Traditional Animation

Born: William Snelgrove Finn Birthday: Novenber 1, 1958 Location: New York City, NY, U.S. Alma mater:  Art Institute of Pittsburgh Occupation: Animator, Writer, Storyboard, Director Years active: 1979–present Will Finn got his start at working as an animator for Don Bluth’s 1982 animated film “The Secret of NIMH.” His efforts

< Back To Animation Artist Directory Born: Andeas Deja Birthday: April 1, 1957 Location: Gdansk, Pomorskie, Poland Alma mater: Folkwang Hochschule Occupation: Director, Animator Years active: 1980–present Andreas Deja saw Disney’s “The Jungle Book” at the age of 11 and was inspired to become an animator. He committed to becoming

Born: Glen Keane Birthday: April 13, 1954 Location: Philadelphia, PA, U.S. Alma mater: California Institute of the Arts Occupation: Animator, Director Years active: 1974-2012 Glen Keane is the son of The Family Circus cartoonist Bil Keane, and developed his interest in art while observing his father’s cartooning work. His father,

Born: Eric Goldberg Birthday: May 1, 1955 Location: Levittown, PA, U.S. Alma mater: Pratt Institute Occupation: Animator, Director Years active: 1977-present Eric Goldberg studied illustration at Pratt Institute, and began working in the animation industry on Richard Williams’ Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure in mid-1970s. This led to

Born: Otto James Messmer Birthday: August 16, 1892 Location: West Hoboken, NJ, U.S. Alma mater: Thomas School of Art Occupation: Animator, Director Years active: 1915-1983 Died: October 28, 1983 Otto Messmer drew his own comics for local papers by the age of 20, but he really wanted to explore the

Born: Walter Elias Disney Birthday: December 5, 1901 Location: Chicago, IL, U.S. Alma mater: Chicago Academy of Fine Arts Occupation: Animator, Director, Producer Years active: 1919-1966 Died: December 15, 1966 Walter “Walt” Elias Disney was born in Chicago, but his family moved to Marceline, Missouri when he was just 5

Born: Walter Benjamin Lantz Birthday: April 27, 1899 Location: New Rochelle, NY, U.S Alma mater:  Art Students League of New York Occupation: Animator, Writer, Director, Producer Years active: 1915–1972 Died: March 22, 1994

Born: Robert Porter McKimson Sr. Birthday: October 13, 1910 Location: Denver, CO, U.S. Occupation: Animator, Director Years active: 1929–1977 Died: September 29, 1977

Born: Isadore Freleng Birthday: February 26, 1908 Location: Kansas City, MO, U.S. Occupation: Animator, Director, Producer Years active: 1923-1986 Died: May 26, 1995 Isadore “Friz” Freleng began his career in animation at the United Film Ad Service in Kansas City, Missouri where he met fellow animators Hugh Harman and Ub

Born: Robert Emerson Clampett Sr. Birthday: May 8, 1913 Location: San Diego, CA, U.S. Alma mater: Otis Art Institute Occupation: Animator, Writer, Director Years active: 1931-1984 Died: May 2, 1984 Robert “Bob” Clampett demonstrated artistic abilities by the age of five and began making short films in his garage when

Born: Karyl Ross Harris Birthday: July 31, 1898 Location: Tulare County, CA, U.S. Occupation: Animator, Writer, Storyboard, Director Years active: 1927-1982 Died: March 24, 1982

Born: Franklin Rosborough Thomas Birthday: September 5, 1912 Location: Santa Monica, CA, U.S. Alma mater: Chouinard Art Institute Occupation: Animator, Director Years active: 1934-1999 Died: September 8, 2004 Frank Thomas had an interest in drawing that began in childhood and engaged in amateur filmmaking as a teenager. Frank was president

Born: Wolfgang Reitherman Birthday: June 26, 1909 Location: Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, German Empire Alma mater: Chouinard Art Institute Occupation: Animator, Director, Producer Years active: 1933-1981 Died: May 22, 1985 Though born in Germany, Wolfgang “Woolie” Reitherman was raised in Sierra Madre, California. Driven by a love for airplanes and flying, he

Born: John Mitchell Lounsbery Birthday: March 9, 1911 Location: Cincinnati, OH, U.S. Alma mater: Art Institute of Denver, ArtCenter College of Design Occupation: Animator, Director Years active: 1935-1976 Died: February 13, 1976 John Lounsbery was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and raised in Colorado with a love of drawing. He graduated from

Born: Eric Cleon Larson Birthday: September 3, 1905 Location: Cleveland, UT, U.S. Alma mater: University of Utah Occupation: Animator, Director Years active: 1933-1986 Died: October 25, 1988 Eric Larson displayed his early artistic talent working on his high school yearbook all four years, and as its art director his senior