So today on our podcast, we continue our story of Disney legend Mary Blair, who not only helped

shape the look of many Disney animated features, but also designed key attractions and installations

for both Disneyland and later Walt Disney World. We are now up to Part 9, and in earlier episodes we looked at her childhood,

her days in art school, and her time at multiple animation studios in Los Angeles, before joining

her husband, Lee, at Disney's. When we last left off, Mary and a handful of Disney artists, including her husband,

had returned from their trip to Latin America with material to make Saludos Amigos,

a Disney feature mostly focused on the culture of Brazil and Argentina. With other artists, she then watched the war descend down around California

and also saw servicemen move into the studio.

At the end of the summer of 1942, Lee joined the Navy,

leaving Mary to explore life in Los Angeles and at the Disney

studio, mostly on her own. And this is where we pick it up today.

In November, 1942, Mary Blair's life was beginning to change again.

Her husband Lee was in the Navy, presently moving through a military training program

at the University of Arizona.

For the first time, since her days at Chenard, Mary was living alone, though now in a house with a large studio that supported her work as an artist.

For the previous eight years, Mary's home life had been partially arranged around her and Lee's identity as professional watercolorists, who created works to be sold at galleries.

In this, partially through Lee, Mary had found a social life in the gallery world, also engaging

conversations as to the value and nature of contemporary art.

But without Lee, Mary's social life was more focused around the Disney studio.

Many of the people she invited over worked for Disney, and as such the conversations at her

house partially shifted to the value and nature of art created for animated films.

During these weeks, Mary saw her role at the studio shift as Walt took a deeper interest in her art.

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