1. Robert Henry Gurr was born on October 25,1931 and is an American amusement ride designer and Imagineer.
16 Facts About Bob Gurr
1. 2.
Bob Gurr worked on the King Kong Encounter animatronic for Universal Studios Hollywood.
3.
Bob Gurr was born in Los Angeles in 1931 and raised in the community of Glendale, California.
4.
Bob Gurr studied industrial design at the Los Angeles ArtCenter School on a scholarship from the General Motors, graduating in 1952.
5.
Bob Gurr moved to Detroit, Michigan to work in automotive design for the Ford Motor Company.
6.
Bob Gurr was friends with Disney animator Ub Iwerks, having attended school with Iwerks' son, and Iwerks asked Bob Gurr to design the Autopia ride vehicles for the planned Disneyland amusement park.
7.
In 1959, Bob Gurr designed and oversaw construction of the Disneyland Monorail based on his sketches of a Buck Rogers-style space craft.
8.
Bob Gurr helped create the Abraham Lincoln audio-animatronic for Disney's attraction at the 1964 World's Fair.
9.
Bob Gurr designed two 1910 era vehicles of the Main Street Vehicles attraction for Disneyland's Main Street, USA The Carnation Wagon was designed for Carnation and was parked outside The Carnation Ice Cream Parlour, creating a photo opportunity for guests.
10.
Bob Gurr designed the 1910 style replica fire engine of the Main Street Vehicles attraction for the firehouse in the Town Square.
11.
Bob Gurr later gave himself the title of Director of Special Vehicle Development.
12.
In 1984, Bob Gurr joined with other retired Disney Imagineers Dave Schweninger and Thomas Reidenbach to cofound Sequoia Creative.
13.
In 1997, when casino magnate Steve Wynn wanted to sink a pirate ship several times nightly at his Treasure Island Hotel and Casino, he called upon Bob Gurr, who figured out how to do it.
14.
Bob Gurr helped consult for the T-Rex animatronic in Jurassic Park, and for the animatronic used in 1998's Godzilla.
15.
Bob Gurr remained closeted during his early working years citing the fear of exposure created by the McCarthy Era and the Lavender Scare of the 1950s and 60s.
16.
In 2012, Bob Gurr authored Design: Just For Fun his first hardbound book and self published book.