Index: Rendering/vtkCocoaRenderWindow.h
===================================================================
RCS file: /cvsroot/VTK/VTK/Rendering/vtkCocoaRenderWindow.h,v
retrieving revision 1.22
diff -u -3 -r1.22 vtkCocoaRenderWindow.h
--- Rendering/vtkCocoaRenderWindow.h	8 Aug 2005 19:51:43 -0000	1.22
+++ Rendering/vtkCocoaRenderWindow.h	13 Oct 2006 19:39:33 -0000
@@ -255,7 +255,6 @@
   int      ViewCreated;
   int      CursorHidden;
 
-  void     *AutoreleasePool; // really an NSAutoreleasePool*
   int      ForceMakeCurrent;
   char     *Capabilities;
 };
Index: Rendering/vtkCocoaRenderWindow.mm
===================================================================
RCS file: /cvsroot/VTK/VTK/Rendering/vtkCocoaRenderWindow.mm,v
retrieving revision 1.35
diff -u -3 -r1.35 vtkCocoaRenderWindow.mm
--- Rendering/vtkCocoaRenderWindow.mm	16 Sep 2006 15:20:14 -0000	1.35
+++ Rendering/vtkCocoaRenderWindow.mm	13 Oct 2006 19:39:34 -0000
@@ -14,7 +14,6 @@
 =========================================================================*/
 
 #import "vtkCocoaRenderWindow.h"
-#import "vtkCocoaRenderWindowInteractor.h"
 #import "vtkIdList.h"
 #import "vtkObjectFactory.h"
 #import "vtkRendererCollection.h"
@@ -27,13 +26,10 @@
 vtkCxxRevisionMacro(vtkCocoaRenderWindow, "$Revision: 1.35 $");
 vtkStandardNewMacro(vtkCocoaRenderWindow);
 
+
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 vtkCocoaRenderWindow::vtkCocoaRenderWindow()
 {
-  // Create an autorelease pool that lives for as long as this object,
-  // which should be more or less the life of the application.
-  this->AutoreleasePool = [[NSAutoreleasePool alloc] init];
-
   this->WindowCreated = 0;
   this->ViewCreated = 0;
   this->ContextId = 0;
@@ -77,9 +73,6 @@
     [(NSWindow *)this->WindowId close];
     }
   this->WindowId = NULL;
-
-  [(NSAutoreleasePool*)this->AutoreleasePool release];
-  this->AutoreleasePool = 0;
 }
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Index: Rendering/vtkCocoaRenderWindowInteractor.mm
===================================================================
RCS file: /cvsroot/VTK/VTK/Rendering/vtkCocoaRenderWindowInteractor.mm,v
retrieving revision 1.11
diff -u -3 -r1.11 vtkCocoaRenderWindowInteractor.mm
--- Rendering/vtkCocoaRenderWindowInteractor.mm	31 Mar 2006 13:53:15 -0000	1.11
+++ Rendering/vtkCocoaRenderWindowInteractor.mm	13 Oct 2006 19:39:34 -0000
@@ -48,6 +48,53 @@
 
 @end
 
+// This is a private class and an implementation detail, do not use it.
+//
+// This class performs various things to set up the Cocoa environment.
+// In a normal Cocoa application, in main() one calls NSApplicationMain() and
+// from that point on, everything is handled by events.  But since vtk is a
+// library, we cannot know if this has happened.  Notably, an NSAutoreleasePool
+// needs to exist before any Cocoa objects are autoreleased, which may happen
+// as a side effect of pretty much any Cocoa use.  Once we start the event loop
+// by calling [NSApp run] then a new pool will be created for every event, but
+// until then, we use this class to create a 'pool of last resort' so that we
+// know a pool is in place.  
+class vtkEarlyCocoaSetup
+{
+public:
+  vtkEarlyCocoaSetup::vtkEarlyCocoaSetup()
+  {
+    // Set up the Cocoa system
+	(void)NSApplicationLoad();
+	
+    this->CreatePoolOfLastResort();
+  }
+
+  vtkEarlyCocoaSetup::~vtkEarlyCocoaSetup()
+  {
+    this->DestroyPoolOfLastResort();
+  }	
+
+  void vtkEarlyCocoaSetup::DestroyPoolOfLastResort()
+  {
+    [Pool release];
+    Pool = nil;
+  }
+
+protected:
+  void vtkEarlyCocoaSetup::CreatePoolOfLastResort()
+  {
+    Pool = [[NSAutoreleasePool alloc] init];
+  }
+
+private:
+  NSAutoreleasePool     *Pool;
+};
+
+// We create a global/static instance of this class to ensure that we have an
+// autorelease pool before main() starts.
+vtkEarlyCocoaSetup * gEarlyCocoaSetup = new vtkEarlyCocoaSetup();
+
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 @implementation vtkCocoaTimer
 
@@ -114,7 +161,11 @@
     return;
     }
 
-  (void)[NSApplication sharedApplication]; //make sure the app is initialized
+  // Now that we are about to begin the standard Cocoa event loop, we can get
+  // rid of the 'pool of last resort' because [NSApp run] will create a new
+  // pool for event event
+  gEarlyCocoaSetup->DestroyPoolOfLastResort();
+  
   [NSApp run];
 }