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| The Disney Legends Awards is a Hall of Fame program that recognizes individuals who have made an extraordinary and integral contribution to The Walt Disney Company. Established in 1987, the honor was traditionally awarded annually during a special private ceremony. Today, it has been awarded biennially during Disney's D23 Expo since 2009. _ October 13, 1987: Fred MacMurray†. July 19, 1989: Ub Iwerks*, Les Clark*, Marc Davis†, Ollie Johnston†, Milt Kahl*, Ward Kimball†, Eric Larson*, John Lounsbery*, Wolfgang "Woolie" Reitherman*, Frank Thomas†. October 18, 1990: Roger Broggie†, Joe Fowler†, John Hench†, Richard Irvine*, Herb Ryman*, Richard M. Sherman†, Robert B. Sherman†. October 22, 1991: Ken Anderson†, Julie Andrews, Carl Barks†, Mary Blair*, Claude Coats†, Don DaGradi*, Sterling Holloway†, Fess Parker†, Bill Walsh*. October 21, 1992: Jimmie Dodd*, Bill Evans†, Annette Funicello†, Joe Grant†, Jack Hannah†, Winston Hibler*, Ken O'Connor†, Roy Williams*. October 20, 1993: Pinto Colvig*, Buddy Ebsen†, Peter Ellenshaw†, Blaine Gibson†, Harper Goff*, Irving Ludwig†, Jimmy Macdonald*, Clarence Nash*, Donn Tatum*, Card Walker†. November 22, 1994: Adriana Caselotti†, Bill Cottrell†, Marvin Davis†, Van France†, David Hand*, Jack Lindquist†, Bill Martin†, Paul J. Smith*, Frank Wells*. November 30, 1995: Wally Boag†, Fulton Burley†, Dean Jones†, Angela Lansbury†, Edward Meck*, Fred Moore*, Thurl Ravenscroft†, Wathel Rogers†, Betty Taylor†. October 16, 1996: Bob Allen*, Rex Allen†, Xavier Atencio†, Betty Lou Gerson†, Bill Justice†, Bob Matheison†, Sam McKim†, Bob Moore†, Bill Peet†, Joe Potter*. April 11, 1997: Lucien Adès*, Angel Angelopoulos*, Antonio Bertini, Armand Bigle†, Poul Brahe Pedersen*, Gaudenzio Capelli, Roberto de Leonardis*, Cyril Edgar*, Wally Feignoux*, Didier Fouret, Mario Gentilini*, Cyril James*, Horst Koblischek†, Gunnar Mansson†, Arnoldo Mondadori*, Armand Palivoda*, Poul Brahe Pedersen*, André Vanneste*, Paul Winkler*. October 16, 1998: James Algar*, Buddy Baker†, Kathryn Beaumont, Virginia Davis†, Roy E. Disney†, Don Escen†, Wilfred Jackson*, Glynis Johns†, Kay Kamen*, Paul Kenworthy†, Larry Lansburgh†, Hayley Mills, Al and Elma Milotte*, Norman "Stormy" Palmer†, Lloyd Richardson†, Kurt Russell, Ben Sharpsteen*, Masatomo Takahashi†, Vladimir "Bill" Tytla*, Dick Van Dyke, Matsuo Yokoyama. November 10, 1999: Tim Allen, Mary Costa, Norm Ferguson*, William Garity*, Yale Gracey*, Al Konetzni†, Hamilton Luske*, Dick Nunis†, Charlie Ridgway†. October 12, 2000: Grace Bailey*, Harriet Burns†, Joyce Carlson†, Ron Dominguez†, Cliff Edwards*, Becky Fallberg†, Dick Jones†, Dodie Roberts†, Retta Scott*, Ruthie Tompson†. December 5, 2001: Howard Ashman*, Bob Broughton†, George Bruns*, Frank Churchill*, Leigh Harline*, Fred Joerger†, Alan Menken, Marty Sklar†, Ned Washington*, Tyrus Wong†. March 15, 2002: Ken Annakin†, Hugh Attwooll*, Maurice Chevalier*, Phil Collins, John Mills†, Robert Newton*, Sir Tim Rice, Robert Stevenson*, Richard Todd†, David Tomlinson*. October 16, 2003: Neil Beckett*, Tutti Camarata†, Edna Disney*, Lillian Disney*, Orlando Ferrante, Richard Fleischer†, Floyd Gottfredson*, Buddy Hackett*, Harrison Price†, Al Taliaferro*, Ilene Woods†. September 17, 2004: Bill Anderson*, Tim Conway†, Rolly Crump†, Alice Davis†, Karen Dotrice, Matthew Garber*, Leonard Goldenson*, Bob Gurr, Ralph Kent†, Irwin Kostal*, Mel Shaw†. September 20, 2005: Chuck Abbott*, Milt Albright†, Hideo Amemiya*, Hideo "Indian" Aramaki*, Charles "Chuck" Boyajian*, Charles Boyer†, Randy Bright*, Jim Cora†, Bob Jani*, Mary Jones†, Art Linkletter†, Mary Anne Mang, Steve Martin, Tom Nabbe, Jack Olsen*, Cicely Rigdon†, Bill Sullivan†, Jack Wagner*, Vesey Walker*. October 9, 2006: Tim Considine†, Kevin Corcoran†, Al Dempster*, Don Edgren†, Paul Frees*, Peter Jennings*, Elton John, Jimmy Johnson*, Tommy Kirk†, Joe Ranft*, David Stollery, Ginny Tyler†. October 10, 2007: Roone Arledge*, Art Babbitt*, Carl Bongirno†, Marge Champion†, Dick Huemer*, Ron Logan†, Lucille Martin†, Tom Murphy†, Randy Newman, Floyd Norman, Bob Schiffer*, Dave Smith†. October 13, 2008: Wayne Allwine†, Bob Booth†, Neil Gallagher*, Frank Gifford†, Toshio Kagami, Burny Mattinson†, Walt Peregoy†, Dorothea Redmond†, Russi Taylor†, Oliver Wallace*, Barbara Walters†. September 10, 2009: Tony Anselmo, Harry Archinal†, Bea Arthur*, Bill Farmer, Estelle Getty*, Don Iwerks, Rue McClanahan†, Leota Toombs Thomas*, Betty White†, Robin Williams†. August 19, 2011: Jodi Benson, Barton "Bo" Boyd*, Jim Henson*, Linda Larkin, Paige O'Hara, Regis Philbin†, Anika Noni Rose, Lea Salonga, Ray Watson†, Guy Williams*, Bonita Wrather*, Jack Wrather*. August 10, 2013: Tony Baxter, Collin Campbell*, Dick Clark*, Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Steve Jobs*, Glen Keane, Ed Wynn*. August 14, 2015: George Bodenheimer, Andreas Deja, Johnny Depp, Eyvind Earle*, Danny Elfman, George Lucas, Susan Lucci, Julie Reihm Casaletto, Carson Van Osten†. July 14, 2017: Carrie Fisher*, Clyde Geronimi*, Whoopi Goldberg, Manuel Gonzales*, Mark Hamill, Wayne Jackson, Jack Kirby*, Stan Lee†, Garry Marshall*, Julie Taymor, Oprah Winfrey. August 23, 2019: Christina Aguilera, Wing Chao, Robert Downey Jr., Jon Favreau, James Earl Jones†, Bette Midler, Kenny Ortega, Barnette Ricci, Robin Roberts, Diane Sawyer, Ming-Na Wen, Hans Zimmer. September 9, 2022: Anthony Anderson, Kristen Bell, Chadwick Boseman*, Rob't Coltrin, Patrick Dempsey, Robert Price "Bob" Foster*, Josh Gad, Jonathan Groff, Don Hahn, Doris Hardoon, Idina Menzel, Chris Montan, Ellen Pompeo, Tracee Ellis Ross. August 11, 2024: Colleen Atwood, Angela Bassett, Martha Blanding, James L. Brooks, James Cameron, Jamie Lee Curtis, Miley Cyrus, Steve Ditko*, Harrison Ford, Mark Henn, Frank Oz, Kelly Ripa, Joe Rohde, John Williams. _ (imaginary): Amy Adams, Irene Bedard, Chris Buck, Kristin Chenoweth, Ron Clements, Larry Clemmons*, Jim Cummings, John Debney, June Foray*, Eva Gabor*, Mike Gabriel, Vance Gerry*, Michael Giaimo, Eric Goldberg, Ginnifer Goodwin, Phil Harris*, John Hurt*, Anjelica Huston, Tony Jay*, Hal King*, Judy Kuhn, Kevin Lima, Lucy Liu, Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez, Kelly Macdonald, Mark Mancina, Cheech Marin, Joel McNeely, Brendan Milburn, Mandy Moore, John Musker, Grim Natwick*, Will Ryan, Stephen Schwartz, John Sibley*, Hal Smith*, David Ogden Stiers*, Raven-Symoné, Valerie Vigoda, Mae Whitman, Paul Winchell*, Samuel E. Wright, Alan Young*. |
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| Legends in 2016–2017 (the people (including the collaborators from Mickey's PhilharMagic) whose some of them helped the voice cast and musicians for Secret of the Wings think big to launch one of the remaining soundtracks in the Tinker Bell series by October of 2017) |
September 7, 2016: Richard Sherman (1928–2024)
October 7, 2016: Hayley Mills
October 21, 2016: Bob Gurr, Jim Cora (1937–2021).
November 5, 2016: Burny Mattinson (1935–2023), Ruthie Tompson (1910–2021), Andreas Deja, Glen Keane.
November 10, 2016: Karen Dotrice, David Stollery, Regis Philbin (1931–2020).
November 11, 2016: Toshio Kagami
November 15, 2016: Tom Murphy (1925–2022), George Bodenheimer, Susan Lucci, Linda Larkin.
November 17, 2016: Carl Bongirno (1937–2024), Marty Sklar (1934–2017), Orlando Ferrante, Don Iwerks.
• Bill Farmer, Kathryn Beaumont, Tony Anselmo.
November 18, 2016: Charlie Ridgway (sadly, only weeks before his passing), William Sullivan (1936–2024).
November 20, 2016: Dick Nunis (1932–2023), Ron Logan (1938–2022), Bob Matheison (1934–2020), Tom Nabbe.
December 15, 2016: Dick van Dyke
December 27, 2016: Lea Salonga
January 18, 2017: Kurt Russell
January 19, 2017: Marge Champion (1919–2020), Floyd Norman, Tony Baxter.
February 6, 2017: Paige O'Hara
February 28, 2017: Tim Allen
• Russi Taylor (1944–2019)
April 19, 2017: Anika Noni Rose
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Deaths
_________________________________
1991
November 4 — Roger Broggie, 83
November 5 — Fred MacMurray, 83
1992
January 9 — Claude Coats, 78
November 22 — Sterling Holloway, 87
1993
December 3 — Joe Fowler, 99
December 13 — Ken Anderson, 84
1994
June 11 — Jack Hannah, 81
1995
December 22 — Bill Cottrell, 89
1997
January 19 — Adriana Caselotti, 80
1998
March 8 — Marvin Davis, 87
May 27 — Ken O'Connor, 89
1999
January 12, 1999 — Betty Lou Gerson, 84
October 13, 1999 — Van France, 87
December 17, 1999 — Rex Allen, 76
2000
January 12 — Marc Davis, 86
January 31 — Masatomo Takahashi, 86
August 25 — Carl Barks, 99; Wathel Rogers, 81
2001
March 25 — Larry Lansburgh, 89
November 20 — Bob Moore, 81
2002
February 19 — Lloyd Richardson, 86
May 11 — Bill Peet, 87
July 8 — Ward Kimball, 88
July 26 — Buddy Baker, 84
August 16 — Bill Evans, 92
November 11 — Horst Koblischek, 76
2003
July 6 — Buddy Ebsen, 95
2004
February 5 — John Hench, 95
July 9 — Sam McKim, 79
September 8 — Frank Thomas, 92
2005
April 13 — Tutti Camarata, 91
April 23 — John Mills, 96
May 6 — Joe Grant, 96
May 22 — Thurl Ravenscroft, 91
August 26 — Fred Joerger, 91
November 26 — Irving Ludwig, 95
November 28 — Card Walker, 89
2006
February 6 — Don Escen, 86
March 25 — Richard Fleischer, 89
December 28 — Don Edgren, 83
2007
February 12 — Peter Ellenshaw, 93
May 7 — Fulton Burley, 84
August 25 — Armand Bigle, 89
September 10 — Ralph Kent, 68
October 9 — Becky Fallberg, 84
2008
January 2 — Joyce Carlson, 84
February 11 — Dodie Roberts, 88
April 14 — Ollie Johnston, 95
May 23 — Mary Jones, 93
July 25 — Harriet Burns, 79
2009
January 19 — Bob Broughton, 91
February 27 — Dorothea Redmond, 98
April 5 — Bob Booth, 86
April 22 — Ken Annakin, 94
May 18 — Wayne Allwine, 62
August 15 — Virginia Davis, 90
December 3 — Richard Todd, 90
December 16 — Roy E. Disney, 79
2010
March 18 — Fess Parker, 85
May 26 — Art Linkletter, 97
June 3 — Rue McClanahan, 76
July 1 — Ilene Woods, 81
August 2 — Bill Martin, 93
August 15 — Harrison "Buzz" Price, 89
October 15 — Paul Kenworthy, 85
2011
February 10 — Bill Justice, 97
June 3 — Wally Boag, 90
June 4 — Betty Taylor, 91
2012
March 5 — Robert Sherman, 86
July 13 — Ginny Tyler, 86
October 20 — Ray Watson, 86
October 24 — Lucille Martin, 90
November 22 — Mel Shaw, 97
2013
March 23 — Norman "Stormy" Palmer, 94
April 8 — Annette Funicello, 70
December 31 — Cicely Rigdon, 90
2014
April 7 — Milt Albright, 97
July 7 — Dick Jones, 87
August 11 — Robin Williams, 63
2015
January 16 — Walt Peregoy, 89
July 5 — Blaine Gibson, 97
August 9 — Frank Gifford, 84
September 1 — Dean Jones, 84
October 6 — Kevin Corcoran, 66
December 22 — Carson Van Osten, 70
2016
February 8 — Al Konetzni, 100
February 28 — Jack Lindquist, 88
December 24 — Charlie Ridgway, 93
December 30 — Tyrus Wong, 106
2017
May 13 — Harry Archinal, 88
July 27 — Marty Sklar, 83
September 10 — X Atencio, 98
2018
November 12 — Stan Lee, 95
2019
February 15 — Dave Smith, 78
May 14 — Tim Conway, 85
July 26 — Russi Taylor, 75
2020
January 5 — Bob Matheison, 85
July 25 — Regis Philbin, 88
October 21 — Marge Champion, 101
2021
January 1 — Ron Dominguez, 85
February 8 — Charles Boyer, 86
March 21 — James Cora, 83
September 28 — Tommy Kirk, 79
October 10 — Ruthie Tompson, 111
December 31 — Betty White, 99
2022
March 3 — Tim Considine, 81
May 25 — Tom Murphy, 96
August 30 — Ron Logan, 84
October 11 — Angela Lansbury, 96
November 3 — Alice Davis, 93
December 30 — Barbara Walters, 93
2023
February 27 — Burny Mattinson, 87
March 12 — Rolly Crump, 93
December 13 — Dick Nunis, 91
2024
January 4 — Glynis Johns, 100
March 5 — Carl Bongirno, 86
May 25 — Richard Sherman, 95
July 16 — William Sullivan, 88
September 9 — James Earl Jones, 93
_________________________________
31: Miley Cyrus (2024)
37: Jonathan Groff (2022)
38: Anika Noni Rose (2011), Christina Aguilera (2019)
40: Lea Salonga (2011)
41: Linda Larkin (2011), Josh Gad (2022)
42: Kristen Bell (2022)
46: Tim Allen (1999)
47: Kurt Russell (1998)
48: Karen Dotrice (2004)
49: Annette Funicello (1992), Tony Anselmo (2009), Jodi Benson (2011), Tracee Ellis Ross (2024)
51: Phil Collins (2002), Idina Menzel (2022)
52: Hayley Mills (1998), Alan Menken (2001), Johnny Depp (2015), Jon Favreau (2019), Anthony Anderson (2022), Ellen Pompeo (2022)
53: Kelly Ripa (2024)
54: Robert Downey Jr. (2019)
55: Paige O'Hara (2011), Ming-Na Wen (2019)
56: Julie Andrews (1991), Bill Farmer (2009), Patrick Dempsey (2022)
57: Sir Tim Rice (2002), Kevin Corcoran (2006), George Bodenheimer (2015)
58: Robin Williams (2009), Andreas Deja (2015)
59: Sir Elton John (2006), Glen Keane (2013), Robin Roberts (2019)
60: Kathryn Beaumont (1998), Steve Martin (2005)
61: Wayne Allwine (2008), John Goodman (2013), Whoopi Goldberg (2017), Hans Zimmer (2019)
62: Richard M. Sherman (1990), Bob Matheison (1996), Danny Elfman (2015)
63: Randy Newman (2007), Oprah Winfrey (2017)
64: Robert B. Sherman (1990), Dean Jones (1995), Tommy Kirk (2006), Russi Taylor (2008), Julie Taymor (2017)
65: Ron Dominguez (2000), Ralph Kent (2004), Tim Considine (2006), David Stollery (2006), Billy Crystal (2013), Mark Hamill (2017), Angela Bassett (2024), Jamie Lee Curtis (2024)
66: Dave Smith (2007), Tony Baxter (2013), Don Hahn (2022), Mark Henn (2024)
67: Fess Parker (1991), Jack Lindquist (1994), Gaudenzio Capelli (1997), Dick Nunis (1999), Marty Sklar (2001)
67–68: James Cora (2005)
68: Roy E. Disney (1998), Bo Boyd (2011), Susan Lucci (2015), Joe Rohde (2024)
69: Gunnar Mansson (1997), Mary Costa (1999), William Sullivan (2005), Ron Logan (2007), Carson Van Osten (2015), Kenny Ortega (2019), James Cameron (2024)
69–70: Charles Boyer (2005), Carl Bongirno (2007)
70: Angela Lansbury (1995), Antonio Bertini (1997), Horst Koblischek (1997), Tim Conway (2004)
71: Sam McKim (1996), Matsuo Yokoyama (1998), Orlando Ferrante (2003), George Lucas (2015), Julie Reihm Casaletto (2015)
72: Dick Van Dyke (1998), Harriet Burns (2000), Bob Gurr (2004), Floyd Norman (2007), Toshio Kagami (2008), Barnette Ricci (2019)
73: Fulton Burley (1995), Rex Allen (1996), Paul Kenworthy (1998), Dick Jones (2000), Burny Mattinson (2008), Bette Midler (2019), Diane Sawyer (2019)
74: Ilene Woods (2003), Rolly Crump (2004)
75: Ward Kimball (1989), Blaine Gibson (1993), Wally Boag (1995), Glynis Johns (1998), Alice Davis (2004), Rue McClanahan (2009), Wing T. Chao (2019), Colleen Atwood (2024)
76: Marc Davis (1989), Ollie Johnston (1989), Frank Thomas (1989), Wathel Rogers (1995), Betty Taylor (1995), Bob Moore (1996), Charlie Ridgway (1999)
77: Card Walker (1993), Bill Martin (1994), X Atencio (1996), Joyce Carlson (2000), Becky Fallberg (2000)
78: Claude Coats (1991), Adriana Caselotti (1994), Frank Gifford (2008)
79: Fred MacMurray (1987), Jack Hannah (1992), Armand Bigle (1997), Virginia Davis (1998), Don Escen (1998), Barbara Walters (2008), Regis Philbin (2011)
80: Don DaGradi (1991), Peter Ellenshaw (1993), Donn Tatum (1993), Buddy Baker (1998), Norman "Stormy" Palmer (1998), Don Iwerks (2009), Frank Oz (2024)
81: Harper Goff (1993), Thurl Ravenscroft (1995), Bill Peet (1996), Dodie Roberts (2000), Ginny Tyler (2006), Harry Archinal (2009)
81–82: Cicely Rigdon (2005)
82: Roger Broggie (1990), John Hench (1990), Ken Anderson (1991), Bill Evans (1992), Van France (1994), Betty Lou Gerson (1996), Bill Justice (1996), Richard Todd (2002), Harrison "Buzz" Price (2003), Tom Murphy (2007), Walt Peregoy (2008), Harrison Ford (2024)
83: Irving Ludwig (1993), Marvin Davis (1994), Lloyd Richardson (1998), Don Edgren (2006)
84: Joe Grant (1992), Ken O'Connor (1992), Al Konetzni (1999), Bob Broughton (2001), Ray Watson (2011), James L. Brooks (2024)
85: Buddy Ebsen (1993), James Algar (1998), Masatomo Takahashi (1998), Lucille Martin (2007)
86: Sterling Holloway (1991), Richard Fleischer (2003)
87: Larry Lansburgh (1998), Fred Joerger (2001), Ken Annakin (2002), Betty White (2009)
88: Bill Cottrell (1994), Marge Champion (2007), James Earl Jones (2019)
89: Mel Shaw (2004), Milt Albright (2005)
89–90: Mary Jones (2005)
90: Carl Barks (1991), Ruthie Tompson (2000), Tutti Camarata (2003)
91: Tyrus Wong (2001)
92: John Williams (2024)
93: Art Linkletter (2005)
94: Sir John Mills (2002), Stan Lee (2017)
96: Joe Fowler (1990)
98: Dorothea Redmond (2008)
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Records
_
2 months: Claude Coats (October 22, 1991–January 9, 1992), Don Edgren (October 9, 2006–December 28, 2006)
4 months: Dorothea Redmond (October 13, 2008–February 27, 2009), Carson Van Osten (August 14, 2015–December 22, 2015)
5 months: Bob Booth (October 13, 2008–April 5, 2009)
7 months: Wayne Allwine (October 13, 2008–May 18, 2009)
8 months: Rue McClanahan (September 10, 2009–June 3, 2010)
1 year: Roger Broggie (October 18, 1990–November 4, 1991), Sterling Holloway (October 22, 1991–November 22, 1992), Jack Hannah (October 21, 1992–June 11, 1994), Bill Cottrell (November 22, 1994–December 22, 1995), Masatomo Takahashi (October 16, 1998–January 31, 2000), Tutti Camarata (October 16, 2003–April 13, 2005), Ray Watson (August 19, 2011–October 20, 2012), Stan Lee (July 14, 2017–November 12, 2018)
2 years: Ken Anderson (October 22, 1991–December 13, 1993), Adriana Caselotti (November 22, 1994–January 19, 1997), Betty Lou Gerson (October 16, 1996–January 12, 1999), Larry Lansburgh (October 16, 1998–March 25, 2001), Richard Fleischer (October 16, 2003–March 25, 2006), Ralph Kent (September 17, 2004–September 10, 2007), Mary Jones (September 20, 2005–May 23, 2008)
3 years: Joe Fowler (October 18, 1990–December 3, 1993), Marvin Davis (November 22, 1994–March 8, 1998), Rex Allen (October 16, 1996–December 17, 1999), Buddy Baker (October 16, 1998 –July 26, 2002), Lloyd Richardson (October 16, 1998–February 19, 2002), Fred Joerger (December 5, 2001–August 26, 2005), John Mills (March 15, 2002–April 23, 2005)
4 years: Fred MacMurray (October 13, 1987–November 5, 1991), Van France (November 22, 1994–October 13, 1999), Wathel Rogers (November 30, 1995–August 25, 2000), Art Linkletter (September 20, 2005–May 26, 2010), Robin Williams (September 10, 2009–August 11, 2014)
5 years: Ken O'Connor (October 21, 1992–May 27, 1998), Bob Moore (October 16, 1996–November 20, 2001), Bill Peet (October 16, 1996–May 11, 2002), Horst Koblischek (April 11, 1997–November 11, 2002), Ginny Tyler (October 9, 2006–July 13, 2012), Lucille Martin (October 10, 2007–October 24, 2012), James Earl Jones (August 23, 2019–September 9, 2024)
6 years: Becky Fallberg (October 12, 2000–October 9, 2007), Harrison "Buzz" Price (October 16, 2003–August 15, 2010), Ilene Woods (October 16, 2003–July 1, 2010), Walt Peregoy (October 13, 2008–January 16, 2015), Frank Gifford (October 13, 2008–August 9, 2015)
7 years: Sam McKim (October 16, 1996–July 9, 2004), Don Escen (October 16, 1998–February 6, 2006), Harriet Burns (October 12, 2000–July 25, 2008), Joyce Carlson (October 12, 2000–January 2, 2008), Dodie Roberts (October 12, 2000–February 11, 2008), Bob Broughton (December 5, 2001–January 19, 2009), Ken Annakin (March 15, 2002–April 22, 2009), Richard Todd (March 15, 2002–December 3, 2009), Harry Archinal (September 10, 2009–May 13, 2017)
8 years: Carl Barks (October 22, 1991–August 25, 2000), Mel Shaw (September 17, 2004–November 22, 2012), Milt Albright (September 20, 2005–April 7, 2014), Cicely Rigdon (September 20, 2005–December 31, 2013), Kevin Corcoran (October 9, 2006–October 6, 2015), Regis Philbin (August 19, 2011–July 25, 2020)
9 years: Bill Evans (October 21, 1992–August 16, 2002), Buddy Ebsen (October 20, 1993–July 6, 2003), Thurl Ravenscroft (November 30, 1995–May 22, 2005)
10 years: Marc Davis (July 19, 1989–January 12, 2000), Armand Bigle (April 11, 1997–August 25, 2007), Gunnar Mansson (April 11, 1997–2007), Virginia Davis (October 16, 1998–August 15, 2009), Russi Taylor (October 13, 2008–July 26, 2019)
11 years: Fulton Burley (November 30, 1995–May 7, 2007), Roy E. Disney (October 16, 1998–December 16, 2009), Paul Kenworthy (October 16, 1998–October 15, 2010), Dave Smith (October 10, 2007–February 15, 2019)
12 years: Ward Kimball (July 19, 1989–July 8, 2002), Joe Grant (October 21, 1992–May 6, 2005), Irving Ludwig (October 20, 1993–November 26, 2005), Card Walker (October 20, 1993–November 28, 2005), Betty White (September 10, 2009–December 31, 2021)
13 years: John Hench (October 18, 1990–February 5, 2004), Peter Ellenshaw (October 20, 1993–February 12, 2007), Dick Jones (October 12, 2000–July 7, 2014), Marge Champion (October 10, 2007–October 21, 2020)
14 years: Bill Justice (October 16, 1996–February 10, 2011), Norman "Stormy" Palmer (October 16, 1998–March 23, 2013), Tim Conway (September 17, 2004–May 14, 2019), Tommy Kirk (October 9, 2006–September 28, 2021), Tom Murphy (October 10, 2007–May 25, 2022), Ron Logan (October 10, 2007–August 30, 2022), Burny Mattinson (October 13, 2008–February 27, 2023), Barbara Walters (October 13, 2008–December 30, 2022)
15 years: Frank Thomas (July 19, 1989–September 8, 2004), Bill Martin (November 22, 1994–August 2, 2010), Wally Boag (November 30, 1995–June 3, 2011), Betty Taylor (November 30, 1995–June 4, 2011), Tyrus Wong (December 5, 2001–December 30, 2016), Marty Sklar (December 5, 2001–July 27, 2017), Charles Boyer (September 20, 2005–February 8, 2021), James Cora (September 20, 2005–March 21, 2021), Tim Considine (October 9, 2006–March 3, 2022)
16 years: Al Konetzni (November 10, 1999–February 8, 2016), Carl Bongirno (October 10, 2007–March 5, 2024)
17 years: Charlie Ridgway (November 10, 1999–December 24, 2016)
18 years: Ollie Johnston (July 19, 1989–April 14, 2008), Fess Parker (October 22, 1991–March 18, 2010), Alice Davis (September 17, 2004–November 3, 2022), Rolly Crump (September 17, 2004–March 12, 2023), William Sullivan (September 20, 2005–July 16, 2024)
19 years: Dean Jones (November 30, 1995–September 1, 2015)
20 years: Annette Funicello (October 21, 1992–April 8, 2013), X Atencio (October 16, 1996–September 10, 2017), Ron Dominguez (October 12, 2000–January 1, 2021), Ruthie Tompson (October 12, 2000–October 10, 2021)
21 years: Robert B. Sherman (October 18, 1990–March 5, 2012), Blaine Gibson (October 20, 1993–July 5, 2015), Jack Lindquist (November 22, 1994–February 28, 2016)
23 years: Bob Matheison (October 16, 1996–January 5, 2020)
24 years: Dick Nunis (November 10, 1999–December 13, 2023)
25 years: Glynis Johns (October 16, 1998–January 4, 2024)
26 years: Angela Lansbury (November 30, 1995–October 11, 2022)
33 years: Richard M. Sherman (October 18, 1990–May 25, 2024)
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Ages
_
62: Wayne Allwine (2009)
63: Robin Williams (2014)
66: Kevin Corcoran (2015)
68: Ralph Kent (2007)
70: Annette Funicello (2013), Carson Van Osten (2015)
75: Russi Taylor (2019)
76: Horst Koblischek (2002), Rue McClanahan (2010)
78: Claude Coats (1992), Dave Smith (2019)
79: Sam McKim (2004), Harriet Burns (2008), Roy E. Disney (2009), Tommy Kirk (2021)
80: Adriana Caselotti (1997)
81: Jack Hannah (1994), Wathel Rogers (2000), Bob Moore (2001), Ilene Woods (2010), Tim Considine (2022)
83: Roger Broggie (1991), Fred MacMurray (1991), Don Edgren (2006), Marty Sklar (2017), James Cora (2021)
84: Ken Anderson (1993), Betty Lou Gerson (1999), Buddy Baker (2002), Fulton Burley (2007), Becky Fallberg (2007), Joyce Carlson (2008), Frank Gifford (2015), Dean Jones (2015), Ron Logan (2022)
85: Fess Parker (2010), Paul Kenworthy (2010), Tim Conway (2019), Bob Matheison (2020), Ron Dominguez (2021)
86: Marc Davis (2000), Masatomo Takahashi (2000), Lloyd Richardson (2002), Don Escen (2006), Bob Booth (2009), Robert B. Sherman (2012), Ginny Tyler (2012), Ray Watson (2012), Charles Boyer (2021), Carl Bongirno (2024)
87: Sterling Holloway (1992), Marvin Davis (1998), Van France (1999), Bill Peet (2002), Dick Jones (2014), Burny Mattinson (2023)
88: Ward Kimball (2002), Dodie Roberts (2008), Jack Lindquist (2016), Harry Archinal (2017), Regis Philbin (2020), William Sullivan (2024)
89: Bill Cottrell (1995), Ken O'Connor (1998), Larry Lansburgh (2001), Card Walker (2005), Richard Fleischer (2006), Armand Bigle (2007), Harrison "Buzz" Price (2010), Walt Peregoy (2015)
90: Virginia Davis (2009), Richard Todd (2009), Wally Boag (2011), Lucille Martin (2012), Cicely Rigdon (2013)
91: Tutti Camarata (2005), Thurl Ravenscroft (2005), Fred Joerger (2005), Bob Broughton (2009), Betty Taylor (2011), Dick Nunis (2023)
92: Bill Evans (2002), Frank Thomas (2004), Bob Thomas (2014)
93: Peter Ellenshaw (2007), Mary Jones (2008), Bill Martin (2010), Charlie Ridgway (2016), Alice Davis (2022), Barbara Walters (2022), Rolly Crump (2023), James Earl Jones (2024)
94: Ken Annakin (2009), Norman "Stormy" Palmer (2013)
95: Buddy Ebsen (2003), John Hench (2004), Irving Ludwig (2005), Ollie Johnston (2008), Stan Lee (2018), Richard M. Sherman (2024)
96: John Mills (2005), Joe Grant (2005), Tom Murphy (2022), Angela Lansbury (2022)
97: Art Linkletter (2010), Bill Justice (2011), Mel Shaw (2012), Milt Albright (2014), Blaine Gibson (2015)
98: Dorothea Redmond (2009), X Atencio (2017)
99: Joe Fowler (1993), Carl Barks (2000), Betty White (2021)
100: Al Konetzni (2016), Glynis Johns (2024)
101: Marge Champion (2020)
106: Tyrus Wong (2016)
111: Ruthie Tompson (2021)
_________________________________
Compilation of animation credits (1923–1958)
_
A
• James Algar (Animator, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs; sequence director, Fantasia, Bambi, Victory Through Air Power, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad)
• Ken Anderson (Art director, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Song of the South; background, Saludos Amigos; art supervisor, The Three Caballeros; story, Melody Time, Cinderella; color and styling, Alice in Wonderland; layout, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp; production design, Sleeping Beauty)
_
B
• Art Babbitt (Animator, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Fun and Fancy Free; directing animator, Pinocchio, Dumbo; animation supervisor, Fantasia)
• Mary Blair (Art supervisor, Saludos Amigos, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music; background and color styling, Song of the South; color and styling, Melody Time, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan)
_
C
• Collin Campbell (Layout, Lady and the Tramp)
• Les Clark (Animator, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo, Saludos Amigos, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music; directing animator, Song of the South, Fun and Fancy Free, Melody Time, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp; sequence director, Sleeping Beauty)
• Claude Coats (Background, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo, Saludos Amigos, Victory Through Air Power, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music, Fun and Fancy Free, Lady and the Tramp; background and color styling, Song of the South; color and styling, Melody Time, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan)
• Bill Cottrell (Sequence director, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs; story, Pinocchio, Saludos Amigos, Victory Through Air Power, The Three Caballeros, Melody Time, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan)
_
D
• Don DaGradi (Art director, Dumbo, Victory Through Air Power; layout, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music, Fun and Fancy Free, Melody Time; color and styling, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan; story, Lady and the Tramp; production design, Sleeping Beauty)
• Marc Davis (Animator, Bambi, Fun and Fancy Free, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad; directing animator, Song of the South, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Sleeping Beauty)
• Al Dempster (Background, Fantasia, Dumbo, Saludos Amigos, Victory Through Air Power, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music, Song of the South, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp, Sleeping Beauty)
_
E
• Eyvind Earle (Background, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp; color styling, Sleeping Beauty)
_
F
• Norm Ferguson (Directing animator, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan; sequence director, Pinocchio, Dumbo; sequence co-director, Fantasia; animation supervisor, Fantasia; production supervisor, Saludos Amigos; production supervisor and director, The Three Caballeros)
_
G
• Clyde Geronimi (Sequence director, Victory Through Air Power, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music, Melody Time, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp; supervising director, Sleeping Beauty)
• Blaine Gibson (Animator, Song of the South, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Sleeping Beauty)
• Yale Gracey (Art director, Fantasia; background, Saludos Amigos; layout, The Three Caballeros)
• Joe Grant (Character designer, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio; story, Fantasia, Dumbo, Saludos Amigos, Alice in Wonderland; production supervisor, Make Mine Music)
_
H
• David Hand (Supervising director, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Bambi; animation supervisor, Victory Through Air Power)
• John Hench (Background, Fantasia, Dumbo; layout, The Three Caballeros, Fun and Fancy Free; art supervisor, Make Mine Music; color styling, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan)
• Winston Hibler (Story, Melody Time, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Sleeping Beauty)
• Dick Huemer (Story director, Fantasia; story, Dumbo, Saludos Amigos, Make Mine Music, Alice in Wonderland)
_
I
• Ub Iwerks (Special processes, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music, Song of the South, Fun and Fancy Free, Melody Time, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp, Sleeping Beauty)
_
J
• Wilfred Jackson (Sequence director, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo, Saludos Amigos, Melody Time, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp; cartoon director, Song of the South)
• Ollie Johnston (Animator, Pinocchio, Victory Through Air Power, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music; animation supervisor, Fantasia, Bambi; directing animator, Song of the South, Melody Time, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp, Sleeping Beauty)
• Bill Justice (Animator, Fantasia, Bambi, Saludos Amigos, Victory Through Air Power, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan)
_
K
• Milt Kahl (Animator, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Saludos Amigos, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music; supervising animator, Bambi; directing animator, Pinocchio, Song of the South, Melody Time, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp, Sleeping Beauty)
• Ward Kimball (Animator, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Saludos Amigos, Victory Through Air Power, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music; animation supervisor, Fantasia; directing animator, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Fun and Fancy Free, Melody Time, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan)
_
L
• Larry Lansburgh (Assistant production supervisor, The Three Caballeros)
• Eric Larson (Animator, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music; animation supervisor, Fantasia, Bambi; directing animator, Pinocchio, Song of the South, Melody Time, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp; sequence director, Sleeping Beauty)
• John Lounsbery (Animator, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Victory Through Air Power, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music; directing animator, Dumbo, Song of the South, Fun and Fancy Free, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp, Sleeping Beauty)
• Hamilton Luske (Supervising animator, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs; supervising co-director, Pinocchio; sequence director, Fantasia, Saludos Amigos, Make Mine Music, Fun and Fancy Free, Melody Time, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp)
_
M
• Bob Moore (Story, Melody Time)
• Fred Moore (Directing animator, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Fun and Fancy Free; animation supervisor, Fantasia; animator, Saludos Amigos, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan)
_
O
• Ken O'Connor (Art director, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo; layout, Make Mine Music, Fun and Fancy Free, Melody Time, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp)
_
P
• Bill Peet (Story, Fantasia, Dumbo, The Three Caballeros, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Sleeping Beauty; cartoon story, Song of the South)
• Walt Peregoy (Background, Sleeping Beauty)
_
R
Wolfgang "Woolie" Reitherman (Animator, Snow White and the Seven Dwafs, Saludos Amigos; animation supervisor, Fantasia; directing animator, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Fun and Fancy Free, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp; sequence director, Sleeping Beauty)
• Lloyd Richardson (Film editor, Alice in Wonderland)
• Herb Ryman (Art director, Fantasia, Dumbo, Victory Through Air Power; art supervisor, Saludos Amigos; layout, The Three Caballeros)
_
S
• Retta Scott (Animator, Bambi)
• Ben Sharpsteen (Sequence director, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs; supervising co-director, Pinocchio; supervising director, Dumbo; production supervisor, Fantasia, Fun and Fancy Free, Melody Time, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland)
• Mel Shaw (Story, Bambi)
_
T
• Frank Thomas (Animator, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, The Three Caballeros; supervising animator, Bambi; directing animator, Pinocchio, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp, Sleeping Beauty)
• Bill Tytla (Animator, Saludos Amigos, Victory Through Air Power; directing animator, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Dumbo; animation supervisor, Fantasia)
_
W
• Roy Williams (Story, Saludos Amigos, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music)
• Tyrus Wong (Background, Bambi)
_________________________________
 |
| Walt: The Man Behind the Myth _ Paul Anderson – Self – Author & Historian Ken Annakin – Self – Director Xavier Atencio – Self – Imagineer Sharon Baird – Self – Mouseketeer Buddy Baker – Self – Composer Ray Bradbury – Self – Writer & Friend Michael Broggie – Self – Author & Historian Bob Broughton – Self – Camera Effects Artist Bobby Burgess – Self – Mouseketeer Harriet Burns – Self – Imagineer John Canemaker – Self – Author & Historian Mickey Clark – Self – WED Executive Kevin Corcoran – Self – Actor Bill Cotter – Self – Author & Historian Rolly Crump – Self – Imagineer Alice Davis – Self – Costume Designer Marc Davis – Self – Animator & Imagineer Virginia Davis – Self – Actress Roy E. Disney – Self – Nephew Buddy Ebsen – Self – Actor Peter Ellenshaw – Self – Artist & Special Effects Designer Richard Fleischer – Self – Director Bruce Gordon – Self – Author & Historian Joe Grant – Self – Artist & Storyman Bob Gurr – Self – Imagineer John Hench – Self – Artist & Imagineer Ollie Johnston – Self – Animator Chuck Jones – Self – Animation Producer J.B. Kaufman – Self – Author & Historian Ward Kimball – Self – Animator John Lasseter – Self – Filmmaker Art Linkletter – Self – Television Celebrity & Friend Bill Littlejohn – Self – Union Leader Bill Melendez – Self – Animator Leonard Maltin – Self – Author & Historian Sam McKim – Self – Imagineer Christopher Disney Miller – Self – Grandson Diane Disney Miller – Self – Daughter Jennifer Miller-Goff – Self – Granddaughter Joanna Miller-Runeare – Self – Granddaughter Ron Miller – Self – Son-in-Law Tamara Miller-Scheer – Self – Granddaughter Dick Nunis – Self – Theme Park Executive Floyd Norman – Self – Artist Don Peri – Self – Author & Historian Harrison "Buzz" Price – Self – Research Consultant Dorothy Puder – Self – Niece Mel Shaw – Self – Animator Richard M. Sherman – Self – Songwriter Robert B. Sherman – Self – Songwriter Brian Sibley – Self – Author & Historian Marty Sklar – Self – Imagineering Executive Dave Smith – Self – Disney Company Archivist Charles Solomon – Self – Author & Historian Jack Speirs – Self – Writer Robert Stack – Self – Actor Bob Thomas – Self – Walt Disney Biographer Frank Thomas – Self – Animator Dick Van Dyke – Self – Actor Card Walker – Self – Studio Executive |
_________________________________
"In 1964, on opening night of Mary Poppins, Walter Elias Disney had reached the pinnacle of his career. The man who arrived in Hollywood some 40 years earlier with a half-finished cartoon in his suitcase had become one of the leading figures of filmed entertainment."
"Who was Walt Disney? Even those who worked with him for years often struggled to define the man. For many, he remains an enigma. Two years after the Mary Poppins premiere, Walt was dead, and the enigma began to pass into myth."
_
Chicago, 1901
_
"Walt was born in Chicago in 1901 to Flora and Elias Disney, in a house his father had constructed with his own hands. Elias was a contractor who built a number of home As well as the church in the neighborhood. When Walt was four, the Disney family moved to Marceline, Missouri. Walt would always have fond memories of Marceline, but for the rest of the family, farm life was hard."
"Walt had three older brothers, Herbert, Raymond, and Roy, who was eight years older than Walt. When he was two years old, his mother gave birth ate a little girl. Her name was Ruth. Elias came down with typhoid. He recovered, but farming was no longer possible for him. In 1911, the Disney house was sold, and the family left for Kansas City, Missouri."
_
Kansas City, 1911
_
"In Kansas City, Walt was put to work for the first time in his life. It was a tough job, too. Elias had purchased a newspaper route, and counted on his two boys Walt and Roy to service it."
"At about this time, the Disney's moved to a bigger house at 3028 Bellefontaine in Kansas City. Here Walt became friends with a boy named Walt Pfeiffer. The Pfeiffers were a jolly crowd who took their children to vaudeville shows and the local cinema. Walt studied the vaudeville acts and memorized the gags. The two boys liked Charlie Chaplin above all, and developed a series of skits inspired by 'The Tramp.'"
"Elias didn't quite know what to make of it."
"In June of 1917, Walt graduated from the seventh grade at Benton School. The income from the newspaper route had enabled Elias to invest in a jelly firm in Chicago, the O-Zell company, and so, while Flora, Elias, and Ruth went off to Chicago, fifteen-year-old Walt stayed with his brother Herb for the summer. He got a job as a news butch, selling soda pop and newspapers to passengers on the railroad. When summer ended, Walt joined his parents and sister in Chicago."
"Walt's cartoons now showed his growing interest in the Great War that was being fought in Europe."
"In 1918, Germany signed an armistice. However, the Red Cross ambulance corps still needed more drivers to help with post-war operations in France. Walt arrived in France and was put to work making deliveries, driving ambulances, or chauffeuring important officers. He took up smoking. It developed into a lifelong addiction. Walt painted his truck and sent drawings home to magazines. They were all rejected. By September of 1919, the ambulance corps had finished its work, and Walt returned home. He no longer thought of himself as a kid from Missouri, but a grown man who had seen the world. Walt made up his mind to go back to Kansas City."
"Elias and Flora moved back to Kansas City. Roy, who had been discharged from the Navy, and older brother Herbert and his wife Louise lived with them in the old Disney house on Bellefontaine Street. Walt decided to join them."
"Shortly thereafter, Walt got a job at the Pesman-Rubin Art Studio. while at Pesman-Rubin, he met a quiet, but highly talented young man named Ub Iwerks. The two young men started a little company of their own."
"It was at Kansas City film ad that Walt was first introduced to animated films, cartoons."
"Walt spent hours at the Kansas City Library learning about animation. It was here that he came across a 19th-century book by a British artist named Eadweard Muybridge on animal and human locomotion."
"Walt took a borrowed camera to the shed behind his house and began making cartoons of his own. He called them Laugh-O-Grams and sold the first one to the Newman Theater in Kansas City."
_
Walt's First Cartoon
_
"Roy developed tuberculosis and was sent to a sanitarium. Herbert and his family were transferred by the postal service to a new job in Portland, Oregon. Elias and Flora decided to join them in Portland as well. The crowded house on Bellefontaine fell empty. One morning, Walt accompanied his parents and his sister Ruth to the Kansas City Union Station for a tearful farewell."
"On May 23rd, 1922, Walt officially incorporated Laugh-O-Gram Films in a 2-room suite in the McConahay building. He was 20 years old."
"Halfway through the production, Walt was broke. Laugh-O-Grams went out of business. In July of 1923, Walt sold his movie camera. He would go where all the moviemakers go. He would head for Hollywood."
_
Walt Goes to Hollywood
_
"Walt moved in with his uncle Robert Disney. He then set out to knock on the door of every studio in town. But they all turned him down."
"At first, Walt avoided animation. He believed he was too late to compete with the big studios in New York. But when no opportunities opened up, he returned to animation. Uncle Robert Disney was a gruff, cigar-chomping fellow who could be persuaded to help when Walt needed him. He had a pleasant house on Kingswell Avenue, and allowed Walt to turn his garage into a studio. Walt then sent the unfinished print of Alice's Wonderland to a cartoon distributor named Margaret Winkler. On October 15, Winkler sent a telegram back."
"Walt sent for Virginia Davis, the star of the series. Her family moved to California. Walt bought a second-hand camera for $200 and set up shop in a small store on Kingswell Avenue. A few months later, he asked Ub Iwerks to join him. Walt and Roy took an upstairs room in a house opposite Uncle Robert's. But the place was small, and the two men got on each other's nerves. With a steady income now secure, Roy decided to propose to his childhood sweetheart, Edna. She accepted."
_
Walt Meets Lily
_
"Walt, meanwhile, was smitten with a young woman he'd hired to ink and paint the celluloids. He name was Lillian Bounds."
"On April 11th, 1925, Roy and Edna were married at Uncle Robert's house."
"Just one week before, the two brothers made the down payment on a new lot on Hyperion Avenue. They planned to build a brand new studio to continue producing the Alice series."
"Mintz was not thrilled with the Alice Comedies, and by the end of 1926, even Walt had to acknowledge that they had run their course."
"Lilly's mother, who Walt treated like a queen, lived with them for a while. Hazel did, too, with her teenage daughter Marjorie."
"In February of 1928, the contract for Oswald the Rabbit was up for renewal. Together with Lilly, Walt boarded a train to New York to strike a new deal. But Mintz had an unpleasant surprise."
_
Birth of Mickey Mouse
_
"Walt presented his ideas to Ub Iwerks, who refined and animated the character. They began the first cartoon with Mickey Mouse, Plane Crazy, in total secrecy. Walt didn't have any initial success finding a distributor for his new character. He knew that he needed something revolutionary. The answer was sound, which had recently been added to silent pictures."
"He struck a deal with a fellow named Pat Powers, who would provide the necessary sound equipment to theaters, as well as distribute the cartoon."
"Mickey Mouse had made Walt famous. But Walt wanted to explore new ideas for animated films."
"In late 1930, Roy began to suspect that Powers had withheld large sums of royalties. He surmised that Powers wanted to take over the Disney studio. Believing Ub Iwerks to be the key to their success, he lured Iwerks away. The Disney brothers had given Iwerks a 20% interest in their studio, which he sold back for a mere $2,000. Ub would return to the studio some years later and become an expert in special effects. When Ub left, Walt was hurt. But at least, this time, he owned the Mickey character."
"On January 10th, 1930, Edna gave birth to a baby boy named Roy Edward. For some time, Walt had been ready to start a family, but Lilly wanted to wait. As the youngest of 10 children in a family of humble means, Lilly had seen how hard her mother and older sister were forced to work. Her life with Walt was romantic and exciting, and they were enjoying every minute of it. After a few years, when Lilly decided the time had come for children, it wasn't to be that easy. Lilly suffered two miscarriages. Combined with the pressures of the studio, Walt felt physically and emotionally drained."
"Walt decided he needed to exercise to work out the tension in his life. Golf, wrestling, and boxing didn't quite work out."
_
Flowers & Trees
_
"In 1932, Walt began work on a particularly risky Silly Symphony project."
"Flowers and Trees was repainted and shot from scratch."
"Color catapulted the Silly Symphonies to new heights of popularity. The Academy crowned Flowers and Trees with an Oscar, the first ever given to a cartoon. The Silly Symphonies, especially Three Little Pigs, had honed a new class of animators, able to produce fluid movements in characters in highly realistic settings."
"In May of 1933, Lilly told Walt she was pregnant again. In December, Diane Marie Disney was born."
"Walt had long since stopped doing animation himself. He guided his creative staff, focusing on story development."
"Walt sent artists to classes at the Chouinard Art Institute."
_
Snow White
_
"With his newly-trained animators, Walt thought the studio was ready at last to break out of cartoon shorts."
"Back at home, Walt was happy with his little family. In fact, he wanted more children. Lilly's doctors didn't agree."
"Sharon Mae Disney had joined the family. Walt's home was his sanctuary, but his family knew they had to share Walt with the studio and the one project that could spell success or failure: Snow White. Meetings focused on every detail. When, for example, should Snow White notice the presence of the Huntsman behind her?"
"Gags and ideas were constantly being added or cut, a process that Walt called 'plussing.'"
"Costs soared from an estimated $500,000 to three times that. Cynics sneered at the idea that audiences would sit through a feature-length cartoon."
"On December 21st, 1937, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs had its premiere at the Carthay Circle Theater."
"Money poured in. Within six months, Roy was able to pay off the entire studio debt. Walt received a special Academy Award made up of one tall and seven small figurines."
"Feature-length films were the future. Walt refused to make a sequel to Snow White and opted for three very different stories: Pinocchio, Fantasia, and Bambi."
_
Flora's Tragic Death
_
"On New Year's Day, 1938, the whole family came together to celebrate Flora and Elias's 50th wedding anniversary."
"For some time now, Flora, Elias, and Ruth had been living in Portland, away from their sons, who were all living in California."
"But there was a problem with the house. The gas furnace was not working properly. Walt sent studio repairmen to fix the furnace, but it continued to malfunction. Early one morning in November of 1938, Elias found his wife on the floor, overcome by gas fumes. Elias survived, but Flora died."
_
Pinocchio & Fantasia
_
"Walt began building a new studio in Burbank. Budgeted at $3 million, he relished the opportunity to create a state-of-the-art studio full of new ideas and technology, including the multi-plane camera."
"Walt wanted to reproduce the sensation of hearing music in a concert hall. The result was an early version of stereophonic sound. The total budget of Fantasia now came to well over $2 million. The construction of the Burbank Studio was going well, but in September of 1939, German dictator Adolf Hitler invaded Poland, plunging Europe into the second World War. The studio's income from overseas distribution ceased."
_
Bambi
_
"Cash flowed out for the next feature, Bambi."
_
The Studio Strike
_
"By 1941, the studio was $4.5 million in debt. Walt and Roy issued stock to shore up their finances, but that was just a stop-gap measure. A crisis was looming."
"Pay levels were generally set by how much Walt or his top executives thought you were worth."
"Both sides made mistakes. Walt turned over negotiations to a hard-line studio lawyer, Gunther Lessing."
"In part to escape from the strains of union negotiations, Walt accepted an invitation from the American government to take a goodwill tour of Latin America."
"While Walt was in South America, he received a cable from Roy that their father Elias had died."
_
Dumbo
_
"At the studio, work continued on another production: Dumbo."
"Dumbo was originally scheduled to appear on the cover of Time Magazine in early December of 1941, but was overtaken by an entirely different story."
"Their purpose was to protect the nearby Lockheed Aircraft Plant. Meanwhile, the studio retooled to produce training and propaganda films."
"Walt continued to prowl the studio on weekends."
"Walt did not want to spoil his daughters, but on occasion he did have a special surprise for them."
_
HUAC Testimony
_
"Walt has been described as politically conservative, but through 1940 he primarily voted for democrats. In fact, people who knew him well thought that in politics he was somewhat naive. In any case, Walt firmly believed that the 1941 strike was inspired by communists."
"On October 24th, 1947, Walt followed Gary Cooper and Ronald Reagan in testifying for the congressional hearings."
"One of the myths that grew out of the strike era was that Walt was anti-semitic. When the 1955 B'nai Brith wanted to give Walt its "Man of the Year" Award, it researched the issue and found it to be quite untrue."
"When the war ended, the studio had lost its way. Roy wanted to be financially conservative. Walt yearned for new adventures. They argued often. Finally, the brothers agreed to diversify and turned to live-action films."
_
Live Action Films
_
"Walt dispatched a couple, the Milottes, to Alaska to film wildlife. From miles of material, he personally crafted a story line. The result was a half-hour feature called Seal Island. RKO, Disney's film distributor, thought it was a bad idea. Walt then ran the film in a local theater to qualify it for the Academy Awards. Seal Island won the Oscar for the Best Documentary. Soon, True-Life Adventures became one of the mainstays of the Disney Studio."
"Walt took the opportunity to bring his daughters along on their first trip to Europe. Treasure Island and several British films that followed gave Walt his start in live-action and also brought him in contract with a new group of talented men and women. Among them were director Ken Annakin and the master matte artist Peter Ellenshaw."
"When Walt was little, he had few toys. Now hobbies became important, and none more so than his love for model trains. There were other train buffs at the studio, including Ollie Johnston and Ward Kimball."
"Lilly's idea of a nicely-landscaped home didn't include a railroad, so Walt laid the track in such a way that it wouldn't interfere with her flower beds."
"Before long, Walt had his train. It was 1/8 scale. Walt called it the Carolwood Pacific Railroad."
"Walt built a barn on his property which closely resembled the Disney barn in Marceline as he remembered it. It became his machine shop where he worked on trains and miniatures until late in the night. No matter how famous or successful Walt became, his tastes stayed plain and simple at home and when he traveled."
"Diane and Sharon were teenagers now, but Walt had another big idea that had been growing since his daughters were small."
"Roy felt the company's stockholders wouldn't think it made sense for a film company to go into the amusement-park business. Cinderella, the first feature-length cartoon since the war, had been a huge success in 1950."
"Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan were to follow."
"Over the years, the studio had become increasingly bureaucratic, less open to spontaneous ideas. In response, Walt created WED Enterprises for Walt Elias Disney."
"WED would become the design center behind all the early plans and attractions for Disneyland."
"But where would the new park go?"
"While Walt was able to get the park started with his own money, he couldn't afford to actually build it. He saw the solution in television."
_
Walt Enters Television
_
"In December of 1950, Walt had produced his first television show scheduled for Christmas."
"Walt produced one more special, but he would not re-enter television for several years. Still, the possibilities never left his mind."
_
The Dream of Disneyland
_
"Roy was finally convinced that Disneyland was a viable venture. He prepared to travel to New York to submit the idea to potential financiers. He need something to show them, so Walt turned to his friend Herb Ryman, an artist who had worked for the studio in the 1940s. Roy completed a deal with ABC which granted the television network a 35% stake in Disneyland in return for an investment of a half a million dollars. In the beginning of 1954, ABC president Robert Kintner and Walt went on the air to announce their partnership, the development of a weekly show called Disneyland."
"Shooting Walt's lead-ins was quite the challenge."
"For three years, Disneyland was the only ABC show in the top 15 rated programs."
"About $300 million in Crockett merchandise was sold. Around $2 billion adjusted for inflation."
"Walt had a magic touch with television."
"He then set out to sketch another original idea, a show just for kids presented by kids. The Mickey Mouse Club was a groundbreaking effort, programming that respected children's intelligence."
"The studio witnessed a massive expansion in the 1950s. Gross revenues zoomed from $6 million in 1950 to 70 million near the end of the decade. Through it all, staffers were stunned that Walt was able to nurture ideas for years, even decades. A cartoon he had drawn in high school inspired a scene in Peter Pan. The little chow dog that Walt had given to Lilly in a hatbox grew into a sequence in Lady and the Tramp."
_
20,000 Leagues
_
"Walt's first big live-action film production in the United States was 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. He made a surprising choice for director, Richard Fleischer, the son of Max Fleischer, the creator of Betty Boop and Popeye and an early competitor of Walt's."
"In the years that followed, Walt's films became synonymous with family entertainment...including Swiss Family Robinson directed by Ken Annakin."
"By the mid 1950s, Walt had become familiar to millions of television viewers. While at USC, Diane met a tall, handsome football player named Ron Miller."
"On May 9th, 1954, Diane and Ron were married in a small ceremony at the Episcopal Church in Santa Barbara."
"Ron left college and entered the army. Diane lived close nearby in Pacific Grove. When the first baby arrived, Walt was overjoyed to have a grandson. In July of 1955, Walt and Lilly celebrated their 30th anniversary at the Golden Horseshoe Saloon at Disneyland. Just days before the grand opening, Walt was like a kid at the best birthday party in the world."
_
Disneyland Opens
_
"True to his word, Walt kept adding to his park."
"Walt continued to wait for a grandson to bear his name. After Christopher, Diane had three daughters. Finally in November of 1961, along came another boy."
"Sharon had been dating an architect named Robert Brown. They were married on May 10, 1959, in Pacific Palisades. For a long time, Bob resisted Walt's offers to join the studio, but in 1963, he relented and became a key planner at WED."
_
1964 World's Fair
_
"Walt foresaw that money spent on big corporate pavilions would enable WED to develop a range of new ideas and technologies."
"Robert Moses, president of the fair, persuaded the state of Illinois to include the Audio Animatronics Model in its exhibit. WED was also commissioned to create the pavilion and attractions for Ford and General Electric. Then, just one year before the fair opened, Pepsi Cola approached WED about an exhibit for Unicef."
"When the fair closed, the exhibits were transferred to Disneyland."
"As Walt's attention was diverted by television, Disneyland, and the World's Fair, motion pictures were no longer his principal concern, with one exception."
_
Mary Poppins
_
"One night, when Diane was small, she introduced him to a book called Mary Poppins by the British author P.L. Travers. He paid a call to her humble home near Kings Road in Chelsea, and the two got along very well."
"Mary Poppins went on to garner 13 Academy Award nominations, five of which became Oscar wins. The film produced a worldwide box office of $44 million, an astounding amount in the mid-sixties and more than any Disney feature had ever made."
"Walt was now 62 years of age and the winner of an unprecedented 31 Academy Awards, including the prestigious Irving Thalberg Award, but he gave no sighs of thinking about retirement. As Walt reflected on his life, he was satisfied with what he'd accomplished."
"Like a lot of grandparents, Walt and Lilly often baby-sat their grandchildren."
_
Walt's Utopia: EPCOT
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"Walt was thinking of the world his grandchildren would grow up in. What if all that WED had learned about people and space and transportation could be put to good use, not only for a theme park, but a community, a real city, as well?"
"Walt's design for EPCOT, the Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, called for a central hotel, an administrative complex surrounded by a large suburban area. Early sketches give some idea what the area would look like."
"Another major project at this time was CalArts. Since the late fifties, Walt had been supporting the school. Now he envisioned combining Chouinard with the Los Angeles Conservatory of Music to create a school where the arts, music, art, film, dance, and theater, would come together and inspire each other, something which Walt called cross-pollination."
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The Last Months
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"In the summer of 1966, Walt organized a vacation for the entire family. He rented a 140-foot yacht complete with crew for a leisurely cruise from Vancouver."
"When Ron and Walt found a quiet moment to talk, Walt told him he was going to focus on EPCOT and CalArts."
"WED was also busy designing a ski resort called Mineral King near Sequoia National Park. Walt's interest in such a resort was sparked by his role as the master in charge of pageantry during the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley. In 1965, the U.S. Forest Service accepted Disney's bid for a 30-year lease on the property. And in September of 1966, Walt joined Governor Edmund G. Brown for a press conference on the project."
"Journalists who attended the event were struck by Walt's appearance. Walt looked gaunt and drawn, but no one suspected there was something far more serious ahead."
"Walt's doctors recommended that he immediately undergo surgery."
"It was 9:30 A.M. on December 15th, just 10 days after his 65th birthday."
"The news of his death reverberated around the world. Newspapers from New York to Paris reflected on his immense role in the shaping of 20th century entertainment."
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| American Experience: Walt Disney _ Michael Barrier – Self – Writer Douglas Brode – Self – Film Historian Rolly Crump – Self – Imagineer / Designer Alice Davis – Self – Costume Designer Susan Douglas – Self – Media Historian Neal Gabler – Self – Biographer Robert Givens – Self – Animator Bob Gurr – Self – Designer Don Hahn – Self – Animator / Writer Carmenita Higginbotham – Self – Art Historian Nancy Koehn – Self – Historian Don Lusk – Self – Animator Ron Miller – Self – Son-in-Law / Producer Sarah Nilsen – Self – Film Historian Floyd Norman – Self – Animator Richard Schickel – Self – Writer Richard M. Sherman – Self – Composer / Lyricist Tom Sito – Self – Animator / Writer Marty Sklar – Self – Writer / Executive Eric Smoodin – Self – Film Historian Ron Suskind – Self – Writer Ruthie Tompson – Self – Ink and Paint Artist Steven Watts – Self – Historian |
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| It's no secret that creativity runs in the Disney family. From animation and engineering to storytelling, design, and many other schools of expression, channeling the imagination runs in the blood of Disney cast members, employees, and Imagineers. Disney Family Album, which continued the unique tradition of letting the public in on Disney's behind-the-scenes magic, premiered on Disney Channel in 1984. Narrated by Hollywood superstar and comedian Buddy Ebsen, the Disney Channel television series celebrated a "who's who" of the Company's most extraordinary talent. Disney Legends Milt Kahl, Frank Thomas, Marc Davis, Fess Parker, Annette Funicello, and Wally Boag and more told their stories in the series' 20 episodes. Each began with a book, the hallmark of Disney storytelling, which opened up and revealed images from the Walt Disney Archives and another chapter from the Company's storied past. As the half-hour documentary series eventually came to a close, Disney recognized the need to pay tribute to its most beloved individuals in an everlasting way—and the Disney Legends program was established in 1987 to recognize those individuals and their legacies. _ 1. Clarence Nash (June 9, 1984) 2. Ward Kimball (July 2, 1984) 3. Sherman Brothers (August 3, 1984) 4. Jimmy MacDonald (September 4, 1984) 5. Milt Kahl (October 5, 1984) 6. Ken Anderson (November 6, 1984) 7. Disneyland Designers (December 7, 1984). On camera interviews with John Hench, Herb Ryman, Bill Evans and a very young Tony Baxter. 8. Eric Larson (January 8, 1985) 9. Peter Ellenshaw and Harrison Ellenshaw (February 9, 1985) 10. Woolie Reitherman (March 10, 1985) 11. Frank Thomas (April 11, 1985) 12. Voice Actors (May 12, 1985). On camera interviews with John Byner, Phil Harris, Will Ryan, Sterling Holloway, Dick Jones, Paul Winchell, Wayne Allwine, Hal Smith, Alan Young, John Hurt, Kathryn Beaumont, Eva Gabor, Adriana Caselotti and Ward Kimball talking about the voices of the Seven Dwarfs. 13. WED Imagineers (June 13, 1985). On camera interviews with Randy Bright, Bill Justice, Tim Delaney, X Atencio, and Dave Feiten. 14. Golden Horseshoe Revue (July 14, 1985). On camera interviews with Wally Boag, Fulton Burley, Betty Taylor, and Dana Daniels. 15. Ollie Johnston (August 15, 1985) 16. Annette Funicello (September 16, 1985) 17. Marc Davis (October 17, 1985) 18. The Milottes and the Beebes (November 18, 1985). On camera interviews with True-Life Adventures documentary photographers Alfred and Elma Milotte and Lloyd Beebe. 19. Fess Parker/Buddy Ebsen (December 19, 1985) 20. The Storymen (January 20, 1986). On camera interviews with story artists Vance Gerry, Larry Clemmons, and Jack Hannah. |
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| Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: Still the Fairest of Them All _ Ken Anderson – Self – Disney Artist Rudy Behlmer – Self – Film Historian John Canemaker – Self – Animation Historian Andreas Deja – Self – Disney Artist Roy E. Disney – Self – Vice Chairman of the Board, The Walt Disney Company Mike Gabriel – Self – Disney Artist Don Hahn – Self – Producer, Walt Disney Feature Animation Ollie Johnston – Self – Disney Animator Ward Kimball – Self – Disney Animator Jimmy Macdonald – Self Paula Sigman – Self – Disney Historian Frank Thomas – Self – Disney Animator |
"Behind the success of Snow White was a visionary, who brought her to life. Walt Disney was a unique American genius, a great storyteller, artist and innovator. Born in Chicago in 1901, his early career as a cartoonist was interrupted by the first World War. In 1923, Walt joined with his brother Roy and entered the infant animation industry. In those days, a feature film was preceded by trailers, newsreels, live-action short subjects and a cartoon. While Walt Disney may be best remembered for the creation of Mickey Mouse, the world's most recognizable movie star, his early accomplishments are equally impressive. Before Mickey, Walt had produced a popular series called the Alice comedies, which were silent cartoons featuring a live-action little girl in an animated world. In 1928, Disney introduced the very first sound cartoon, the landmark film that launched the career of Mickey Mouse. And in 1932, Disney premiered the first cartoon in full color. For his advancements in the field of animation, Disney had won four Academy Awards by 1934. But despite the phenomenal success of Mickey Mouse and the animated shorts, Walt realized that only feature films would generate the kind of income that would allow his studio to grow."
"As early as 1933, Walt planned to put Mary Pickford in an animated world for a feature-length version of Alice in Wonderland, but it was scrapped when Paramount produced an all-star version of the same year. This one frame of film is all that exists of the technical attests. In the spring of 1934, Walt finally decided on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. It was a revolutionary idea. No one in Hollywood had ever attempted to tell a full-length story in animation before. The story of Snow White goes back to the 1812 Grimm Brothers collection of fairy tales and even the earliest filmmakers had capitalized on the familiarity of the tale. This silent version is a film that Walt saw in 1916."
"Nearly 20 years after seeing that Snow White, Walt was well-established producing cartoons in his own Hollywood studio, employing hundreds of people. One night in 1934, he gathered his key artists together to unveil his plans."
"The storyboard phase is the best place for ideas to be suggested, embellished, replaced or sometimes deleted."
"As interesting as this idea may have been, it was changed because it did not add to the story and the studio was still having difficulty animating the prince."
"During the storyboard period, humor was also woven into the story. The Disney animators were proven masters of physical humor and Walt encouraged their genius in a number of ways."
"At the same time that the story was taking shape, other artists worked on developing how the characters would look and act."
"For Snow White, Walt wanted to create seven distinct individuals with names that echoed their personalities. Some of the names considered included Awful, Happy, Weepy, Dirty, Cranky, Hungry, Sneezy, Wheezy, Lazy, Snoopy, Goofy, Wistful, Soulful, Gabby, Disgraceful, Flabby, Crabby, Helpful, Tearful, Thrifty, Shifty, Nifty and Big Old Ego. Finally, Walt decided on these seven."
"When it came time to design the Snow White character, each of the animators had his own unique vision of the girl."
"From the outset, Walt understood the importance of combining music and songs with the story. In animation, the music and dialogue have to be planned and recorded before drawing can begin. For months, animators and composers work together so that the music and action were perfectly synchronized."
"Some 25 songs were written before Walt settled on the eight finally used in the film. Originally, the dwarfs were to entertain Snow White by singing 'You're Never Too Old to Be Young'. It was ultimately replaced by 'The Silly Song'. Here is an original temporary music track illustrated with storyboards."
"Disney Sound Effects Department devised noises that was sometimes realistic and sometimes just plain silly. Sound effects wizard Jimmy MacDonald was responsible for creating many of the sound effects that made Snow White more realistic."
"As the studio geared up for Snow White, the Silly Symphonies were used as a testing ground for techniques that elevated Disney animation to even greater artistic levels, they experimented each dwarf and which characters perfected realistic animation of nature and animals and tried out some of the elaborate special effects that would be required for Snow White."
"Animators analyzed in my new detail, every nuance of human movement."
"Three-dimensional models of characters and even some of the sets were also created as design reference and to ensure realism, no detail escaped scrupulous study. These effects tests, for example, illustrate how the animators experimented with the amount of light given off by Snow White's candle, as well as how the shadow should fall. And as late as eight months before the film's release, artists were still experimenting with the final colors for Snow White's dress. Now the Snow White performers took the stage, the animators."
"As Disney's team of animators worked, they began to realize that their characters had become something more to them than lines on paper."
"Before the animators went through the time consuming an expensive process a full color, each sequence of pencil drawings was filmed, then projected in this rough form where the quality of the animation might be quickly and easily reviewed. Usually in order to save money, they would not make a print, but would simply project the negative. These tests were then edited into the film to allow Walt to follow the flow of the story. Despite all the effort, not every sequence that was animated made it onto the screen. This sequence where the dwarfs build a build for Snow White, while Dopey collects stuffing for her mattress was begun, but never completed."
"By late 1936, the first few sequences were approved for ink, which meant that they were ready to be traced onto transparent cells. Here in the ink and paint department, 150 artists traced the animators' final pencil drawings onto transparent sheets of celluloid. Next came the painting of the cells, paint was applied to the back of the celluloid and shades determined by the color tests that had been run. Since color is so important to creating mood, Disney chemists custom-mixed all the various colors for the characters and the backgrounds in all 1,500 separate shades were used to paint the 1 million drawings used to create Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The women in the ink and paint department devised their own unique method of making Snow White's face seem more natural. By applying real rouge and other makeup directly to the top of the cell, Walt conceded that it looked great, but was concerned that they know exactly where to put the makeup on each drawing. One of the inkers replied Mr. Disney, what do you think we do each morning? Finally, backgrounds were placed under the animation camera and then covered with layers of transparent character cells. Shot one frame at a time with each successive frame a little different from the one before, the illusion of motion was created. Snow White is filled to overflowing with unforgettable images and the most spectacular owe much to the invention of a whole new camera system called the multi-plane camera. Because it wasn't ready when animation began on Snow White, several pivotal scenes were scrapped and re-shot, using this new wonder. The idea was to create depth and dimension out of essentially flat part so the scenes were painted in oils on different panes of glass, according to their distance from the viewer. The camera was placed above shooting downward toward the drawings so that each piece of glass could be moved at different speeds and in different directions, it was called the multi-plane camera because the new system used many levels or planes of glass, it was first tested on a Silly Symphony called The Old Mill. Here is a preliminary multi-plane pencil test for the forest scene. Now here's the same scene from the finished film. By the summer of 1937, the entire studio worked round the clock to finish Snow White, but the expenses of the feature had depleted every financial resource. The studio was out of money. Snow White could not be finished. Walt and his brother Roy kept the crisis quiet and put their heads together."
"Always the master storyteller, Walt now concentrated on the pacing of the story, shortening sequences that felt too long, tightening the editing and smoothing out the overall flow."
"For 87 minutes, the glamorous guests laughed and cried and as the picture came to an end rose to their feet to cheer and applaud. Disney's greatest folly had become his greatest triumph."
"Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs became so popular that it was dubbed into more than 20 languages."
"Disney's preparation of the film for international release was a first for its time. Custom art was created for practically every country, including these sequences, featuring the dwarfs' translated names."
"When Walt Disney was once asked to explain the secret of Snow White's phenomenal appeal, he replied."
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| Behind the Magic: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs _ Wilma Baker – Self Chris Buck – Self John Canemaker – Self Marge Champion – Self Becky Cline – Self Jake S. Friedman – Self Eric Goldberg – Self Mark Henn – Self Byron Howard – Self Mindy Johnson – Self J.B. Kaufman – Self John Lasseter – Self Jennifer Lee – Self Alan Menken – Self Sarah Nilsen – Self Richard M. Sherman – Self Maria Tatar – Self Mary Walsh – Self Jack Zipes – Self |
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| A Wish Came True: The Making of 'Pinocchio' _ Dickie Jones – Self Ward Kimball – Self |
"In 1937, Walt had created something no one had ever seen before: The first full-length animated feature, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. It dazzled audiences worldwide, but now they had a problem: What to do next? People in the movie business begged him to repeat the formula. 'Give us more dwarfs,' they said. But Walt Disney was too original for that. Instead, he found a serialized magazine story: The tale of a wooden puppet who wants to become a real boy."
"The blue fairy gave life with one stroke of a wand...but giving life to an imaginary world was much more difficult."
"Actual production of Pinocchio lasted more than two years and required over 750 artists and technicians. Many new techniques were developed in the making of Pinocchio, as animators faced an array of new challenges. For instance, how do you create the effect of being underwater? Their answer was to put a piece of corrugated glass across the animation cels, giving the effect of ripples underwater. In fact, the underwater sequences in Pinocchio established a new standard that paved the way for many Disney masterpieces to come, including The Little Mermaid."
"In Walt's imagination, the world of make-believe was very real. He insisted that the animation must imitate life, above all else, the illusion have to be believable. He had three-dimensional models built of many of the cuckoo-clocks and Pinocchio, so that the artists could study their movements. The model of the Coachman's carriage was even fitted with shock absorbers, to make sure that Jiminy bounced over every bump in the road."
"In addition to the use of models, they went one step further when drawing their characters. They studied their own faces reflected in mirrors so they could capture a full range of expressions. One of the key animators was Ward Kimball, the animation director for Jiminy Cricket."
"Walt was the ultimate perfectionist. It took 12 animators eighteen months to create a Pinocchio that met his approval. But Walt knew that Pinocchio needed something more: A loyal friend and adviser."
"Jiminy became the first in the long tradition of helpful Disney sidekicks, like Timothy (Dumbo), Sebastian (The Little Mermaid), Olaf (Frozen), and another famous cricket, Cri-Kee from Mulan."
"Over the years, many fine actors have brought their gifts to the classic Disney films. For the part of Pinocchio, Walt cast child actor Dickie Jones."
"After 75 years, Pinocchio still remains one of the most beloved family films of all time. Through its endearing characters, innovative animation, and wonderful storytelling, Pinocchio continues to remind all of us to dream, and then, to wish upon a star."
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| The Making of Pinocchio: No Strings Attached _ Thomas Andrae – Self – Author and Professor of Media Studies Michael Barrier – Self – Animation Historian Jerry Beck – Self – Animation Historian Dave Bossert – Self – Creative Director, Special Projects John Culhane – Self – Animation Historian Andreas Deja – Self – Animator Mike Gabriel – Self – Visual Development Artist Eric Goldberg – Self – Animator Daniel Goldmark – Self – Music Professor, Case Western Reserve University Joe Grant – Self – Animator Don Hahn – Self – Producer Ollie Johnston – Self – Animator Dick Jones – Self – Voice of "Pinocchio" Milt Kahl – Self – Animator J.B. Kaufman – Self – Film Historian Ward Kimball – Self – Animator Eric Larson – Self – Animator Leonard Maltin – Self – Film Critic / Historian Russell Merritt – Self – Film Historian, UC Berkeley Brian Sibley – Self – Disney Historian Frank Thomas – Self – Animator |
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| Walt Disney's Bambi: The Magic Behind the Masterpiece _ Peter Behn – Self – Voice of Thumper Marc Davis – Self – Animator Ollie Johnston – Self – Supervising Animator Eric Larson – Self – Supervising Animator Frank Thomas – Self – Supervising Animator |
"Walt Disney started planning Bambi in 1936, while still in production on his first full-length animated feature, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. In the following rare excerpt from the original Disneyland television series, Walt explains how his artists finally achieved Bambi's breathtaking realism."
"At first, animals were brought into studio art classes for close-up study by the Disney artists."
"A pair of baby deer, appropriately named Bambi and Faline, were imported from Maine and happily housed behind the studio where the animators could have access to real moving inspiration."
"To create a realistic look, nature photographers documented the hidden textures of the forest environment. Disney artists created hundreds of paintings and drawings that capture the many moods required to bring the forest to life. What makes many of these drawings even more remarkable is that despite their incredible detail, they're actually extremely small. Pastels and watercolors capture the seasonal colors and emotions of life in the forest."
"If you ever wondered how the artists perfected such realistic details as a single drop of rain, here's the secret: Animators studied slow motion photography of drops of milk that reveal the elaborate splash patterns that usually disappear in the blink of an eye. Strange shapes begin appearing on the animator's drawing boards. Drawing by drawing, drop by drop, a rainstorm was created."
"While the images for this rain drop sequence always remain the same, an early concept considered a different song to be sung from the point of view of the falling rain drops. Even here, the technique of using vocals is a scoring tool as evident. Presented here for the first time is the original test demo of the Rain Song from June of 1938, illustrated with concept and storyboard art."
"Once the animators were comfortable with drawing real animals, they had to adapt them into characters that could supply the range of expression and emotion needed to tell the story."
"A cute baby rabbit character was developed to give the story much-needed comedy relief."
"Here in rare newsreel footage, we see a group of studio visitors watch as Frank Thomas animates a sequence with Thumper. Characters were animated using pencil drawings on paper that were then photographed to test the flow of movement and expression."
"Disney Studios' ink and paint department created all their own paints. For Bambi, nearly 250,000 cels were drawn and painted. When you combine that figure with the animation drawings, concept art, layouts, character designs and backgrounds, over a million drawings went in to making a little fawn come to life. Pretty amazing, isn't it, Bambi?"
"To heighten the realism of Bambi, the multi-plane camera was used extensively. By painting different layers of a scene on separate sheets of glass and moving them independently as they're photographed one frame at a time, flat art could create the illusion of depth. This opening sequence is an excellent example of the magic of the multi-plane camera."
"When Bambi was first released in 1942, it was an immediate triumph, and was recognized as one of animation's all-time greatest achievements. Even now, over half a century later, Bambi continues to delight audiences. Perhaps because of its stark realism, it also lives on as one of childhood's most vividly memorable family classics."
"Bambi stands out as one of the first environmentally conscious films ever made. It shows that without responsible thinking, man can easily become the enemy of nature."
"The careless hunter's campfire almost destroys everything we've come to care about, and serves as a valuable lesson for everyone to respect all of nature's creatures and habitats. Despite the inherent traumas and heartbreaks of the struggle for survival in the wild, Bambi and his friends give us a life-affirming example of the resilience of the spirit."
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| The Making of Bambi: A Prince Is Born _ Paul F. Anderson – Self – Author & Historian Ron Barbagallo – Self – Animation Art Historian Peter Behn – Self – Voice of Thumper Aaron Blaise – Self – Director, Walt Disney Feature Animation Dave Bossert – Self – Animation Director, DisneyToon Studios Ross Care – Self – Composer & Author John Culhane – Self – Author & Film Historian Marc Davis – Self – Animator Andreas Deja – Self – Supervising Animator, Walt Disney Feature Animation Donnie Dunagan – Self – Voice of Bambi Joe Grant – Self – Story Artist, Walt Disney Feature Animation Don Hahn – Self – Producer, Walt Disney Studios Maxine Harris – Self – Clinical Psychologist Ollie Johnston – Self – Supervising Animator Milt Kahl – Self – Supervising Animator Cammie King – Self – Voice of Faline Miles Kreuger – Self – Film Historian Eric Larson – Self – Supervising Animator John Lasseter – Self – Director & Exec. VP, Pixar Animation Ralph H. Lutts – Self – Environmental Historian, Goddard College Cristy Maltese – Self – Art Director, Walt Disney Feature Animation John Mauceri – Self – Conductor Bob McIntosh – Self – Background Artist Mel Shaw – Self – Story Development Ric Sluiter – Self – Art Director, Walt Disney Feature Animation Charles Solomon – Self – Animation Historian Frank Thomas – Self – Supervising Animator Tyrus Wong — Self — Background Artist |
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| The Story Behind Fun and Fancy Free _ Joe Grant – Self – Story Development Ward Kimball – Self – Directing Animator Leonard Maltin – Self – Film Historian |
"Walt Disney's 1947 feature, Fun and Fancy Free is composed of multiple segments, a format called a package feature. The two stories, Mickey and the Beanstalk and Bongo, were originally developed as full-length feature films. Here's the behind-the-scenes story of how they were paired up to create a Fun and Fancy Free feature."
"To keep his successful film series going, Walt Disney was constantly on the lookout for stories to bring to the screen."
"Disney was certainly familiar with the classic fairy tale of Jack and the Beanstalk. He had used the well-known story as the basis for a 1922 silent cartoon produced by his Laugh-O-Gram film company in Kansas City. Unfortunately, no prints of this film are known to exist. In 1933, he revisited the tale in Giant Land, a short with Mickey Mouse assuming the role of Jack. In 1938, Walt pitted Mickey against the giant again, this time as The Brave Little Tailor."
"With his experience as an adversary to giants, Mickey was a natural for the lead in this giant new feature-length film. His co-stars would be Donald Duck and Goofy."
"Development of Mickey and the Beanstalk as a full-length feature began on May 2, 1940. During that year, Walt Disney and several of his key story men developed many of the ideas that would be contained in the finished film: The growth of the beanstalk while Mickey, Donald and Goofy are asleep, the gags at the Giant's dinner table, and the role of the singing harp."
"At the same meeting, the suggestion was also made to use Foulfellow and Gideon from Pinocchio as the phonies who swindle Mickey out of his cow. Since they don't appear in the final version, just who does Mickey trade his cow to in exchange for magic beans?"
"Here is the answer, in a never-before-seen sequence developed in 1940, but dropped when the story was tightened for Fun and Fancy Free."
"Archival evidence of the early development of the feature version of Mickey and the Beanstalk ends in the summer of 1941."
"At the same time, work on Bongo was begun. The story was written in 1934 for Cosmopolitan Magazine by novelist Sinclair Lewis. Bongo was an unusually light-hearted story to come from Lewis, who was the first American to win the Nobel Prize for Literature."
"Since Bongo was a circus bear, there were early story notes suggesting that Bongo might even be a follow-up to Dumbo, using the same circus settings and some of the supporting cast, including the gossipy elephants."
"Early story sketches show a character design for Bongo that differs radically from the final one. The female bear who catches Bongo's eye went through similar revisions, as well as a couple of name changes, from Suzie to Silver-ear to her final name, Lulubelle. Bongo's nemesis, Lumpjaw, was always a big hulking brute, but in some early designs, he wore street clothes. In these early sketches, a few extra characters were present. Bongo had a chimpanzee for a valet, first named Beverly, then Chimpy. In addition, Bongo and Chimpy had a series of comic encounters with a pair of mischievous country cousin bear cubs."
"A partially completed script of Bongo was delivered on Monday, December 8, 1941, the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Just as Bongo and Mickey and the Beanstalk were at the height of their development, the world changed."
"Walt looked back to Fantasia, and the idea of combining unrelated music and story segments into a feature-length film."
"In 1946, Make Mine Music was released. It consisted of several animated segments featuring popular music of that era, provided by Nelson Eddy, Dinah Shore, Benny Goodman, and The Andrews Sisters."
"With the end of the war, Walt revived Mickey and the Beanstalk for his first and most famous star, and decided to pair it with Bongo. The introduction of the lovable little circus bear would make Mickey's return to the silver screen an even more sensational event."
"Since his debut, Mickey Mouse's voice had been provided by his creator, Walt Disney."
"Here in a recently discovered rare film clip, Walt Disney performs as Mickey Mouse, with Billy Blecher in a recording session for Mr. Mouse Takes a Trip."
"Walt had recorded Mickey's voice for Mickey and the Beanstalk in the spring and summer of 1941. This film would be the last time that Walt would regularly provide Mickey's voice."
"Jiminy Cricket, the popular supporting character from Pinocchio, was recruited to set the light-hearted tone for Fun and Fancy Free."
"Giving voice to Jiminy was his original voice, Cliff Edwards."
"This spritely song I'm a Happy-Go-Lucky Fellow, which opens Fun and Fancy Free, had actually been written for, but dropped from Pinocchio nearly a decade earlier."
"What follows, presented publicly for the first time, is Billy Gilbert's original test recording for the role of Willie the Giant."
"A human host was chosen to tell the story of Mickey and the Beanstalk: Ventriloquist Edgar Bergen."
"Bergen and Walt Disney were longtime friends. Walt had even featured Bergen's Charlie McCarthy in several short cartoons. In 1950, Bergen would also be a guest on Disney's very first television program."
"Co-starring in the live action segments was child actor Luana Patten."
"Telling the story of Bongo was Dinah Shore."
"Fun and Fancy Free premiered on September 27, 1947. Package films like Fun and Fancy Free kept the Disney magic alive in the eyes of movie audiences. And with these films, the Disney studio built up its creative strength to produce a whole new series of feature animation successes."
"For war-weary audiences, Fun and Fancy Free was a refreshing tonic, a tuneful and carefree jaunt with friendly and familiar characters, under the guiding hand of favorite storyteller Walt Disney. The same holds true today... (Leonard Maltin: To just an entertaining film that's really well done.)"
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| The Making of Cinderella _ Marc Davis – Self – Directing Animator John Hench – Self – Design Stylist Ollie Johnston – Self – Directing Animator Ward Kimball – Self – Directing Animator Ken O'Connor – Self – Layout Artist Frank Thomas – Self – Directing Animator Ilene Woods – Self – Voice of Cinderella |
"Walt Disney's association with Cinderella, actually dates back to the beginning of his career in the days of silent films. In 1921, while still in Kansas City, Missouri, Walt was producing short promotional cartoons that were run in movie theaters. The following year, he made his first attempt to telling the Cinderella story. His company had been contracted to produce six animated shorts for Victoria Clubs Incorporated. These were planned as modernized adaptations of classic fairy tales. Cinderella was the sixth and last of that series. It was thought to be a lost film until recently, when a British collector found a copy of it at a local flea market. Thanks to his good fortune, we're able to see the starting point for what was to become a long relationship between Walt Disney and this classic fairy tale. In their day, the Laugh-o-Gram cartoons distinguished themselves for their lavish look, including detailed backgrounds. A full range of gray tones and an abundance of gags and story ideas. These innovations are not commonly found in animation of this period. Victoria Clubs went out of business before paying for these cartoons and Walt's company went bankrupt. In less than one year, Walt would be moving to California. By 1932, Walt was established in Hollywood with a thriving animation studio. His highly popular Silly Symphony series of cartoons, frequently used fairy tales or subjects. Disney had learned from experience that the public always responded well to familiar stories: Hansel and Gretel, The Pied Piper and The Ugly Duckling were among the tales featured in these cartoons. It is not commonly known, but as early as 1933, Cinderella was also under development as a Silly Symphony. And carefully maintained files in the Disney archives are the scenes that would eventually grow into one of Walt's most popular and successful feature films. All that exists to this version are a few concept sketches. This Silly Symphony version was to start with Cinderella aiding her stepmother and stepsisters to prepare for the ball, helping them dress, polishing their shoes, mending their clothes and fixing their hair. After they leave her behind, she dreams about going to the ball and dances with her fancy prince made from a kitchen mop. Her fairy godmother materializes from the fireplace and sends her to the ball. Upon her arrival, the Prince abandons all others to dance with Cinderella. Just as the Prince is about to kiss her, the clock strikes twelve and Cinderella runs away, leaving her glass slipper behind. Later, when the Prince comes to try on the glass slipper, the stepsisters try to hide Cinderella behind a curtain. Even in these very early concept sketches, we can see many of the ideas that 17 years later would eventually be incorporated into the feature, including the transformation of the pumpkin into a coach, heir utilizing sunflowers for wheels. And the gags of how the ugly sisters will try to squeeze their feet into the dainty glass slipper. These colored pencil drawings also show a fantasy sequence where the Prince and Princess dance in the clouds. This dancing in the cloud's concept was one of Walt's favorites. He even considered it for use since Snow White, ultimately it was used in the final sequence of Sleeping Beauty in 1959. In 1937, convinced that Snow White would be a success, Walt began exploring ideas for other feature productions and Cinderella was among the most promising. Since the earlier ideas were only for a gag-driven short subject, multiple versions of a new feature-length script were developed. A couple of years later in 1940, a rough storyboard was created, outlining a full-length version of the story. Here we see the stepmother and stepsisters gleefully ordering Cinderella around. While carrying their dirty limits, Cinderella trips over her cat and falls down the stairs. Her stepmother accuses her of wasting her time. And early in the story, Cinderella sees the Prince outfox hunting, but the project was put on the shelf for a time."
"The outbreak of World War II in Europe cut off all foreign markets for Disney's films. With the loss of this major studio income, the studio plummeted deeply into debt."
"With the country at war, Walt followed his patriotic duty and enlisted his studio in the service of the armed forces, producing films for the war department."
"With so many of his staff in the armed services, full-length features were difficult to produce. So Walt searched for alternatives. Fantasia had been conceived as a series based on classical music and Walt was encouraged to develop similar features, this time based on popular music. From this idea came a series of package features, like Make Mine Music, Melody Time and Fun and Fancy Free. Each comprised of several animated segments who loosely linked together. The short length of each of the segments made them relatively affordable to make. They did not require the uniformity of story and design of the full-length features and they could be produced with a smaller staff."
"To that end, Walt once again returned to Cinderella. This time based on a moral realistic telling of the story, keeping the best of the earlier gags and story points. New scripts were developed between 1945 and 1947. From the new scripts, rough storyboards were created."
"The most significant development during the early story sessions was the addition of Cinderella's animal friends. They were the only characters to whom Cinderella can express her real feelings in dreams. These cute lovable characters endear themselves to the audience and give comic relief from the realistic human characters."
"Walt always understood the importance of using music to advance the story. For Cinderella's successful popular blacksmiths, Mack David, Jerry Livingston and Al Hoffman were hired. 'Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo' became a hit and was nominated for an Academy Award. Marc Davis, who animated the Cinderella character helped to develop this sequence."
"Another song 'Sing, Sweet Nightingale' is sung by Cinderella while scrubbing the floors as the soap bubbles create a chorus of Cinderellas."
"An earlier concept to which was discarded, called for Cinderella to sing a work song, where she is overwhelmed by all the work she has to do in order to attend the ball. In a fantasy sequence, she imagines herself becoming first two Cinderellas, then four, then eight and finally, an entire regiment of Cinderellas, illustrated here by storyboard art and a new recording of the song that was originally written for this sequence."
"The idea for this song evolved from a song sung by Cinderella into the version we know today where the mice sing a different work song about Cinderella."
"Another deleted song and story idea showed Cinderella and the Prince in a fantasy dance in the clouds. The audio here is the 1946 demo for the song 'Dancin' on a Cloud'."
"Casting and recording the voices for an animated film always comes before any of the animation has begun. The search for the voice Cinderella was like finding the girl who fit the glass slipper."
"Actress Eleanor Audley was cast as the voice of the wicked stepmother."
"Although her name may not be very familiar, Verna Felton's voice has livened up many Disney classics."
"In Cinderella, she provided the voice for the Fairy Godmother."
"Singer Mike Douglas who would later become nationally known as a talk show host, provided the singing voice of the Prince."
"Creating the voices for the mice presented a new challenge for Disney's studio sound effects wizard, Jimmy MacDonald, who was the voice of Mickey Mouse at this time. In addition to providing the voices for Gus and Jaq, his experiments were changing the speeds of recording gave personality to the lovable mice."
"Cinderella was the first of the Disney animated features to be completely photographed and edited, using live actors. Always the innovator, Walt Disney realized that in this way. The pacing of the story could be fine too and the editing tightened using the live-action footage before the costly animation process began. Unfortunately, none of the live-action footage had survived."
"The live-action sequences were filmed, based on the layouts."
"Working with prerecorded audio tracks, the actors worked on a bare sound stage with only the most essential props. The placement of the props and camera were based on the proportions established in the layout. The storyboards were usually there for the director's reference and often the animators would attend to suggest ideas while watching the actors work. Since the dialogue had already been recorded, the directors and animators were free to cast wherever they felt could give the best physical performance. Helen Stanley, who would later play Polly Crockett in the Davy Crockett films was cast to portrayed Cinderella. In 1956, she talked about having been the model for Cinderella on the Mickey Mouse Club."
"'The Dream is a Wish' sequence was filmed with only a simple bed and a white wooden frame to establish the window location. When Cinderella dresses the mice, a tiny wired frame model was used and in scenes were Bruno the dog was present, he was represented by a large dog model with a stuffed Goofy head."
"Rhoda Elaine Williams, in addition to providing the voice for Drizella, worked as the live-action model. With Helen Stanley in a second role as Anastasia, the stepsisters were animated by Ollie Johnston."
"After the live-action footage was approved, the drawings in the storyboard were replaced by photo staff frame blowups. Often the layout artists will draw directly onto these to illustrate how the action will integrate into the animated setting. For the scenery of Cinderella bathes behind her dressing screen, we can see Helen Stanley pretending to bathe, wearing a swimsuit. A second copy of the same frame indicates where the screen will obscure her and where the birds will squeeze the water from the sponge."
"Stylistically, the design for Cinderella had a distinctly different look than the previous features. Architectural detail is transformed from reality to wild exaggeration in a totally believable way. Art designer John Hench was a major influence on the style and color of the film."
"Mary Blair was a well-known American modernist painter who Walt Disney greatly admired. She was working at the studios as a colorist and stylist during this time and the strongly influence at the look of the film."
"She helped bring a feminine touch to the character designs and a unique perspective for costuming as illustrated in these early concept paintings. Other designs for the Cinderella character were provided by Marc Davis, who offered many options for her work clothes and her ball gown."
"While early concept art can be attributed to Mary Blair and Marc Davis among others, the final character design is appropriately credited to Milt Kahl. The design of the animals was done with great care to be certain that they were based on the basic anatomy of real animals."
"With the live-action footage as reference and the layout is a guide, the animators could now begin to create the individual drawings that would become the final film."
"It would take almost three years for Disney's experience team of more than 750 artists to create over 1 million drawings, using 1500 radiant colors to bring this animated love story to life. Poised on the brink of financial disaster, once again, Walt had risked everything on his belief that audiences wanted him to return to classic storytelling. If Walt was right, he would be back in business. If not, the dream was over."
"When it premiered on February 15, 1950, Cinderella triumphantly reestablished the animated feature as a popular art form and put the studio back on its feet. Audiences took Cinderella to heart, earning $700. It was the sixth highest grossing film of 1950 and received three Academy Award nominations. Children clamored for all the toys, clothes, records and other merchandise that brought the movie into the public's daily lives."
"It's not surprising that Walt Disney always had a special place in his heart for Cinderella. She helped save his studio."
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| From Rags to Riches: The Making of Cinderella _ Lucille Bliss – Self – Voice of Anastasia John Canemaker – Self – Author & Film Historian John Culhane – Self – Author & Film Historian Marc Davis – Self – Directing Animator Andreas Deja – Self – Supervising Animator Mike Douglas – Self – Singing Voice of The Prince Christopher Finch – Self – Author & Film Historian Daniel Goldmark – Self – Professor of Musicology, University of Alabama Mark Henn – Self – Supervising Animator Ollie Johnston – Self – Directing Animator Milt Kahl – Self – Directing Animator Glen Keane – Self – Supervising Animator Ward Kimball – Self – Directing Animator Garry Marshall – Self – Filmmaker Richard M. Sherman – Self – Co-Composer/Co-Lyricist, Mary Poppins, The Jungle Book Joel Siegel – Self – Film Critic Frank Thomas – Self – Directing Animator Ilene Woods – Self – Voice of Cinderella |
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| You Can Fly!: The Making of Walt Disney's Masterpiece 'Peter Pan' _ Kathryn Beaumont – Self – Voice of "Wendy" Marc Davis – Self – Directing Animator Margaret Kerry – Self – Model for "Tinker Bell" Leonard Maltin – Self – Film Historian Frank Thomas – Self – Directing Animator |
"The story of Peter Pan began its life on the London stage in 1904. It was written by Scottish novelist and playwright James Matthew Barrie."
"In 1913, a touring company of Peter Pan was seen by this youngster in the small town of Marceline, Missouri. The boy was Walt Disney. He never forgot this epic of boyhood and its unique combination of fantasy and swashbuckling adventure. In 1924, Walt also saw a silent film version of Peter Pan, starring Betty Bronson as Peter. The film contained many innovations, such as a live actress playing Tinker Bell, and special effects that were the state of the art for their day. The silent film, however, adhered to many of the conventions of the stage version of Peter Pan, including the stars rather obviously flying on wires, a performer in a dog suit as Nana, and a costumed actor as the crocodile."
"Walt Disney's efforts to make Peter Pan as an animated feature actually began in the late 1930s, during the production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, in an era when Disney's filmmaking imagination was at its peak."
"Walt Disney himself noted, 'The cartoon method gave us many advantages over the stage craft of Barrie's day, which no amount of pixie dust could cure.'"
"In 1939, Disney acquired the screen rights, and by early 1940, storyboards were begun. These never-before-seen watercolor illustrations by renowned British artist David Hall were part of Disney's initial work. Hall had also done extensive visual development of Alice in Wonderland for Disney in 1938."
"In this early version of the story, Nana traveled with Peter and the children to Neverland, as seen in these rare original story sketches."
"Much of the art created at this time was also darker than the original play, and far more sinister than a typical Disney effort."
"Another part of this early work was an elaborate musical number for Captain Hook's pirate crew, which was ultimately replaced by a different song, The Elegant Captain Hook. An attempt to persuade the Lost Boys to join the pirates' reigns, this earlier song, written by studio music director Frank Churchill along with Ray Kelly, is reconstructed here, using a rare song demo recording coupled with never-before-seen storyboard drawings of the original sequence."
"By 1941, a basic story structure was completed. However, the onset of World War II stopped the development. After the war, Walt Disney brought Peter Pan back into development. Progress continued throughout the 1940s, including extensive concept art by renowned color stylist Mary Blair."
"Walt assigned the character of Peter Pan to animator Milt Kahl."
"Young Bobby Driscoll was assigned to the role of Peter."
"Driscoll had debuted in Song of the South, after which Disney cast him in several projects, including So Dear to My Heart, and as Jim Hawkins in Treasure Island."
"Walt also didn't have to look far for the voice of Wendy. He found what he called 'the gentle and gracefully feminine voice', in the same actress who had played Alice in Wonderland: Kathryn Beaumont."
"Hans Conried, seen here as the face in the Magic Mirror, was cast in the tradition of the stage play as both Captain Hook...and Mr. Darling."
"To bring the villainous Captain Hook to animated life, Walt assigned veteran animator Frank Thomas."
"Walt knew that for his version of Peter Pan, Tinker Bell would have to be developed as a fully realized character. From the late 1930s on, character sketches traced Tinker Bell's development, and each reveals the then-current conception of feminine beauty."
"The use of Margaret Kerry as a live model for Tinker Bell was only part of the considerable reference used by Disney animators to bring Peter Pan to the screen."
"After nearly two decades of work, dozens of story treatments and thousands of drawings, Walt Disney's Peter Pan was finally finished. It was first released on February 3, 1953, and was an immediate audience favorite. It has remained one of Disney's greatest animated achievements, and a beloved classic."
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| Tinker Bell: A Fairy's Tale _ Jerry Beck – Self – Animation Historian Bill Cotter – Self – Author & Historian Marc Davis – Self – Original Tinker Bell Animator Don Hahn – Self – Exec. VP, Creative Development/Producer, Walt Disney Feature Animation Margaret Kerry – Self – Reference Model for "Tinker Bell" Paula Sigman – Self – Disney Historian |
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| Lady's Pedigree: The Making of Lady and the Tramp _ Christine Ankeney – Self – Marceline Resident Tony Baxter – Self – Sr. VP Creative Development, Walt Disney Imagineering Peter Burke – Self – Son of Co-Composer, Sonny Burke John Canemaker – Self – Author & Animation Historian Randy Cartwright – Self – Supervising Animator, The Flying Carpet (Aladdin) Ron Clements – Self – Director, Walt Disney Feature Animation Alan Coats – Self – Son of Disney Background Artist, Claude Coats John Culhane – Self – Author & Animation Historian Andreas Deja – Self – Supervising Animator, Walt Disney Feature Animation Christopher Finch – Self – Author & Animation Historian Nicki Lee Foster – Self – Daughter of Co-Composer, Peggy Lee Stan Freberg – Self – Voice of the Beaver Mike Gabriel – Self – Art Director, Walt Disney Feature Animation Andy Gaskill – Self – Art Director, Walt Disney Feature Animation Blaine Gibson – Self – Retired Disney Animator/Character Designer Eric Goldberg – Self – Supervising Animator, The Genie (Aladdin) Daniel Goldmark – Self – Cartoon Music Historian Carol Grubb – Self – Daughter of Joe Grant Don Hahn – Self – Producer, Walt Disney Feature Animation Rush Johnson – Self – Marceline Resident & Friend of Walt Disney Kaye Malins – Self – Exc. Dir., Walt Disney Historical Museum, Marceline, MO Burny Mattinson – Self – Story Development, Walt Disney Feature Animation Urban Neff – Self – Marceline Resident Bruce Reitherman – Self – Son of Woolie Reitherman Richard Reitherman – Self – Son of Woolie Reitherman Ron Sadoff – Self – Dir., Film Scoring Program, NYU Jeanette Thomas – Self – Wife of Frank Thomas Ted Thomas – Self – Son of Frank Thomas Dawn Waxon – Self – Marceline Resident |
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| Once Upon a Dream: The Making of Walt Disney's 'Sleeping Beauty' _ Ken Anderson – Self – Production Designer Frank Armitage – Self – Background Artist Mary Costa – Self – Voice of "Sleeping Beauty" Marc Davis – Self – Directing Animator Eyvind Earle – Self – Production Designer/Color Stylist Mike Gabriel – Self – Co-Director, "Pocahontas" Michael Giaimo – Self – Art Director, "Pocahontas" Eric Goldberg – Self – Co-Director, "Pocahontas" Ollie Johnston – Self – Directing Animator Leonard Maltin – Self – Film Historian |
"Disney began the ambitious plans for his third feature-length animated fairy tale in the early 1950s. Walt assigned a small team to begin adapting the classic fairy tale to the style of a Disney feature."
"This early work resulted in a completed storyboard presentation in June of 1952. Walt concluded, however, that this story approach was too similar to past Disney efforts. If the Disney staff returned to the fairy tale, they could not simply duplicate Snow White or Cinderella."
"This fresh approach to Sleeping Beauty would push the boundaries of animation, with its distinctive and exquisite art."
"Eyvind Earle's unique and modern graphic style perfectly realized Walt's desire to create what he called a 'moving illustration'."
"Walt's team of experienced animators faced a particular challenge: Making their characters live believably within this highly stylized world."
"The climactic battle between Prince Phillip and the dragon was also intricately choreographed in live action, for use as a reference by the animators. It is shown here for the first time, in footage reconstructed from the only surviving still photos of the live action."
"Marc Davis commanded the forces of both good and evil in Sleeping Beauty. He also supervised the design and animation of the cruel and elegant Maleficent."
"To give Maleficent a powerful voice to match her evil character, Walt Disney personally suggested actress Eleanor Audley, who had brought Cinderella's wicked stepmother Lady Tremaine to chilling vocal life."
"Veteran animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston were given a happy task of bringing three good fairies to life."
"During the production of Sleeping Beauty, voice recordings and live action reference films were made by many of Hollywood's best known character actresses, including Spring Byington, Madge Blake, and even Mayberry's Aunt Bee, Frances Bavier. As animation progressed, another gift was being given to the production of Sleeping Beauty."
"Bringing much of this music to life was a lovely young singer, whose performance as both the singing and speaking voice of Sleeping Beauty was the beginning of her career as a star of the international opera stage."
"Because of its strong reliance on classical music, Sleeping Beauty was recorded in state-of-the-art stereophonic sound. Similarly, its magnificent art and epic scope led to the decision to film Sleeping Beauty in the widescreen 70mm format."
"All of these special processes and meticulous attention to detail had a cost, not just in money, but in the time it took to produce Sleeping Beauty. In addition to the complexity of Sleeping Beauty's production, Walt Disney and his staff were stretched thin, hard at work on Disneyland, three television series, and numerous live action films."
"Sleeping Beauty premiered in the era of epic movies like Ben-Hur. But as was the case with many other epics, Sleeping Beauty was a gamble. Since it first opened however, Sleeping Beauty has become one of the most financially successful films released in 1959, second only to Ben-Hur, and Sleeping Beauty has influenced a whole new generation of young people, who have become the leaders of today's Walt Disney Feature Animation."
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| Picture Perfect: The Making of Sleeping Beauty _ Michael Barrier – Self – Animation Historian Tony Baxter – Self – Senior Vice President, Walt Disney Imagineering Don Bluth – Self – Animator John Canemaker – Self – Animation Historian Mary Costa – Self – Voice of Princess Aurora John Culhane – Self – Animation Historian Alice Davis – Self – Costume Designer Marc Davis – Self – Directing Animator Andreas Deja – Self – Lead Animator Ron Dias – Self – In-Betweener Roy E. Disney – Self – Director Emeritus and Consultant Pete Docter – Self – Director, "Monsters, Inc.", Pixar Animation Studios Eyvind Earle – Self – Production Designer/Color Stylist Ralph Eggleston — Self Will Finn – Self – Lead Animator, Iago, Aladdin Michael Giaimo – Self – Art Director, "Pocahontas" Ollie Johnston – Self – Directing Animator Jeff Lenburg – Self – Author/Animation Historian Timothy Lennon – Self – Painting Conservator Burny Mattinson – Self – Animator Floyd Norman – Self – Story Artist Christine Panushka – Self – Professor of Animation, University of Southern California Walt Peregoy – Self – Background Artist Wolfgang Reitherman – Self – Sequence Director Russell Schroeder – Self – Disney Historian Brian Sibley – Self – Disney Historian Charles Solomon – Self – Animation Historian Michael Sporn – Self – Animation Director Bob Thomas – Self – Animation Historian Frank Thomas – Self – Directing Animator |
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| Redefining the Line: The Making of One Hundred and One Dalmatians _ Ken Anderson – Self – Art Direction & Production Design James Baxter – Self – Supervising Animator Jerry Beck – Self – Animation Historian Brad Bird – Self – Director, Pixar Animation Studios Ron Clements – Self – Director/Writer Alice Davis – Self – Wife of Animator, Marc Davis Lisa Davis – Self – Voice of "Anita" Marc Davis – Self – Directing Animator, Cruella De Vil Andreas Deja – Self – Supervising Animator Pete Docter – Self – Director, Pixar Animation Studios Will Finn – Self – Director Eric Goldberg – Self – Supervising Animator Don Hahn – Self – Producer Don Iwerks – Self – Son of Ub Iwerks Harley Jessup – Self – Production Designer, Pixar Animation Studios Ollie Johnston – Self – Animator Milt Kahl – Self – Animator Burny Mattinson – Self – Story Artist Floyd Norman – Self – Story Artist Walt Peregoy – Self – Color Stylisting Hans Perk – Self – Animation Producer/Historian Bruce Reitherman – Self – Son of Director, Wolfgang Reitherman Russell Schroeder – Self – Disney Historian Brian Sibley – Self – Disney Historian Paula Sigman – Self – Disney Historian |
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| Mary Poppins: Practically Perfect in Every Way _ Peter Ellenshaw – Matte Artist Leonard Maltin – Self – Film Historian Richard M. Sherman – Self – Songwriter Robert B. Sherman – Self – Songwriter Dick Van Dyke – Self – Co-star of "Mary Poppins" |
"What many people don't realize is that Walt Disney's interest in Mary Poppins dated back to 1939. Mary Poppins had been published in 1934 and was wildly popular in England. Walt's brother Roy Disney began negotiations with the author P.L. Travers in 1944 while Travers was living in New York to escape the Nazi bombings of London. Many years went by, but the tenacious Mrs. Travers finally released the film rights to the equally determined Mr. Disney in 1961."
"Instead of giving the book to a screenwriter or animation director, Walt first called upon songwriters to look at Mary Poppins."
"The Sherman brothers set to work with story man Don DaGradi, who developed their story ideas through drawings."
"In casting the pivotal role of the magical nanny, a bright young musical star caught Walt's eye."
"In a casting choice that many critics thought odd, Walt chose all-American Dick Van Dyke as Mary Poppins' cockney companion Bert."
"Child actors Karen Dotrice and Matthew Garber, who had starred in Disney's Three Lives of Thomasina, were cast as the Banks children, Jane and Michael."
"Film and stage star Glynis Johns was cast as the suffragette Mrs. Banks. Prim British actor David Tomlinson joined Mary Poppins as Mr. Banks. Disney favorite Ed Wynn made a cameo appearance as Uncle Albert, and the role of the bird woman was played by Jane Darwell, best known for her role as Ma Joad in The Grapes of Wrath; Mary Poppins was her last film. But because establishing a distinguished human cast for Mary Poppins was only half the job, there was an animated cast of co-stars too, and all of these actors had to perform together in a fantasy world."
"The warm and nostalgic London settings for Mary Poppins were also created by movie magic, entirely at the Disney studio."
"Even Walt's newest technology, Audio-Animatronics, had a featured role in Mary Poppins."
"Mark Breaux and Dee Dee Wood, who had assisted legendary choreographer Michael Kidd, were brought on to direct the dancing, not only of the principal cast, but of chimney sweeps, bank executives, and even penguins. In this rare never-before-seen footage, the chimney sweeps rehearse the lively Step in Time number in the summer heat on the Disney backlot. Choreographer Dee Dee Wood stands in for Julie Andrews."
"This ruckus routine was suggested by Englishman Peter Ellenshaw and based on a traditional British pub dance, Knees Up Mother Brown."
"All through 1964, every sound stage of the Disney studio bustled with the production of Mary Poppins."
"This rare outtake exemplifies the happy mood of the Mary Poppins production."
"While Mary Poppins was in production, Disney geared up one of the largest and most enthusiastic promotional campaigns in the history of the studio."
"In grand Hollywood style, Mary Poppins met the world. Critics greeted the film with raves unlike any scene at Disney since Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. In 1965, Mary Poppins was honored with 13 Academy Award nominations and went on to win five Oscars, including Best Actress, for the woman who wasn't considered 'movie material', Julie Andrews. In 1991, Julie Andrews was honored at the Disney studio as a Disney Legend."
"Mary Poppins also won an Oscar for its fantastic visual effects. The Sherman brothers' musical score won an Academy Award, as did their popular song Chim Cim Cher-ee. Awards and accolades aside, in Mary Poppins, Walt Disney found a special meaning that moved him deeply."
"In the end, the film that touched him personally was also Walt Disney's greatest professional triumph."
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| Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious: The Making of Mary Poppins _ Julie Andrews – Self – Star of "Mary Poppins" Mark Breaux – Self – Choreographer Bob Broughton – Self – Cameraman Andreas Deja – Self – Animator Karen Dotrice – Self Peter Ellenshaw – Self – Matte Artist Blaine Gibson – Self – Artist / Sculptor (Audio-Animatronics) Don Hahn – Self – Producer Glynis Johns – Self Valerie Lawson – Self – Author of "From Out of the Sky She Came" Richard M. Sherman – Self – Songwriter Robert B. Sherman – Self – Songwriter Brian Sibley – Self – Author / Film Historian Frank Thomas – Self – Animator Dick Van Dyke – Self – Co-star of "Mary Poppins" Tony Walton – Self – Costume Designer & Design Consultant Dee Dee Wood – Self – Choreographer |
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| The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh: The Story Behind the Masterpiece _ Xavier Atencio – Self – Storyman Ollie Johnston – Self – Animator Burny Mattinson – Self – Animator Richard M. Sherman – Self – Songwriter Robert B. Sherman – Self – Songwriter Dave Smith – Self – Director, Walt Disney Archives Frank Thomas – Self – Animator Jon Walmsley – Self – Voice of "Christopher Robin" Paul Winchell – Self – Voice of "Tigger" |
"When you think of the most popular character from literature for children, who do you think of? (Winnie the Pooh: ''Think, think, think.'') Here's a clue: He's a bear. (Winnie the Pooh: ''Winnie the Pooh?'')"''
"The stories about Winnie the Pooh and his friends in the Hundred Acre Wood have become beloved classics, translated into dozens of languages, and adored by children around the world. For them, he's the lovable, huggable friend who shares their innocence and endless curiosity. For adults, Pooh represents the most admirable traits of childhood, a perception of a world filled with simplicity and beauty, and the loyalty of a steadfast friendship."
"When Walt Disney began plans for an animated version of Winnie the Pooh in 1961, he realized that children in Britain and Europe were more familiar with these stories than children in America. If that was the case then, it is far from true today. Winnie the Pooh toys, games, and the cuddly stuffed animals are many a child's best friend. This is only appropriate since that is how Winnie the Pooh came to be."
"This stuffed bear was a gift to A. A. Milne's son Christopher Robin on his first birthday. Edwin Bear was renamed Winnie the Pooh, based on a Canadian black bear at the London Zoo named Winnipeg, and a swan named Pooh. Mr. Milne was a successful author and playwright, and the friendship between Christopher Robin and Pooh was the inspiration for a set of verses for children. These stories also featured other characters from Christopher Robin's nursery, including the timid Piglet, the ever-gloomy donkey named Eeyore, and the constantly bouncing tiger called Tigger."
"A frequent visitor to the Milne family's Sussex estate was English artist Ernest H. Shepard. His affectionate sketches of Christopher Robin and his menagerie of stuffed toys were the perfect complement for the classic A. A. Milne stories. In 1924, A. A. Milne's first verses were combined as a book, titled When We Were Very Young. It was an immediate success in Britain, and would be the first of Winnie-the-Pooh books that would be published over the next four years. The adventures in these stories started out as bedtime stories told to Christopher Robin, but soon they were being read to boys and girls everywhere. A continent away, Walt Disney was one of those parents who fondly recall sharing these stories with their children."
"Walt acquired the rights to the Winnie-the-Pooh books in 1961, and started plans for a musical animated feature-length film, to be produced and directed by Disney veteran Wolfgang Reitherman."
"The talented songwriting team of Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman are renowned for their songs for Mary Poppins in 1964 and The Jungle Book in 1967. Walt personally enlisted them to work their magic for Winnie the Pooh."
"For many thousands of people, the characters from the Winnie-the-Pooh stories were defined by Ernest Shepard's charming book illustrations. Walt realized the value of staying consistent with his audience's childhood memories of these tales, and insisted his artists adhere as much as possible to the original designs of the characters."
"To complement these characters, the overall art design for the film attempted to also keep the feel of Shepard's line-drawn backgrounds as well. Most of these chalk and watercolor concept pieces have never before been seen by the public."
"The story to be animated is broken down shot by shot in drawings called storyboards. These allowed the staff to study the flow of the story, and to see where problems might exist."
"Once the story and characters are approved and before the animation can begin, the dialogue is recorded. Casting the voices for this stuffed menagerie brought out many of Hollywood's most interesting voices."
"Actor Sterling Holloway, who had provided the voice for the Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland, was cast as Winnie the Pooh."
"Howard Morris, who was a regular on TV's Your Show of Shows and played Ernest T. Bass on The Andy Griffith Show, provided the voice for Gopher."
"Jon Walmsley, who starred as Jason on The Waltons, was one of three actors who provided the voice for Christopher Robin."
"Sebastian Cabot, who was familiar to American TV audiences as Mr. French on A Family Affair, was cast as the narrator."
"Other voices included character actor John Fiedler as Piglet...and multi-talented Hal Smith, who played Otis on The Andy Griffith Show, provided the voice for Owl."
"After the dialogue was recorded, the animators could begin the task of bringing the characters to life. Once the pencil animation was approved, the drawings were traced onto clear celluloids and painted. These were photographed against the hand-painted backgrounds, one frame at the time, to create the final footage. Here is a reconstruction of Tigger's song, tracing the evolution from storyboard, through pencil animation, to the final color footage."
"Buddy Baker wrote, arranged and conducted the musical score to complement the songs written by the Sherman brothers. As with Sergei Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf, Baker designed it so the different musical instruments represent each of the major characters."
"On February 4, 1966, Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree was released theatrically. Shortly afterwards, Walt started production on the second featurette, Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day, but he did not live to see the fulfillment of his prophecy about the popularity of the Pooh characters."
"In keeping with Walt's original intention, the first three shorts were combined into a full-length feature in 1977."
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| The Jungle Book: The Making of a Musical Masterpiece _ Ken Anderson – Self – Character Design/Story Development John Canemaker – Self – Film Historian Larry Clemmons – Self – Story Development John Culhane – Self – Film Historian Vance Gerry – Self – Story Development Phil Harris – Self – Voice of "Baloo" Sterling Holloway – Self – Voice of "Kaa" Ollie Johnston – Self – Directing Animator Milt Kahl – Self – Directing Animator Leonard Maltin – Self – Film Historian Wolfgang Reitherman – Self – Director Richard M. Sherman – Self – Songwriter Robert B. Sherman – Self – Songwriter Frank Thomas – Self – Directing Animator |
"Rudyard Kipling's 1894 (1944) classic first caught Walt's attention in the late 1930s (1980s), but Disney didn't acquire the film rights until 1962 (2012). The Jungle Book was the last animated feature that Walt Disney personally supervised. As was often the case with his animated features, Walt's first approach to the story was through music."
"The music that we know today wasn't the first score written for the film. For an early version of The Jungle Book, composer Terry Gilkyson created a dark and mysterious song score."
"At the same time, veteran story man Bill Peet created a lush and moody visual approach to the classic story, firmly based in Kipling, but it seemed that this literal approach to the story wasn't what Walt had in mind. All the initial development was abandoned, except for one song..."
"Walt called on staff songwriters Robert and Richard Sherman for a fresh musical start."
"With The Jungle Book, what most interested Walt were the memorable characters and exotic settings. In re-approaching the story development, Walt gave an unusual instruction to his staff."
"Since it was Walt's idea to disregard the original Kipling story, he became personally involved in solving story problems for the Disney version of The Jungle Book."
"Following these instructions from the boss, director Wolfgang Reitherman began developing the characters."
"But selecting a credible voice for a character wasn't as easy as simply casting the latest popular actor."
"While discussing voice casting with his team, Walt had an inspiration."
"Another inspiration came in the casting of King Louie."
"In this rare film footage shot during the recording session for I Wanna Be Like You, Louie Prima and his band display their trademark eccentricity. Director Woolie Reitherman recalled the spark of an idea."
"Inspired by Prima's band, the animators took over."
"The unconventional approach to voice casting continued with the villainous tiger, Shere Khan."
"The voice of Kaa was provided by veteran Disney voice actor Sterling Holloway, who had played Mr. Stork in Dumbo...the Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland...and the beloved Winnie the Pooh."
"Filling out the voice cast were Sebastian Cabot as Bagheera...J. Pat O'Malley as Colonel Hathi...Verna Felton as Mrs. Hathi...and director Woolie Reitherman's son Bruce Reitherman was cast as the voice of Mowgli."
"Bringing friendship to the screen seemed natural for two of Walt's top animators and lifelong best friends, Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston."
"When his team was stumped for an ending to the film, Walt again stepped in, suggesting the final sequence."
"Sadly, Walt Disney would not live to see this happy ending. He passed away shortly after making this final story suggestion."
"Disney executives took notice when The Jungle Book premiered and was an immediate blockbuster hit."
"Though it was the end of an era at the Disney studio, in many ways, it was a new beginning. Because of the success of The Jungle Book, the Disney studio began its first formal recruiting and training programs for a new generation of Disney animators, and a triumphant future lay ahead."
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| The Bare Necessities: The Making of "The Jungle Book" _ Ken Anderson – Self – Character Design/Story Development James Baxter – Self – Animator Brad Bird – Self – Director, Pixar Animation Studios John Canemaker – Self – Film Historian Larry Clemmons – Self – Story Development John Culhane – Self – Film Historian Marc Davis – Self – Animator Andreas Deja – Self – Animator Will Finn – Self – Animator Neal Gabler – Self – Author of 'Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination' Vance Gerry – Self – Story Development Eric Goldberg – Self – Animator Phil Harris – Self – Voice of "Baloo" Clint Howard – Self – Voice of "Baby Elephant" Ollie Johnston – Self – Directing Animator Milt Kahl – Self – Directing Animator Glen Keane – Self – Animator Burny Mattinson – Self – Story Artist Floyd Norman – Self – Story Artist Bruce Reitherman – Self – Voice of "Mowgli" Wolfgang Reitherman – Self – Director Richard M. Sherman – Self – Songwriter Robert B. Sherman – Self – Songwriter Brian Sibley – Self – Film Historian Chad Stuart — Self – Member of Pop Group "Chad & Jeremy" – Voice of "Flaps" Frank Thomas – Self – Directing Animator Ted Thomas – Self – Filmmaker |
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| Under the Sea: The Making of Disney's Masterpiece 'The Little Mermaid' _ Ruben Aquino – Self – Directing Animator Jodi Benson – Self – Voice of "Ariel" Pat Carroll – Self – Voice of "Ursula" Ron Clements – Self – Writer/Director Andreas Deja – Self – Directing Animator Roy E. Disney – Self – Vice Chairman of the Board, The Walt Disney Company Mark Henn – Self – Directing Animator Glen Keane – Self – Directing Animator Leonard Maltin – Self – Film Historian Alan Menken – Self – Composer John Musker – Self – Writer/Director Peter Schneider – President, Walt Disney Feature Animation Samuel E. Wright – Self – Voice of "Sebastian" |
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"Over the past decade, Disney Feature Animation has cultivated the art of the animated feature to a new status of popularity and artistic achievement, a status not seen since these classic films created under the supervision of Walt Disney himself. Timeless tales, beloved characters and dazzling music have been brought to life by a dedicated group of artists, who have truly created a renaissance of the animated art form. And all of this is made possible by one little mermaid. Come along with us somewhere under the sea and beyond your imagination for underneath the waves and behind-the-scenes of the creation of a modern Disney classic."
"The story of Disney's animated triumph, The Little Mermaid, actually begins in 1937 as Walt Disney created the animated feature."
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| Leonard Maltin — Film Historian |
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"After Walt Disney's death in 1966, interest in the animated feature as an art form began to wane. But in the mid-1980s, Roy Edward Disney, Walt Disney's nephew and vice chairman of The Walt Disney Company, took on the challenge of reviving interest in the animated feature at the Disney studio."
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| Roy E. Disney — Vice Chairman of the Board, The Walt Disney Company |
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"In the mid-1800s, Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen wrote a story about a shy little mermaid, who falls in love with a handsome prince and sacrifices her life out of her love for him."
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| Ron Clements — Writer/Director |
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"Given the go-ahead to expand the two-page screen treatment, Ron Clements brought in his Great Mouse Detective colleague John Musker. Together, the two set out to adapt the Andersen tale into a Disney feature."
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| John Musker — Writer/Director |
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"One of the challenges that Musker and Clements faced was that The Little Mermaid was a fairy tale, and although Disney is famous for fairy tales, there hadn't been a Disney film based on one since Sleeping Beauty in 1959. In fact, The Little Mermaid would be only the fourth Disney animated feature based on a fairy tale. This return to the fairy tale, however, was much of the reason for the final success of The Little Mermaid; another was its rediscovery of the movie musical brought to the project by composer Alan Menken and his creative partner; the late Howard Ashman."
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| Peter Schneider — President, Walt Disney Feature Animation |
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| Alan Menken — Composer |
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| Glen Keane — Directing Animator |
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"Glen Keane, along with Mark Henn would animate the little mermaid, Ariel. But for Keane, securing the assignment wasn't easy."
"Veteran Broadway performer Jodi Benson was cast as the voice of Ariel."
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| Mark Henn — Directing Animator |
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| Jodi Benson — Voice of "Ariel" |
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"Musker and Clements also define a strong personality for Ariel's father, the Sea King, whom they named King Triton."
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| Andreas Deja — Directing Animator |
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"The sea witch, unnamed in Andersen's story, was developed by Musker and Clements into a central villain. They named her Ursula and gave her the slinky glide of an octopus."
"Ursula eventually slithered to life under the pencil of animators Rob Minkoff and Ruben Aquino."
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| Ruben Aquino — Directing Animator |
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"Actress and comedian Pat Carroll provided the voice of Ursula."
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| Pat Carroll — Voice of "Ursula" |
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"New personalities, not present in the Andersen fairy tale were also created to support the main characters."
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| Samuel E. Wright — Voice of "Sebastian" |
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"Every shell, bubble and wave of the watery world these characters would inhabit had to be designed. Concept artists from the Disney team, as well as top contemporary storybook illustrators, led their talents to creating this underwater environment. The animators even turned back to Disney's 1939 classic Pinocchio for its spectacular underwater sequence."
"It was also during this production period that veteran story man Vance Gerry made the filmmakers aware of a treasure trove of inspirational sketches, preserved in the Walt Disney archives. This art had originally been created for a version of The Little Mermaid, planned by Walt Disney almost 50 years before. With these many inspirations, the art directors began experimenting with layout, backgrounds and color to strengthen their support of the story."
"For the colors of the characters, great care had to be taken to compensate for changing environments and life. There were 32 color models for Ariel alone. The Disney paint lab even invented a new color, appropriately named Ariel for the blue-green color of her fin. Over the three years of production, The Little Mermaid drew on the talents of more than 400 artists and technicians. In the end, almost 150,000 painted cels and 1,100 backgrounds, using more than 1,000 different colors went into the making of the 7,000 feet of finished film."
"The Little Mermaid premiered in November 1989. It was acclaimed by the press and the public and set the box office record for the first release of an animated feature. On Oscar night 1990, The Little Mermaid swam away with two Academy Awards: Best Song 'Under the Sea' and Best Original Score."
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| Treasures Untold: The Making of "The Little Mermaid" _ Roger Allers — Self — Story Artist Ruben Aquino — Self — Supervising Animator, Ursula Howard Ashman — Self — Co-Producer and Lyricist (1989 interview) Jodi Benson — Self — Voice of Ariel Pat Carroll — Self — Voice of Ursula Ron Clements — Self — Co-Writer and Co-Director Andreas Deja — Self — Supervising Animator, King Triton Mark Dindal — Self — Supervisor, Visual Effects Patty Disney — Self — Wife of Roy E. Disney Roy E. Disney — Self — Vice Chairman, The Walt Disney Company (1984–2003) Maureen Donley — Self — Associate Producer Nora Ephron — Self — Writer, Director Sarah Gillespie — Self — Sister of Howard Ashman Mark Henn — Self — Co-Supervising Animator, Ariel Jeffrey Katzenberg — Self — Former Chairman, Walt Disney Studios Glen Keane — Self — Co-Supervising Animator, Ariel Ted Kierscey — Self — Effects Animator Bill Lauch — Self — Partner of Howard Ashman Leonard Maltin — Self — Film Critic & Historian Duncan Marjoribanks — Self — Supervising Animator, Sebastian Alan Menken — Self — Composer John Musker — Self — Co-Writer, Co-Director, and Co-Producer Frank Oz — Self — Director, "Little Shop of Horrors" (Film Version) Nancy Parent — Self — Assistant to Howard Ashman Peter Schneider — Self — Former Chairman, Walt Disney Studios John Waters — Self — Filmmaker |