But long before he was developing record-setting attractions like The Sphere in Las Vegas or overseeing the media for Warner Bros. World in Abu Dhabi, King (’77) was a CWU student immersed in theatre, music classes, and the tight-knit campus community that would shape his future.
What began with a single postcard in the CWU Theatre department grew into a 40-year journey of blending storytelling, technology, and the art of creating wonder.
It Started with a Postcard
King’s career arc began with an unexpected opportunity during his sophomore year as a music major at CWU.
Nearly 50 years since he graduated from CWU, Ted King (’77) enjoys giving back to his alma mater.
While performing in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, directed by beloved CWU professor Dr. Milo Smith, a postcard came to the theatre department from the Walt Disney Company, King recalls. The postcard advertised the “All-American College Workshop,” a fine arts program at Disneyland.
“Milo Smith handed me that postcard, and though it seemed like it was just a postcard, it was probably one of the biggest game-changers of my entire life,” King says.
He auditioned for the program by recording a videotape of himself in Hertz Recital Hall singing, dancing, and discussing why he wanted to be part of the program. Out of 600 applicants, King was one of only eight selected.
That summer, he joined the original cast of Hoop-Dee-Doo at Walt Disney World, now one of the longest-running stage shows in American history, having just celebrated its 50-year
anniversary.
“For a 20-year-old kid from Central to get cast in that show was pretty amazing,” King says. “At 20 I was like a huge sponge, just soaking it all in. By the time I got back to Central, I was thinking, ‘man, maybe I want to move to L.A. and give it a go.’ I was so inspired by that experience.”
A year later, Disney was recasting the show and invited him back as a professional performer rather than as a college student. Shortly after, he completed his degree at CWU and moved to Los Angeles to work at Disneyland, setting the stage for his lifelong career.
From Performer to Creative Visionary
While working as a performer at Disneyland, King soon became interested in joining the creative side of the industry.
In 1983, he joined Landmark Entertainment Group, where he spent 20 years learning how to design, develop, produce, and operate themed entertainment, theme parks, resorts, world expos, and more.
“Disney had its own internal design and production company, but other theme parks, resorts, hotels, and expos around the world wanted Disney-quality entertainment but didn’t know how to do it,” King says. “We filled that niche for decades producing projects in Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Europe, and Australia.”
King contributed to landmark projects such as the Jurassic Park ride at Universal Studios Hollywood, which, at the time, boasted the highest free drop of any water-based roller coaster.
“Back in 1994, when we designed that attraction, we had to have the biggest drop so we could tell people that there was no other ride like it in the world,” King says. “Steven Spielberg loved the ride and how we brought his movie to life for the guests at Universal.”
More recently, he worked on The Sphere and the High Roller Observation Wheel in Las Vegas, and the goal remained the same throughout: to present something new that nobody has experienced before.
At the time of its opening, the High Roller was the tallest observation wheel in the world, beating the Singapore Flyer by 50 feet.
“Every project starts with an idea and a blank piece of paper, and you start to formulate a creative vision for what this thing is going to be,” King says. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a themed retail store in Tokyo, or if it’s a billion-dollar theme park. The process is the same.”
The World’s Biggest Stage
In the 1990s, King was part of the creative team designing a show for the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, which was the largest single-building hotel in the world at that time.
“MGM wanted to do a show that was bigger and more spectacular than anything in Vegas,” King recalls. “Our company won the creative competition for the project, and we called the show ‘EFX.’”
The production starred Michael Crawford, one of the world’s best-known performers in the early ’90s. When it came time to write the music, King and his colleague decided to take a risk.
“I looked at my writing partner and said, ‘Why don’t we write the songs?’ We knew that because Michael Crawford was doing the show, we could have hired any famous songwriter,” King says. “But my writing partner and I said, ‘Why don’t we do it?’ And we did.”
King wrote the soundtrack and eventually played the songs for Crawford in a Los Angeles studio.
“The first time Michael Crawford heard the songs, it was me sitting at the piano in a studio in L.A. where he was recording his Grammy nominated album, ‘A Touch of Music in the Night,’” he remembers. “I sat at the piano and played him these songs he’d never heard before.”
Crawford took the recorded demos home to England over Christmas, and a month later called King and said, “By the way, I really like your songs. I played them for my voice coach, and he was quite amazed at how well you’ve written them in my key.”
The songs King wrote for “EFX,” recorded by the London Symphony Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios in London, were performed in Las Vegas for years.
“We took a big chance and it became one of the highlights of my career,” he proudly states.
Connected to His Roots
King continues to stay involved with his alma mater in many ways, including sitting on the College of Arts and Humanities Advisory Board, working with the alumni association to create a fund to help students purchase their graduation caps and gowns, and establishing an endowment to honor his late father, Waldo King.
He was also recently selected as an alumni entrepreneur whose leadership has positively impacted the broader CWU community, with a banner hung on campus to highlight his achievement.
“Every time I think of Ellensburg I smile,” King says. “It was such a fantastic four years that I spent there on that campus, and I’m lucky to still have Central be part of my life.”
He wants current and future CWU students to know that uncertainty is part of the journey.
“There are thousands of kids at Central right now, but they might not have a clue what they’re going to be doing in five or 10 years,” he says. “Don’t be afraid of the unknown. Don’t be afraid to take chances. I am living proof that an average student from a modest background was able to take advantage of opportunities, use my skills and talent, and develop it into a rewarding career.”
After four decades in the entertainment business, King remains driven by the same curiosity that sparked his first trip to Walt Disney World. Whether the project is a Las Vegas stage show or a sprawling theme park overseas, his mission to create experiences that draw people in and keep them coming back has never changed.
It’s a standard he set early on and, by his own account, was shaped in part by his years at Central.