Author Archives: David McKay Wilson

There’s no business like snow business

Posted on March 1, 2011 by David McKay Wilson

It was early ski season in the Rockies, and Mike Kaplan (IntlAf’86), CEO of the Aspen Skiing Co., had his hands full. Literally. With a ski pole in each hand, he clicked into his Blizzard Titan Atlas 185 skis and joined the “Powder Posse” at Aspen Highlands to ski the fresh stuff before opening day to make sure it was packed down.
Read More

Posted in Features | 1 Comment

The man who shaped Pinocchio

Posted on June 1, 2010 by David McKay Wilson
Willis Pyle (A&S’37)

While walking to art class at Boulder in 1937, Willis Pyle (A&S’37) saw a poster from the Walt Disney studio seeking animators for his fledgling operation in Hollywood. Pyle, a senior who was art editor of the university’s satirical Colorado Dodo, and an advertising illustrator for Gano-Downs clothing store in Denver, decided to mail his best work to Southern California. “A few weeks later, Walt offered me the job,” Pyle recalls. “So I headed to Hollywood, found a room within walking distance of the studio and got to work.”
Read More

Posted in Features | Tagged , | Leave a comment