IN MEMORY OFOUR PATRIARCH
DEAR DEPARTED
Grandpa
Marc
One of Disney's legendary "Nine Old Men"of animation, Marc Davis also stands as one of the most influential and creative forces in the history of theme park design. His clever and highly detailed concepts were the basis for the audio-animatronic vignettes of both Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion, and his unrealized designs for Walt Disney World's Western River Expedition are among the great lost treasures of Disney Imagineering. He also contributed to other celebrated attractions including the Enchanted Tiki Room, the Jungle Cruise and It's a Small World.
3 comments:
Love this series. Thanks
Back when the Haunted Mansion first opened at Disneyland, they had a small graveyard up on the hill in the back of the queue. Those tombstones included plays on the names of the Imagineers who were involved in building the attraction. Over time, and as the original Imagineers passed away, they were retired and replaced with these new ones. (X Atencio has his in his backyard.)
If anyone has pictures or the actual text of those first tombstones, I would great appreciate you mailing them to me or Jeff.
-John
www.thedisneyblog.com
by fans, for fans
You forgot to mention that Marc is also famous for creating the Country Bear Jamboree and the former America Sings at Disneyland.
I was fortunate enough to meet Marc Davis twice before he died. On one occasion, he was asked by a colleague of mine to sign a copy of "Chanticleer and the Fox", a storybook Disney had done using his inspirational sketches for that never-made feature.
Davis agreed to sign it, on one condition: he had to be allowed to draw back in the cigarette and holder that Disney Publishing had removed from one drawing. My friend readily agreed, Davis drew the cigarette and holder in their proper place, then flipped to the front of the book and signed it.
Whenever I consider the "politically correct" changes to Pirates of the Carribbean (pirates chasing women carrying food, for example), I frequently reflect on that book signing and wonder what Davis would have had to say about the changes to the ride.
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