The Sweep Spot Ep. #335 - Disneyland Monorail & Imagineering with Val Usle

We welcome architect and author Val Usle, who was a Disneyland Monorail driver starting in 1975 until he became an Imagineer. He was involved with projects at Disneyland, Tokyo Disney Resort, and Disneyland Paris. He has two books available: Theme Park Project Management and Theme Park Sustainability. Plus, we catch up on the latest at the Disneyland Resort, as always.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #334 - Disneyland Changes with Show Writer Rick West

Rick West returns to chat about the changing conditions of theme park design and operation, especially at the Disneyland Resort. Rick is a Show Writer for theme parks and was a Ride Operator on the west side of Disneyland. He also created several acclaimed Theme Park Adventure publications on attractions such as Pirates of the Caribbean, Indiana Jones Adventure, and Tarzan’s Treehouse. He is the Co-Founder and Creative Director of Midsummer Scream.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #333 - Disneyland 1962 with Jim Korkis

Disney author and historian Jim Korkis joins us to discuss what was happening at Disneyland in 1962! Jim always brings great stories. We also catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, as always.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #332 - Disneyland Trip Planning with Katie and Erin

Rope Drop & Park Hop Podcast hostesses Katie and Erin share their tips for having a great Disneyland visit. They are two moms from Boise, Idaho who really love the Happiest Place on Earth! We also catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, with our Patreon supporters joining us.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #331 - Disneyland 1966 Ambassador Connie Swanson

Connie joins us to talk about being one the first Disneyland Ambassadors, being a Tour Guide, Walt Disney, and more! We also catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, as always.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #330 - Disneyland Mickey's Toontown

Mickey’s Toontown at Disneyland is undergoing a 30th Anniversary enhancement and expansion. We discuss the past, present, and future of Toontown, and what it was like for us to work there. We also catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, with our Patreon supporters joining us.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

My Ranking of "Weird Al" Albums

I decided it was really important to rank the studio albums of "Weird Al" Yankovic, my favorite performance artist. 

Rather than counting them down, I'll just get right to it. I'll give some explanation and caveats after the list.

1. Poodle Hat

2. Bad Hair Day/Mandatory Fun (tie)
4. Polka Party
5. Even Worse
6. Alpocalypse
7. In 3-D
8. Running With Scissors
9. UHF
10. Dare To Be Stupid
11. Off The Deep End
12. Weird Al Yankovic (debut)
13. Alapalooza
14. Straight Out of Lynwood

It's not a surprise to me that Poodle Hat was number 1. I love every song on that album. What did surprise me is that I ranked SOL lower than Alapalooza, which I had, until now, figured was my least favorite. Both Poodle Hat and Polka Party were less appreciated albums by critics and music buyers, but Polka Party is number 4 on my list. I'm not sure what this says about me.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #329 - Disneyland Ride Operator David Schwab

We welcome David, who was a Disneyland Attractions Host from 1970 to 1979, working many iconic attractions, some of them long gone now. We also catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, as always.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #328 - Disneyland Imagineering Memories with Josh Shipley

We welcome theatrical actor and director, and former Imagineer Josh Shipley to discuss things he helped design for Disneyland and his time at Walt Disney Imagineering, which was from 1996 to 2017.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #327 - Disneyland 1952 with Historian Jim Korkis

Disneyland, as a company, originated in 1952, but Disneyland as an idea existed before that, and got rejected by a city council. Historian and author Jim Korkis discusses these facts with us on this episode. Hear all about the plans that were rejected and more about the origins of Disneyland.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #326 - Disneyland Night Custodial 1971-1984 with Chuck Vaughn

Chuck Vaughn joins us to talk about his time being an hourly cast member, and then a Supervisor, in Disneyland Night Custodial from 1971 to 1984. His stories include training Tokyo Disneyland opening cast members and a special assignment at Imagineering.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #325 - From Disneyland Custodial to Disney Corporate with Tim East

Tim East recently retired as Executive Director, Risk Management at The Walt Disney Company, but he started in Disneyland Custodial Bussing in the fall of 1974, transferred after a couple of years to Sweeping, moved on to Safety in 1982 to supervise places like First Aid before moving on to Worker’s Comp. Along the way, he found his wife at a popcorn stand.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #324 - Walt’s Disneyland Author Marcy Carriker Smothers

Marcy Carriker Smothers returns to talk about her latest book, Walt’s Disneyland. Her admiration for Walt Disney is clear in our discussion. Plus, we catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, as always.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #323 - Disneyland 1981

Our friend David Smith joins us as we discuss Disneyland as it was in 1981, 40 years ago! What was going on then? We talk about it. Plus, we catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, as always.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot Ep. #322 - Disneyland Memories with Imagineer Tim Delaney

We welcome back designer and former Imagineer Tim Delaney to discuss Disneyland memories, going all the way back to the 1950s! Tim talks about the design aspects of Disneyland as well as some other Disney parks. Plus, we catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, as always.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.


You can listen to Tim's prior appearances on our podcast here and here.

The Sweep Spot #321 - Disneyland’s Critter Country

Lynn and Ken discuss Critter Country at Disneyland, a unique area for Disney Parks. Plus, we catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, as always.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order SIGNED copies of our books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The logo above, in the corner, needed a revision, as we mentioned on the show. Here are the revised versions:

The Sweep Spot #320 - Longtime Disneyland Bussing Foreman Michael Barry

We welcome Michael Barry, who recently retired after a Disneyland career that started in 1970! We chat with him about keeping Disneyland restaurants clean, and the adventures he had along the way. Plus, we catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, as always.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot #319 - Disneyland 1991 with Historian & Author Jim Korkis

We welcome back Jim Korkis to chat about Disneyland as it was in 1991, back when Disneyland had a Peoplemover, something called Afternoon Avenue, and we had the promise of WestCOT as the 2nd theme park in Anaheim. Plus, we catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, as always. Jim’s books have our highest recommendation.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot #318 - Former Disneyland Attractions Cast Member Mason Nakamura

We welcome back former Disneyland Ride Operator Mason to talk about his time in Tomorrowland Attractions like Submarine Voyage, Peoplemover, Monorail, and Westside Attractions like Pirates of the Caribbean from 1987 to 1995. Plus, we catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, as always.
We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com 

There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot #317 - Disneyland in 2001

We discuss Disneyland as it was in 2001, which was 20 years ago! There was a lot going on, with Resort expansion and more! Plus, we catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, as always.

We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com  There are many easy and free ways to listen to The Sweep Spot in addition to clicking below.

The Sweep Spot #316 - Disneyland Imagineering Talk With Brian Collins

We chat with Brian Collins, who was a Show Writer with Walt Disney Imagineering and is now with The Brainstorm Institute. Plus, we catch up on current events at the Disneyland Resort, as always.
We have authored two books: Cleaning The Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless and Cleaning The Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.

The Sweep Spot is a podcast with full episodes every two weeks, focusing on the Disneyland Resort. Lynn Barron and Ken Pellman, former Disneyland Day Custodial Foremen are your hosts.

For more information and to order books, visit our official website: 

http://www.TheSweepSpot.com