Ken Anderson | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Anderson in 1977 | |
| Born | (1909-03-17)March 17, 1909 Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
| Died | December 13, 1993(1993-12-13) (aged 84) |
| Alma mater | University of Washington (BArch) |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1933–1992 |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
Kenneth B. "Ken" Anderson (March 17, 1909 – December 13, 1993) was an Americananimator,art director, andstoryboard artist forThe Walt Disney Company. He had been named byWalt Disney as his "jack of all trades".[1]
Born inSeattle, Anderson studied architecture at theUniversity of Washington. He later studied at theÉcole des Beaux-Arts and theAmerican Academy in Rome. When he returned to the United States, Anderson worked for six weeks atMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) before joining the Disney studios in 1934. He worked as aninbetweener and was later promoted to an animator. His first major assignment was theSilly Symphonies short filmThree Orphan Kittens (1935). He later moved to the layout department. ForSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), Anderson designed layouts, experimented with themultiplane camera, and built a model of the dwarfs' cottage.
Anderson served again as an art director onPinocchio (1940) andFantasia (1940) for "The Pastoral Symphony" Segment. Anderson worked closely withMary Blair in adapting her visual style forThe Three Caballeros (1945) andSong of the South (1946). He also worked on the story development forMelody Time (1948),So Dear to My Heart (1948), andCinderella (1950).
During the 1950s, Anderson joinedWalt Disney Imagineering (WDI), then known as WED Enterprises, in which he designed severalFantasyland "dark rides" for theDisneyland theme park. He subsequently worked as a production designer onSleeping Beauty (1959) and introduced thexerography technique forOne Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961). He later contributed background and character designs forThe Jungle Book (1967),The Aristocats (1970),Robin Hood (1973),The Rescuers (1977), andPete's Dragon (1977). He retired in 1978, but he rejoined WED Enterprises a year later to help renovate Fantasyland. On December 13, 1993, Anderson died from a stroke.
Anderson was born inSeattle on March 17, 1909. He was the son of Luther Anderson Sr., a lumber merchant, and Ethel Way. He had two sisters, Ruth and Roberta.[2] When Anderson was three years old, his family moved to thePhilippines (then aterritory of the United States).[3] While sailing back to the United States in 1919, his father died frommalaria, leaving the family destitute. Anderson's sister, Ruth, also died during this time.[2] Anderson's mother sent him to live with his uncle who abused him, which forced him torun away and lived in the woods. "I figured life was too damn hard," he recalled, "so I found a log cabin and caught 127trout for my dinner and lived there for a month before they found me."[4] Meanwhile, Anderson's mother Ethel finished her training as a schoolteacher and was hired for a teaching position in Seattle. His mother reclaimed him, and at age twelve, he began working several minor jobs to put himself through school.[4]
Anderson studied architecture at theUniversity of Washington. He then won a scholarship where he studied at theÉcole des Beaux-Arts at Fontainebleu inFontainebleau,France, to which he claimed no one west of theMississippi River had obtained before.[4] He later studied at theAmerican Academy in Rome for two and a half years. Anderson returned to the United States in 1933 during theGreat Depression.[5]
Due to a scarcity in architectural jobs, Anderson worked atMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) onThe Painted Veil (1934) andWhat Every Woman Knows (1934) for six weeks as a set designer. He recalled his time at MGM was "a most unhappy experience" and his wife was "fed up with our living on credit."[6] One day, when Anderson and his wife Polly were driving around theDisney studios near Hyperion Avenue, she said, "Why don't you go in there and get a job?" He refused at first, to which she fought back: "You need a job. We've got to have a job. We're living off these canned beans down at the beach and we can't keep doing that."[7]
Anderson returned to the studio and showedWalt Disney his watercolor architectural paintings, which impressed Disney. The next day, he was given a two weeks' apprenticeship in theinbetween department.[8][5] Polly herself worked as a painter in the Ink and Paint department for three years until she became pregnant with her first daughter. On September 3, 1934, Anderson began working as an inbetweener doing fill-in scenes with other junior animators, includingMilt Kahl,Ollie Johnston,Frank Thomas,Jack Hannah, andJames Algar.[9] His first projects were theSilly Symphonies short films, includingThe Goddess of Spring (1934) andThree Little Wolves (1936), andMickey's Polo Team (1936).[10]
Disney admired Anderson's skill inperspective drawing and selected him to animate on theSilly Symphonies shortThree Orphan Kittens (1935).[9] Anderson recalled, "[Walt Disney] gave me several scenes inThree Orphan Kittens, in which I animated the kittens and the backgrounds. The camera traveled along with the kittens at their eye level to show the surroundings as they saw it."[10] The short won the 1935Academy Award for Best Short Subject (Cartoons).[11]
AfterThree Orphan Kittens, Disney offered Anderson a position in the layout department, headed by Charles Phillippi and Hugh Hennesy.[9] One evening, in 1934, Anderson was first notified of Disney's plans forSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) when Disney acted out the entire story to his animation staff on a soundstage.[12][13][14] Feeling motivated by Disney's performance,[12][9] Disney assigned Anderson, alongside special effects animator Cy Young, lighting expert Hal Halvenston and engineer Bill Garity, to design moving backgrounds for an animation test of a peddler woman in the forest, meant to display actual depth and perspective. Using an experimentalmultiplane camera, Anderson drew three planes of animated trees, which were placed on large glass plates, and had the team experiment with distances. Disney was pleased with the results and ordered further animation tests of the dwarfs' cottage andSnow White.[15][16]
"I'm impressed with what you've been doing, Ken ...You're new here, and I want you to understand one thing: there's one thing we're selling here and that's the name 'Walt Disney.' If you can buy that and be happy to work for it, you're my man. But if you've got any ideas of selling the name 'Ken Anderson,' it's best for you leave right now."
For the sequence, Anderson built a full-size miniature of the dwarfs' cottage and its interior to assist the background and layout artists.[19] Live-action reference footage was then filmed of dancerMarge Champion (performing as Snow White) wearing a "black heavy dress" against a white screen background. Disney was pleased with the footage, wanting the camera movement and staging translated directly ontoanimation cels.[20] Anderson further contributed by creating layouts and conceptual sketches for the "Someday My Prince Will Come" dream sequence; however, it was ultimately cut during the storyboarding phase.[21] He was also the inspiration behind the dwarfDopey's wiggling ears.[11] In the finished film, Anderson was credited as one of the art directors.[22]
Anderson next worked on the shortFerdinand the Bull (1938). He had creative differences with background artist Mique Nelson over the art direction, in which Nelson favored traditional tinted watercolors against Anderson's preferred use of saturated opaque colors. Nelson left the production and complained to Disney about Anderson.[22] ForPinocchio (1940), Anderson handled layout for several sequences, including the scene in which the Blue Fairy gives life to Pinocchio, Jiminy Cricket finding Pinocchio inside a cage, and Pinocchio becoming a real boy.[23]Fantasia (1940) soon followed, in which Anderson was one of several art directors forThe Pastoral Symphony sequence. For visual reference on the backgrounds, Anderson recalled, "I was inspired byBöcklin'sIsle of the Dead and also by TheIsola Bella inItaly. Walt said, 'Read up onBeethoven and get some style.' So I read up on the ribald and classical."[24] Anderson subsequently served as an art director for the animated segment onThe Reluctant Dragon (1941).[25][26]
By 1941, ananimators' strike had lasted four months. While a federal mediator from theNational Labor Relations Board negotiated with the two sides, Disney accepted an offer fromNelson Rockefeller, head of theOffice of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs to make a goodwill trip toSouth America.[27] Anderson was not invited as part of the trip, but he was asked to handle layouts for the "Pedro" segment forSaludos Amigos (1943).[28] A year later, from October 9 to 23, 1942, Anderson was invited on a follow-up trip toMexico for research onThe Three Caballeros (1944).[28] He worked closely with color stylistMary Blair, in which he retained Blair's visual style while compositing the live-action footage and animation.[29]
Anderson worked with animation directorWilfred Jackson onSong of the South (1946), in which they adapted Blair's styling sketches for more illusive backgrounds with a notabledepth of field.[30] During production, a newrear projection system was developed, in which the animation was done first and then the live-action sequences were composited.[31] Before any live action was shot, Anderson had previsualized the segments through thumbnail sketches, which he gave the animators for their agreement.[32] Filming began inPhoenix, Arizona in December 1944.[33] Jackson remembered, "Ken helped set the camera angles and work out the staging of the thing, and Ken worked so hard with me on working out the details of how to fit the combination sequences, where the live action and cartoon work, together."[34] However, much to Jackson's surprise, Disney was not satisfied because they did not replicate enough of Blair's style.[30] Anderson later worked on the story development forMelody Time (1948) andSo Dear to My Heart (1948).[35]
In 1947, Walt Disney decided to return to feature-length animated films, withCinderella (1950) selected as the inaugural project.[36] For the film, Anderson worked on the story adaptation, collaborating withBill Peet. Anderson had stated Peet focused on the characters, while he concentrated on the production design.[37] Anderson next did the color styling forAlice in Wonderland (1951).[35]
OnSleeping Beauty (1959), Anderson served as the film's production designer.Kay Nielsen was the film's initial art director, in which he created "soft pastel" styling sketches. Anderson was impressed with Neilsen's artwork, though he felt that Nielsen's paintings would be difficult to translate into animation. Disney taskedJohn Hench to help interpret Nielsen's artwork with opaque cel paint, but Nielsen left the studio by 1953.[38] Disney later hiredEyvind Earle as the new art director. Earle's conceptual paintings impressed the layout artists and animators, though they complained his style was too rigid and modernist. Anderson complained, "I had to fight myself to make myself draw that way."[39]
In 1952, Disney founded theresearch and development companyWalt Disney Inc. (WDI), known today asWalt Disney Imagineering. To design and build theDisneyland theme park, Disney selected several animation staff members, including Anderson, Hench,Bob Gurr, andRoger Broggie as his initial "Imagineers".[40] Anderson collaborated withClaude Coats on theFantasyland "dark rides", includingMr. Toad's Wild Ride,Peter Pan's Flight, andSnow White and Her Adventures.[41][42] The process began with Anderson and Coats designing the sets and interiors, in which they eschewed the title character and placed the audience in their perspective, while Bill Martin designed the track layout.[43]
By 1956, Anderson returned to work onSleeping Beauty when the film's production resumed. He storyboarded the battle sequence between Prince Philip andMaleficent. To match with the action, he listened toPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's 1889 balletThe Sleeping Beauty.[44]
The commercial failure ofSleeping Beauty (1959) initially discouraged Disney from producing more feature-length animated films, wherein the closure of the animation department was considered. Despite this, Disney assigned Anderson to work onOne Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961).[45] While designing the film's visual style, Anderson learned about a television production studio—Hurrell Productions—was usingxerography to produce television ads featuring Disney characters.[46] Inspired by the technique, Anderson experimented with a Xerox photocopier to directly transfer the animators' drawings ontotransparent cels, thereby eliminating the inking process. Anderson screened an animation test to Disney and the animators; although Disney expressed concern at the graphic style, he gave his approval stating: "Ah, yeah, yeah, you can fool around all you want to."[41][47] Furthermore, Anderson applied xerography with the background artwork to match the character animation, giving the film a unified visual style.[48]
As early as 1956, Anderson had begun developing story sketches based on theReynard the Fox legend.[49] In 1960, Anderson and animatorMarc Davis decided to adapt the medieval fableChanticleer and the Fox into an animated film. Both men spent months developing elaborate storyboards and preliminary character artwork. They had presented their pitch before Disney and several studio executives, in which one voice said: "You can't make a personality out of a chicken."[50] Further development was halted when during a meeting, on August 24, Disney remarked that the problem with making a rooster a protagonist was "[you] don't feel like picking a rooster up and petting it."[48]
Released in 1961,One Hundred and One Dalmatians became a critical and commercial success, earning nearly $10 million during its initial domestic release.[41] The animators had been pleased with the film's linear animation quality, but Walt Disney felt it lacked the delicacy and care of his earlier animated films.[51] In a subsequent meeting with the animation staff concerning future films, Disney harshly criticized theDalmatians art direction and further stated, "Ken's never going to be an art director again."[52] Anderson was hurt by the criticism and further stated Disney did not speak to him for a year.[52]
In 1962, Anderson suffered two strokes in one week, which partially paralyzed the right side of his body for nearly three years.[53] He recovered with help from his wife Polly. As part of his recuperation, Anderson exercised and visited theDescanso Gardens, near his home atLa Cañada Flintridge, California, for solace and comfort.[19][52] Anderson resumed work as an art director onThe Sword in the Stone (1963).[48] However, Anderson was dissatisfied with the film's art direction, stating it "was a toothsome thing; it was an original backdrop painting, soft and foggy and a spotlight effect with characters on top of it, but at the same time it couldn't help but be affected by the looks ofDalmatians in most cases."[54]
A year later,The Jungle Book (1967) went into production, in which Anderson provided additional concept art and backgrounds, along with character design ideas.[55] During one story meeting, Disney assigned Anderson to design the villainShere Khan. Anderson based his character designs onBasil Rathbone, envisioning Khan as "a very menacing, underplayed villain." The next day, Anderson showed his sketches to Disney, which reminded him ofGeorge Sanders (and cast him in the role).[56] AnimatorMilt Kahl refined Anderson's conceptual sketches and watchedJungle Cat (1960) andA Tiger Walks (1964) for reference.[57] Meanwhile, Anderson contributed visual development on the featuretteWinnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966).[56]
WithThe Jungle Book scheduled for 1967, Disney assigned Anderson to determine whetherThe Aristocats (1970) would be suitable for an animated feature. Following several months, Disney glanced at Anderson's conceptual sketches and approved the project as the studio's next animated film.[58] Before Disney's death in December 1966, Anderson remembered his last meeting:
In fact, I was outdoors of the building and there was Walt. He had shrunk down ... I was so glad to see him. I knew that whatever he appeared to be was because of his illness, and I grabbed him by the hand and said, 'Gee, it's sure good to see you again, Walt. Happy to have you back.' And Walt looked at me. He was kind of quiet and he said, 'It's sure good to be back, Ken.' And then I knew that he was forgiving me for101 Dalmatians. I don't knew how I knew it, but I did.[59]
Following Disney's death, Anderson continued as art director onThe Aristocats. He simplified the plot to focus more on the cats, including paring down the number of characters. By April 1967, the studio had arrived at a working story outline.[58][60][61] As production continued, in October 1968, Anderson accompanied then-Disney presidentCard Walker on a fishing trip who suggested a classic tale should be the subject for the next animated film. Anderson proposed theRobin Hood legend, to which Walker responded positively.[61][62] Anderson mentioned the idea during anAristocats story meeting, and was quickly assigned to create character designs.[61] As done previously onThe Jungle Book (1967), Milt Kahl refined Anderson's concepts for the character animation.[63] However, Anderson became upset when the final results of his character concepts became animal stereotypes.[60]
At the same time, in 1973, Anderson began developing a film adaptation of theCatfish Bend book series byBen Lucien Burman.[64] He also developed an adaptation of the children's bookScruffy byPaul Gallico.[65] The story centered around the titularBarbary ape, who is the honorable leader of a family of apes. Set duringWorld War II, off the coast ofGibraltar, Scruffy falls in love with Amelia, a pampered pet ape, and together they evade capture from theNazis.[66] By 1976, the project had been shelved.[65]
During production ofThe Rescuers (1977), Anderson again drew character concepts, including repurposingCruella de Vil fromOne Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) as the main villain. However, the idea was discarded and Cruella was replaced by a similar villain, Madame Medusa.[65] In 1976, Anderson was ready for retirement until he was approached byRon Miller to work onPete's Dragon (1977).[67] Anderson agreed, and was tasked to create character designs for Elliott, an animated dragon character that interacted with the human characters. For Elliott, Anderson took visual inspiration from theChinese dragon and actorWallace Beery.[31] His drawings impressed Miller and co-producerJerome Courtland. Miller convinced Anderson to remain on the project to help the younger animators on the character.[67] On March 31, 1978, Anderson retired from Walt Disney Productions.[68]
In 1979, Anderson was hired by Walt Disney Imagineering to help renovateFantasyland, with the project being dubbed "New Fantasyland".[68] As part of the expansion project, the park added a new "dark ride" attraction calledPinocchio's Daring Journey.[69] On May 25, 1983, the new Fantasyland was opened to the public. A year later, his career was profiled for theDisney Family Album television program, which aired on November 5, 1984.[70] In 1985, Anderson's contract with WED Enterprises was renewed, in which he later consulted on the proposed Equatorial Africa Pavilion for theEPCOT Center.[71]
During the 1980s, Anderson returned to animation, in which he submitted conceptual artwork for several animated series includingDumbo's Circus,Adventures of the Gummi Bears, andThe Wuzzles.[71] He also traveled toJapan to draw storyboards forLittle Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland (1989).[72] He had been awarded aWinsor McCay Award in 1982.[73] In 1991, Anderson was inducted as aDisney Legend.[11] A year before his death, he published a children's book,Nessie and the Little Blind Boy of Loch Ness.[74]
Anderson met Polly at the University of Washington, and they were married during the summer of 1934.[4] They had three daughters named Sue, Judy and Wendy.[74]
On December 13, 1993, Anderson died inLa Cañada Flintridge, California from complications of astroke, at the age of 84.[74][75][76]
