Comedian Steve Martin, who worked at Disneyland as a teenager, summed up Wally’s influence: “My hero, the first comedian I ever saw live, my influence, a man to whom I aspired.”

In 1962… he received a call from his pal Wally Boag… who had been performing in the Golden Horseshoe Revue for seven years, [who] explained that one of his fellow cast members had become seriously ill and [urging] Fulton to take over the role. Fulton did, and went on to light up the stage with his jovial nature and lilting brogue.

Diminutive in stature, Eddie was often described by his friends in the press as if he, himself, was a Disney character. San Francisco columnist Herb Caen once wrote that Eddie Meck was “no relation to Mecky Mouse.”

Betty became the darling of nearly 10 million guests, who, over the years, visited the saloon to see the world’s longest-running stage show.