Every time you step into Disneyland, you are entering a world that has been carefully crafted by a skilled team that blends engineering with creativity. One contributor – towering both literally and figuratively – is the legendary Claude Coats. Known as “The Gentle Giant,” Coats was a master of mood, color, and immersive design, both within Disneyland and on the silver screen.
Source: Cartoon Research
Coats was born on January 17, 1913, in San Francisco, but he grew up in Los Angeles, eventually attending the University of Southern California. While his initial focus was architecture, Coats’ talent for painting and drawing took center stage (which as fate would have it, made him a perfect future Imagineer). Armed with degrees in fine arts and training from the Chouinard Art Institute, he became an accomplished watercolor artist. His expertise in layered textures and bold use of color caught the eye of Disney, who brought him on board in 1935.
Source: D23
Coats’ artistic style quickly became a hallmark of Disney’s animated features. He started as a background artist on shorts such as Mickey’s Fire Brigade and soon contributed to some of the studio’s most iconic films, including Pinocchio and Fantasia. For Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Disney’s first full-length animated feature, Coats brought the background atmosphere to life, with a distinct layer-building technique that became the gold standard for Disney animation moving forward.
By 1955, Walt Disney knew Coats could bring his skillset to his new park project. Coats joined WED Enterprises (now Imagineering) to help design the large-scale, immersive backdrops for many of the parks attractions.
We were designing three-dimensional storytelling experiences. The goal was to make guests feel like they were stepping into the movies.
Source: All About the Mouse Central
Coats contributed background artistry to Pirates of the Caribbean, the dioramas within the railroad circuit, and Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, but his most notorious work is probably the Haunted Mansion. In partnership with Imagineer Yale Gracey (the namesake of Master Gracey), Coats helped create the mood, sight lines, and tone of the attraction.
We wanted the Mansion to have a balance of spooky and fun—too scary, and it wouldn’t be Disney; too silly, and it wouldn’t be believable.
Beyond Disneyland, Coats also contributed design work to the Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, and Tokyo Disneyland, before retiring in 1989. He was named a Disney Legend in 1990, just two years before passing in 1992. He is honored with a window on Main Street on the southern side of the Emporium building, not too far from Walt’s apartment on a quieter corner of the street. The gentle giant’s window reads: “Coats & Co., Claude Coats, Proprietor, Big and Tall Sizes for Gentlemen”. (I don’t have a closeup picture of it, but here’s where to find it!)
