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Marty Sklar, principal creative executive at Disney’s Imagineering and former editor in chi

Glancing up at Royce Hall 50 years ago, the former UCLA student said he would never have imagined that five decades later he would be speaking to another generation of Bruins about his work at Disneyland.

Marty Sklar, the vice chairman and principal creative executive of Walt Disney Imagineering, discussed his experience at UCLA and his position at Disney at an event put on by the Campus Events Commission in Ackerman Grand Ballroom on Thursday.

Sklar oversees the development and design of attractions in all the Disney parks around the world and said his personal favorite is Space Mountain.

“Anyone can dream, but Imagineers can make a dream come true,” he said.

In 2001, he was honored as a Disney Legend for his work within the company. Yet his initial involvement with Disney was unexpected.

As the editor in chief of the Daily Bruin from 1956-1957, Sklar always wanted to be a sports reporter for a respected newspaper. He was also involved in student council and was a member of the Zeta Beta Tau fraternity.

“The Bruin was like an anchor,” he said. “I was very anonymous on campus, but I could always come back to the Bruin and be surrounded by people who had the same interests and goals as I did.”

Sklar was a third-year in May 1955 when he found a note on his door that told him to call a man named Card Walker. Sklar ignored the message, not knowing that Walker was offering him a job to work as editor of Disneyland News.

Luckily, Walker, a representative from Disney, called Sklar later and saved him from one of the potentially greatest regrets in his life, Sklar said.

“I’ve learned that you should never turn your back on something you don’t understand,” Sklar said. As he started writing for the theme park’s newspaper, Sklar realized how greatly his experience at the Daily Bruin helped him.

“Not only did it teach me about editing skills, but it taught me about discipline and deadlines,” Sklar said.

He also noted that the professors and people he met at UCLA taught him lessons on the importance of serving other people. Sklar still remembers the day former basketball coach John Wooden called him in to ask him to be sensitive regarding an article about a new 17-year-old basketball player.

“He cared about his players as people, not just athletes,” Sklar said. “I became more sensitive to other people’s thoughts. I learned a lot about how to treat people from him.” He said if there is one thing working at Disneyland has taught him, it’s the importance of people relations.

“Everything in life is about people,” Sklar said. “The people you surround yourself with, the ones you depend on.”

The connection between his UCLA experience and his career was of particular interest to students.

“I enjoyed hearing about how going to UCLA helped him in the Disneyland entertainment area,” said Kara Cutruzzula, a second-year English student.

Sklar outlined what he called “Mickey’s Ten Commandments,” which he said has become a standard within the theme park industry. Sklar explained that these commandments include knowing the audience, organizing the flow of ideas and communicating with visual literacy.

Students interested in careers at Disneyland said they found Sklar’s presentation very helpful.

“I think his commandments are so clever,” said Monica DeLateur, a second-year psychology student. “It’s amazing to learn what elements are needed to make Disneyland successful, especially teamwork.”

After explaining the commandments in the question-and-answer session, Sklar left the audience with advice to keep an open mind, something he learned through experience.

“Learn as much as you can about as many things as you can,” Sklar said. “You never know where the paths you take will lead you. It’s hard to even imagine where I would be now if Walker hadn’t called me. I know it sounds cliche, but my advice is cliche because it works.”