Before Walt Disney came along, animation was seen as just for kids. But through the release of a series of now iconic animated films, he was able to turn ‘cartoons’ into a serious art form, paving the way for blockbusters like The Lion King and Frozen. However, he couldn’t have done it without the help of nine well-known animators that are now further immortalised in this wonderful box set.
Affectionately known as the “nine old men,” Walt’s original team of animators included Les Clark, Eric Larson, Frank Thomas, John Lounsbery, Ward Kimball, Ollie Johnston, Mark Davis, Wolfgang Reitherman, and Milt Kahl. And in addition to the memorable films they helped create, you can own a little more of their work with Walt Disney Animation Studios The Archive Series: Walt Disney’s Nine Old Men: The Flipbooks.
The box set includes nine flipbooks in all, one for each of the animators, and features well-known scenes from Disney animated features — like Dumbo, Lady and the Tramp, and Bambi — in their original and simple line-drawn form. There are also photos and additional information on each of the artists, and at just $US40 on Amazon, it would be just wrong to call yourself a Disney fan without this on your bookshelf. [Amazon via Boing Boing]