Here’s a fun photo taken in Kansas City a few years ago. We flew back for a fund raiser being held over the weekend in that wonderful city. If you’re a Disney Geek you’ll already know that Kansas City was the home of Walt Disney’s Laugh O’Gram Studio. The building is being renovated, and well it should be. It’s really an historical landmark.

That’s Dan Viets and Butch Rigby on the left. They were the guys responsible for this special event. You’ll probably recognize the wonderful, Virginia Davis, who was the star of the “Alice Comedies” Walt produced in Kansas City. Eventually, Disney persuaded the parents of Virginia Davis to move west to Hollywood where Walt would continue the series.

This was our first visit to Kansas City, and Dan Viets was gracious enough to host our own personal Disney tour of the town. Not only did we visit the Laugh O’Gram studio, we saw Walt’s home on Bellfontaine Street and the Thomas Benton School where Walt Disney gave his Abraham Lincoln speech. It must have made quite an impression on young Walt. Today, we all know why.

Finally, we visited Union Station where Walt Disney purchased his train ticket west, and hopefully a future in the movies. Leaving Kansas City might have been a tough decision for the ambitious young Walt, however it looked like it was the right one.