Saturday, July 10, 2010

Preview Center Disneyland park, Paris


I had hoped not to have to go backward in this blog and to keep things chronological, but with the addition of the Islands of Adventure Preview Center I happened to remember another Preview Center.

It does seem that I am often brought in to make repairs on projects. That was the case for the Disneyland, park Paris (Euro Disneyland at the time) Preview Center. The Preview Center had been designed by an outside firm – instead of Imagineering. The results lacked the Disney style so important to a first impression.

The entire team of Imagineering art directors in Paris at the time was swamped with their various attractions. In an art director’s meeting it was suggested that we all lend a hand in the Preview Center fix. I knew that design-by-committee was unlikely to aid in any repairs and I suggested that a single art director needed to put in charge. The boss agreed and I was put in charge. This was not the outcome that I had expected, but I did recognize that, despite my overflowing plate, I was best suited to the job.

Jim Cora was the president of Disneyland International. I had worked for him both there and when he was the director of Fantasyland/Tomorrowland at Disneyland. It was Jim who had requested the repairs and I was very loyal to seeing that he got what he was looking for.

This first image is of the exterior for the facility. The building was half completed when I started making changes. There would be no changes to the building interior or exterior structure. I had a showroom, inside of the building that needed my attention.

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