'Ollie' Johnston Jr., last of Disney's 'Nine Old Men,' dies
OBITUARIES
The revered animator is best known for his work in features. He created the character of Bambi and worked on numerous other films, such as 'Pinocchio' and 'The Jungle Book.'
Oliver Martin "Ollie" Johnston Jr., the last living member of the celebrated "Nine Old Men" of Disney animation whose work set the standard by which all character animation is judged and a recipient of the National Medal of Arts, has died. He was 95.
Johnston died Monday afternoon of natural causes at a long-term care facility in Sequim, Wash., according to a press release from Howard E. Green, vice president of studio communications at the Walt Disney Studios.
Although he made noteworthy contributions to short cartoons including "Pluto's Judgment Day" (1935), "Mickey's Rival" (1936) and "Reason and Emotion" (1943), Johnston's fame rested on his work on the Disney features, beginning with his animation of the Seven Dwarfs and Pinocchio. He helped to create such celebrated characters as Bambi and Thumper in "Bambi," the Three Good Fairies in "Sleeping Beauty" (1959), Pongo and Perdita in "101 Dalmatians" (1961); and Mowgli and Baloo in "The Jungle Book."
Johnston's work included such memorable moments as Pinocchio's nose growing when he lied to the Blue Fairy in the 1940 movie; Thumper reciting his lesson about eating clover greens under his mother's watchful eye in "Bambi" (1942), the befuddled Mr. Smee trying to follow Captain Hook's orders in "Peter Pan" (1953), Baloo performing "The Bare Necessities" in "The Jungle Book" (1967), and the penguin-waiters serving Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke in "Mary Poppins" (1964).
Oscar-winning animator and historian John Canemaker said, "Ollie's death truly marks the end of the 'Golden Age' of hand-drawn Disney character animation that blossomed in the 1930s. He was a great and nuanced animator who could handle sentiment and comedy with equal aplomb, as well as a sweet and generous mentor to many."
Born in Palo Alto on Oct. 31, 1912, Johnston was the son of the head of the Romance language department at Stanford University. He studied art at Stanford, where he met Frank Thomas, who would become his lifelong friend and another of the Nine Old Men. Walt Disney gave the name to his key group of animators, playing off President Franklin D. Roosevelt's description of the Supreme Court.
After graduating, Johnston followed Thomas to Los Angeles, where they studied at the Chouinard Art Institute. Thomas went to work at Disney's studio on Hyperion Avenue in the Silver Lake area of Los Angeles in September 1934; Johnston joined the studio in January 1935. He quickly rose through the artistic ranks, working as an assistant to Fred Moore, who supervised the animation of the Seven Dwarfs in "Snow White" (1937).
