Legendary Imagineer Tony Baxter Biography by Tim O'Brien Now Available in eBook Format on Amazon for Immediate Download !

Great news, as Tim O'Brien who did the great Tony Baxter biography just let me know that the book is now available on Amazon in Kindle format for immediate download - and read! - on a Kindle, iPad, or any tablet device- with the amazon Kindle App - and for $11.81 only! Go ahead, order the book in its eBook format HERE

And for more infos about the book, jump to my previous article HERE.

Tim O'Brien Awaited Biography of Legendary Imagineer Tony Baxter Now Available on Amazon!

Here is the Imagineer biography i was waiting for since a long time! Tim O'Brien, theme park specialist and award-winning photo journalist has published a fantastic biography of legendary WDI Imagineer Tony Baxter titled "Tony Baxter: First of the Second Generation of Walt Disney Imagineers" which is now available on Amazon for $16.99 HERE.

As you know Tony Baxter, former senior vice president of creative development at Walt Disney Imagineering was responsible for creating designs and carrying out the construction of attractions all over the world. During his 47-year tenure with the company, he oversaw the construction of multiple contemporary Disney theme park attractions, including Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Star Tours, Splash Mountain, The Indiana Jones Adventure, Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage and Epcot' Journey Into Imagination. Tony was also Executive Creative Director for Disneyland Paris park.

Tony, who is beloved by Disney Parks fans, was first hired at Disneyland Park in 1965 as an ice cream scooper on Main Street, U.S.A. at the age of 17. During his employment at the park, he held many different positions. He later caught the attention of WED Enterprises -now known as Walt Disney Imagineering. During his first 24 years he built up his rank within the company until he was given the position as senior vice president of creative development in Walt Disney Imagineering.

Tim O'Brien book tells the story of Tony fantastic career at WDI, and more, and it's a book you must really not miss. For those of you living overseas or who can't wait to read it, an Amazon Kindle eBook will also be available soon on Amazon!

Pictures: copyright Disney, Tim O'Brien

Tony Baxter Destination D Presentation of the Discovery Bay Project

Legendary Imagineer Tony Baxter did during Destination D a presentation of his famous Discovery Bay project - envisioned for Disneyland. As we know this Discovery Bay land was never built but plenty of its concepts have materialized in others parks whether it is at DLP Discoveryland, Epcot, Tokyo Disney Sea, WDW Pleasure Island, etc...

Among the rides that finally never materialized anywhere is Spark Gap, a coaster featuring a vertical ascent into a loop drop on a mag-lev track, which was a long time ago envisioned for DLP Discoveryland - as you can see on the renderings above and below that i've found back in my archives - before being cancelled. Interesting fact: this Spark Gap coaster was envisioned to be placed at DLP in the location on the back path between Discoveryland and Fantasyland, near where the queue for Star Tours is located. Imagineer and DLP Discoveryland show-producer Tim Delaney didn't do the above attraction poster concept but he's the one who did the sketch below.

Inside the Magic posted a great article about Tony's presentation that you can read HERE!

Artwork : copyright Disney Enterprises

DISNEY LEGEND TONY BAXTER AND A TOMORROWLAND SNEAK PEEK ADDED TO DESTINATION D: ATTRACTION REWIND AT WDW RESORT NOVEMBER 22–23 !

Here is a great news for those of you planning to attend the Destination D event at WDW Nov 22-23 as Disney announced that legendary imagineer Tony Baxter will be there and "will take guests on an in-depth tour of the never-built themed expansion for Disneyland through rarely seen concept artwork and models that he worked on during his time at Walt Disney Imagineering, including Discovery Bay." Here is the full press release:

DISNEY LEGEND TONY BAXTER AND A TOMORROWLAND SNEAK PEEK ADDED TO DESTINATION D: ATTRACTION REWIND AT WALT DISNEY WORLD RESORT NOVEMBER 22–23 !

GUESTS WILL ENJOY A BEHIND-THE-SCENES LOOK AT DISNEY’S UPCOMING FILM TOMORROWLAND, A DIVE INTO THE NEVER-BUILT DISCOVERY BAY EXPANSION AT DISNEYLAND, AND MUCH MORE DURING THE TWO-DAY MEMBER EVENT.

Exclusive event-themed merchandise and new panels are revealed.

 BURBANK, Calif. – September 4, 2014 – D23: The Official Disney Fan Club has unveiled more of the experiences in store for members at what is sure to be the can’t-miss Disney event of the year—D23 Destination D: Attraction Rewind presented by H2O Plus. Taking place November 22 and 23 at Walt Disney World Resort, the event will bring Disney Legends, archivists, Imagineers, and luminaries together to celebrate fan-favorite attractions of years past, including Adventure Thru Inner Space, If You Had Wings, and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, with rarely seen concept art and images, vintage video clips, and hours of revealing stories. In addition, there will be a full day of presentations showcasing Disney’s contributions to the 1964–65 New York World’s Fair.

Tomorrowland supervising art director Ramsey Avery (Star Trek Into Darkness, Minority Report) will give members a behind-the-scenes sneak peek at the making of the upcoming release from Walt Disney Pictures. Avery will detail how the production team reconstructed elements of the World’s Fair for the upcoming film, which stars George Clooney. “I had a great experience working on Tomorrowland and recreating some of the very iconic environments from the 1964 World’s Fair, especially it’s a small world, and am excited to share some of that behind-the-scenes process with Disney fans,” says Avery.

During the panel “Rediscovering Discovery Bay,” Disney Legend Tony Baxter will take guests on an in-depth tour of the never-built themed expansion for Disneyland through rarely seen concept artwork and models that he worked on during his time at Walt Disney Imagineering. Discovery Bay, as an early press release stated, was intended to “bring to life a time and place that climaxed an age of discovery and expansion.”

Additional panels have just been announced.* More information may be found at D23.com/Events.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 22
·        Disney Goes to the World’s Fair: Historian Bill Cotter looks at Disney’s massive influence on the 1964–65 New York World’s Fair.
·        A World’s Fair of Disney Legends: Marty Sklar, Alice Davis, and Bob Gurr discuss their contributions to the Fair.
·        Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln: Historian Michael Kelley and Disney Legend Bob Matheison take a behind-the-scenes look at the groundbreaking attraction.
·        Ford’s Magic Skyway: Bill Cotter and Disney Legends Bob Gurr and Bill Sullivan reveal some of the secrets behind one of the Fair’s most innovative attractions.
·        Carousel of Progress: Disney Legend Marty Sklar and Imagineer Gary Landrum talk about the creation of this one-of-a-kind show.
·        it’s a small world: Disney Legend Alice Davis discusses working on the beloved attraction with her husband Marc and artist Mary Blair.
·        Lost on the Way to the World’s Fair: Walt Disney Archives Director Becky Cline reveals some of the proposed creations that didn’t make it to New York.
·        A Sneak Peek at Disney’s Tomorrowland (see above).

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 23
·        Widen Your World: Tony Baxter, Imagineer Jason Grandt, and Disney Legend Charlie Ridgway revisit popular attractions from the early years of Walt Disney World.
·        Disneyland: Fond Memories of the Past: Becky Cline and historian Stacia Martin journey through some of Disneyland’s most beloved attractions of yesteryear.
·        Retro Rewind References: Imagineers Wyatt Winter and Jason Grandt reveal some of the hidden references to past attractions in today’s theme park creations.
·        Rediscovering Discovery Bay: (see above).
·        An Evolution of Make Believe Made Real: Imagineers Dave Minichiello and Pam Rawlins detail the creation of the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and explore its roots, which began in 1937.
·        That Was Entertainment!: Disney Legend Ron Logan lifts the curtain on some of the most fondly remembered events and entertainment from Disneyland and Walt Disney World.

Plus, Mickey’s of Glendale, the famed Walt Disney Imagineering store, is setting up a pop-up shop, which will open Friday, November 21 and run through the weekend, offering a selection of exclusive Imagineering merchandise as well as limited-edition pins, T-shirts, and collectibles themed to the event. Mickey’s of Glendale will also carry an exclusive collection of items themed to Pleasure Island, including pins, pin sets, T-shirts, and glassware.

In addition to more than a dozen panels and presentations, the weekend will include:
·        A special weeklong exhibit designed by the Walt Disney Archives in honor of the event.
·        Pleasure Island: Rewind presented by Twinings of London, a closing-night celebration themed around the former Downtown Disney nightlife district.

The weekend event will take place in the convention center at Disney’s Contemporary Resort. Tickets are currently available to all D23 Members, and D23 Gold and Silver Members receive special ticket pricing. All guests will receive a gift created just for the event.

More details about the program and tickets for D23 DESTINATION D: ATTRACTION REWIND presented by H2O Plus, as well as a special offer just for members of D23, can be found at D23.com/Events.

D&M Exclusive : Pictorial Memories of Tom Scherman - Photos Courtesy of Evelyn Turner

Here are never-seen-before pictures of the great Tom Sherman that i should have posted since a long time - shame on me! - and we have to thanks Evelyn Turner who was a great friend of Tom, back in the 70's. Evelyn share with us rare pictures of Tom some shot by her, others by a friend, Kathy Sanders - as well as some artwork and she kindly sent me scans of them. Although most of the photos are not in the greatest quality - Evelyn had a cheap old point and shoot camera back in those days - i did my best to enhance the pictures which, again, have never been published anywhere before. 

Tom Scherman, for those of you who still don't know him was the greatest 20000 Leagues Nautilus specialist in the world as well as a genius modeler, a great painter, and a WDI Imagineer. It's thanks to Tom who was the last one to knew the secrets of Harper Goff's Nautilus that we have an almost real size Nautilus at Disneyland Paris' Discoveryland. Not to mention the many Nautilus models that he did and were on display inside DLP Visionarium or Epcot Living Seas. It's also thanks to Tom that Tokyo Disney Sea Mysterious Island has its look, specially the inside of the volcano, as Tom sketches done years before served as inspiration for a big part of it as you can discover on my Tom Scherman website HERE where this article is posted simultaneously.

Here is now an introduction by Evelyn Turner herself: 

"I met Tom through mutual friends around 1973 when I was living in Hollywood.  He gave me a tour of his Nautilus apartment, which was very impressive!  We started going together and stayed together a few years, through about 1977 when we grew apart and went our separate ways. He was working for WED Enterprises at the time, and I loved seeing his drawings and models. I feel very privileged that I was able to contribute in a very minor way to his cutaway Nautilus model by making miniature paintings and gilded frames.

When we were friends in the 70s, I was working for the County of Los Angeles to support myself, but then, as now, I also dabbled in art as a hobby and I was inspired by Tom and his talent.  I also took up belly dance and danced professionally for a few years.  I am now retired and getting back into art by taking some watercolor classes.  I have lots of good memories of Tom and the time we were together and am grateful for your lovely tribute site because it brings back those good old days."

Above, a nice picture of Tom according to Evelyn possibly taken at a science fiction convention. Below, a photo of Tom Scherman with Evelyn Turner at a picnic in 1974 
( the photo was shot by Kathy Sanders ).

As Tom's name is forever linked with the Nautilus, let's have a look now at great pics of Tom standing in 1974 in front of one of his Nautilus model, as well as close-up shots on the model itself.

Thanks to Evelyn we also have very rare pictures of Tom's cutaway Nautilus! Tom gave to Evelyn the 3-dimentional "sketch" - picture below - that he made before he started the full-size model. Evelyn had a small contribution to the model as well. Tom asked her to make some miniature paintings in miniature gilt frames which she did ( she made the frames from pieces cut from gold doilies!) and he used them in the model.  

Below, Tom and Evelyn standing in front of the cutaway Nautilus. Tom eventually sold the model to Disney, but Evelyn don't know what happened to it after that.

As we know Tom Scherman was also a fantastic artist and here are some pictures of artwork - paintings or "napkin" sketches - he gave to Evelyn.

The little monster below is a sketch that Tom did on a piece of CBS memo paper.

I told you that Tom was too a WDI Imagineer and here is a picture of Tom ( on the right ) shot at WDI with Disney Legend Tony Baxter ( second from the right ) and Imagineers John Olson and Jack Terry, charting concepts for what was called at that time "Epcot Oceanography Pavilion". The picture was posted in WED Enterprises ( now WDI ) newsletter called WED-WAY.

Evelyn share a fun memory for this next picture of Tom. She reminds that Tom had to shave his mustache when he took diving lessons... so he put on a false one for this photo!

Another never seen picture of Tom - a Polaroid picture - standing in front of one of his model.

Tom and Evelyn also participated to incredible events as you will see with this next piece showing a newspaper article about a dinner they attended on the Queen Mary to commemorate the Titanic: "Although our table was at the back, all the news people there took our photo because we were the only group who came in costume!"

...the second page of the article - enlarge both pictures to read the article about this memorable evening.

We will end this article with these pictures of Tom and Evelyn standing in front of Tom's incredible giant Iron Man - you can learn more about it in a special article about it with more pictures on Tom's website HERE.

Although we end today with these Iron Man pics there is more photos from Evelyn Turner to come soon in a part two article. And the pictures included in this next article are also amazing as they show Tom with one of the most famous prop in movie history that he bought in an auction and then restored : the original Time Machine from Georges Pal's legendary 1960 famous movie! Don't miss this part two!

Pictures: copyright Evelyn Turner, Kathy Sanders

Legendary Imagineer Tony Baxter Honored by a Window at Disneyland Main Street U.S.A

Legendary Imagineer Tony Baxter was honored yesterday by a window at Disneyland Main Street U.S.A, during a ceremony hosted by Tom Staggs, Bruce Vaughn and Michael Colglazier, family members, friends, and others Disney Legends recognized Tony amazing contributions.

And what contributions! From Big Thunder Mountain to Splash mountain, Indiana Jones Adventure, Star Tours, Epcot Journey into Imagination and the whole Disneyland Paris park just to list a few, Tony Baxter was during his long career at WDI one of the most important Imagineer in Disney theme park history and is beloved by all Disney fans.

Tony's window is located on the first floor right on the left of DL Magic shop and is written on it "Main Street Marvel, Tony Baxter, Inventor" and this quote coming from Journey into Imagination "Imagination is in the heart of our creations".

If i remember it well Tony's birthday is in February and he's born under the Aquarius sign. Uranus is the "master" of the sign and brings anti-conformism but also inventivity and genius! So, i think that "Inventor" is not only right in regards to Tony's achievements but also perfectly chosen for someone as much "Uranian" as him!

Almost 50 years ago, in 1965 Tony started his career at Disneyland at Carnation Plaza Gardens, became an Imagineer in 1970 and was a field art director for the opening of 20000 Leagues under the sea. Over the years Tony played a key role in the development of the beloved attractions listed above before becoming senior vice president responsible for the concept development, design and creation of Disneyland Paris!

We all congrats Tony and here is a video of the full ceremony filmed by Inside the Magic.



Pictures: copyright Disney

Video: copyright Inside the Magic

Gary Goddard's " The Wonderful World of OZ " Theme Park Project

I did previously many tributes to Gary Goddard from the Goddard Group, one of the best theme park design company on the planet and you may have read my previous articles like the one about Michael Jackson Neverland theme park project or Star Trek Experience in Las Vegas, not to mention this other one about WDI artists who worked for Landmark Entertainment, Gary's company before he founded the Goddard Group. Now, you're probably aware that WDI has a "Land of OZ" project for the back of Disneyland Frontierland but it's not sure yet if this land designed by Imagineer Tony Baxter will be built or not. But did you know that Gary Goddard had in the 90's a Wonderful World of OZ theme park project for Kansas city? 

According to Gary's post on the Goddard Group Facebook page: 

"THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF OZ was a dream project. We knew we had a classic property that could become a theme park and a destination resort that could, if not rival Disney and Universal, certainly be a close 2nd or 3rd. But we were striving to make it the #1 family destination theme park in the country when we started our design concept. In my opinion, the work we did for THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF OZ was every bit as good as anything ever done at Disney or Universal. Beyond that, we were creating some new concepts that had never been done before, all based around the heart and soul of “The Wonderful World of Oz” as it was portrayed in the iconic MGM Motion Picture.

Once we had our initial concept and master plan, we did presentations for a number of people. Among them Harrison Price was brought into see the project and to render his professional opinion on whether it would make the grade or not. (Harrison Price is the legendary feasibility maven who helped get Disneyland financed originally and then went on to form ERA, working on hundreds if not thousands of projects thereafter -- he is considered one of the Deans of the Theme Park industry.) Well he saw our concept presentation and told the financiers “I have seen everything that has come down the pike since Disneyland and, without a doubt, this is the best project I have ever seen since Disneyland. This is a winner."

Gary Goddard describes the park's arrival experience: 

"One of the cool things about the park and how we designed it, was that you could enter the park in one of three ways: First, you could walk through the pastel-toned, almost black and white looking, Kansas street, turn a corner and walk “over the rainbow” to find yourself in Munchkinland. Second, you could actually venture out to The Gale Farmhouse for a tour, and while there you would find yourself in the midst of a terrible twister that will fly that house up into the air, and then land you in Munchkinland. Or Third, if you ventured to Professor Marvel’s Circus on the edge of town, you could fly up and away in one of his Great Balloons which would whisk you away to The Emerald City."

"The EMERALD CITY was home to several E-Tickets attractions, including the IMPERIAL WIZARD OF OZ SHOW, a production within an 800 seat theatre that would combine live performers and 3D film into a show unlike anything before it (until of course T2/3D -- which came a bit later.) 

There was also to be THE AERIAL ADVENTURES OVER OZ, the world’s first “flying” experience that would take you up and away in a massive OZ-styled AIRSHIP on an aerial tour of never-seen-before places from the Oz mythology.  Inside, we had the “Horse of A Different Color Carousel”, and the EMERALD CITY EXPRESS- a coaster experience designed to be a central form of transportation within The Emerald City."

"The HAUNTED FOREST – Home of the Wicked Witch of the West – this was an area where you had to travel through the “Haunted Forest” to reach the sinister Castle of the Witch. Signs are posted everywhere saying “I’d Turn Back If I were You” and “Stay Out” – as the canopy of the trees grows in size, they completely cover the walk way, allowing us to have a large open air “covering” over entire Haunted Forest area, making it an all-weather area of the park. It also allowed us to ensure that every visit to the Haunted Forest, even on the brightest sunny days, would become a “dark and shadowy” place for guests. The E-Tickets here included a FLYING MONKEY COASTER where you “fly” with the Monkey’s on a mission (inverted coaster), and BLACKWATER RAPIDS- a dark and foreboding river rafting ride through the Haunted Forest."

So, as you can see, this Wonderful World of OZ project would have made a real magical OZ theme park, and with a bit of luck this great project will become reality some day...
In the meantime make sure to have a look regularly at the Goddard Group Facebook page and to bookmark it as Gary is posting plenty of artwork of realized or not project which all looks great!

Pictures: copyright Goddard Group

D23 Expo : Imagineer Tony Baxter Disney Legend Award Ceremony !

Last Saturday was surely one of the big day of his life for WDI Imagineer Tony Baxter as Tony became at the D23 Expo a Disney Legend!

On the picture below, Tony is waiting for his Disney Legend Award with Billy Crystal and John Goodman who also became Disney Legends.

The Disney Legend Award was introduced to Tony by Bob Iger and Dreamfinder, Figment and Darth Vador were there too -  Journey into Imagination and Star Tours being two attractions created by Tony among many others like Big Thunder Mountain, Splash Mountain, Indiana Jones Adventure, Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage and of course Disneyland Paris Magic Kingdom Park.

Tony did then a wonderful Disney Legend Award acceptance speech...

...and then left his hands print and write his name in the cement as every Disney Legend does!

It is well known that Tony love the fans and the fans love Tony and not only they applauded him when he received his Disney Legend award but were also able to get close to him when Tony went at the Journey into Imagineering pavilion. Tony is here in front of an early concept model of Epcot's The Land pavilion with Mary Costa who was Princess Aurora in Sleeping Beauty and became a Disney Legend in 1999.

Inside the Magic filmed a great video of Tony Baxter Disney Legend ceremony and you have it below. Tony's speech begin at around 5.30 min. Have also a look at others D23 videos filmed by Inside the Magic HERE.

Pictures: copyright D23 Expo - Disney, Andy Castro - Dateline Disneyland

Video: copyright inside the Magic