Disney Legend Tony Baxter Will Be Making a Rare Northern California Appearance to Sign Artwork for Fans This Weekend

Baxter will be signing two new releases from the Disney Fine Art portfolio.

Northern California fans of Disney movies, Disney theme parks, and Walt Disney Imagineering specifically have an event coming up this weekend to be very excited about: Disney Legend Tony Baxter will be making a rare appearance in Old Sacramento to promote and sign two new art releases of his work.

What’s happening:

  • Disney Imagineer, Artist and Legend Tony Baxter will be making a rare appearance at Stage Nine Entertainment in Old Sacramento, California this Saturday, November 9th.
  • The event is open to the public, free, and takes place from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Baxter will be meeting and greeting with fans, and will be available to sign purchased copies of his new artwork releases from the Disney Fine Art portfolio: “Tyrolean Fantasy” (inspired by Pinocchio) and “Steps of St. Paul’s” (inspired by Mary Poppins).
  • Additionally, a selection of authentic props from timeless Disneyland attractions associated with Baxter will be available for purchase by enthusiasts looking to add to their collections.

What they’re saying:

  • Stage Nine Entertainment: “Fans who have visited Disneyland in the past 50 years have undoubtedly been impacted by Baxter’s artistic and exciting creations as he was the visionary for iconic attractions such as Big Thunder Mountain, Splash Mountain, Star Tours, Finding Nemo, Indiana Adventure, Disneyland Paris, and more.”
  • “Stage Nine Entertainment is well known as the area’s premier entertainment retail destination that showcases approximately 20,000 unique items related to movies, television, toys, and pop culture. Stage Nine is well known for hosting retail events attended by celebrities, artists, and entertainers. Plus, the on-site art gallery – The Vault – is California’s #1 independently owned retailer of Disney Fine Art.”

  • Tony Baxter: “As a young college student at Cal Poly in Pomona interested in landscape architecture and architectural studies, I received some input and guidance from the HR people at Walt Disney Studios regarding my career. If I wanted to pursue a career with Disney, my career path was veering toward WED Enterprises, now Walt Disney Imagineering, or Walt Disney Feature Animation. The film I suggested for consideration by the animation department was the classic book ‘Charlotte's Web,’ but that idea wasn’t as enthusiastically received as I had hoped, so my attention turned to WED.”
  • “I was working with Claude [Coats], and I mentioned that I'd like to paint something in the style of a background from Pinocchio. He laughed and said, 'Do you know how hard that will be?' And I replied, 'Probably, but I have to feel like I did it.' He was right. It took me about six weeks to complete what we’re calling ‘Tyrolean Fantasy’ today (back then, I didn’t even have a name for it). I did it all on my own time at home after work. I was almost hesitant to bring the finished piece into Imagineering because I didn’t want Claude to point out what was wrong with it. It wasn’t easy to do. I used watercolor, so whatever is white in the painting is actually the raw paper. From the beginning, you must be careful about what must stay white.”

For additional information on the event and its venue, be sure to visit Stage Nine Entertainment’s official website.

Mike Celestino
Mike serves as Laughing Place's lead Southern California reporter, Editorial Director for Star Wars content, and host of the weekly "Who's the Bossk?" Star Wars podcast. He's been fascinated by Disney theme parks and storytelling in general all his life and resides in Burbank, California with his beloved wife and cats.