Ollie Johnston, the last of Disney's incredible team of "Nine Old Men," travels in elephants. There's a wonderful article here, from someone who knew him.
You know, my kids don't know what it's like to watch hand-drawn cartoons. The older ones were weaned on Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid, Disney's 90s renaissance, so they've seen a shadow of the artistry, at least. The younger ones don't remember at all a time when animation didn't come from computers.
The year I was born, Disney put out what would be its last successful animated feature until my first child was old enough to be watching them. The gap between the two marks another generational shift at Disney: The old artists giving way to the younger executives. More than seven decades after the first Disney feature was released, the art is still staggering in its simplicity, its detail, and its ability to turn distinctions between child and grown-up into irrelevancies for an hour and a half.
Your assignment: If you cried when Bambi lost his mother in the fire, say a prayer for Ollie's soul. If you still cry, go to the nearest church and light a candle for him. Be honest.
And then go home and show your kids what animation looked like when it was young.
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