While Rolly Crump is not a fashion icon, he definitely has style, so I have no qualms about finishing the week out with a post about his exhibit which I recently had the pleasure of seeing. This is about the only thing that would get me to Oceanside! Titled "It's kind of a cute story," the Rolly Crump exhibit at the Oceanside Museum of Art was incredible.
Care to see the original scale model for the it's a small world façade, featuring a working clock?
Amazing that this little gem from 1966 still survives. Here's a view of the back. I like to present the stuff that most people wouldn't. Yes...I go the extra mile so you don't have to.
A model of the Tower of the Four Winds, which was where EVERYONE at the 1964 New York Worlds Fair would meet each other. Designed by Crump himself, Walt Disney was enamored with it.
A photo of Rolly with Walt Disney at the Tower, signed by Walt himself, 1963.
Most Disneyland fans know that Crump was poised for his greatest Disney triumph with The Museum of the Weird, which was to be a focal point of the Haunted Mansion. Here's one of his concept drawings:
A 2017 model of The Gypsy Wagon that was to be part of the Museum of the Weird:
Once Walt passed away, the Disney Corporation got a lot less weird and Crump's revolutionary designs were axed. Here are some of Rolly's Disney name tags/ID cards:
The true highlight for me was seeing some of Crump's other art work that had nothing to do with Disney:
Slightly dark...a little irreverent...and full of humor. Rolly Crump is my kind of guy!
DEFINITELY worth the trip to Oceanside!
See more Oceanside photos at my main website.
8 comments:
Nice stuff. I just saw a bit of the Worlds Fair episode of Disneyland where Rolly is showing off that model of the Tower to Walt and the camera.
Poor Rolly. No two name tags have his name spelled the same, in one case going with his last name on the tag as if it were his first. Truly he was destined for the weird. I'm assuming you spelled his name as "Wally" as an homage to the mixup in the picture.
Met him in person once but I regret I didn't bring his book to have him sign it. I think he lives in Fallbrook now.
Bryan - I wish I could take credit for being that clever! It's the damn auto-correct of Blogger. I had to keep re-typing Rolly for Rally!
You can totally hear him saying "It's kind of a cute story..." I have a print of some of his artwork from The Museum of the Weird, which he signed in my office at work. It's right next to my X. Atencio signed artwork. I often look to them for inspiration!
There's no question that the level of creativity from the early Imagineers truly was a cut above everyone else. KS
This is amazing stuff, Dave.
Interesting to see the somewhat racy items. I've always assumed the Imagineers would have had an R-rated side that couldn't be expressed in the Disney work.
This has a wild Mardi Gras New Orleans vibration to it, it's a pity the Museum of the Weird was axed, it would have been brilliant.
Thank you.
JG
Re Rolly's comic drug posters: "The Museum of the Wired"?
HBG2 - That is so bad it's good! Thanks for the laugh!
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