Archives

Contribute to Our Research

Full Steam Ahead, Mr. Baxter

Tony Baxter with models of Discovery Bay and Dumbo’s Circus, 1976

As you’re no doubt aware by now, veteran Imagineer Tony Baxter resigned from Walt Disney Imagineering last Friday, his birthday, after a remarkable 47 years with the company. Tony will be staying on as a consultant to the company, providing his insight […]

Walt Disney’s Ward Kimball’s John Carter of Mars and Beyond!

We’ve spoken about the Disney studio’s recent trip to Mars as well as Bob Clampett’s (non-Disney) attempt to animate the series of Edgar Rice Burroughs stories in 1936. But in 1957 Disney himself took a brief trip to Barsoom via Mars and Beyond, the beloved episode of the Disneyland television series directed by Disney […]

Robert Sherman, 1925-2012

Many people over the years have contributed to what we consider the Disney legacy. Sadly, as time passes, we lose more and more of those iconic figures who were Walt’s hand-picked talent; those who were behind the golden era of Disney animation, film, and theme parks. Today we have lost another titan of old […]

82IF…

"Buddy Baker, Director of Music at WED & MAPO, conducting the National Philharmonic Orchestra inside the EMI/Abbey Road Studio in London"

In 1982 Buddy Baker was a busy man, jetting around the world to record the scores for a slew of new attractions and films for EPCOT Center. For the French pavilion’s Impressions […]

Some Sketchy Ideas About Italy

Courtesy of John Donaldson come these sketches by Herb Ryman; they are preliminary studies for EPCOT’s Italy pavilion. While they are merely sketches, they do convey a Rymanesque sense of atmosphere and – of course – hint at a cast of interesting characters in the foreground.

The landmarks depicted do differ somewhat from the […]