Harper was a train enthusiast and that is what got him in the door at Walt Disney Productions. On a trip to London in 1951 he happened to be visiting a model train store, the same store Walt Disney was visiting. They were both interested in the same train set, and when Walt heard Harper was an artist he told him to contact him when he returned the United States.
Harper was initially hired to sketch storyboards for a True-Life Adventure short called "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea." After seeing Harper's designs, Walt decided to make it into a feature film which won an Oscar for Best Art Direction-Set Direction, Color and Best Effects, Special Effects.
Harper also helped with much of the conceptualization and design of Disneyland. Many of the Main Street, U.S.A. buildings and layout take inspiration from his birthplace of Fort Collins, Colorado. He also had a big influence on the Jungle Cruise attraction as well as Adventureland. Later on he would contribute to several areas of Walt Disney World.
In his spare time Harper liked trains and played the banjo in the Dixieland band Firehouse Five Plus Two, with other Disney staff, led by Ward Kimball.
Harper passed away on March 3, 1993 in Palm Springs, California due to heart failure. He was 81 years old.
Harper was posthumously named a Disney Legend in 1993, in the Film and Imagineering category. He was also honored with a window above The Bazaar in Adventureland at Disneyland. It reads, "Oriental Tattooing By Prof Harper Goff - Banjo Lessons."
Source(s): Disney Legends (D23.com), Disney A to Z (D23.com) and Harper Goff: The "Second" Imagineer (The Walt Disney Family Museum)
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