Ub Iwerks was born in Kansas City, Missouri on March 24, 1901. At the age of 18, in 1919, Iwerks got a job working for the company Pesman-Rubin Commercial Art Studio. He was to use his mastered artistic skills to produce work for Pesman-Rubin clients. Soon afterwards, while the company was hiring more people, a young man named Walt Disney came along. Almost instantly, the two formed a bond! Disney was a visionary, business minded and outgoing guy, while Iwerks was a highly talented artist and a shy guy.
In 1920, less than a year after Iwerks and Disney met, the two joined together and formed their own company called Iwerks-Disney Commercial Artists. The company however, was a short-lived one, since Walt went to go work for the Kansas City Film Ad Company for more money. Shortly, Walt was pushed the Kansas City Film Ad Company to hire Iwerks. In the end, Iwerks was hired.
While working in Kansas, the two showed great interest in animation. Even though that animation was still early, the work of Winsor Mcay’s Gertie the Dinosaur really inspired the duo, and even so to inspire them to study animation even farther. The relationship between Iwerks and Disney was so close, that instead of signing a contract, they just shook hands.
Since Disney was eager to try new challenges, he left Kansas City Film Ad Company, and started his own company, Laugh-O-gram Films. He then convinced Iwerks to come work for him, but Iwerks shortly left since the company was not generating enough money. However, Iwerks helped Disney out on projects, but after Walt declared bankruptcy, Iwerks got little in pay.
After the failure of Laugh-O-gram Films, Disney took his talents to California. During that time, Iwerks was still faithfully working for the Kansas City Film Ad Company. But, soon after, Iwerks got word from Disney that he was needed in California.
In the year 1924, Iwerks went to go work with Disney, who had just created Disney Brothers Productions (which later, was changed to Walt Disney Studios). Even though Iwerks was paid less money, he received 20% ownership of the company and additional compensation.
Iwerks was put in charge of the cartoon, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, which quickly became popular. However, Charlie Mintz, the greedy distributor of the show, led a dispute over the popular series’ ownership rights. In the end, Charlie won, causing most of Disney’s employee’s to leave Walt, and go work for Mintz. Only a few remained with Disney, and one was the faithful Ub Iwerks.
Angered over the Oswald events, Disney knew that they needed a new character. Within one hour, Ub drew four characters – a frog, a horse, a cow, and a mouse. After fixing the mouse up a little, Walt had his new character, and was ready to show the world. Ub was there to help Disney develop the new creation. Disney had the idea’s, stories, and motivations, while Ub would draw them -- bring them to life. Ub usually drew over 600 drawings a day, to keep up with Disney. The third Mickey short, which was directed by Walt and animated by Ub, “Steamboat Willie,” was the cartoon that put Disney into stardom.
Unfortunately, Iwerks usually did not get the public credit that he deserved, but he kept on working hard. Soon enough, all of his hard work paid off, when Iwerks was put in charge of training new animators. Iwerks was very tough in demanding perfection, and no less. However, if you didn’t give 110%, you were sure to get the hearing of his temper. Even though Iwerks was a tough man, the result was better animators.
Pat Powers, a man who signed a one-year deal with the Disney Brothers Company stating that he would pay the company $2,500 per episode, and gain 10% of the gross that the cartoon made. Iwerks and other artists, staying loyal to the company, worked rough hours to get the cartoons ready for Powers. Unfortunately for Iwerks, during the long hours, he usually got the short end of Walt’s frustration. With all of that, the situation got even worse. Powers was unable to pay the company full payment for the cartoons claiming that the expenses were taking up the money. This was a big hit for the Disney Brothers Company, as Iwerks job became less enjoyable for him, leading to something that would alter the relationship of Walt and Ub, who had
been good friends since they both were 18, for a long while.
Through all of this, Powers had offered a very good deal to Iwerks. One, which in the times back then was hard to come by. He offered Iwerks a deal, to finance his own studio. So, in 1930, Iwerks left Disney, to go on his own adventures. Walt was completely devastated. The Disney Brothers Company bought off the 20% of the company that was owned by Iwerks, and lost an estimated $150,000 with the contract with Powers. Powers even offered to pay that sum back if Disney extended the contract. However, Walt refused.
The Ub Iwerks Studios was finally created. Ub resurrected the frog he had drawn for Disney a while ago, and created Flip the Frog. Another character Ub created was Willie Whopper, a lying little boy who always made mischief. Ub also created Comi-Color Cartoons. Those were wonderfully color-animated works based on fairy tales. While working on his own, for the Ub Iwerks Studios, Ub animated 34 Flip the Frog cartoons, 11 Willie Whopper cartoons, and 35 Comi-Color Cartoons. Iwerks left the company in 1936, but the company operated under the name "Animated Films Corporation" until 1938.
For the next two years, Ub worked on two Bugs Bunny shows for Warner Brothers Studios and did work in advertising films. However, in 1940 Ub returned to Disney. At first, things were odd between the two, but soon, Ub became one of the Walt Disney Studios' visual effects pioneers. Almost immediately, he created a new division of the company, the "Special Processes and Camera Department." This was the time, when he developed some key innovations that have changed the world of the medium. He developed the “multiplane camera”, a tool that gave the illusion of greater depth in cartoons and the “traveling matte”, which allowed animators to combine their drawings with live action. By the late 1950’s, he had perfected this method, and the "sodium vapor traveling matte" method won Ub his first Oscar. It took the original traveling matte method to new levels of beauty and seamless transition. The first film to employ this method was 1960's Ten Who Dared.
Another invention from Ub, was the Xerox Cell process, which allowed animators to skip the inking age. This invention soon became an industry standard. These have been a few, of the dozen’s of invention Ub had. He invented stuff from simple tools such as the peg bar, which secured an artist's work to his table for better control, to utterly unique and complicated innovations such as Circle Vision. Circle Vision is where the audience stands in the middle of the theatre and watches the action on a giant screen surrounding them. Ub even started the first 3-D films in the '30s, with a camera set up in the trunk of a Studebaker!
In 1964, Ub was given the Kalmas Gold Medal Award, the highest technical award possible, and his second Oscar for general contributions to the industry. Also, Ub was nominated for his third Oscar for his contributions towards Alfred Hitchcock's The Bird, but unfortunately lost to Cleopatra.
Unfortunately, in 1971, Ub Iwerks passed away, and in 1989 was posthumously named a Disney Legend. With his two Oscars, and many more inventions, well all wonder how animation would differ today, if it was not for Ub Iwerks.
<center><i>~Sam Asghari</center></i>
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yeah, after about a month and a half, I've finished it. I hope I didn't copy too much from other sites!
Enjoy, and tell me what you think... 
