Walt Disney quietly assembled more than 27,000 acres in Florida through secret transactions for about $5 million, averaging roughly $182 an acre; after the buyer’s identity emerged, the land became Walt Disney World

• Walt Disney’s plan for what would become Walt Disney World began with a remarkably quiet real-estate operation.
• The operation was designed around a simple concern: If landowners discovered that Disney was buying the property, prices could soar before the company had secured enough acreage.
• The man tasked with avoiding that outcome was R