Today: Marc Davis, 1913

One of Disney's 'Nine Old Men,' Marc Davis was born today, March 30, in 1913. Davis was a prominent artist, animator, and Imagineer for Disney, providing a keen understanding of visual aesthetic and collaborative creativity. Let's take a look at just how much Marc Davis gave to Disney as we know it today:

From the beginning, Davis was a character designer, taking on the classic feminine characters of the early Disney animated canon films. In fact, Davis designed and animated Walt's Golden Trio - Snow White, Cinderella, and Aurora - in addition to several other beloved characters. He was once asked which of the many female character designs was his favorite; his response is beautiful: "Each of my women characters has her own unique styles; I love them all in different ways." Another of Davis' specialties was animal studies. While a student in San Francisco and LA, he spent a lot of time at the zoo, drawing animals, and would become one of the best animal animators in the industry.

As one of his final projects, Marc Davis had design and animation control over notorious Disney villain, Cruella de Vil. She would become one of the quintessential Disney villains, and one of the most popular. Voiced by Betty Lou Gerson, Cruella de Vil's design and mannerisms were based on actress Tallulah Bankhead, and the villainess' personality developed from cool detachment to a manic paranoia, thinly disguised by her supposed glamour. Her signature black, white, and red design is now famous, and she was once considered for the main villain role in The Rescuers as a determined polar bear kidnapper. After his work on One Hundred and One Dalmatians, Davis shifted to a different creative outlet in the Disney empire - Imagineering for the new Disney theme park in Anaheim.

Draftsman and designer, Davis provided designs for several characters for Disneyland rides and entertainment animatronics. His characters feature in The Jungle Cruise, The Enchanted Tiki Room, The Carousel of Progress, Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, and America Sings (a short-lived entertainment attraction that lasted from 1974 to 1988 in Tomorrowland). His Imagineering spanned two decades of Disneyland history in animatronics and entertainment, also consulting on attractions in EPCOT at Walt Disney World and in Tokyo Disney Resort.

Marc Davis was named a Disney Legend in 1989, eleven years after he had officially retired fomr the industry. Despite retirement, he remained activity in the industry and fan community, attending many fan events. He and wife Alice Estes Davis (an award-winning costume designer) were longtime supports of the California Institute of the Arts, founded by Walt Disney; when Davis passed away in January 2000, the Marc Frasier Davis Scholarship Fund was formally established at CalArts.

Marc Davis: Walt Disney's Renaissance Man, a book equal parts bio and art, is available at most local bookstores and online booksellers like Amazon.

Stay tuned for a new Film of the Week, more birthdays, a movie marathon, and the start of my college graduation countdown (yes, you read that right!).