Maggie Irvine Elliott

Maggie Irvine Elliott (Former Senior Vice President of Creative Administration at WDI) Maggie Elliott's career at WED began in 1968 when she became a "summer hire" apprentice model maker, working on the Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom. In 1978, she was promoted to manager of the Model Shop and Show Production. Under her guidance, the Tujunga facility came into being and she managed all the model work, set production, prop production and figure finishing for EPCOT Center and Tokyo Disneyland. In 1983, Maggie was again promoted to director of Show Design Administration; in 1988 she became Vice President of Creative Administration and in 1991 was named Senior Vice President of Creative Administration. In each assignment she became the first woman to achieve the top titles of Director, Vice President and Senior Vice President at Walt Disney Imagineering. She followed in the footsteps of her father, Richard Irvine, Executive Vice President, who was responsible for all Disney park designs from 1952 until his retirement, after the opening of Walt Disney World.

- From Company Literature

The following is part of a lecture given by former Imagineer Maggie Elliott at a special Ryman-Carroll Foundation tribute event at the Disneyland Resort on January 26, 2002.

I'm Maggie Irvine Elliott. I'm called the Inbetweener. And that's because I didn't actually work with Walt directly. I was just a kid. But my father did. His name is Dick Irvine. And for those of you that follow the organization, you know he was very active with Walt. So what I'd like to do is just kinda start with him a little bit and tell you a little bit about him and a little bit about myself and then a little bit about Herb Ryman, who was my godfather. And that kinda shows you my connection to the Disney organization.

My father, Dick Irvine, was a motion-picture art director and he worked in the '40s for 20th Century Fox. And during that time, Walt decided he was going to do some war films and he pulled some art directors from various studios. And Daddy, Dick, went over to work with Walt and he worked on How to Pack a Pack Mule and Victory Through Air Power. And he was art director on that. He's most noted for his work ... he was nominated for an Academy Award on Miracle on 34th Street, you see that every Christmas, and then High Noon, which was a wonderful, wonderful old Western. Those are probably his most famous films. And he worked very closely with Herb Ryman and Lyle Wheeler, who was a very famous motion picture art director in the '30s and '40s and into the '50s.

Well, in the early '50s, about the time I was born ... now you know how old I am ... Walt decided he was going to do this wonderful thing. Wasn't quite sure what it was. And, I'm sure you've heard this story a million times, where he talked to architects and they said, "Use your motion picture people because they really understand what you want to do a lot better than architects will." And so Walt called around and talked with Lyle Wheeler at 20th and said, "Who have you got available?" And he said, "I've got this guy, he's perfect. He's got an architectural background from USC. He studied at Chouinard Art Institute. And he's a great combination of architect/artist." So, he said, "Dick Irvine." And Walt said, "Well, I know him. I worked with him on a few films during the war." OK, fine. So off Daddy went.

Now, to digress a little bit, I'm number 5 out of 10 children. So in 1950, I was number fifth. And my mother was very nervous about leaving 20th because Daddy had been there, very secure, doing very well. And she said they kinda debated back and forth. Dad thought that this was kind of a neat thing, so he gambled and he left 20th and went to work for Walt in the early '50s to do this thing called Disneyland.

Now, Walt also had working with him at that time Herb Ryman, this artist. And again, I'm sure you've heard this story a million times about Walt getting ready to go to the bankers to get financing for the park and grabbing people, Herbie specifically, to do this wonderful piece of art to take to the bankers. Well, Daddy was one of the people who helped color it in after Herbie drew it. (Laughs) So he kind of followed the lines. And so his career ... Daddy's career was off and running with the Disney company.

I can remember as a little kid coming down with him on weekends, because he worked seven days a week, walking the park during construction. And my hero in those days was Davy Crockett and Zorro, so I'm right where I should be (in the Frontierland amphitheater) with my heroes of my youth. Having six brothers, you tend to live in Levi's and coonskin hats and all that kind of thing. So, I had what I call a fairy-tale life. You know, Walt would call on the phone and "Daddy, Walt's on the phone and he wants to talk to you." So I knew him from a very different perspective. He was Dad's boss and I didn't think anything about it.

I did have the best birthday parties though. Because Daddy always brought home films. So we can see any Disney film we wanted to. So it really was come to the Irvines' for the birthday parties. That was the place to be. And we always had a great time. Growing up with it, you tend to take it for granted. I could kick myself a thousand times for all the things that have ... all the wonderful merchandise that has gone through ... through our homes over the years. Like I said, it was just part of the business.

Continued ...

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