Eric Larson

Eric Cleon Larson (September 3, 1905 – October 25, 1988) was an American animator at Walt Disney Animation Studios starting in 1933, and was one of "Disney's Nine Old Men".

Biography Born in Cleveland, Utah, Larson was the son of Danish immigrants Peter, a clothing salesman, and Nora. He worked on such films as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Bambi, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music, Melody Time, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp, Sleeping Beauty, One Hundred and One Dalmatians, The Sword in the Stone, The Jungle Book, and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Throughout the years, Larson has animated characters on classics like The Aristocats and Robin Hood and also provided the titles on The Rescuers (along with Mel Shaw and Burny Mattinson). In the 1980s his work was minor, but he served as animation consultant on animated films and shorts like Mickey's Christmas Carol, The Black Cauldron, and The Great Mouse Detective.

In 1973, he began a recruitment training program that brought a new generation of animators into the Disney studio. Many well-known figures in animation today went through Larson's training program, including Brad Bird, Don Bluth, Chris Buck, Tim Burton, Randy Cartwright, Ron Clements, Andreas Deja, Gary Goldman, Ed Gombert, Mark Henn, Dan Haskett, Glen Keane, Bill Kroyer, John Lasseter, John Musker, Phil Nibbelink, Richard Rich, Burny Mattinson, Melvin Shaw, Jeffrey J. Varab, John Pomeroy, Joe Ranft, Jerry Rees, Henry Selick and Tad Stones among many others.

Larson was married to Gertrude Larson. By his retirement in 1986, he was the longest-working employee at Disney, having worked there for 53 years. He died on October 25, 1988, at the age of 83.

Filmography Year Title Credits Characters Notes 1934 Two-Gun Mickey Assistant Animator 1935 The Golden Touch Animator Mickey's Service Station The Tortoise and the Hare Assistant Animator Who Killed Cock Robin? Cock o' the Walk Animator On Ice Mickey's Fire Brigade 1936 Three Little Wolves 1937 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs 1938 Farmyard Symphony The Whalers 1939 The Ugly Duckling 1940 Pinocchio Animation Director Fantasia Animation Supervisor - Segment "The Pastoral Symphony" 1942 Bambi Supervising Animator Donald's Gold Mine Animator 1943 The Grain That Built a Hemisphere (Documentary short) 1945 The Three Caballeros Tiger Trouble (Short) African Diary (Short) 1946 A Knight for a Day (Short) Make Mine Music Song of the South Directing Animator 1947 Fun and Fancy Free Animator 1948 Melody Time Directing Animator 1949 So Dear to My Heart Animator The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad 1950 Cinderella Directing Animator 1951 Alice in Wonderland 1952 Lambert the Sheepish Lion (Short) Animator 1953 Peter Pan Directing Animator 1955 Lady and the Tramp 1959 Sleeping Beauty Sequence Director 1961 One Hundred and One Dalmatians Directing Animator 1962 A Symposium on Popular Songs (Short) Animator 1963 The Sword in the Stone Character Animator 1964 Man's Search for Happiness (Short) Animator Mary Poppins 1966 Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (Short) 1967 The Jungle Book Character Animator 1968 Understanding Stresses and Strains (Short) Animator 1969 It's Tough to Be a Bird (Documentary short) 1970 The Aristocats Character Animator 1971 Bedknobs and Broomsticks Animator 1973 Robin Hood Character Animator 1974 Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too (Short) Directing Animator 1977 The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh Animator The Rescuers Title 1956 - 1979 Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color (TV Series) Animator 17 Episodes 1981 Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color (TV Series) Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life - Himself The Fox and the Hound Animation Consultant 1983 Mickey's Christmas Carol (Short) 1984 DTV: Golden Oldies (Video) Animator 1985 The Disney Family Album (TV Series documentary) Eric Larson Himself The Black Cauldron Animation Consultant 1986 The Great Mouse Detective