Former Imagineer Joe Rohde selling extremely rare Disney items on eBay
Joe Rohde is known for many great feats with Disney, such as Pandora – The World of Avatar; Aulani, A Disney Resort and Spa in Hawaii; the Adventurers Club; and the creation of Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Last fall, Rohde announced his retirement from The Walt Disney Company and joined Virgin Galactic soon after. Now, as Rohde said on his Instagram, “Retirement involves downsizing a bit which has surfaced a pile of old Disney memorabilia from 40 years of ‘Oh, that might be worth something.’” His eBay listed items, which are of significant worth and historic value, are yours to grab if you can afford them.
That worth is being valued up, in real-time, on eBay. Currently only listing two items, fairytalerachel is the new account to follow for items of near priceless worth for an avid Disney fan. Bidding has been ongoing, with the first item’s auction ending on Wednesday, April 7.
The Disney’s Animal Kingdom Opening Day Backpack would be extremely valuable on its own, but having been previously owned by Rohde significantly increases its worth. This backpack is filled with other items, such as a ‘Grand Opening Day Celebration’ glass plaque, a baseball cap, two bottles of Coca-Cola with the park logo, an American Express waist bag, and a Windows CD-ROM Walt Disney World Explorer game.
The other current listing, a Disney’s Wild Animal Kingdom Project Team Shirt. This shirt has extra value because the name listed is actually not the official name of the park. The “Wild” was taken off of the park’s title prior to its opening in 1998.
Both of these items have a strong connection with the history of Disney’s Animal Kingdom, both by their correlation to the park and to their original owner. It’s easy to say that Rohde is one of the most famous Imagineers that The Walt Disney Company has ever had, and his retirement will leave a huge hole to fill.
Would you bid on these pieces of Disney history? What other items do you think Joe Rohde could put up for sale? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
