The New ‘Disney Legend’ Imagineers Whose Work You Love at Disney Parks

The 2022 D23 Expo is here and the ultimate Disney fan event kicked off with the Disney Legends ceremony. The Disney Legend award is the highest honor the company can bestow on anyone from actors and filmmakers, to artists, singers, and even Disney Imagineers.

A couple of notable Disney Imagineers were included among this year’s lineup of Disney Legend award recipients, and the two honorees should surely be recognized by fans, as well as the company, for their dedication to Disney Parks and for their roles as the masterminds behind some of the most beloved Disney attractions.

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Disney Imagineers Rob’t Coltrin and Doris Hardoon were both recipients of the Disney Legends award at this morning’s ceremony, and we at DisneyTips are joining in recognizing them for their incredible work in Disney Parks.

Rob’t Coltrin’s career with Walt Disney Imagineering spans 30 years beginning with a run in Disney’s Show Set Design Group in 1990. Since then, he went on to work on such memorable attractions as Mickey’s PhilharMagic and Muppet*Vision 3D in both Disneyland and the Walt Disney World Resort, as well as Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin in Disneyland.

Prior to his retirement from Walt Disney Imagineering in 2019, Coltrin worked on expanding Tokyo Disney Resort and some of the most beloved of Disney’s recent domestic attractions. He was instrumental in the design of Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway at Disney’s Hollywood Studios (and coming soon to Disneyland), and Radiator Springs Racers, one of the most popular attractions inspired by Disney and Pixar’s Cars (2006) at Disney California Adventure.

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During his acceptance speech for his Disney Legend award, Coltrin recognized his colleagues in Walt Disney Imagineering saying,”Although I’m the one standing up here, in the true spirit of Imagineering, this one’s for all of us.”

Doris Hardoon began her Disney career in 1979 when she was recruited specifically to tackle the design work on various pavilions in EPCOT. She quickly worked through the ranks of Walt Disney Imagineering and eventually became known for her unique perspectives, and attention to detail that resulted in the immersive settings Guests have while exploring EPCOT’s World Showcase to this day.

She went on to become one of the most renowned Imagineers to work on Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, and she was a key leader on major international projects with the openings of both Tokyo Disneyland in 1983 and Disneyland Paris in 1992.

Her greatest work, however, came toward the end of her career in Disney with the opening of Shanghai Disney Resort in 2016. Hardoon worked to ensure that all of the culturally relevant details were presented tastefully and accuracy ahead of the opening of the Resort.

When she accepted her award during the Disney Legends ceremony, Hardoon smiled and told the audience, “I hope you enjoy everything I’ve created for you.”

An additional 12 honorees were also inducted as Disney Legends this morning, though with many of them being recognizable from movies, TV, and music, we wanted to make sure our readers were aware of the honors given to these Imagineers whose work on Disney Parks will be remembered for generations to come.

We will continue to monitor all news and updates out of this weekend’s D23 Expo and will be back with more information as we have it here on DisneyTips.