Partners

As many of you know, Terri and I are huge fans of Walt Disney World. We spend a lot of time (and money) there. Hanna is probably starting to think that the Magic Kingdom is her personal playground.
Many people can't stand the place, and I can understand their feelings to some degree. Critics have often accused the Disney Company of being no more than a money-hungry Empire, selling pre-packaged "magic" to the unwashed masses of mindless tourists who eat it up, gladly paying 15 dollars for a hamburger that would fetch 3 bucks outside the park, or paying hundreds of dollars for their daughters to become "princesses" for a day in a cheaply made dress with the Disney logo stamped on the tag and a plastic tiara in their hair.
With things like that, you either buy what Disney sells or you are turned off by their seemingly endless and evil revenue stream. I mean, God forbid Disney makes money for their shareholders.

I, for one, buy what they sell. Because despite what other people think, there is genuine warmth and a sense of good feeling that gets me whenever I visit. What follows is one of those stories.




In 1995, there was a statue created for Disneyland in California and Walt Disney World in Orlando called "Partners". It is a very famous bronze statue of Walt and Mickey holding hands at the hub in front of the castle, with Walt pointing out in front of him and Mickey looking on. The man who designed this sculpture is named Blaine Gibson. He worked with Disney for many years, and among his works are the pirates in the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction, the Presidents in the Hall of Presidents, and the ghosts in the Haunted Mansion. For years afterwards, Mr. Gibson maintained that the sculpture in the Orlando park was not finished, although it was identical to its California cousin in every respect, and the sculpture in Anaheim was considered complete. So what was Gibson talking about?


In 1999, Gibson completed a bronze statue of Roy Disney, Walt's older brother. It depicted Roy sitting on a bench with Minnie Mouse in Town Square just under the flagpole. It was called "Sharing the Magic". Gibson then declared his "Partners" statue was complete. He then let the rest of the public understand his reasoning and filled them in on the story he was trying to tell with the two statues.
Walt Disney passed away in December of 1966, just a few months after announcing the Florida Disney World project. The Disney company was hit very hard by his loss, having just purchased the thousands of acres of Florida swamp that was supposed to hold Walt's biggest dream. They didn't know what to do. Should they go ahead with the project? Should they not? Roy Disney came out of retirement to see Walt's dream brought to life. He lived long enough to oversee the project, and on opening day in October of 1971, Roy Disney dedicated the park with a speech. He passed away 2 months later.
The statue of Roy and Minne has an empty space on the bench. This space is for Mickey. As Blaine Gibson explains it, in the Florida version of the "Partners" statue, Walt is pointing at his brother Roy, who is seated way down at the end of Main Street. Walt is telling Mickey that he can't take him any further, but his brother is waiting at the end of the street to finish the job.