Meet Ron DeFore, Author of 'Growing Up in Disneyland'
Ron DeFore is the second son of movie, television and Broadway star, Don DeFore who appeared in more than 35 movies and is perhaps best known for his TV role as "Thorny" in The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet and as "Mr. B" in the 1960s TV series, Hazel. Ron’s new book, "Growing up in Disneyland," is a metaphor for Ron's life in a celebrity family filled with Fantasyland adventures he equates to a Forest Gump type life, from meeting the Beatles, Beach Boys, Led Zeppelin, and other celebrities as Associate Director of the Steve Allen Show and Production Coordinator at Paramount Television. His nearly 20 careers include a mid-life crisis as the Flying DJ at an L.A. discotheque to political positions within the Reagan Presidential Administration to co-founding a public relations firm in Washington, D.C. The book's title is also literal as his family owned "Don DeFore's Silver Banjo Barbecue" restaurant in Frontierland.
Ron's mother was also an entertainer in the late 1930s and early '40s as the lead vocalist with the Henry Busse Orchestra as well as Art Kassel and His Kassels in the Air orchestra. She recorded with both and with the later made "I'm a Little Teapot" famous. Ron has a brother, David, and three sisters, Penny, Dawn, and Autumn. His upbringing in Brentwood, just outside of Hollywood--surrounded by celebrities--made for a life full of amazing experiences. Ron's exciting brushes with history continued all the way to his semi-retirement. |
Ron DeFore
Photos/Videos Courtesy of Ron DeFore
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Don DeFore
Find out more at
GrowingUpinDisneyland.com. |
Hollywood Walk of Fame star
Ron plays a young football player in "Hazel"
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