"One of the original Imagineers, Gurr started at WED Enterprises in 1954, back when many considered Disneyland to be an impossible pipe dream. When Disney started what's now Walt Disney Imagineering, it was an offshoot that he started (and paid for himself, hence the initials) to develop attractions for the project, while Disney himself was busy running his studio and trying to drum up cash to build the theme park."
""We hated to go home at 5:30 p.m.," Gurr told SFGATE at an Oct. 19 event, recalling his thoughts in those days as, "Oh, I gotta sleep all night, and then I can come back in the morning and keep going again." "It was like that," he described. "We couldn't wait to get into the office and get to work again. How wonderful to feel like that going to work every day.""
"Up until earlier this year, Gurr, who's now 94, ran monthly Waltland tours, where he took a group of guests around Los Angeles landmarks important to Disney history: the Griffith Park carousel where Walt Disney dreamed up his theme park, the original Silver Lake location of Walt Disney Studios (now a Gelson's with a hopping wine bar), and the Burbank studios where Disney originally wanted to build Disneyland but was rejected by the city. Though tickets started at $210, when they went on sale months in advance, they'd sell out in literal seconds."
Bob Gurr began at WED Enterprises in 1954 as one of the original Imagineers and helped develop Disneyland attractions. WED Enterprises was an offshoot funded by Disney to design park attractions while he managed studio and financing. Gurr recalls intense enthusiasm among designers who worked long hours and eagerly returned to the office. Gurr, now 94, ran monthly Waltland tours guiding guests to Los Angeles locations tied to Disney history and displayed memorabilia such as original monorail sketches. Back injury prevented fall tours, so Gurr now hosts Waltland events at his Tujunga home where visitors view his collection.
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