Marty Sklar, 83; worked with Walt Disney

Los Angeles — Marty Sklar had only just graduated from UCLA and here he was shadowing Walt Disney, his demanding new boss.

The young writer was unsure how to make himself useful, but he had a mind to scribble down some of the maxims Disney laced into conversation.

“Know your audience.” “Tell one story at a time.” “Wear your guests’ shoes.”

Long after his mentor’s death, Sklar recognized the treasure-trove of wisdom he had started compiling at Walt Disney’s elbow in the late 1950s. He distilled it all into “Mickey’s Ten Commandments,” a widely circulated creed that remains a touchstone in the theme park industry.

The commandments were a cornerstone of Sklar’s own half-century career at Walt Disney Co., where he led the creative development of the Burbank company’s parks, attractions and resorts around the world, including its ventures in the cruise business, housing development and the redesign of Times Square in New York.

Sklar died Thursday at his Hollywood Hills home. He was 83.

His retirement in 2006 marked the end of an era: He was one of the last remaining executives to have worked alongside Walt Disney in shaping the company into a global powerhouse. Sklar, who last served as principal creative executive of Walt Disney Imagineering, the storied theme park design and development outfit, was so closely associated with the company’s namesake that he became known as the Sorcerer’s Apprentice.