From Kevin Yee on WDWmagic
Whoa now. Sunday just got juicy!!
Some facts:
1. I was Al's co-founder on MiceAge - I had a front row seat, so I know whereof I speak below.
2. It is true that Al has Parkinson's
3. I haven't written for MiceChat in a long time. Last I looked, they were using the name "MiceAge Update" rather than Al's name directly; there was something of a retirement more or less for Al. Could he still be writing occasional articles? Yes, sure. Especially if someone helped him.
4. The very idea that Al didn't write for MiceAge during the SaveDisney years is laughable. That was definitely him. Sure, he had sources, and I suppose they could have included folks in the Iger/Mucha camp. But don't you remember him ridiculing the way Zenia's name was pronounced? Definitely his own voice in those years, so the central premise of the article is wrong.
Since Mr. Synder outed several real names, I suppose it does no harm to reveal he is, in fact, Spirit of 74. Several of you picked up on the tone before I could confirm it.
Knowing that Spirit is the author of that article should change several things for readers. He was frequently a critic of Al, and with Al now sidelined by disease, this feels like a hit piece designed to "win the argument" several years later, and take Al's reputation down a notch.
It was all Al during those SaveDisney years, and he was nowhere close to co-opted by corporate. As noted above, his sources could have included Iger, sure. He could have promoted Iger over others, sure. But nowhere close to what you see with Influencers these days taking handouts and writing "reviews." Al was never comped into anything.
