October 16, 1903 – Animator, Director, and Disney Legend Hamilton Luske is Born
Image credit: Disney Insider
“[Luske]’s expertise was evident, especially to Walt, where it mattered most, and it was thus into his lap Snow White, the most plum of all assignments, fell.” – David Johnson
On October 16, 1903, animator, director, and Disney Legend Hamilton S. Luske was born in Chicago, Illinois. Luske joined the Walt Disney Studios in 1931, and his first assignment was the animation of animals for the Mickey Mouse short The Barnyard Broadcast. He was then moved to more prominent assignments, including Max Hare in the Silly Symphony The Tortoise and the Hare, and Jenny Wren in Who Killed Cock Robin? Luske had no formal art education, but he had enough natural talent to give Walt the confidence to hire him as the supervising animator for what was considered Walt’s Folly: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Luske was responsible for the animation of the title character of Snow White. To animate her properly, the technique of using live-action reference footage was soon adopted. Luske’s believable animation helped to make Snow White a box-office smash.
After the success of Snow White, Luske moved to directing during the World War II period, and continued to direct educational films, including Donald in Mathmagic Land and Donald and the Wheel. He also continued to be involved in the feature films as a sequence director on Fantasia, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp, 101 Dalmatians, and the animated sequences in Mary Poppins. Luske also moved into television as the associate producer and director for the Disneyland, Walt Disney Presents, and Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color series. Luske passed away on February 18, 1968; he was named a Disney Legend in 1999.
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