Relevant to the Saudi Arabian connection: And he developed a career as a designer of theme parks and other attractions, co-founding Landmark Entertainment Group with a former Santa Barbara classmate. The company had backing from Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, who was partnered with late pop star Michael Jackson. Goddard later founded the Goddard Group, which has been involved in multibillion-dollar projects, including the design of mega-casinos in China.