Retro Disney World Podcast

We are still plugging along in the Episode 43 series, this time with 43.75. The crew welcomes Jim Sarno, an artist who has been all over the entertainment industry. Jim spent some time with The Muppets, Hannah-Barbera and beyond. He moved into the Disney realm, getting his first gig with MAPO, making body parts out of fiberglass.  As you listen to this episode, you will hear Jim drop so many names of his former friends & colleagues, which is super interesting.

Jim was moved away from MAPO and joined 'The Model Shop', which he discusses working on the early EPCOT Center models at the time. The conversation also leads to some insight into Teddy Ruxpin. We get into the main things Jim did, which were SMRT-1 and the sculpture/fountain in The Land. Jim has some first hand knowledge on how he made SMRT-1 and also what parts went into making him. 
We discuss the secret signature within the fountain and also some other place Jim worked, including Disneyland. He designed the landing platform for Tinkerbell! This is a great episode, with lots of neat facts and stories we never would have heard without Jim joining us. Huge thanks goes out to him for taking the time to sit down and chat with us.

Thank you for listening, be sure to check out our latest venture, The Lake Buena Vista Historical Society. You won't want to miss what we have coming soon! We also have our next event coming soon, The Lake & Lagoon Tour: Discovery Edition. Hopefully you can join us for this new adventure at The Vacation Kingdom!

We interrupt your normal podcast, for a special edition of the podcast. This episode is filled with lots of news, updates and tour info; so here we go!

• • Our Lake & Lagoon Tour: Discovery Edition is getting closer and closer each day. We have less than one month to go and we are so pumped for this. The old Animal Kingdom boats are being fueled up and float tested as we speak, just for you! Right now, we only have a handful of tickets left, so if you want to join us, click here!
  • How has some news about construction on Bay Lake, which means this tour could be your last chance to get an up close look at River Country. This is new and could be one of your last chances...
  • The gift for our upcoming event is in production and looking amazing. Our tour members will receive a special limited edition version!
  • Join us! We will be at The Outer Rim, Saturday, November 17th from 4:30pm-6:00pm. This is open to anybody who would like to chat, enjoy a drink from the bar and just relax after a fun day.
  • The Walking Tour is back! Join us for another free event, Sunday November 18th - 11:30am. We will be at the main entrance fountain, right in front of Spaceship Earth. This tour will include the former WorldKey site, the news ticker, flamingos, Horizons and so much more. We did this last year and had tons of fun, so we hope you can join us for this bonus event.
  • Contest - We have a contest coming right around the weekend of November 17th. Please check our social media and website for more information regarding this...
  • Finally, we wanted to tell you about something new. The Lake Buena Vista Historical Society. This has been in the works for over a year, and we wanted to create something to preserve the history we are sharing with you. Brian & Todd explain everything regarding this new initiative, which we are super excited for you to join us on.

 Welcome to Episode 43.5! We are here tonight to chat with Chris Debiec, who plays a key role in the early days of Disney-MGM Studios.  Todd, Brian & How are in attendance tonight and we start you off with some information about the upcoming Lake & Lagoon tour.  Some information is also revealed about the gift for this upcoming event and also some key information if you would like to meet any of us. 
For more information, please visit here - Click Here

At the moment, Chris is working on some top secret projects, but we get him on the phone to talk about his time at Disney. He started at the studios in the late 80s, as a production assistant. Like many people, Chris started in the Disney College Program, being one of the last classes at the Snow White Village.  We also learn that Chris worked at Captain Cook's at the Polynesian.
Throughout this episode, Chris has so many amazing stories. We learn all about stealing ice in World Showcase, conversations with Jim Washburn and The Muppets. The entire conversation is filled with amazing, never heard stories related to the early days of Disney-MGM. As a real, working studio, you get real Hollywood stories - which is amazing. The stories almost don't feel like a theme park and more from the backstage area of a movie set, which totally makes sense.

Huge thanks to Chris for spending time with us and answering our questions. We really enjoyed talking with him and found him to be full of amazing stories.