So, Walt Disney proved everyone wrong, Disneyland was a success, yadda yadda yadda...
But Walt just didn't want a theme park. He knew that people would be tired from traveling to get to Disneyland, so he invisioned a hotel at Disneyland where guests could stay so they didn't have to travel so much in one day. Unfortunately, Disney was out of money.
That's when he talked to his friend Jack Wrather who was not only a oil millionaire but also a film producer. Not to mention he also owned hotels in Vegas and Palm Springs.
At first, Jack refused. But Walt sweetened the deal: Jack would own and operate the hotel and be able to affiliate it with Disneyland by using the Disney name for 100 years. So it was settled and the Disneyland Hotel opened across the street from the hotel it was named after. It opened in October of 1955, but held an official grand opening in August of 1956.
Over the years, the hotel kept expanding. New buildings were added as well as shops, restaurants, and entertainment venues. After the monorail opened, it's track was diverted to stop at the Disneyland Hotel, allowing guests to enter the park via monorail. Decades later, the iconinc 3 Towers that we know today would be built.
Walt periodically tried to buy it back from Jack, but never was able to. The Disneyland Hotel would remain out of the hands of the Disney Company until a new Disney leader would help bring the Disney Company back from the brink of bankrupcy.
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