That was a great article, as always, Mr. Norman!  I hadn't heard of Mr. Gibson before, so it was nice reading about him!

Thanx Floyd! I have always loved those walk cycles from the opening scene in "101 Dalmatians", but it was only recently that I learned that Blaine Gibson was responsible for them. I was mostly familiar with his sculpts in the parks.

Didn't Gibson create the "Partners" statue of Walt & Mickey that stands in front of Cinderella's castle in WDW?

Back around 1981, as Disney was gearing up for the opening of EPCOT the following year, I got to visit Imagineering, courtesy of sculptor Perry Russ who was on loan to the Glendale studio from WDW in Florida. I"d known Perry from having met him in Florida on several vacations, so he said I should come by for a visit when I was vacationing in LA that year. I recall that security was pretty tight at Imagineering but it sure was a thrill to see what was being developed for EPCOT once I was in. Perry showed me some of the full figure sculptures he'd been sculpting in clay for "The American Adventure", then took me into that big room with all of the shelves of pirate heads and characters from "America Sings", etc. While showing me all those great sculptures, in walked Blaine Gibson. It was a very special treat to meet the master himself and see what he'd been sculpting for various EPCOT attractions. I remember him being as Floyd describes - very gentle and soft-spoken.

Many years later, around 1992 I think, I got to visit Imagineering a second time. It sure was a different place by then. There didn't seem to be much activity there at all : no sculpting going on that I could see. There seemed to be an air of unease about the place, as if there was a lull in project development and nobody felt very secure. I remember one of the guys saying how it was frustrating that outside vendors were being contracted for a lot of ride development that historically had all been kept in-house before. I couldn't help but think how much more exciting and inspiring Imagineering had seemed when I'd met Blaine Gibson about a decade earlier.

OF all of his many great sculptural contributions to the Disney opus, I'm amazed nobody's mentioned the one that got him the most personal "publicity" since he was so very much featured in film about its creation that was seen by millions of park guests and TV viewers---I refer, of course, to his adaptation from the original life masks of the face of Abraham Lincoln for "Great Moments With Mr. Lincoln." While many, many people in Imagineering were responsible for this work, the "Hall of Presidents" that followed it, and its various incarnations since, I'd have to say that two people were and still are perhaps MOST important in the entire perception of a huge generation or two of Americans of what our 16th president looked, moved, and sounded like---Blaine Gibson for the sculpture, and Royal Dano for the vocal interpretation.

Jim's been wanting to do something on Mr. Gibson for years.

Floyd, what a beautifully-written piece.  Thanks so much for sharing your great stories (again).  

It's great when Jim does an in-depth story (even better when he finishes one) - but when one Legend gives us insight into another, it's a one-of-a-kind magical treat.

Blaine Gibson - to call him brilliant, and a master, is an understatement.  So many of our childhood memories, those unforgettable characters, made it from the drawing pad to three dimensions at his hands, and then on to the magicians who brought them to life.  Thanks again to both of you.

The "E" Ticket magazine had some very good articles about Blaine Gibson. They're worth tracking down.