Designer Times
Page 1 of 2
Earlier Visits with Ward Kimball
Bob Welbaum's enjoyable four part
LaughingPlace series, A Visit With Ward Kimball, unveiled a bit more about
this very funny guy. Years before I joined the Disneyland design effort in
1954 at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, I was introduced to Ward by a
mutual friend, Dan Post of Arcadia, not far from Ward's home near San
Gabriel. I had been writing my first book for Post Publications, How to Draw
Tomorrow's Car - R.H. Gurr.
Dan and Ward were members of the Horseless
Carriage Club, a gang of antique car enthusiasts specializing in the early
brass-era cars. Ward always brought his cute little Maxwell Fire Chief's car,
built around 1910. He was so funny, with his goofy fire hat, driving this
little red roadster with a bunch of American Flags sticking out of the
radiator cap. Everyone loved to be around Ward, you never knew what zany deal
was gonna happen next.
So Dan drove me over to Ward's one day in 1951
so Ward could show me something bigger...a real full size steam engine. Now I
was only 19 at the time, and just couldn't believe a guy would have a running
steam railroad in his backyard. Ward had a new kid to impress....now he
showed me some more car stuff including a real fire engine. It got even
better. Ward had to show me a special toy car he had in one of his "toy
rooms". There was junk piled up from a narrow path winding across the room
until it was halfway up the walls. He scrambled up and grabbed it so he
could explain it's significance to me.
I just had never seen such a
character. But Ward was so nonchalant and friendly....we became instant
friends. Dan told me Ward was a cartoonist working for Walt Disney. Well
maybe that explained the stuffed lion in the front hall with the antlers that
were decorated with Christmas Tree balls.
Ward explained why the lion,
whose name was Stanley, had no hair on his back...."the kids like to ride
him".
Not long afterwards, I told Ward about a neat English car that was
for sale at Ernie McAfee's sports car shop near the Studio. As an Art
Center School car design student, I loved to hang around Ernie's drooling
over the interesting sports cars for sale, like Alfas and Bugattis.
This little English car, a pre-war yellow MG K3 Magnette Tourer looked
just like a toy Ward should drive. Sure enough, on the next visit to Ward's
I saw a new addition to the barn....the Magnette. Ward was a bit
upset because Ernie charged Ward a bit more than the price I saw on the car.
I figured Ernie found out who Ward was and charged accordingly.
Dan
told me a "Ward story" that I never did verify. Seems that Ward took his kids
with him to Downtown Los Angeles to buy a new 1949 Chevy wagon. Unfortunately
the dealer chased Ward's barefoot kids out of the car on the showroom
floor....how dare little waifs mess up his new cars. Ward was so irked he
marched right across the street to the Plymouth dealer and bought TWO little
Plymouth Wagons in full view of the Chevy dealer. True or not, but it sure
sounded like Ward Kimball.
A couple of years later, after a stint in
Detroit as a car stylist at the Ford Motor Company, I was back writing more
car books with Dan Post. Ward called to ask if Dan knew anyone who was
qualified to drive a 1916 American La France Fire Engine. Ward was going to
drive his Maxwell in a parade thru nearby Temple City and need a second
driver. Now Dan and Ward were always pulling jokes on each other, and Dan was
about to pull one on Ward.
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