John Alan Lasseter (1957-present) is a real-life film director, screenwriter, animator and voice-actor. Lasseter directed various films for Disney-Pixar and worked as Disney's Chief Creative Officer. This relation ended in 2017 after he was exposed for running a sexist and hostile work-place in-which he inappropriately harassed several women on staff.
John Lasseter previously worked as a, "Skipper" employee at the Jungle Cruise and has on occasion reprised this job. He also recorded the audio for the audio-book Disney Parks Presents: Jungle Cruise in-which he is the likeness for the Jungle Cruise character of Skipper John.
Jungle Cruise tributes[]
- In the Skipper Canteen's library there is a book titled Great Characters of World Literatureby J. Lasseter. It is unknown if this is the same character as Skipper John. There is also a book by, "B. Lasseter" titled, "The World Through a Lens".
- Lasseter's likeness is used for Skipper John in Disney Parks Presents: Jungle Cruise which John Lasseter also narrated.
- A removed poster for an African Queen satire called The Jungle Cruise in the Magic of Disney Animation mentioned Skipper Lasseter being an actor.
- There is a photograph of Skipper John piloting a boat in Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar. It comes with the description from Trader Sam reading, "Skipper John thought he had grabbed the microphone, but it was actually a rare Black Coil Snake". The D23 video for this bar included an in-universe description of Skipper John by Nigel Greenwater who described him as an eccentric that believed, "Adventure is out there!" and who often spoke of sentient toys, intelligent insects, and living cars.
Other connections[]
Pixar[]
Several of the films which Lasseter directed or made the original story for have references within the Jungle Cruise property.
- In the library of the skipper canteen are books titled A Flight Through Dreams and If You Had Wings You Could Fly by B.L.. These are references to the Toy Story character of Buzz Lightyear and his presence in Disney's Tomorrowland.
- A cowboy boot with a snake inside of it appears within Trader Sam's Gift Shop! in Disneyland, referencing Woody from Toy Story.
- The Tree of Life at Disney's Animal Kingdom which hosts the A Bug's Life themed attraction It's Tough to be a Bug! is a Disneyoendron tree, a fictional species of tree originating from Adventureland.
- Within Toy Story Midway Mania! in Pixar Pier is a box for the board-game, "Walt Disney's Adventureland Game" in Andy Davis' room.[1]
- While not a Jungle Cruise attraction, Jock Lindsey's Hangar Bar in Disney Springs contains the scrapped remains of Skipper Riley from Planes. This is worth noting due to Jock Lindsey being the aviator to Indiana Jones, a member of the Society of Explorers and Adventurers, and with his bar containing allusions to the Jungle Cruise.
Gallery[]
