Tall Guy Talks Travel with Rick Dougherty

Unfortunately, every few months will find another story about a popular Disney influencer or brand doing some horrible things...usually to women.  The Disney community can be a great place to meet people in the safe environment of the theme parks, but there are some precautions you should take when entering through on-line spaces.  Rick and Gillian will talk more about this in today's episode.

70 years ago today, Disneyland opened for the first time on a hot day in 1955 that is now known as "Black Sunday."  Everything that could go wrong did go wrong on that opening day.  Sarah Says joins Rick on the show today to talk about that disastrous opening, and the special plans Disneyland has for the anniversary

Rick takes a look back at some of the changes that started five years ago when the Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando Resort theme parks reopened from the pandemic closures.  That time has had more of an impact on the current state of the parks than you may think.

With the 4th of July coming up tomorrow, Rick is going to share his ten favorite travel destinations in the United States.  These are his favorite places that he has visited.  There are cities he hasn't visited and some he doesn't feel he has given enough time to judge.

Gillian is back for a second-straight week to talk about the 30th anniversary of her favorite Disney Princess movie, Pocahontas.  Rick is also going to share two unique travel stories that he has had in the past few weeks.

Rick's good friend Gillian's favorite Disney Princess movie is Pocahontas.  That movie came out 30 years ago this month.  Gillian is going to be on the show the next two weeks to talk about the film.

Rick is joined by Sarah Says to do some more in-depth looks into Epic Universe.  The newest Orlando theme park is officially open at Universal Orlando Resort, and this channel continues to cover it.

In 1990, Disney released the movie Dick Tracy under the Touchstone Pictures umbrella.  Initially, the theme parks were full of Dick Tracy references, but that died down quickly, and you can hardly find any traces of this movie in the parks.  On today's show, Rick and Maz talk about the film after rewatching it for the first time in decades.

 Rick talks to his long-time friend Danielle, who took her family of three to Epic Universe for a preview.  She also stayed on-property, so this will be a pretty in-depth look at the newest theme-park in the Orlando area.

Rick is joined by regular co-host Maz to talk about two of the most highly-anticipated lands at Epic Universe.  Universal's newest theme park opens to the public for real tomorrow.  Let's continue to get hyped for it.

Rick and Maz had to do an emergency recording session when Disney announced a brand-new theme park coming to Abu Dhabi.  Why pick Abu Dhabi?  What does this mean for the US parks? 

With Epic Universe opening in a few weeks, Rick allows his co-host Maz to vent a little about how JK Rowling's involvement in the new theme park will impact her enjoyment of it.  

Today is the 36th anniversary of the opening of Disney-MGM Studios at Walt Disney World.  As Rick continues to look at the tenure of former-Disney chairman and CEO Michael Eisner, the creation of Disney-MGM Studio is an important part of that story.

Sarah Says joins Rick for the second week in a row to discuss the changes that have occurred at Disney's California Adventure in the two-and-a-half decades since it opened across the esplanade from Disneyland Park. 

Rick and Sarah Says talk about the opening of Disney's California Adventure through how the park stands today over the next two weeks.  From Superstar Limo to Avengers Campus, DCA has had a unique history.

Peter Moore wrote for some major magazines, before he learned an entirely new skill to appreciate his travel in different ways.  He joins Rick on the show this week to talk hiking, travel, and appreciating the little things.

In the space that is now occupied by Disney California Adventure, Disney had originally planned an educational theme park called WestCOT.  This park was going to be very reminiscent of EPCOT over at Walt Disney World, but there were some notable changes suggested.  Hear about what was proposed.

Rick and Maz will wrap up their Walt Disney World pre-show tier-list today, by taking a look at the pre-shows at Epcot and Magic Kingdom.  Before that, Rick is going to highlight a pioneering woman in the Walt Disney Company.

Pre-shows have become a bigger-and-bigger part of theme park attractions in recent years.  Sometimes these shows have been to the benefit of the guests, and recently it could be argued to the detriment of the guest experience.  Today, Rick and Maz start ranking the pre-shows at Walt Disney World.  It leads to some surprisingly heated discussions.

Rick will talk with Richard Pretlow in today's episode of the podcast.  Richard is a representative from Morgan's Wonderland theme park in San Antonio, Texas.  Morgan's focuses on what they call "ultra-inclusivity."  The park accommodates those on the Autism Spectrum, those with physical disabilities, and other conditions that may hinder someone's enjoyment of a theme park.

Rick is talking with Natalie and Hannah of the Stride Sisters Podcast on this week's episode of the podcast.  Natalie and Hannah both completed the Dopey Challenge as part of Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend in January

Mouse and More Adam joins Rick on the show today to talk about Muppet*Vision 3D's upcoming closure to make way for a Monsters Inc. Land.  There are a lot of strong thoughts about this change, and Adam and Rick express a lot of them.

Ralph Velasco is known as the Continental Drifter, who started planning trips for fellow photographers.  He has since branched out to talking about Mindful Travel.  Travel shouldn't just be about getting pictures of a few landmarks.  Travel should impact you. For more information about Ralph Velasco... https://continentaldrifter.co/about/

Sarah Says joins Rick on the podcast today with a list of viral animatronic malfunctions that her son found on the internet.  When things go wrong, it can be funny, but it can also give us a closer look at how they work in the first place.

Rick will talk with Disney fan Jeff Gordon about his life as a Disneyland regular; the fires in Los Angeles; and his fundraising efforts for the LA Regional Food Bank.  After that, co-host Maz will be on the show to talk about Wicked, and how it might fit in the Universal theme parks.