A Hollywood agent, Richard Kraft, has been collecting Disneyland memorabilia for 25 years. He now plans to auction off his incredible 750-item collection on August 25 and 26.
Prior to the auction, a free public exhibition is being held in a 20,000 sq ft (18,500 sq meters) abandoned store in suburban Los Angeles.
“I love putting it in an exhibit setting so it could be admired differently. You never actually see this stuff up close and personal the way you would see it in this exhibit,” Kraft said.
The host says there’s something for everyone to enjoy among the theme park vehicles, props, and artifacts, which span six decades.
“We had Dumbo hanging in the living room of our house—800 pounds of elephant suspended over people’s heads,” said collector Richard Kraft, who has enjoyed his collection very much.
Visitors can also see pirate ships from Peter Pan’s Flight, six singing animatronic dolls from It’s a Small World, a Disneyland ticket booth, an animatronic singing bird from the Enchanted Tiki Room, original drawings, posters, and more.
He also acquired an original attraction vehicle from Space Mountain, “one of the more popular rides at Disneyland and Disney World. … They’re very hard to get and very unique. You can use them as a couch in your house if you like,” said auctioneer Mike Van Eaton.
Kraft will donate some of the proceeds to two organizations benefiting children with the rare genetic disorder Coffin-Siris Syndrome and other conditions. His four-year old daughter Daisy also suffers from Coffin-Siris Syndrome.
