Edward, El Dorado Hills, California

Debby Boone performed in “Night of Joy” at Disneyland on April 13, 1984; she also did a two-night “Night of Joy” at Walt Disney World in September of that year. There are no accurate Disneyland performer indexes, so I was unable to find any Boone performances in the 1970s.

Steven, New Jersey

If you haven’t done so, you should check the Imagineering website, which should answer many of your questions: wdi.disneycareers.com. Walt Disney Imagineering certainly employs mechanical engineers, but I am unaware which colleges have produced most of them. Engineers are also hired by the Disney parks.

Greg, Downingtown Pennsylvania

Even before the New York fair, in 1958, Walt Disney had produced America the Beautiful in CircleVision, to be shown at the Brussels World’s Fair. But after doing the four shows for the 1964–65 fair, Walt decided to build his park in Florida, so he had no time for outside work for world’s fairs. However, …

Camille, Pawtucket, Rhode Island

Walt often referred to Walt Disney Imagineering (then WED Enterprises) as his “laughing place.” There he could take a respite from his duties as head of a major company and go watch the Imagineers at work imagining fantastic things that could be added to Disneyland. When he had his backyard miniature railroad, he also found …

Remembering Kevin Corcoran

Disney Legend Kevin Corcoran, best known for his role in Disney’s 1957 classic live-action film Old Yeller and for his portrayal of Moochie on the Mickey Mouse Club, passed away in Burbank, California, on October 6, 2015. He was 66. Born in Santa Monica, California, on June 10, 1949, Corcoran—the fifth of eight children—first appeared …

Remembering Dean Jones

Dean Jones, the star of such iconic Disney live-action films of the 1960s and 1970s as That Darn Cat!, The Love Bug, and The Shaggy D.A., passed away in Los Angeles on Tuesday, September 1, 2015. He was 84. A native of Decatur, Alabama, Jones moved to New Orleans as a 15-year-old to make a …

Johnny Depp

A teen heartthrob who then became one of the biggest movie stars in the world star, Johnny Depp is a rarity among actors, willing and able to mix swashbuckling leading-man performances with eccentric character roles. Perhaps best known among these parts is the internationally-beloved Captain Jack Sparrow of the Pirates of the Caribbean films. Nothing, …

Andreas Deja

“I always wanted to be a Disney animator, but it was somewhat of an exotic idea,” Andreas Deja says. Exotic because Andreas was born in Gdansk, Poland, and grew up in Germany. “You’d tell your friends and family that your life’s goal was to go to America and work for Disney, and the reaction was, …

Carson Van Osten

“I think I always knew that I’d be an artist,” Carson Van Osten says, “and although I was too young to remember it, my parents told me that I said I wanted to draw cartoons for Walt Disney when I grew up.” And since 1970, Carson Van Osten has done just that. He’s helped bring …

Julie Reihm Casaletto

For decades, Disney Ambassadors have been a constant presence around the globe, attending special events, supporting charitable causes, and spreading goodwill. But the long tradition began with a single individual—Julie Reihm Casaletto, the very first Disneyland Ambassador. a personification of Disneyland’s world-famous spirit of friendliness and happiness Julie was born in Galveston, Texas, but the …

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