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Treb Heining began his life-long career as a “balloon guy” when he first started selling Mickey Mouse helium balloons at Disneyland in 1969 when he was fifteen years old.

He played trumpet in his high school band and was considering following a professional career in music.

“I realized at a certain point, I think, that what I wanted to do, playing professionally, I probably wasn’t good enough to do it.”

Working several summers at Disneyland, he became enthralled with the world of balloons and their possibilities. When he graduated from school, he set up his own private company, BallonArt by Treb, Inc., specializing in elaborate balloon displays for celebrity parties around Southern California.

One of his most famous jobs was for Cher’s son, Elijah Blue Allman, in 1979 when he built a huge archway of balloons over the backyard tennis courts. Cher posed for a picture under it and suddenly everybody wanted something similar. It was the very first balloon archway that is now commonplace at a number of events, including marathons, and was the beginning of what has been called “balloon décor.”

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