On this day in ...... 1959 (50 years ago today), in what The New York Times said "probably was the first time that Disneyland had figured as a controversial subject in Soviet-United States relations," Soviet Premier "Nikita S. Khrushchev's temper exploded" when, on arriving in Los Angeles from New York, "he was told he could not go to Disneyland because security officials could not guarantee his safety." Khruschev questioned this Cold War-era incident:
'What is it? Is there an epidemic of cholera or something? Or have gangsters taken hold of the place that can destroy me?'
The then-4-year-old theme park (image credit) already had accommodated 15 million visitors, including dignitaries like U.S. President Harry S. Truman, without incident.
