|
David Mumford passed away on the morning of January 20, 2003 at St. Joseph's Hospital in Burbank, California after a valiant fight with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and paraneoplastic pemphigus. David was 46 years old.
As a senior principal show set designer at Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI), David oversaw the production of working set drawings for Disney theme park attractions. David's most recent project was the Journey into Imagination with the Figment attraction at EPCOT, on which he was working at Walt Disney World last spring (2002) before he became ill. In his spare time, David and Bruce Gordon co-authored and co-edited several books including Disneyland: The Nickel Tour; A Brush With Disney: An Artist's Journey; Walt's Time: From Before to Beyond (with Jeff Kurtti); and Walt Disney Imagineering: A Behind the Dreams Look at Making the Magic Real (with Kevin Rafferty and Randy Webster).
David joined The Walt Disney Company in 1974 as a ride operator on the Submarine Voyage at Disneyland Park. His 23-year Imagineering career began in 1979 when David joined WED Enterprises (as WDI was then known) to work as a show set draftsman for The Land at EPCOT. Over the years, David was involved with a number of attractions including Alice in Wonderland and Aladdin's Oasis at Disneyland, The Living Seas at EPCOT, and the Cinderella Castle Mystery Tour and Star Tours for Tokyo Disney Sea Park. "We just invented the stuff that doesn't exist," said David about designing Ariel's undersea world (inspired by The Little Mermaid) in three dimensions. "Things like underwater light fixtures just aren't on the market, so we created them from pure fantasy."
Since childhood, David was a Disney aficionado, collecting all sorts of trivia and memorabilia. His expertise as a Disney historian was well known throughout the Company and was put to use when David served as associate producer on the 1989 Disney Channel special, "The Disneyland Story." He was a featured speaker at many Disneyland conventions and co-wrote a number of articles for national magazines, including the Disney Magazine.
David is survived by his wife Carole, father Tom, stepmother Janice, sister Jeanne '63, brother John '66 and sister Doreen '78.
John Mumford
|
Kathryn L Steelman (Wilburne) (1974)
David Mumford lives on, and I am so happy to see that his life touched so many. He was the kindest of friends, aware of other people's feelings, and always a joy to talk with and be around at school. I wish him Godspeed on his next adventures. David, you are missed, but remembered well.Kathy Steelman Wilburne
John Mumford (1966)
David does live on in the lagoon of "The Little Mermaid" at Disney Sea; Tokyo, Japan. The Disney company made a ceramic cartoon "Star Fish character, in his image with a hard hat. If you are ever visit Disney Seas, see if you can find him. David worked there for two years before his death and completed the construction. It was one of the last projects he worked on as an Imagineer. He was stricken with his illness while working in Florida at EPCOT while making changes to the "Journey Into Imagination" Pavillion. He was bringing back Figment, a character he enjoyed. At his memorial service Richard Sherman sang for David: "One Little Spark." - John Mumford (SPHS 66)
Kathryn L Steelman (Wilburne) (1974)
We are making a trip to Florida next spring, and will go to these exhibits. I've never been there, and look forward to experiencing it. I will certainly look for David's input and his wonderful creativity there. I've thought of him often over the years, and wish we had been able to keep in touch. He was a special soul, and I know he went far with his work. Thanks so much for adding this information here. He seems to have led a blessed life and fully lived in a short time. Not many of us are this lucky, but we try. God bless you and yours.
Niki Coop (Matthews) (1974)
I remember David as kind, quiet, and a genuinely sweet, good person. This news of his passing makes me so very sad that I didn't get to know him well. Why do we learn these things so late in life? Our class was relatively small so we really should have all known each other. What I did know of him was that he represented the best of us all. He was such a gentleman and he is missed.