Nine Old Men

Admittedly I haven’t read much on the Nine Old Men. That’s partly the result of reading other things and simply not having the time to devote more time to reading things. However these past few months, I’ve been plowing through the 11th volume of Didier Ghez’s excellent tome, Walt’s People, and through many of the various interviews, I’ve acquired a new level of respect for the esteemed group. One in particular stands out though, and that is Ward Kimball.

Amid Amidi is about to publish an extensive biography on the legendary animator and here is a few reasons why I’m anticipating its release.

1. Ward’s characters are some of the greatest to ever appear on screen and you know there are stories behind every one.
2. Ward put together the three space segments of the original Disneyland TV show, and together with Werhner Von Braun, got the technology surprisingly accurate to the eventual Apollo program. That could fill a book in itself.
3. Walt Disney called Ward a genius. Surely he had a good reason to do so.
4. Just how did such a wacky “cartoonist” wind up at a studio like Disney and manage to stay for so long?
5. Ward supposedly started the rumour about Walt Disney’s frozen head. Will this book reveal all?