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Pooh World

My Day with Christopher Robin What an opportunity! Could I pass up on this chance to speak with Christopher Robin himself? I say not, since all of my Pooh friends would Pooh me. So I was off to Los Angeles and not to pleased to be driving pass Disneyland, but I marched on towards my destination. I've made this trip before but, now the scenery has changed. Places I've seen all my life are now gone. They're ripping up Interstate 5, the Golden State freeway,which connects Disneyland to the rest of the world. I feel sad. As a child I had memorised all the landmarks, building and streets between my house and Disneyland. Now most of theme are gone. But my goal today would cheer me up!

After arriving at my destination, I parked my car and hurried to gather up my belongings. I anxiously walked into the building. At a small table in the corner of the room....he sat. The man who is the original voice of Christopher Robin in the very first Disney featurette, "Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree," circa 1966. The child who's eyes we look through to see Winnie the Pooh. Jon Walmsley greeted me with a firm handshake and a pleasant "Hello, Jeff- nice to finally meet you in person." I was thrilled. We sat and within a delightful few minutes, I had the answers to all my questions. "What was it like to know WaltDisney?", "How long did it take you to complete the voice over work?", "What was it like to work with Paul Winchell and Sterling Holloway?", "What was your findest memory of working on the film?"

This is my baby. I got it signed by the original vocie of Christopher Robin, Jon Walmsley. It's also been signed by original Disney animator's Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston. I must 'thank" and recommend the folks at www.Tooncity.net , for gettingthis piece signed for me. I've purchase a lot of artwork, from all over the country and these guys really find unique and awsome pieces.

After, my interrogation I presented Jon with my ultimate goal of the day. I pulled out my 20 plus animation cels that I've been proudly collecting for the past few years. All of the pieces are from the various Winnie the Pooh films. Jon cheerfully signed every piece with the look of a proud papa adoring his children. And then it was over, but the memories will last me a life time and I'm glad to have shared them with you.

jjkruger@aol.com