Walt Disney's Nine Old Men

[Mr. Toad]

Since there seems to be some confusion over who the nine old men were/are here is a summary from hollowhill.com Hope you find it helpful.

The Nine Old Men

President Franklin D. Roosevelt called his Supreme Court the "nine old men." As a joke, Walt Disney named his earliest key animators by the same term. Here are the original "Nine Old Men" of the Walt Disney Company:

Les Clark (1907 - 1979) The first of the "nine old men," Mr. Clark joined Walt Disney in 1927. His specialty was animating Mickey Mouse, starting with Steamboat Willie. Later, he worked on educational films, and he retired from Disney in 1975. He died in 1979. He was named a Disney Legend ten years after his death.

Marc Davis (1913 - 2000) Mr. Davis began working with Disney in 1935, during the production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. He developed and animated many of the best-remembered characters, including Bambi, Thumper, and Cruella DeVil. He played a significant role in the development of the story and characters for many "E-Ticket" rides, including the Haunted Mansion and the Pirates of the Caribbean. He formally retired in 1978, but remained active with the development at attractions at EPCOT and Tokyo Disneyland. He was honored as a Disney Legend in 1989. He died on 12 January 2000, after a brief illness.

Ollie Johnston ( - ) Mr. Johnston graduated from Stanford University. In 1935, he was an animator for the Studio at the Walt Disney Company, where he worked on two dozen films, including Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. He retired in 1978, and was honored as a Disney Legend in 1989. His life was the subject of a documentary, with Frank Thomas, in a 1995 film called Frank and Ollie. (reviewed at film.com) He was honored as a Disney Legend in 1989.

Milt Kahl (1909 - 1987) Like the other "nine old men," Mr. Kahl was an animator and started at Disney in 1934. He was a Directing Animator for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, as is recalled as one of the finest animators ever to work with Disney. Mr. Kahl died two years before being recognized as a Disney Legend in 1989.

Ward Kimball ( - ) Mr. Kimball joined Disney in 1934, and is best remembered for his creation of Jiminy Cricket in the movie, Pinocchio. He worked in a variety of areas for the Walt Disney Company, and his love of trains not only started Walt on the hobby, but was reflected in his work as a consultant for the EPCOT attraction, The World of Motion. He was honored as a Disney Legend in 1989.

Eric Larson (1905 - 1988) Mr. Larson shared a birthday (September 3rd) with Yale Gracey, one of the lead designers of the Haunted Mansion. Mr. Larson began at Disney in 1933, animating most of the Disney classics including Snow White..., and Cinderella. His good humor and expertise made him not only an executive in the training program for new animators in the 1970's, he was also a well-loved mentor. His death in 1988 was a tremendous loss to all, and he was recognized as a Disney Legend in 1989.

John Lounsbery (1911 - 1976) Mr. Lounsbery began his career at the Studio in 1935, working on the classic features starting with Snow White... He died in February 1976, and was honored as a Disney Legend in 1989.

Wolfgang "Woolie" Reitherman (1909 - 1985) Mr. Reitherman joined Disney in 1935, as an animator and director. He is best remembered as a director for Sleeping Beauty, and as the director fully in charge of The Sword in the Stone. He directed and produced all of Disney's animated features after the death of Walt Disney, until Mr. Reitherman retired in 1980. He died in May 1985, and was recognized as a Disney Legend in 1989.

Frank Thomas ( - ) Mr. Thomas was both an animator and author, ceaselessly creative in both fields of endeavor. As an animator, he joined the Studio in 1934 and worked on many early shorts. Later, working on the classics, he created memorable scenes, such as Bambi and Thumper on the ice, and the Lady and the Tramp moments where the couple are eating spaghetti. Mr. Thomas retired from Disney in 1978, but continued to work prolifically as an author, sometimes in partnership with his old friend (and fellow member of the "nine old men"), Ollie Johnston. Their books include the ultimate animation classic, Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life. (See Mr. Johnston's bio, above, for their documentary.)

[jabroni76]

Some of the facts that I just learned about from this post are very interesting. THis is material that I think every disney fan should memorize, or atleast the names and a project they worked on.

Thanks for the post and teaching and remnind me of all sorts of information.

[Mr. Toad]

I learned something too. I could only name five of the nine(Frank, Ollie, Davis, Reithemann and Kimball). I guess I became familier with three of them from DVD bonus material, Reithemann was usually the director and thus had his name in big letters.

[Ludwig Von Drake]

Now Ollie is the only one left, it is a sad time for animation.

[yoda_four]

Now Ollie is the only one left, it is a sad time for animation.

Now don't be forgetting Ward Kimball!

[gamma]

Now Ollie is the only one left, it is a sad time for animation.

Now don't be forgetting Ward Kimball!

Ward Kimball died July 8, 2002

[Lars Vermundsberget]

I didn't know Ward Kimball was dead either, until I learned that in the Frank Thomas thread.

Five of the "nine old men" (all of them were in fact a bit younger than Walt) died in the 70s and 80s, while Marc Davis, Ward Kimball, Frank and Ollie survived through the 90s - so some of us somewhat had a felling of getting to know them in numerous laserdisc and later DVD extras. They also lived well into the internet age. I did get the news when Marc Davis died so I wonder why I never got to hear of Ward Kimball's passing away until now.

[Trojan Mouse]

Please be sure to chck out the Frank and Ollie webseite at www.frankandollie.com

Frank was as sharp as a tack right up until the end and he was very proud of this website. We have lost a true master and a wonderful individual. Please post how his work has impacted you on this site as his wife still checks it and Ollie is on it regularly. Please let Ollie know what you think of him while you can.

[Ciaobelli]

I just sent him an email thanking him for his work. If he replies I'll print out the email and frame it.

[D82]

Get to Know the Animators Behind Your Favorite Disney Films
https://d23.com/get-to-know-nine-old-me ... 3ee437dfad

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cV0V9dnoHQg[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yRIJ6Ul-fM[/youtube]