Painting With Bulldozers
Bob Ward: Lifetime Achievement
Adam J. Bezark
February 3, 2009
(1300 words)
Integrity.
A conversation with Bob Ward is a sun-dappled saunter through the glory days of the
theme park industry. From the infancy of Walt Disney World to the battle-scarred grand
opening of Universal Studios Florida. The great stories keep bringing you back to his
core values.
“Passion, commitment, integrity and Champion of the Product.” These are the
principles that have driven Robert L. Ward throughout his career; and they’re the
reasons why he is TEA’s 2009 Lifetime Achievement Honoree.
Young and Hungry
Raised in Florida by adoptive parents, Bob says: “I am so much who I am today because
of them. They showed consistent integrity, great parenting, and instilled in me generous
love. They put a foundation in me to lean on for the rest of my life.”
Bob studied art from an early age. He graduated from Florida State with a major in
Photography, minoring in Painting and Art History. Heading west, he soon found work at
WED Enterprises (the original moniker for Walt Disney Imagineering). Disney sent the
eager young Ward back to Florida… as a field construction supervisor for the opening of
Walt Disney World.
“That was an amazing time,” Bob says, remembering the small Disney crew tasked with
building the world’s first destination resort. “We worked 24/7, and my take-home pay
was $99 a week.” He worked on Liberty Square, and the Polynesian and Contemporary
Hotels. On Opening Day, October 1 1971, “I was actually laying sod at 4:30 in the
morning with (future Disney CEO) Card Walker and a whole bunch of other executives in
front of the Polynesian.”
Bob remained at Disney for several years after the Florida opening. In the mid-1970s he
worked on shopping malls, the short-lived Circus World, and a wide variety of projects.
Times were lean: “Between jobs I was mowing lawns, painting signs and living off the
parking meter change in the ashtray of my car.”
Universal Origins
And then, in 1979, it happened. “I met Herb Steinberg, head of publicity for MCA. Within
fifteen minutes, he says: ‘There’s someone you should be talking to.’ And he picks up
the phone and calls Barry Upson.”
Which, as they say in the movies, was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Upson, the original Vice President of Universal’s Planning & Development group (and our
2004 Lifetime Achievement Honoree), remembers that first meeting. “I liked Bob right
away. He had tremendous energy and talent.”
Upson didn’t mention the big project he was working on. But a few months later, Ward
heard the announcement: Universal was planning to build a studio park in Orlando. Bob
was on the team.
This was the beginning. Barry Upson, the Executive. Bob Ward, the Designer, Architect
and Master Planner. Peter Alexander, the Show Guy. Larry Lester, the Producer; Richard
Crane, Construction; and Molly Rose, Budgets and Schedules. It was a tiny team, but
together, they changed the industry.
They began working on the Florida project, but the project was repeatedly put on hold.
Meanwhile, they developed several live shows for the Studio Center; and then, in 1985,
came their first major attraction for the Tram Tour: Kongfrontation.
“Kong was the first really significant milestone,” Bob recalls. With its powerhouse
combination of immersive scenery, high-octane special effects and the incredible
animated King Kong figure, “it launched an all-new era of storytelling at Universal.”
Upson says he and Ward were “joined at the hip” during this period. He applies a
football analogy: “I had ‘inside’ skills, and Bob had ‘outside’ skills. I’d put my head down
and charge up the middle; Bob had the fancy footwork and made the spectacular plays.”
Jay Stein, Chairman of MCA Recreation during the development of Universal Studios
Florida, remembers Bob Ward’s integrity. “Bob was our corporate conscience. He had
the urge to not compromise – to hit the home run. He’d fight for what he believed in,
and I respected that.”
Florida Bound
Finally, in 1987, the Florida project kicked into high gear. Disney had announced its
plans to build the Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park, and the race was on.
Rather than simply duplicate the Hollywood studio park, with its lengthy backlot tram
tour, Bob Ward began thinking about another approach. “We asked ourselves: Why not
allow visitors Studio access to explore the back lot on foot rather than see it
from the tram?” Which led to the heretical thought:
“What would happen if we got rid of the tram?”
Bob Ward: Lifetime Achievement • 1300 words • February 3, 2009
Page 2
Suddenly the Orlando park took on new life. In Hollywood, Kong, Earthquake and Jaws
were two-minute tram events. In Florida, they became full-fledged, stand-alone “megaattractions.”
Bob turned his attention to the look and feel of the backlot sets. “We wanted a real,
working studio,” he recounts. “Each area had to work as a theme park and a shootable
street set.” He credits legendary movie designers Henry Bumstead and Norm Newberry
as his inspiration partners.
Universal Studios Florida opened June 7, 1990; the day was both exhilarating and
horrifying. Many of the attractions experienced technical meltdowns. Bob still winces: “I
was on the Jaws ride with (MCA Universal President) Sid Sheinberg and his wife… and
our boat got stuck for thirty minutes, before they finally brought us a rowboat.”
But the team set to work; and within months, USF was drawing record crowds and
glowing reviews.
Onward and Upward
New challenges came fast. “Before things had even settled down at USF, Jay Stein
wrote a memo recommending that we build a second Orlando park,” he recalls.
Universal’s Islands of Adventure would require an even bigger effort: growing the
Florida property into a full-blown integrated destination resort.
Bob led the master planning effort, which involved the new theme park, plus three highend hotels; a major parking structure; and the new Citywalk Orlando.
And that wasn’t all. The 1990s found Bob Ward in the center of Universal’s international
expansion efforts. With Frank Stanek, Bob led the company’s site search and master
planning of the new Universal Studios Japan, which opened in 2001.
Rolling into the 21st century, Bob explored future sites in Europe and Asia. He also
helped Universal develop the long-range plan for its Hollywood property, including
future theme park, hotel and retail developments.
Not bad for starters
Today, Robert L. Ward Design, Inc. offers Bob’s unique brand of world-class "signature
placemaking" in mixed-use, leisure and resort destination developments. He’s also a
partner in Azure Worldwide, a company founded by Philippe Cousteau (son of ocean
explorer Jacques). They’re creating projects that increase public awareness of the
oceans. Bob says they’re “inspiring people to make a change… and empowering them to
do so.”
He doesn’t look back often; but pressed for reflection, he says “it’s pretty amazing. I’ve
had incredible opportunities. Not bad for an adopted kid who started out as a painter
and a photographer.”
Bob Ward thinks… and smiles. “I’m just painting with bulldozers.”
Bob Ward: Lifetime Achievement • 1300 words • February 3, 2009
Page 3
(SIDEBAR)
Bob Ward’s Greatest Hits
For over 20 years, Bob Ward was the principal creative spirit of master planning,
architecture and placemaking for the Universal family of attractions. As a co-founder of
the creative arm of Universal Parks & Resorts, Bob touched virtually every project. A
(heavily abridged) summary of his major efforts might include the following highlights:
Universal Studios Hollywood
Conan the Barbarian (1983)
Kongfrontation (1986)
Streets of the World and Star Trek (1988)
Earthquake: The Big One (1989)
Production Central (Front Lot Expansion and Starway Escalators) (1991)
Universal Citywalk (1993)
Universal City 2030 Vision Plan (2006)
Universal Orlando Resort
Universal Studios Florida (1990)
Universal’s Islands of Adventure (1999)
Universal Orlando Resort Expansion (1999)
Universal Orlando Hotels – Portofino Bay, Hard Rock, and Royal Pacific (2000)
Citywalk Orlando (1999)
Universal International Business Development
Universal Studios Japan (2001)
Citywalk Osaka (2001)
Universal Mediterranea Resort (Barcelona)
Universal Parks & Resorts International Strategic Expansion Plan (2003)
(Included development plans for Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, Hong Kong,
Malaysia, Korea, Germany, Italy)
Bob Ward: Lifetime Achievement • 1300 words • February 3, 2009
Page 4