Saturday, July 9, 2016

The Amazing Story of Walt Disney




This (Part 1) article was published in the Saturday Evening Post in 1953. It gives you an idea how far Disney had come until then, and how he was perceived by the media at that time.
When I look at photos of Walt's workshop in the photos below, a story comes to mind:

One day, way back in 1988 or perhaps '89 when I was working on King Triton for The Little Mermaid, my office phone rang. It was an outside local call from a lady who I didn't know. She spoke in English with a German accent, and phoned just to congratulate me on my early career at Disney.
Hmmm...strange I thought, but then things became interesting. She had read about me in a German newspaper, and it turned out that her mother knew my mother, they happened to be neighbors in my small home town. When I asked her wether she was in California on vacation she replied that she actually lives here, and that she works for Mrs Disney. "Walt Disney's daughter?" I asked. "No, Mrs Walt Disney." She informed me that she does the cooking as well as supervising the gardening for the house in Holmby Hills (near Beverly Hills). She also lived there in the maid's quarter.
To make a long story short, I was invited to come to the house for a home cooked German dinner.
Twist my arm....
When I arrived a few days later , I not only had a German meal, I got a tour of the house. Mrs Disney was away to spend the weekend in her Palm Springs home. So it might not have been the proper thing to do, but...I got to see the house.
I remember vividly walking into the workshop, pictured here. There was an old phone hanging on one of the walls with a label that said Kansas City.










6 comments:

  1. Was that Mickey Ave/Dopey Drive sign moved for that photo?(in the second scan) Or was there really nothing on the other side of the road from the animation building at that time?
    As I read and see more accounts of Walt Disney, I think I have a pretty tangible idea of who he was, and it's neither "Uncle Walt" nor "Hollywood's Dark Prince".
    The way the artists describe Walt is probably totally accurate. Stern, driven and critical about making pristine, fanciful films.

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  2. Great Stuff and a great story of touring Walt's house....did it smell like cigarettes?

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  3. Great Stuff and a great story of touring Walt's house....did it smell like cigarettes?

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  4. What a surprising opportunity that was. A few days ago, I was at the Walt Disney Family Museum and got to see his train (which I didn't know was there). That was my surprising opportunity!

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  5. Hello,I am new to your blog but not Disney and his amazing life. Andreas you are a hero of mine. You and many others took the Disney batton and ran with it with The Little Mermaid. I hope you know the hope and magic you and all the artists put back into the world. I'd say Walt is real proud. You're a good man, an amazing artist and humble, kind human being. Keep the joy flowing! Take care

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  6. Hello,I am new to your blog but not Disney and his amazing life. Andreas you are a hero of mine. You and many others took the Disney batton and ran with it with The Little Mermaid. I hope you know the hope and magic you and all the artists put back into the world. I'd say Walt is real proud. You're a good man, an amazing artist and humble, kind human being. Keep the joy flowing! Take care

    ReplyDelete