Walt Disney World...

     Here I go again…from sea to shining sea. My first road trip was Denver to New York in October of 1970, then New York to California in July of ’71, now two months later (September ’71) I’m back behind the wheel and rackin’ up the miles as I get to see more stunningly beautiful scenery of America the Beautiful. 

     As I drove into northern Florida what really surprised me was it was covered with pine trees and cattle…I was expecting palm trees and sand. (Did you know that Florida is the 2^nd largest cattle-raising state in the country?)

     First stop in Florida was to visit Bob Allen and his wonderful wife Rollie in their home in Windermere which was, back then, a sleepy little old village just three miles outside the back gate of the Park. It was great fun to see them again but it also turned out to be a fortuitous stop because they knew of a home I could rent right there in Windermere. A call was made to the owner before I left the Allen’s, I took a quick tour of this great old house which was right on the shore of the Butler chain of lakes (yes, a bass boat came with the house…cool, huh?) we made a deal that very afternoon and I moved right in. My whirlwind had begun.  

     Monday morning, I drove through the fun and welcoming entry gate and right into my next exciting Disney adventure.

     I was confident that this was really going to be great fun!

     I reported to the Entertainment Division office, which was still in a trailer out in the back lot. I already knew several of my colleagues from Disneyland so after some hand-shakes and some quick introductions, I was given my desk and my work assignments, got my photo taken, and then hit the ground running.

     A minor disappointment was that I discovered that I was two days late from being in the inaugural, now classic, full-cast photo that had everyone lined up in front of Cinderella’s Castle and which had made the cover of Life Magazine.

     Drat! Sure wish I could have been in that photo.

     My initial job was to supervise and manage the several performing groups that appeared nightly in the two amazing brand new hotels (there were only two hotels when the Park opened). In the Contemporary Hotel, there was an excellent piano player in the huge open lobby, a wonderful small jazz trio out in the marina bar, and a fabulous big dance band up on the top floor’s upscale supper club, “Top of the World”. There also were roaming groups of the Disney Characters that floated in and out occasionally and who were always a big hit with the guests.

     The other hotel was the Polynesian which had another terrific jazz band in the main bar, another pianist in the lobby and out on the beach was a fabulous nightly dinner show featuring a large troupe of Polynesian dancers and musicians. There was also a fantastic barbershop quartet that appeared on one of the tour boats that sailed on Bay Lake between the two hotels. And, once again, the Characters showed up, but here in this venue, they wore Hawaiian shirts and floral leis.

     A nightly parade on the water featured a cool new entertainment concept. The Electrical Water Pageant gently cruised past both hotels with fun recorded music playing from the floats. Another one of my jobs was to ensure it was on time and all the animated lights were working. Disney was in the parade business, as you can appreciate, and Bay Lake was just another type of “street” for this very creative and innovative “parade” to go down.

     I made good friends with all of the performers during my time in that supervisory role and continued to be stunned by the high level of their musical and performing talents. This was, collectively, a really great group of people who, like me, had a wonderful sense of privilege in being among the performing cast of this wonderful new place.

     I was about to witness the absolute genius of Bob Jani, my Vice President of the Entertainment Division and the man I’ve already told you about who is truly one of the most creative individuals I’ve ever encountered…and this in a virtual “sea” of creative individuals all throughout the Disney organization.

     This is the cover of the Master Event Script (a full inch thick, mind you) for the Opening Spectacular and Dedication Ceremony of Walt Disney World. 

     This was so HUGE that it took a full 3 days to execute, and had been in the planning stages for the past several years. And remember, I first encountered some of that preparation for this opening way back in the early 60s in Denver when both the Hustlers and the Five Part Invention were performing and the Disney “training ground” that Bob Allen was running. This celebration had been in the works for a very long time. And it was beyond superb.

     Rather than me give you the details, please take a moment and read this article. It will give you an overview of this amazing celebration. When I read through this article it not only brought back some wonderful memories but, once again, it truly took my breath away. This really was an awesome event.  

http://allears.net/ae/issue599.htm

     My time working in Walt Disney World was only going to be seven months, as Bob Jani had yet another really delicious opportunity for me to taste. This time, he invited me to go back to California, not back to Disneyland, but this time to the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank to work on the new international touring show, Disney On Parade. I was to be “on-loan” to the Studio and become the show’s Production Assistant to the Producer, Hollywood mega-talent, writer/producer Michael Grilikhes.

     You guessed it. Pack up the car and start back across the country for yet another very long road trip. But, I was really getting good at this, right?

     I cannot begin to tell you how truly fabulous my time at Walt Disney World had been. The vastness and scope of this new land of entertainment and recreation was already being called “the Vacation Kingdom of the World” and I got to be a small part of its beginnings.  

     Can’t wait to see what more my Disney experience has to offer in this next upcoming chapter. What a fabulous ride this has been so far…