Disney Legend Wally Boag Dies At Age 90
(CNS) Posted Saturday June 4, 2011 10am
The man hired by Walt Disney to perform as Pecos Bill in
Disneyland's Golden Horseshoe Revue, and who went on to headline nearly 40,000 stage shows, died Friday. Wally Boag was 90, it was reported today.
Boag's feat was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest running stage production in show business, Disney officials said.
"The world's stage has experienced a great loss in the passing of Disney legend Wally Boag," said George Kalodridis, president of Disneyland Resort. "Wally was instrumental in the development of live entertainment during the early years of both Disneyland Park and the Walt Disney World Resort."
Boag also was the voice of Jose in the Enchanted Tiki Room at the theme park.
Wallace Vincent Boag was born Sept. 13, 1920 in Portland, Ore.
At the age of 9 he joined a professional dance team. At 16, he was running his own dance school. At 19, he became a comedian, performing in nightclubs and theaters, among them were Radio City Music Hall in New York, the Palladium in London and the Tivoli Theaters in Australia and New Zealand.
In 1945, Boag won a contact with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, appearing in "Without Love" with Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn and 'The Thrill of Romance' with Esther Williams.
In 1955, a friend told him about auditions for Disneyland's Golden Horseshoe Revue. Boag won the role and later appeared in the original 'Mickey Mouse Club' and "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color" television shows.
His original act in the Golden Horseshoe Revue was featured in a Danny Kaye television special celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Disneyland in 1980.
Boag later traveled to Japan to help translate material for the opening of Tokyo Disneyland in 1983.
