Introduction

I fell head over heels in love with animation when I was a kid. However, books on the subject of animation remained few and far between, so I made do with Robert Field's The Art of Walt Disney (Macmillan, 1942) and Preston Blair's wonderful How to Draw Animated Cartoons (Walter Foster, 1994). When I finally became an animation professional, I spoke to a number of animation veterans about writing a book that would catalog their experiences and things they learned while working for Walt. Some expressed interest, but few ever did anything. Even in retirement, authoring a book seemed a daunting task, I suppose. The exceptions were Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston. These two Disney veterans left us with several great books on their years at Disney.

After I “retired” some years later, I decided it was time that I put a few thoughts on paper. What was it like to work at the Walt Disney Studios in the 1950s, apprentice with the Nine Old Men, and even attend story meetings with the Old Maestro himself? There could be a few students and historians who might appreciate such insights on the Walt Disney Studios in the 1950s and 1960s.

This book is a collection of my animated memories and the things I learned while spending nearly 50 years in Walt's magic factory. From February 1956 to August 2000, I managed to survive the animation roller coaster and three separate managements. Even better, I did all this while working with a host of talented writers, artists, entertainers, and craftsmen helping to create the Disney legacy.

If you've ever wondered what it was like to work on everything from Sleeping Beauty to Toy Story 2, take a moment to relive some Disney history from a guy who observed it all firsthand.