Burny Mattinson, the longest-serving cast member in the history of The Walt Disney Company, has passed away at the age of 87.
Throughout a 70-year career, he worked as an animator, director, producer and story artist.
The Disney artist worked on many classics such as Lady and the Tramp (1955), One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961), The Sword in the Stone (1963), The Jungle Book (1967), and The Rescuers (1977).
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He also worked as a key member of the story team on the likes of Aladdin (1992), Beauty and the Beast (1993), The Lion King (1994), Pocahontas (1995), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), Tarzan (1997), and Mulan (1998).
Jennifer Lee, chief creative officer, Walt Disney Animation Studios, said: "Burny’s artistry, generosity, and love of Disney Animation and the generations of storytellers that have come through our doors, for seven decades, has made us better—better artists, better technologists, and better collaborators.
"All of us who have had the honor to know him and learn from him will ensure his legacy carries on."
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Mattinson was still working full-time as a story consultant and mentor at the time of his death.
"Burny was the Renaissance man of Disney Animation,” said legendary Disney animator Eric Goldberg, a close friend and colleague of Mattinson’s.
"He literally did everything that could be done at the studio—assistant animator, animator, story artist, producer, and director of many films that made an indelible mark on our collective appreciation of the Disney ethos.
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"He was also, when he started, traffic boy to Walt, giving Walt his weekly spending cash."
Goldberg added: "Burny was low-key, charming, inventive, and superbly gifted as a draftsperson and a storyteller.
"His storyboards were beautifully acted and wonderfully atmospheric, which I first encountered when I joined the studio for Aladdin.
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"The more I saw of his work, the more I became in awe of his breadth of talent.
"I value his cheerful friendship and lasting inspiration to me and so many other animation artists. He will be missed, but not forgotten."
As Mattinson once said: "Animation is 75 percent thinking and 25 percent drawing.
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"Everything must be carefully thought out first.
"Our animators not only have to think like actors but also figure out how to get that performance across on paper and on the screen.
"Our characters pause to think and connive. You can see it in their eyes."
Topics: Disney
Anish Vij