Growing up in Disneyland is about one of America's beloved actors, Don DeFore, whose career spanned six decades, told by son, Ron, who also shares his adventures growing up in a Hollywood celebrity family. The title is a metaphor for Ron's life. Don DeFore earned a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame for his supporting role as "Thorny" in the Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet TV series and played "Mr. B" in the 1960s TV series Hazel. He co-starred in movies with stars like Spencer Tracy, Ronald Reagan, Lucille Ball, Bob Hope, John Wayne, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, Groucho Marx, and many others-all told in Don's own words from his unpublished manuscript. The book's title is also literal as Disneyland was the DeFore's backyard when they owned Don DeFore's Silver Banjo Barbecue restaurant in Frontierland.
"Don DeFore was one of those reliable actors who always delivered the goods, on both television and the big screen. I'm not surprised to learn that his peers thought enough of him to vote him President of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences."
-Leonard Maltin, American Film Critic and Historian
"Don DeFore's Silver Banjo Barbecue restaurant in Frontierland was very unusual as it was the only food facility in the park to have the name of a living person. Walt obviously was good friends with Don and trusted him to sell a quality product in his park."
-Dave Smith, Chief Archivist Emeritus, The Walt Disney Archives
"Don DeFore was an extraordinary talent and played a pioneering role as one of the first straight men in sitcom television. As "Thorny, the ever-supportive neighbor, he helped round out the Nelson household. "
- Sam Nelson, son of Ricky Nelson and Kris Harmon (The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet)
"The 'news' pitches I got from Ron DeFore were often on the most mundane of subjects. I didn't mind, as he was Hollywood royalty to me. Judy Garland was matron of honor in his parents' wedding! His father was 'Mr. B' from Hazel!"
-Jayne O'Donnell, USA Today