Back in 1994, Janis and I had the opportunity to visit Disneyland Paris. We explored the park in great detail over a two-week period. It is, in my opinion, the most beautiful Disney park. I was so impressed with what I saw that I wrote Tony Baxter, vice president of Disney Imagineering at the time and the person in charge of the creation of Disneyland Paris (EuroDisney back then), complementing him and his team. I included pictures of some of our work, mostly to let him know that my compliment was heartfelt and was from someone who understood how hard it was to do this kind of thing. A short while later, I received a letter back thanking me for my kind comments, along with an invitation to visit the Imagineering offices should I happen to be in the LA area. You can bet that I immediately started planning a trip to Disneyland a few weeks later.
Peter accompanied me to the Imagineering headquarters in Glendale. After signing the required NDAs, we were ushered into Mr. Baxter’s office. We had a brief chat, and Tony asked to see the portfolio of our recent work I had brought. He flipped through the pages and commented that my work was very Disneyesque, which he meant as a compliment. He then took me out on his executive office balcony overlooking the vast model shop with many talented people. With a wave of his arm, he casually offered me any desk of my choosing. I was surprised and deeply honoured but instantly turned down his generous offer. I knew how big a deal that job offer was and how most would kill for that same thing.
Tony was a little taken aback and asked me why I had turned it down. I briefly explained that in my current job, I could do both the design and fabrication of similarly creative but much smaller in scale projects… and I could do it in my backyard studio alongside my family and talented crew. After a brief pause, Tony then asked me if I would instead hire him. He then kindly summoned one of his model makers, who gave us a guided tour of the facility. Peter and I finished off our visit with lunch in the Imagineering dining hall. All in all, it was a truly memorable experience. And while I still hugely admire the Disney team’s creativeness, thirty years later, I have no regrets about my decision not to be a Disney Imagineer.
