The DisUnplugged #4 They tried to make Pete go to rehab, but he said I need my phone!

[Ahoyhoy]

The Dis Unplugged 5: Stay Out of the Damn Employees

 

[The Mando]

Hello everyone,

I haven't been on here in a while and was reading and catching up because my husband is getting LASIK and I have some time to kill while I wait.

Moving To Orlando, I am not an owner or anything. That is owned by Razek and Ruben. Ruben decided to move to Delaware and my husband moved into the acting manager role so, that left them with no active agents since Razek hasn't sold a house before. I was asked to take over some of the contracts so the clients had a person on the ground here, as well as helping future clients on a referral basis so they get the help they are supposed to be getting. It's been pretty steady and those shows should be amping back up soon and I will likely guest appear from time to time but, I am not 'back' with MTO nor employed by MTO or anything like that. Pete did sell his half to Ruben for $1,000,000 but the actual rules of the payback are very loose. Doing some quick math based on average sales and their terms, it should range between 300-700 years before he is paid. (I'm not exaggerating) - had he sold it to me, the math comes up to a 8-12 year deal, so best of luck to him.

Debating Pete being rich leaves out some context. He does have the money to do nice things that are tax writeoffs and to buy things that are fancy. So, if thats rich, then hes rich. He is certainly not wealthy, but I could get on board with possibly rich. That said, I just see a lot of debt. Anyone would argue that Whitney Houston was rich but she died 20 million in the hole. Pete can't afford his lifestyle without the company maintaining its pace, at minimum. He can't afford to retire and is often living paycheck to paycheck. They are big paychecks but it is still that same concept. 'I can't pay you back until the Google money comes in' or 'I need to wait for these houses to close before I can pay that bill' etc etc. For me, that ain't rich. Pete always told me I was with him for his money and I always explained to him that he doesn't have 'money.' I know people that fly into Orlando on their helicopter and park it on the roof of the hotel, theres people over on the Butler chain that could put me on their sea plane and fly me to Mt Dora for lunch. There's real money out there and Pete doesn't have that.

As far as stuff about the other employees not stepping up to Pete and all that. I don't have any ill will there. I know it's hard to break away from him, especially when you have a non-compete to deal with. I had a lawyer going after Pete for very basic things and Pete was completely non-compliant and I was out $11,000+ and accomplished absolutely nothing in that time frame. Petes strategy and threats are to keep you tied up in court because he can outspend you. He certainly can outspend his staff and it's scary getting a letter from an attorney and thinking about the amount of money it takes to defend yourself or accuse someone else of something. I got an opportunity that allowed me to make enough money that Pete couldn't outspend me anymore. We could've bankrupt each other, but I grew up poor and can live off ramen, he can't so I knew he couldn't really do much towards me. The others don't have that luxury, so it's a rock and hard place and it's hard to see the light when you're stuck in a well.

But life is going great. Dogs are happy, I am happy for the first time in years. I've lost around 55 pounds so feeling better, looking better and life is just, better. And now my husband will have perfect vision or go blind, so I'll be a caretaker I guess. But that still beats the alternative. Thanks again everyone for the kick in pants that I needed to get out of there.

 

[Jafar]

I have no compassion whatsoever for any of the men Pete has used/abused and throw away when he got bored.

They all knew what they are were getting into, the guy is an absolute psychopath. They fucked around and found out.

These two men are being extremely candid and open about their personal lives and their trauma. Your entitled to your opinion but I dont think they deserve to be made to feel any worse about themselves or their experiences then they probably already do. They dont owe anyone the information or explanations they are volunteering. We should show them empathy in return.

 

[The Mando]

What is Dustin’s handle so we can keep a look out for when he can post?

He doesn’t have a handle. It was ‘jamboeveryone’ but it keeps getting banned anytime he tries to post
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Jambo everyone! Dustin here. I've taken some time to deliberate whether or not to post here. I've read everything on these threads regarding the DIS. I'd absolutely love to contribute to the conversation. As Sean mentioned earlier, I'll not be contributiing to any conversation critiquing Corey, Craig, and especially Ryno as they are/were personal friends of mine. However I have no problem providing a little context.

My main goal is to help, not hurt. But sometimes, the truth hurts. I went through a lot in those years. Some of it was my own fault or my own naivete. Some of of it was not. I'd love to get the conversation started from my perspective. Thanks so much to Sean for showing strength in all of this. Without him, I'm not sure I'd have the same courage to speak. With that out of the way...

@DISbored said:

"Sean ask Dustin how does he feel that since he was the creative motivator behind the dis unplugged YouTube channels does he feel a certain way to see that all that work you put in has gone nowhere and that people like Craig are literally just living off what he implemented?"

Dustin responds:

As I said, I'll not contribute to critique of these fellas. I love Craig and Ryno. It's been a while since I've spoken with them but I truly only ever wish them the best.

I don't really follow the DISUnplugged youtube channel or the show for that matter. I'll listen every now and then out of curiosity (and to hear some voices that I miss.) You all will know better than me if the show feels like it's going downhill. What I will say is this. When I first moved to Orlando, I had a goal of getting a job at the DIS and really pushing their video presence online. Shortly thereafter Pete asked me if I thought it was viable to bring the show to video. I gave him a road map of how to do it, and do it on for a specific budget. I'd say after that first year or two, Craig took over the youtube. It became his baby.

When I left, he had a very difficult task of filling my shoes as producer overnight. In addition, I'm sure he had to deal with a very distraught Pete. I wish I could say I had more creative ownership over anything else on the youtube channels. But while I was there, I definitely took the show into a certain direction. When I left, they took it in a direction they felt they needed to.

So in short, No I don't feel a certain way. Do I miss it sometimes? Yes. I wish we could time travel and have certain moments captured for ever.

DISbored said:

"Asked Dustin and what he would have done differently if you were still there and running the show?"

Dustin responds:

I would've probably taken it down the "youtuber" route. "What's up guys?!? We're gonna breakdown this weeks Disney news." I don't think we live in a world of long form podcasts anymore. Having the one weekly show is good. You can keep that. But I think people like the short form daily updates. They were doing that with the Daily Fix. The biggest problem with that, however, is you had too many cooks in the kitchen.

You needed one person dedicated to that. Someone who could be the face of it (I think Ryno did quite well.) Someone who was good on screen, talented with cameras and editing, and someone who could be the face of the youtube channel. Unfortunately the way everything is structured. There's just too many personalities and styles to create a singular place for people to come too for their Disney content from someone they love and trust.

If I'm being honest, in a perfect world, Pete would be that singular person that people trust and love on camera. But he's too unreliable and impatient. He's got too many other things going on with the business (supposedly.) I can get into that more in detail later.

So to recap. I'd have dialed it in. There are too many topics and too many faces. You have to have a speciality with a face you recognize and trust.

DISbored said:

"Also, ask Dustin how the relationship between him and Pete came to be and subsequently came to an end it just seems to me Dustin was too good to get into such a hot mess like that…

Dustin responds:

THANKS for this question. I'm sure I wont hit all of it here. this is the meat and potatoes as the say. So what I'll do here (for my own benefit) is create a framework and a timeline to guide future questions.

In the summer of 2011 I graduated college and moved to Orlando and continued working at Disney. not a year, later I got the job at the DIS. I would say with in a matter of months, Pete pulled me aside for a very special conversation. He told me that he had feelings for me and asked me if it would be an issue to continue working for him. I intitially told him no. What else do you do? you landed your dream job and only a short time later this issue pops up. Again, I was 25 and in somewhat of a vulnerable state. Not an excuse, but defintely a reason.

We worked, I developed the new video show, we traveled, and eventually he talked to me again. He told me we were in a "emotional relationship." It's important to note that at every "major" moment like this I initially pushed back either internally or externally. We made arrangements for me to report only to Corey for a while as it became apprent that I couldn't give him what he wanted. That did not last long as "we were destined to work together."

After probably a year of traveling and working together, it became apparent that an emotional relationship was not enough for him. Again I can dive deep into a lot of these moments in time later, but right now I'm laying the ground work. Eventually I got to a place where I was acknowleging that we were in a relationship. It honestly just slowly happened (though there were some key moments.) I attribute a lot of it to myslef working directly out of his office in his garage. Originally this was meant to be a work from home job. but only a few months in I was working/being there full time everyday (no days off really.) I never lived with him but like clock work I would be there at 11:00am and leave around 3:00am. It was always a fight to leave. To convince him I was tired. To go home to my own apartment.

Basically things kept building up over the next few years. More and more travel. Less and less time to devote to myself. I felt like I became an extension of him. I can break down all of that too (therapy is a beautiful thing my friends.) It became too much. I lost my sense of self. I lost my friends. I was beginning to lose my family. Not out of shame. Eventually i was honest with everyone about this relationship . I wasn't hiding it anymore. I thought everyone would judge me because I was a man. Turns out, they were concerned for me because I was with him. with this one person who they coulsee had a very negative impact on my mental health.

I took all of that into consideration, and one day it just clicked. Sometime in the summer of 2015 I was no longer afraid of Pete. I was no longer afraid of losing my job. I knew I had my family at home to welcome me back in and to help nurse my wounds. I left.

Unfortunately I didn't have the luxury of concerning myself with who that would affect. For the first time in years, I was taking my life and my future into my own hands. And it had to be for me and only me.

I look forward to breaking down the incredible details of this short but whirlwind of a time in my life. If this hurts anyone who reads it, I'm truly sorry... It's not intentional. I will only tell the truth here. I'm assuming you can see that there's a lot to unpack here. We're only beginning.

 

[Bullybuster]

I missed Sean posting here! Can someone point me in the write thread so I can go check it out?

Allow me to save you some time with these Cliff's Notes on Sean's posts

1) Pete hires a male prostitute
2) Pete puts the male prostitute on his company's payroll, so John and Kevin could essentially pick up the tab
3) Pete love bombs the prostitute by gifting him a side-hustle real estate business
4) When the prostitute actually proves to be a competent real estate agent, Pete becomes insecure and verbally/emotionally abusive
5) Prostitute breaks up with Pete and marries his old boyfriend
6) Not to be outdone, Pete finds a rebound boy toy whom he instantly love bombs with tacky jewelry, extravagant trips, and an engagement ring.
7) During a podcast, Pete awkwardly brags to John (while touching his hand)that the engagement ring he gave to his new boy toy was from a romantic trip John and Pete once took to Disneyland
8) This cringy podcast moment was triggered when Kevin (John's husband) dared to suggest that Pete wasn't given special treatment at the Grand Californian (because he's "kind of a big deal"), but rather everyone is treated well at the hotel.
9) Following Pete's passive-aggressive floppy-seconds reminder, John and Kevin basically remove themselves from the podcast.
10) Not to be outdone, Pete returns to rehab, where he realizes he is burned out on Disney World and also removes himself from the show.
11) Kevin and John try to return to the show because Pete is finally gone, but (not to be outdone) Pete makes a "guest appearance" on the same episode and commanders the entire show by filibustering his disgust for the parks while pleasantly reminding the room that "I still own all this shit!"
12) Pete then hands over the podcast to two abused sycophants who now have to pretend that Pete's disdain for WDW hasn't tarnished their own passion for the parks, not to mention the entire show. A brilliantly executed succession plan if I've ever seen one.

And that, FilmingThePublic, pretty much brings you up to speed.

Next up on the DisUnplugged's Tigger King: "Why Frontierland's new cupcakes suck, and introducing the newest member of our team - Pete's new Gucci-clad masseuse."

 

[Murray9000]

I'm beginning to really hate this thread. This is not why I came to Tattle life. There's enough of it in the real world.

 

[The Mando]

Rufio'sGhost said:

"I have another question for Dustin...did John and Kevin treat you pretty well? It always came across like they treated you as if you were lower than them (mainly Kevin, actually)."

Dustin responds:

They were among the nicest people I ever dealt with. I felt like John truly cared about me as an employee. Of course his hands were tied with certain things in regards to Pete. But I truly felt like he wanted me to have the opportunity to thrive in my dream job.

Kevin and I's relationship was always more like acquaintances. We saw each other occasionally at the show recordings. We joked and laughed. I never had anything negative to say abouth the two of them.

I remember one time they eventually invited us over to their house for a pool party. I had a blast!

I wish I could tell you more on that subject. John was always the voice of reason. He is a good person. I believe he and Kevin are perfect for each other and I wish I knew Kevin better. I miss them to be honest.

 

[hmgiraffy]

1) Disney won’t win against “DeSantis.” Remember, it’s the Legislature amending its own previous statutes. Are courts going to rule the Legislature can’t change its own previous laws? Good luck with that one.

2) Disney isn’t being punished, so this constitutional rights stuff is complete off-base. RCID was a special taxing/governing jurisdiction; it was a governing enclave concocted by the Florida Legislature eons ago. Florida has plenary authority to modify that charter. The concept that Disney is entitled to it is absolutely absurd; therefore, the “free speech” crying is mal-informed layman pontificating.

3) Abortion is being severely limited across the majority of states, and good riddance. The dehumanization of the unborn is savage barbarism people a century from now will look in horror at how callous and/or passive people today were, much like how today we scratch our heads wondering how slavery was a thing 150 years ago (and still today). Ultrasounds today showing life is the equivalent of smoking decades ago. How/why people were surprised smoking caused lung cancer is the same stupidity of those today who can be shown an ultrasound and they have a blank stare—oblivious what they see with their own eyes is a human being. Ironically these same people believe eggs from an endangered animal should be federally protected, but they dehumanize unborn humans with obscure euphemisms.

4) Drag queens, et al., look, if you’re still reading this brilliant reply of mine, I don’t need to point out how obviously disgusting and disturbing it is how millions of people decided, almost overnight, that they should throw their kids to the wolves and have GROWN MEN dressed as the most overtly sexual fake women “READING” to them. Not sure what’s worse—men who clearly have mental issues wanting to be in costume and be around kids OR the parents who can’t even see what’s in front of them and being willing participants. The guise of “oh it’s just fun/reading” is another dandy. Yeah, a wolf in sheep’s clothing may fool many who lack any capacity of discernment. For the rest of us with eyes who can see, what’s obvious is obvious.

Glad I could insert a rational counterbalance to the dogpiling talking points everyone has had shoved down their throats.

Truly unhinged shit here. Please stay away from peoples bodies. It's creepy and gross how you and your ilk are so concerned with other people's genitals. Ick.

 

[GreenIsNotACreativeColor]

Well I am here for our first trip, and we couldn’t be more impressed.. Animal Kingdom today completely us away.

I seriously don’t know what Pete and the team are complaining about. The magic was everywhere, guests were friendly, the parks were clean, etc. The amazing service from cast at our resorts has been stellar.

WDW used to be better??! I seriously didn’t see anything wrong.

We are very exciting for the other 3 parks.

I feel like the problem is the vloggers are at the parks all the time and as a result just get sick of them. These places aren't meant to be experienced on a daily or weekly basis.

 

[The Mando]

Did Pete fuck fiasco? @The Mando

Absolutely not
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@The Mando - Any insight to Pete’s continued fascination with DVC given he doesn’t even go to the pares? He still shows up on the DVC shows and seems engaged. Contractual thing with World of DVC maybe? still loves buying contracts and collecting points so he can brag “I own there” any time any resort is mentioned? Brag about all the points he owns (but probably rents most of them since he never seems to do any but cruise). I just don’t get it.

The irony of this. Back in late 2018, Tom of DVCstore (the owner) reached out to Pete as they had been a long time advertiser on DISboards and wanted to increase the role they played. Since I really had no job at the DIS and had been there over a year, I jumped to take over that project. Early 2019 rolled around we met with their staff a number of times and I suggested to Pete that we do a DVC show and he should purchase a DVC contract to better understand what he is trying to sell to people. (Pete and John had a contract in the 90s but kept that in the split so it had been 2 decades)

Pete LOST it on me. Fired me from the project, blocked me on his phone for days and just threatened me with anything he could throw at me because he thought I was trying to manipulate him into buying into DVC. I told him I wasn’t and genuinely thought it would make sense for him to know more about the product. He refused and just thought I wanted him to get DVC so that I could use his points. Eventually he calmed down and put me back over the project and within like 6 months he had multiple contracts. Last I knew he was around 1300 points but no idea now. But just the sheer level of shit I got for suggesting This radical concept of understand a product you sell, only for him to buy so much of it.

I did also create the text-in program that DVCstore still uses to this day. Slicktext was already a company but they hadn’t ever had the product used in that way, so people can just sign up and get a text alert when a contract comes up that fits their use year, price, resort and point number and it made it where people didn’t have a need to shop around because they would just get alerted by the target company. So I felt it was a good product for sure. -

none of that paragraph was relevant, im just bragging lol.

 

[Happiest]

Can you please make a thread somewhere appropriate to the subject of drag shows and the corresponding politics? Then we can get back to focusing on the disaster that is the DIS and company. I’m sure there is a hearty interest in the topic but it doesn’t really pertain to the DIS and Pete and his nails and all the gossip that goes with that. Thanks!

 

[DJD]

Good point lol I think the problem is that some people think that drag is inherently sexual, which it isn't. It's about exploring a different side of your personality, being creative, and feeling good about yourself. I love going to drag shows and they are not all the same. I've been to some raunchy ones but they've all been in 21+ bars/nightclub type venues. I've also been to drag brunches at nicer restaurants that were quite tame - think just lip synching and showing off their outfits. I've also met a few drag queens at comic conventions that do some AMAZING Disney princess cosplays. The craftsmanship of their outfits is impressive and there's nothing about them that is inappropriate in any way.

If Disney were to do something drag related, I feel confident that's the type of show they would put on - something that shows off the hard work it takes to make an accurate costume and perfect the character's personality traits. A fashion show down Main St with some lip synching to Disney songs would be perfectly tame for people of all ages.

Thank you for saying this. The narrative that drag performers are harmful for children is extremely dangerous for the queer community.

@Rufio'sGhost is allowed to have their own opinion, but I would like them to be aware that drag queens are not dangerous. I am a drag performer, and the assumption that I am trying to groom kids and that my existence is a threat to children is extremely heartbreaking. I do not believe that I "skew pretty crazy" (your words) for feeling this way.
I apologize for the heaviness, but it is a very scary time to be a queer person right now, and seeing hateful comments about my people popping up out of nowhere brings me back to that scary reality.

 

[The Mando]

I do feel I had the better idea of what was happening because my experience started transactionally and I also heard enough to see the broader picture, but Dustin was a fully vulnerable person that had no idea.

Neither of us need compassion (or at least I don’t) but I appreciate the candidness. You’ve got your opinion and it’s all good.
---
Dustin and I spoke and we both just want to make sure that it doesn’t happen to anyone else and also not get murder-suicided

 

[GossipGirl43]

I also want to say, I think Ryno and others are confusing our lack of interest in Disney’s plight as
bigotry. Disney has not been great to the fan base, they underpay cast members, and they have unceremoniously fired long-term employees.

I just don’t get that excited about them being bullied by the governor. Is it wrong what the Governor is doing? Yes, but… I just I’m not going to come to Disney’s defense, their lawyers can. My feelings for Disney getting a little bit of karma doesn’t equate to my feelings about the gay community.

If they had listen to the fans Chapek wouldn’t have been CEO.

To be fair, as a Florida resident this is about much more than the governor’s fight with Disney. They touched on this a bit on a previous show. All these actions on the part of DeSantis are purely because Disney voiced an opinion opposing him. Everything since is retaliation for that. Are we okay with the government using its power to punish its enemies?

And the fight with Disney is drawing public attention away from everything else DeSantis is doing more quietly - the 6 week abortion ban, the change in how a death penalty sentence is decided, interfering with gender affirming care for transgender children, the “don’t say gay“ bill being rolled out to all 12 grades, book banning, changing the laws to make it easier for home insurance to avoid paying claims, the list goes on. I get that if you don’t live in Florida you can say you don’t care (although he’s probably running for President so people all over the country should be paying attention) but the panel is full of people who are very invested in how this governor is affecting their lives in very real ways. Like it or not, this is a Disney news story that changes every week (new developments today even) and covering that will lead to discussions of the bigger picture.

 

[The Mando]

Don't know exactly when or how many times but for some reason, I DO remember you in a tank top. If, in your mind, you would never wear a tank top "in studio" or in a zoom discussion, maybe you were at Aulani or at the parks.
I take that all back if you don't even own one and then I am crazy.

oh it might’ve been Aulani. I wear tank tops all the time, I just can’t imagine me doing it on camera for the show but I bet I would’ve in aulani because those were more impromptu.
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View attachment 2305553


That sounded familiar to me so I googled it. It was from Guru Gossip in 2020.

I am so glad you are here, I enjoy your well-written posts and insight.

yep that’s the one. I can confirm that I am a noted tank top wearer. I truly didn’t know that was notable in any way. I’m glad it wasn’t picked up on dateline or by the New York Times or anything. But I’m glad we can finally put the rumors to rest.

 

[peteykirch]

I so wish they had at least one fucking person with an opposing view point to their liberal view points. Them and their insane beliefs on high wage increases for a theme park job. Craig mentioned the other week how awesome it is that people working at target are going g to start at $24 an hour. Do these SJWs, who are the types who like to tell people to "shop local," realize that these things will kill small businesses? Like I said, I just wish there was ONE person on the team who would have an opposing view point.

I mean to be fair, if a business cannot provide a living wage and stay in business...they aren't a successful business and shouldn't be around.

 

[The Mando]

Give me a break. Do they not have access to YOUTUBE? If WE can obviously see it and have clear unmistakable evidence of how this guy acts, they could, and that is Pete on camera, edited, and approved. That's his "best" side.

You guys make it sound like Pete was some closet psychopath diva and they never saw it coming. He put it all out there, I will at least give him that.

AND, before you go lamenting the poor "victims" I would argue they had their own motives(not, not fucking LOVE), they wanted access to the money they wanted access to the networking Pete had. Certainly as fuck they weren't into him for his good looks and personality. They wanted something out of the "arrangement". So we can all stop with the bullshit innocent choirboy defense, it doesn't come close to holding up in this scenario.

Timeline wise. There was no show before Dustin, he created the studio which created the YouTube show. So there would be no evidence.

I never knew Disney Vlogging existed and had never seen the show before meeting Pete.

I certainly benefitted and worked the situation in my favor, at the end of the day and I won’t deny that. It didn’t mean it wasn’t hard or terrible but Pete will not make that mistake again with the next one. So I hope this all benefits someone in the future. Dustin and I might’ve not been as quick on the uptake as you. You are lucky to have a stronger level of discernment than we did and now we’ve learned what you already knew.

So everyone is happy.

 

[TheCodeMan95]

I was getting worried where this was headed when the convo first started, but I'm pleasantly surprised to see the narrative flipped quickly. Good on y'all.

I mean, a drag show on Main Street would be worth it enough just to see Desantis' head explode.

 

[The Mando]

I do have a request if anyone knows how. When I first tried to make an account, I was auto-banned when I tried to make my first post. I was able to take over this account from a friend that had made it and was posting stuff.

I was contacted by Dustin, who used to be on the show. He found my posts here and he reached out to me and we had a great phone call and traded war stories. I think it was cathartic for both of us, since we both had a similar experience (but different enough) and it’s hard for people to understand or relate. Posting here helped me decompress, as I was not in a good place mentally this time last year and Dustin expressed interest in posting here, but wanted to be certain that this was a topic he wanted to revisit.

Mod edit, if you think the system has spammed someone by mistake contact mods in forum support or email. When someone joins the site its good to make a proper first post and not just post "hello"

 

[Loueylouay]

Who are you to tell who should be a business or not? No one is being held hostage. If they’re not happy with their wage, they can quit and seek other employment.

If a business can't afford to pay their employees a living wage then they aren't running a proper business. Who am I? Someone in their 50s who has owned 5 businesses in my lifetime.....one of my company's had 20 employees and I always paid at least a living wage...that's who I am....and who are you being a jerk simply because I said everyone should be paid fairly. Good god