

This unlocked so many childhood memories for me. I remember being told this when I was a kid but didn’t remember until I watched this

[@jhansen6180]

Like the time Disney tried to tell everyone Snow White is really black, or the little Mermaid was really black. Tom Sawyer was nothing compared to Peter Pan was actually Indian…

[@kieth1284]

I know the internet is filled with you people, but I can’t believe you let a little vid about Tom Sawyer island get you so offended 😂

[@MysterDoktor]

🥜z

[@ronaldkonkoma4356]

Yet nobody wants Huck Finn on their shelf because Jim was actually black. Are you advocating for a Huck Finn adaptation for 2024 Maybe in your version Jim doesn't find freedom and works at Mar a Lago

[@bjgaspar]

Disney? Not telling the truth? NEVER... except in every animated movie they've ever released...

[@markauble3928]

Great work as always Kate!

[@disneycicerone]

🥰🥰

[@BingWrosby]

I’m a former Disneyland cast member and lifelong park visitor and I’ve never heard this claim. Interesting!

[@disneycicerone]

It’s a bit of lost history at this point, but I always found it interesting

[@michellehawkins1027]

When I worked at MK a while back we were told to never say we don't know an answer to something, and to make something up.Which is why you will get different answers from different cast members on things.

[@shrtbred787]

WE TELLIN TALL TALES WITH THIS ONE 🗣🗣🗣🔥🔥🔥

[@disneycicerone]

The tallest 😂

[@ianh1504]

whoa you mean states dont get to just decide part of another state belongs to them? thats wiiiiild

[@mojojojo3411]

I thought you were going to talk about the lemmings

[@edhuber3557]

I like MO *because* it is far, far away from CA. Let's keep it that way.

[@GuyFromSC]

Disney is about fictional cartoon characters and we’re talking about them lying? 🤔

[@herculespayton2460]

Tired of lies, America

[@markmalasics3413]

No different than a woman telling you she'll always love, trust and support you.

[@disneycicerone]

Sounds like someone hurt you 🥺

[@shrtbred787]

WE TELLIN TALL TALES WITH THIS ONE 🗣🗣🗣🗣🔥🔥🔥

[@TheTikiMan]

Yes, I remember. It was their earnings call.

[@mfirving]

What scares me is that ANYONE believed this tall tale what so ever! It’s an entertainment resort, it’s what they do, spin yarns, tell tall tales and make believe, believable! The time of a ‘chicken in every pot’ America must have been such a lucrative country for grifters during the 1950’s & ‘60’s Amazing😅

[@disneycicerone]

So many people believed it! 😂

[@LairdErnst]

Sounds pretty par for the course with Disney.

[@Dargonhuman]

And Tom Sawyer, let's be honest.

[@seanmccaskill5042]

You know Disney lies to the public constantly, right!?

[@scooter1737]

Same with Main Street, it's Harper Goff's home town Main Street of Fort Collins Colorado, not Marceline, Missouri

[@shivmongoose3343]

When it comes to Disney and prevarication my mind immediately screams "LEMMINGS!" An amazing lie of omission that made it into educational books for children one of which I read dozens of times..

[@flexiblenerd]

I saw the title and my first thought was, "Which time?"

[@chelseyaustin6015]

I’m so sad it isn’t there anymore. I only went once but it was my favorite part of the park. My brother and I just ran around the woods for hours

[@purplehearts3287]

Disney lied? Shocker! 🤦🏻‍♀️

[@katherinenobles5034]

I loved Tom Sawyer Island. My parents would just let me run! We would meet up after an hour or so to go around the rest of the park.

[@Tacos-oz6vx]

lol the old crossed state lines bit😂😂😂😂

[@disneycicerone]

😂😂

[@CodaJo-Pepe]

My great Aunt and Unckle actually owned it. They leased the land for a 100,000 per year for 10 years and then sold it to them.

[@cleanserene6330]

My dad worked there in the 60s, he said they had a huge rat problem on TS Island so they left a bunch of cats there overnight...came back to find cats dead n floating in the water...ah the stories of my childhood...for a long time he always had some friend working there tho so we got in free for years, back when it was actually affordable lol took my own kids several years ago n was flattened by the nickel n diming on steroids

[@_lunartemis]

A coaster is a giga if at least one of these are true: 1. Its drop is at least 300 feet. 2. Its chainlift is at least 300 feet. Same goes for hypers, but for 200 feet.

[@courtneyunderhill6049]

I’m from Missouri, and I had no idea!

[@legendarykingkian]

Petition to make this actually happen.

[@disneycicerone]

That would be amazing 😂😂

[@davidaustin6962]

I think that falls under creative license. You want to know what whoppers Disney tells, there ain't enough time, but this one ... harmless.

[@Befread]

No, no that's not a tall tale that's a lie, theirs a huge difference. A tall tale is stretching the truth like saying a fish is 15 lbs when it was only 14 lbs.

[@disneycicerone]

The ways that guests stretched the made-up story over the years is what I was referring to.

[@jeffbenton6183]

Not only might this have never happened, but it might not even be constitutional. I dont know if there's a provision in the Constitution explicitly preventing a State from annexing part of another State, but Article IV, section 1 begins with: "Full faith and credit shall be given in each state to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state. Furthermore, Article IV, section 3 begins with: "New statesman be admitted by the Congrees into this union; but no new states shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any other state; nor any state be formed by the junction of two or more states, or parts of states, without the consent of the legislatures of the states concerned as well as of the Congress." From this, it seems to me likely that the annexation of even the tiniest part of one state by another state would require a majority vote of both states' legislatures *and* an Act of Congress. Just one governor's executive order wouldn't cut it. (Although, if I'm not mistaken, the Supreme Court has ruled that "legislature" of a given state refers to the entire law-making process of a given state, meaning that even if the state senate and state assembly agree to a thing - that requires their "consent" under the US Constitution - their government can still veto it, ending the process if there aren't enough votes to overrule the veto.)

[@erinwhitbeck1474]

So cool i never knew this existed

[@burkestorti4586]

My family visited Disneyland in 1956 when I was 8yo. I remember that there wasn't much on the island. Just a bunch of weeds & shrubs.

[@rupertchappelle5303]

The LEMMINGS! THE LEMMINGS!!! THE LEMMINGS!!!!

[@comettamer]

Definitely fits with the story of Tom Sawyer alright. A fun, tall tale to enjoy.

[@haakenbailey7381]

So Tom Sawyer Island had its own grand opening in 1956, huh. That could explain Hammond's mistake about the date Disneyland opened.

[@jasonsnider8749]

I used to be an annual passholder, but since Disneyland got so greedy, we Quit going altogether.

[@davidleonard1813]

Do one on Disney film on Lemmings a big big lie😂😂

[@OvernightCountFraud2024]

Got kicked off Tom Sawyer Island for smoking weed in 1980😮

[@Paul-sj5db]

Which time was that exactly? There have been so many.

[@kooringagnd]

"Tall tales" is why the company is so much financial and commercial trouble. They just cant help themselves.

[@Spark_Chaser]

What? Tom Sawyer's spreading tall tales again? How dare that young rapscallion.

[@disneycicerone]

😂😂

[@cdelapaz5]

I thought you were going to talk about the time when they bought star wars, and said they wouldn’t ruin it.

[@HyenaPaint]

I mean I think this one was supposed to be an obvious gag. You’re in the land of make believe, don’t believe everything you hear. 😂

[@davidwebster9788]

You could hope that people realized that the annexation had no Constitutional basis.

[@amythystmoon864]

how many times can we count on both hands and feet that Disney has not quite told the truth to us lol

[@theskyehiker]

Tom Sawyer Island was my favorite part of Disneyland.

[@Mash333]

Disney is a corporation that sells fantastic experiences

[@Xx-lq9su]

Pretty sure a state can't annex any part if another state without federal congressional approval.

[@bleedingeyeball27]

Still have wonder memories of the fort... The air rifles were the best

[@Ari-pw6nu]

Great piece of history. Disneyland, that is.

[@crobinson2987]

Right, next thing you'll tell us is that all the 6 foot talking animals were just people in costumes.

[@melaniemanning2462]

Of course I remember. I actually don't. I wasn't alive in 1956 😉 fun info

[@disneycicerone]

Haha neither was I 😂

[@bcumike]

Disney is all about the "truth" The "truth" is a great way to make money when facts dont support your endgame. Thats why out great president once said: "we choose truth over fact" The "truth" can be anything we make it

[@jennoury249]

I cannot believe that Disney would lie to us🙄

[@user-bn2zb6bh5o]

Wait! A company who’s success was built on telling fairy tales told a fairy tale! What is this world coming too!

[@nathanhansford76]

‘That time Disney didn’t quite tell the truth’ it’s been a lot more than once that this has happened…. JE

[@craiglawrence7576]

Disneyland is all about Fantasy! I never rely on Disney for historical facts. I do rely on them to transport me to the land of make believe….

[@georgesheffield1580]

They have been doing this since the 1950's .

[@geowat8738]

My favorite 420 stop

[@mctigger1]

Next you’re going to tell me that Goofy isn’t real… please do not tell me that.

[@juliadoherty2529]

Next thing you’ll be telling me is that fairy flying across the sky over the castle isn’t a real fairy, and the mouse at the restaurant is just a guy in a costume.

[@disneycicerone]

The thing is people actually believed this was true for a long time. Hence the layers they added onto it about federal jurisdiction (which Disney never said anything about) 😂

[@lidlett9883]

Yeah that's know as salesmanship.

[@zedmelon]

So a fib, from Tom Sawyer. Never would've expected that. My uncle Abraham Lincoln always said you shouldn't believe everything people tell ya.

[@disneycicerone]

😂😂😂

[@danmartens8855]

so it is an exclave with the cheapest cost of living in California.

[@princessmarlena1359]

People definitely liked to pee all over the island, especially in the caves. Thank god they opened up more bathrooms on the island.

[@moomama217]

How do you remember just 1. At least this 1 was fun!

[@jayloyrecords]

I didn't know Missouri was connected to California or Florida.

[@joelockard7174]

Remember tye time when Disney lied? ...which time? There are soo many lol

[@kingjasOPB]

Yeah... my father got kicked out and banned from disneyland for smoking leaf in the tunnels on Tom Sawyer Island.

[@disneycicerone]

🙈

[@loanokaharbor8303]

Lots of Disney Tall tales have been floated since 1959...you'll have a busy channel 😀 👍

[@disneycicerone]

There’s a TON of inaccurate information when it comes to Disney history 😂 I love digging down to find the truth, though I also enjoy a fun “tall tale” once in awhile that we can all pretend is real 😉

[@NZKiwiRic]

Great trivia!

[@LaundryFaerie]

"Do you remember that time when Disney didn't quite tell the truth" To which of THOUSANDS of instances are you referring?

[@disneycicerone]

😉