Walt's Nine Old Men

[FantasiaMan]

Who do you think is the best of the Nine Old Men?

1. Les Clark
2. Eric Larson
3. Milt Kahl
4. Wolfgang "Woolie" Reitherman
5. Frank Thomas
6. Ollie Johnston
7. John Lounsbery
8. Ward Kimball
9. Marc Davis

Do you think that Disney should make a documentary on the Nine Old Men?

[JiminyCrick91]

Frank AND Ollie

[Key]

Frank AND Ollie

What he said. They're actually 2 of the 3 Nine Old Men that I know of (Marc Davis being the third). They were so dynamic together.

[Wonderlicious]

Do you think that Disney should make a documentary on the Nine Old Men?

I believe that they already have and was included on the French release of Peter Pan.

[FantasiaMan]

there was? hmmm....

How long is it?

[Mr. Toad]

Woolie in my opinion although they were all talented.

[catNC]

I don't think you can beat the combination of Frank and Ollie. Like someone said earlier, they worked so well together! Plus their whole history together makes them extra special!

[banjoboy]

I agree, Frank and Ollie as a team is hard to beat. Especially after having seen "Frank & Ollie". But you've just got to love Ward Kimball! A truly original, wonderfully whacky genius!

[banjoboy]

BTW, the excellent John Canemaker documentary of The Nine Old Men is indeed included on the very nice French Peter Pan SE (says Grand Classique and Edition Collector on the box) and is 26 minutes long. I remember posting the full DVD specs in the trade section a year or so ago, so you might want to check them out there. For those daunted by foreign languages, the DVD is all in English (naturally with French as an audio option) once you get past the text on the box.

[banjoboy]

... to be replying to myself, but since I can't sleep anyway, I went ahead and checked what I wrote about the specs in the Trade section, and copied it here. And I really think the 9OM doc is worth buying the whole set for, if you're into classic animation. You can usually get it at amazon.fr at a decent price.

PETER PAN (FRENCH COLLECTORS EDITION)
This very handsomely packaged 2-disc edition looks pretty much like the American Platinum Editions for Beauty & The Beast and Sleeping Beauty - It comes in a slipcase with fold-out cardboard pack and clear disc mounts inside. It is an exclusive edition for France, which means the text on the package is in French, but once you load the DVD's you have access to full English soundtracks and menus.
You will need a Region 2 compatible player to watch this, and probably a TV set that can handle the PAL system.

Here are the specs for the French Collector's Edition

DISC 1
The feature with English and French soundtracks & subtitles (+French DTS), a THX Optimizer function and the same audio commentary as on the SE.

DISC 2

Some of the extras on disc 2 are identical to the ones on the U.S Special Edition, but come in a different order:

You Can Fly (11 min)
Kurtti-Pellerin "Making-of", featuring interview clips with Maltin, Frank Thomas, Marc Davis, Margaret Kerry (the model for Tinker Bell), Kathryn Beaumont (Wendy), storyboard sketches etc.

"Peter's Playful Prank"
A read-along for kids

The Peter Pan Story (12 min)
1952 Promotional Feaurette
Very "Golden-Age" B/W promo film, starting with cave-paintings (!) and featuring clips from Treasure Island, Song of the South, footage from the animation studio, storybord sketches etc.

Peter Pan Still-Frame Gallery
Some 60+ sketches and pre-prod studies, viewable in full-frame

Following the Leader
Sing-along for kids

Pirate Treasure Hunt
A pretty good Q&A game for kids

The following extras are not (as far as I can tell) included on the SE:

1) Playful Pan
A Silly Symphony short, not included in the WD Treasures Tin or the SE .

2) Disney's Nine Old Men (26 min)
A FANTASTIC documentary about Disney's most brilliant animators, narrated by John Canemaker who wrote the book of the same title. Rich in clips from features and shorts, from Snow White to The Rescuers, it discusses the style and work of each individual animator. I, at least, have not seen this documentary anywhere else.

3) Peter Pan (1924 silent film, 1h 41 min)
Read more about this very enjoyable silent feauture, produced by Paramount in 1924 at http://imdb.com/title/tt0015224/

4) Poster Gallery
Some 30 movie posters and promotional artwork from all over the world, viewable full-screen

[mvealf]

BTW, the excellent John Canemaker documentary of The Nine Old Men is indeed included on the very nice French Peter Pan SE (says Grand Classique and Edition Collector on the box) and is 26 minutes long. I remember posting the full DVD specs in the trade section a year or so ago, so you might want to check them out there. For those daunted by foreign languages, the DVD is all in English (naturally with French as an audio option) once you get past the text on the box.

And for those, like me, who would rather not have the 4% sped-up PAL version, it is also available on NTSC DVD in Japan.<p><img border="0" src="http://images-jp.amazon.com/images/P/B0 ... ZZZZZZ.jpg" width="250" height="260"></p>

[Ciaobelli]

BTW, the excellent John Canemaker documentary of The Nine Old Men is indeed included on the very nice French Peter Pan SE (says Grand Classique and Edition Collector on the box) and is 26 minutes long. I remember posting the full DVD specs in the trade section a year or so ago, so you might want to check them out there. For those daunted by foreign languages, the DVD is all in English (naturally with French as an audio option) once you get past the text on the box.

And for those, like me, who would rather not have the 4% sped-up PAL version, it is also available on NTSC DVD in Japan.<p><img border="0" src="http://images-jp.amazon.com/images/P/B0 ... ZZZZZZ.jpg" width="250" height="260"></p>

link?

I really like Ward Kimball, his work on the Tomorrowland shows is awsome. I also like his stylized animation, he didn't wan't to recreate reality, it made his characters very unique. Jiminy Cricket and the Dumbo Crows are the finest examples,

[mvealf]

link?

<p><a href="http://www.amazon.co.jp/exec/obidos/ASI ... 7BR</a></p>

[Ciaobelli]

link?

<p><a href="http://www.amazon.co.jp/exec/obidos/ASI ... 7BR</a></p>

Thanks.

$70

[AwallaceUNC]

I honestly don't know enough about the Nine Old Men, and would like to either see a comprehensive documentary or read a comprehensive bio. I just got the "Frank & Ollie" DVD in and can't wait to watch it, and there's the Wart Kimbel stuff on the Tomorrowland DVD and the interviews on "Walt: The Man Behind The Myth." Aside from reading a few articles here and there, I don't know much more than that.

-Aaron

[Disney Guru]

Deffinately Frank * Ole

[AwallaceUNC]

Wow, DG, I just noticed for the first time that your avatar says Playa.

-Aaron

[Lars Vermundsberget]

Frank and Ollie might seem like an easy choice, but don't forget that they had/have the advantage of staying alive longer than the rest - and becoming the two oldest men...

[Disney Guru]

I meant Frank & Ollie. Oh, thanks for noticing it, Aaron. I thought it was kinda funny.

[Disneykid]

As much as I love Frank and Ollie, I have to admit my favorite is Marc Davis, without a doubt. Cinderella, Lady Tremaine, Alice, Wendy, Tinker Bell, Aurora, Maleficent, Cruella DeVill...his characters are some of the most realistic looking animated characters I've ever seen. Their animation is so amazingly fluid, and Marc liked to make their facial expressions and body language subtle and not over the top. It's amazing to see them and think that they weren't rotoscoped at all, but were done from scratch. The only other animators I think come close to that level of realism are Andreas Deja and Glen Keane.