Harriet Burns, First Lady of Walt Disney Imagineering (Interview with Granddaughter Haley Clair)

Imagination Skyway

Matthew Krul

History, Society & Culture, Places & Travel, Kids & Family

5 • 830 Ratings

🗓️ 21 September 2019

⏱️ 72 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Harriet Burns was known as Walt Disney's First Lady of Imagineering, not only because of her contributions to the organization but also because she truly was the first woman hired at WDI in a creative capacity. Harriet is a Disney Legend and even has a window on Main Street U.S.A. at Disneyland. Working directly with Walt Disney, Harriet helped to create many of the classic attractions we know and love today, including Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room, The Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Matterhorn Bobsleds, the Carousel of Progress, and Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. She also built the robin that Mary Poppins sings "Spoonful of Sugar" to in the original film. Harriet passed away in 2008, but her legacy still lives on today. In this episode, I have the distinct privilege of interviewing Haley Clair, the granddaughter of Harriet Burns. Haley and I chat about her grandmother's life, legacy, work at Walt Disney Imagineering, and interactions with Walt Disney. Which of Harriet Burn's creations do you love most? Send me your feedback via email or through direct or public message at any of the following and [with your permission] I'll include your message in a future show: Facebook: www.facebook.com/ImagineerPodcast Instagram: www.instagram.com/ImagineerPodcast Twitter: www.twitter.com/ImagineerNews Facebook Group (ImagiNation): https://www.facebook.com/groups/imagineerpodcast/ Share your feedback via voicemail: 516-406-8376 Huge thank you once again to Haley Clair for being my special guest on this podcast episode! You can learn more about Haley and about her family's book (all about Harriet Burns) at the links below. Website: http://www.haleyclair.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/haley.clair/ Book: http://www.imagineerharriet.com Be sure to check out our sponsor WDW Magazine, the premier magazine focused on Walt Disney World, available in print or digital. Disney news and travel tips: Be sure to visit our Disney news partner, The Kingdom Insider: Website: https://thekingdominsider.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/KingdomInsider Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thekingdominsider/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/tkidisneynews YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfNy6LP8uPSjsktoPBr5JTQ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/TKIDisneyNews/ Vacation Planning: Planning a trip to Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, Adventures by Disney, or another Disney destination? Visit our trusted partner, Academy Travel: Walt Disney World: https://apps.itams.com/AcademyCRM/form/waltdisney/IP Disneyland: https://apps.itams.com/AcademyCRM/form/disneyland/IP Disney Cruise Line: https://apps.itams.com/AcademyCRM/form/disneycruise/IP Aulani: https://apps.itams.com/AcademyCRM/form/Aulani/IP Adventures by Disney: https://apps.itams.com/AcademyCRM/form/DisneyAdventure/IP How to Support the Show Share the podcast with your friends Rate and review on iTunes - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-imagineerpodcasts-podcast/id1244558092 Join the Imagineer Society - https://www.patreon.com/imagineerpodcast Purchase merchandise - https://www.teepublic.com/stores/imagineer-podcast?ref_id=8929 Enjoy the show!

Transcript

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0:00.0	A
0:02.0	A
0:07.0	Oh
0:08.0	Oh
0:09.0	O Hello and welcome to the Imagineer podcast, your unofficial guide to all things Disney.
0:41.3	I'm your host, Matthew Krall, and you're listening to Episode 56 of the Imagineer Podcast.
0:48.7	In today's episode, we're going to be talking with Haley Claire, who is the granddaughter of Imagineer Harriet
0:56.6	Burns.
0:57.6	For those of you who don't know about Harriet Burns, well, you should because she was the
1:03.0	first lady of Walt Disney Imagineering, not just by title, but also was truly the first
1:09.7	woman to ever work at Walt Disney Imagineering.
1:13.4	She worked directly with Walt Disney, Blaine Gibson, and other famous classic Imagineers
1:19.9	and Disney Legends.
1:21.2	In fact, Harriet Burns is a Disney legend herself.
1:24.8	She also has a window on Main Street and has contributed to many classic
1:30.7	attractions, including It's a Small World, the Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean,
1:36.3	Matterhorn bobsleds, 20,000 leagues under the sea, the Carousel of Progress, the list literally
1:42.0	goes on and on, and the majority of the attractions
1:45.0	that Harriet worked on can still be found at Disneyland and at Walt Disney World.
1:51.2	So in today's episode, we're going to sit down with Harriet's granddaughter, Haley, and talk
1:57.0	a little bit more about Harriet's life, about some of the stories that Haley learned as she
2:02.6	was growing up as her grandmother told her, and share a little bit more knowledge about
	...

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