FROM: The Adventures of Tom Nabbe Published Every Other Tuesday
The Adventure of the C Average
It wouldn't do for Tom Nabbe to fail in school while working for Walt Disney. So Walt made sure Tom kept up a C average - he checked, too! Did Tom ever disappoint? Find out! (Bonus story: Tom Nabbe meets Richard Nixon!)
Walt hired me to play Tom Sawyer, but in order to keep the job, I had to maintain a C average in school.
The one really had nothing to do with the other, but I knew Walt didn't want anyone to think that his hiring me to work at Disneyland had caused me to do poorly in school.
To make sure that didn't happen, he required a C average and he took it seriously.
Making the Grade
Somehow, Dick Nunis knew whenever I'd get a report card, because if I didn't bring it in right away, he'd ask for it. Dick looked it over, too. I'm not sure whether he ever passed it on to Walt, but I'm sure he did tell Walt something like "Tom's grades are still okay".
Had my grades ever not been okay, Dick would have 'elevated' my report card to Walt.
I'm not sure what would have happened then, whether I actually would have lost my job, but I'm glad that I never found out.
I wasn't an A student. But I wasn't an F student, either. Typically, I'd get a B or a C in each of my subjects. I was strong in math, not so strong in English and literature.
My teachers were not aware that I brought my report cards to Disney. Had they been aware, I'm sure I wouldn't have heard the end of it.
Back then, quite a few of my teachers worked part-time at Disneyland on the weekends, and some of them worked full-time over summer vacation. One of my football coaches, Glen Oder, was a security host at the Park for many years.
My official title, by the way, wasn't 'Tom Sawyer' but rather 'Guest Aide'. I began in the Entertainment division, then they moved me over to Operations. I'm not sure they knew what to do with me given the unique nature of my role at Disneyland.
Bonus: Richard Nixon
Last week, I wrote about the different celebrities I met while working as Tom Sawyer.
I forget one: Richard Nixon!
In the winter of 1955, Vice-President Nixon was campaigning on behalf of Eisenhower, and I saw him one day in Disneyland.
I went right up to him and asked whether he'd like to buy a paper. Even though I was too young to vote, he paid me ten cents and I gave him a copy of the Disneyland News.
He and Eisenhower were re-elected, too.
Next Tuesday:
Worms and Fish Guts
Tom's adventures with Disney spanned the early days of Disneyland, his special relationship with Walt, and his five decades of work for the company. We're just getting started!
More: THE ADVENTURES OF TOM NABBE