(FORTUNE Magazine) – The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror may or may not sound like someplace you would like to plunge from the top of. Knowing it's a new ride at Disney World might cause you to feel more secure; making the drop in the company of Disney CEO Michael Eisner, better yet. Still, reports managing editor John Huey, who said yes to this proposition, the multimillion-dollar Tower is engineered so you'll reach the bottom in one of its passenger cars faster than if you just step off and fall. Gravity is scary enough for skydivers, but not for Disney.

John usually writes to you in this space, but he's been busy plummeting from towers and otherwise doing whatever it takes to report our cover story on the saga of recent events at Disney. Dramatic as any movie, they might suggest to the average newspaper reader that one of the world's great consumer franchises was in deep trouble. A key executive's sudden death, abrupt and acrimonious resignations, a half billion in write-offs--well, Eisner had a great ten-year run, but this sure sounded like the end of it.

In reporting that spanned the past 12 months, John found a different story. Given extraordinary--and exclusive--access inside the company, he attended more than a dozen business meetings with Eisner, talked with him for hours, and went with him to a hockey game (Disney's Mighty Ducks vs. the Chicago Blackhawks), to Disneyland in California, and to Disney World in Florida. He also spoke with many people across the U.S. who love Disney and Eisner, and with many others who loathe them. Read John's article and you'll understand why, after a calamitous year, Disney stock is near its all-time high.

It all makes for a superlative business story, but John gives you something else as well: an affecting tale of personal struggle and managing through tumult. As in any epic, the protagonist comes through it deeply changed. It's a story you won't be reading elsewhere and the kind of rich experience we love to bring you. As a businessperson, you will find it instructive; as a reader, simply fascinating.

[Geoffrey Colvin] Executive Editor