Jim Korkis: As a kid, what was your reaction to the magic of Disney?
Bob Gurr: We had no television, so I only saw a Disney cartoon if that’s what the movie house was playing. I had no choice in the matter. I never liked Mickey Mouse but thought Donald Duck was a hoot. I don’t recall ever having any early Disney toys. My father had died and my mother had no money, so I built model airplanes. I really didn’t have traditional toys. I did think that Disney produced amazing stuff like Fantasia and the True-Life Adventures nature series.
JK: Did your interest in wheeled vehicles and redesigning them pop up in your early years?
BG: I had a paper route for the Hollywood Citizen News as a kid. I never modified my bike. I just tried to make my bikes last, because they went through so much wear and tear. Long before I joined the Road Burners car club where I met Dave Iwerks, I modified my ’31 Model A from a club sedan to a five-window coupe with a replacement body after my stepfather crashed in it. Solid hood sides, B-shell, Calnevar wheel covers, bullet headlights, custom dash, etc. Later my ’36 Ford five-window had teardrops, frenched trunk, chrome dash, skirts, etc.
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