Former Disney Imagineer Eddie Sotto passes away
The Disney theme parks community has lost another of its creative voices. Former Imagineer Eddie Sotto has passed away.
Sotto, 67, worked at Walt Disney Imagineering from 1986 to 2000, being named Senior Vice President of Concept Design in 1994. During his time at WDI, Sotto most notably oversaw the design of Main Street USA at Disneyland Paris, including proposing placing the Disneyland Hotel at the park's entrance - the first example of Disney siting a hotel within a theme park.
Sotto also worked on concept design for Disneyland's Indiana Jones Adventure and EPCOT's Mission: Space, as well as on several projects at Tokyo Disneyland, including Pooh's Hunny Hunt.
Before joining Disney, Sotto got his start in the themed entertainment business working for Knott's Berry Farm, where he contributed to the design of Wacky Soap Box Racers and Camp Snoopy. A later project for Six Flags caught the eye of future Disney Legend Tony Baxter, who brought Sotto on board to WDI.
Most recently, Sotto led his own experiential design house, SottoStudios.
"Eddie was entirely a self-made man, starting work when he was a teenager and building the entirety of his career by the sheer force of his talent and will," former Imagineer Joe Rohde wrote on his social media today. "He was fearless and fantastically innovative. Our paths crossed on multiple occasions. Eddie and I once collaborated on an unbuilt project that required us to dress up in full pirate drag and stage a sword fight on Michael Eisner’s executive office conference table."
"You will find the name Eddie Sotto if you are looking for definitions of Blue Sky, Creative vision, thought leader, funmeister, teacher, friend, and combining all those qualities—Imagineer," former WDI President Bob Weis wrote.
"One only needs to stroll Main Street, U.S.A. at Disneyland Paris — especially Les Arcades — to understand how deeply he thought about every inch of a place," current WDI President & Chief Creative Officer Bruce Vaughn wrote.
"I will always remember Eddie as a fearless innovator. When I ran R&D, he was one of our great champions — constantly pushing for new ways to incorporate emerging ideas and technologies. Eddie had an endless supply of brilliant concepts and never let convention limit his thinking."
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During my trip to Disneyland Paris last month, I spent a fair amount of time in the arcades on either side of Main Street. (The weather was crap, which by itself demonstrated the value of the arcades as a design choice.) The displays detailing the design and construction of the Statue of Liberty were fascinating - and a wonderful choice to link the cultures of United States and France.
Just a brilliant example of how attention to detail elevates great experiential design. Sotto was a true master.