Post by drwadadli on Mar 15, 2019 16:51:19 GMT
Ron Miller
Ron W. Miller passed away in February at the age of 85. He was producer of countless Disney films and the former President and CEO of The Walt Disney Company.
Miller came to the company via his wife, Diane Disney, Walt’s daughter. The two met at the University of Southern California, and married in 1954. Miller told an entertainment reporter in 1984, “”My father-in-law saw me play in two football games when I was with the Los Angeles Rams. In one of them, I caught a pass and Dick ‘Night Train’ Lane let me have it from the rear. His forearm came across my nose and knocked me unconscious. I woke up in about the third quarter. At the end of the season, Walt came up to me and said, ‘You know, I don’t want to be the father to your children. You’re going to die out there. How about coming to work with me?’ I did and it was a wise decision on my part.”
Initially with Disney, Miller also had a small role in the building of Disneyland, as he told the Nob Hill Gazette last year: “I was waiting to be drafted [into the Army] and Walt said, “What are you going to do while you’re waiting to be drafted?” I said, “I’ve got a tentative job driving a truck.” And he said, “Well, look, I’ve got this place down in Anaheim that I’m just starting to build, and maybe you can find a little job there somewhere until you get drafted.” And so twice a day I would drive from Burbank to Anaheim, and drop off the plans. I saw them move the orange trees. I saw them develop Rivers of America without water. I was watching something really exciting happen.”
Miller rose through the ranks and became a producer on Disney films towards the end of Walt’s life and following his passing in 1966. His co-producer credit can be found on films including Son of Flubber, Summer Magic, and That Darn Cat! Starting in 1968, Miller became the executive producer on Disney’s films of the 1970’s and 80’s, including Escape to Witch Mountain, Pete’s Dragon, Tron, and The Black Cauldron. He was elected to be the President of Walt Disney Productions in 1980.
Miller became Disney’s CEO in 1983, and shepherded the company through a time of ambitious growth, including the launch of The Disney Channel in 1983 and the establishment of Touchstone Pictures the following year. On the theme park side, Miller was a key proponent of the development of EPCOT Center and Tokyo Disneyland. Miller left Disney in 1984 as part of the drastic change that brought Michael Eisner, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and Frank Wells to the company.
In 1981, Miller opened Silverado Vineyards Winery in Napa Valley, California, while he and Diane worked on the creation of The Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco, where he served as president of the museum’s board of directors. Diane Disney Miller passed away in 2013. The pair had seven children.
Dave Smith
Dave Smith also passed away last month at the age of 78. He founded the Walt Disney Archives in 1970 and named a Disney Legend in 2007.
Bob Iger said in a statement: “I’m deeply saddened to learn of Dave Smith’s passing. He was the unsung hero of Disney’s history who, as our first archivist, spent 40 years rescuing countless documents and artifacts from obscurity, investing endless hours restoring and preserving these priceless pieces of our legacy, and putting them in context to tell our story. Dave was a true Disney Legend, and we are indebted to him for building such an enduring, tangible connection to our past that continues to inspire our future.”
His biography, from The Walt Disney Company:
Dave was hired in 1970 by Walt’s brother—and The Walt Disney Company co-founder—Roy O. Disney, and his first responsibility was cataloguing every item inside Walt’s office suite, which had been left untouched after Walt’s passing four years prior. Thanks to Dave’s meticulously detailed notes and records, the Archives was able to restore the suite in 2015, and today Disney employees are able to visit and draw inspiration from this remarkable space. During his time as Disney’s Chief Archivist, Dave grew the Archives from a simple one-person department to a model among corporate archives. He was regarded by fans and historians as the final authority on matters of Disney history, and was an active member of the Society of California Archivists. He served from 1980 to 2001 as Executive Director of the Manuscript Society, an international association of collectors, dealers, librarians, archivists, and others interested in manuscript material.
Born and raised in Pasadena, California, the child of librarians and educators, Dave earned a B.A. in history and a Master’s Degree in Library Science from the University of California at Berkeley. Before coming to Disney, he gained library and archives experience working in the Manuscript Department of the Huntington Library in San Marino, California, interning at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., and serving on the staff of the Research Library at U.C.L.A.
Dave wrote extensively about Disney history, with regular columns in Disney fan publications and websites, as well as authoring, co-authoring, and editing numerous articles and books on Disney history, including the official Disney encyclopedia Disney A to Z, Disney: The First 100 Years, The Quotable Walt Disney, Disney Trivia from the Vault, and The Ultimate Disney Trivia Books 1, 2, 3, and 4.
In October 2007, Dave was honored with the prestigious Disney Legend Award. A resident of Burbank, California, Dave retired in 2010 after his 40th anniversary with The Walt Disney Company and continued working for the next nine years as a consultant for the Company, with the title of Chief Archivist Emeritus.
(both information courtesy of WDW News Today)
Ron W. Miller passed away in February at the age of 85. He was producer of countless Disney films and the former President and CEO of The Walt Disney Company.
Miller came to the company via his wife, Diane Disney, Walt’s daughter. The two met at the University of Southern California, and married in 1954. Miller told an entertainment reporter in 1984, “”My father-in-law saw me play in two football games when I was with the Los Angeles Rams. In one of them, I caught a pass and Dick ‘Night Train’ Lane let me have it from the rear. His forearm came across my nose and knocked me unconscious. I woke up in about the third quarter. At the end of the season, Walt came up to me and said, ‘You know, I don’t want to be the father to your children. You’re going to die out there. How about coming to work with me?’ I did and it was a wise decision on my part.”
Initially with Disney, Miller also had a small role in the building of Disneyland, as he told the Nob Hill Gazette last year: “I was waiting to be drafted [into the Army] and Walt said, “What are you going to do while you’re waiting to be drafted?” I said, “I’ve got a tentative job driving a truck.” And he said, “Well, look, I’ve got this place down in Anaheim that I’m just starting to build, and maybe you can find a little job there somewhere until you get drafted.” And so twice a day I would drive from Burbank to Anaheim, and drop off the plans. I saw them move the orange trees. I saw them develop Rivers of America without water. I was watching something really exciting happen.”
Miller rose through the ranks and became a producer on Disney films towards the end of Walt’s life and following his passing in 1966. His co-producer credit can be found on films including Son of Flubber, Summer Magic, and That Darn Cat! Starting in 1968, Miller became the executive producer on Disney’s films of the 1970’s and 80’s, including Escape to Witch Mountain, Pete’s Dragon, Tron, and The Black Cauldron. He was elected to be the President of Walt Disney Productions in 1980.
Miller became Disney’s CEO in 1983, and shepherded the company through a time of ambitious growth, including the launch of The Disney Channel in 1983 and the establishment of Touchstone Pictures the following year. On the theme park side, Miller was a key proponent of the development of EPCOT Center and Tokyo Disneyland. Miller left Disney in 1984 as part of the drastic change that brought Michael Eisner, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and Frank Wells to the company.
In 1981, Miller opened Silverado Vineyards Winery in Napa Valley, California, while he and Diane worked on the creation of The Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco, where he served as president of the museum’s board of directors. Diane Disney Miller passed away in 2013. The pair had seven children.
Dave Smith
Dave Smith also passed away last month at the age of 78. He founded the Walt Disney Archives in 1970 and named a Disney Legend in 2007.
Bob Iger said in a statement: “I’m deeply saddened to learn of Dave Smith’s passing. He was the unsung hero of Disney’s history who, as our first archivist, spent 40 years rescuing countless documents and artifacts from obscurity, investing endless hours restoring and preserving these priceless pieces of our legacy, and putting them in context to tell our story. Dave was a true Disney Legend, and we are indebted to him for building such an enduring, tangible connection to our past that continues to inspire our future.”
His biography, from The Walt Disney Company:
Dave was hired in 1970 by Walt’s brother—and The Walt Disney Company co-founder—Roy O. Disney, and his first responsibility was cataloguing every item inside Walt’s office suite, which had been left untouched after Walt’s passing four years prior. Thanks to Dave’s meticulously detailed notes and records, the Archives was able to restore the suite in 2015, and today Disney employees are able to visit and draw inspiration from this remarkable space. During his time as Disney’s Chief Archivist, Dave grew the Archives from a simple one-person department to a model among corporate archives. He was regarded by fans and historians as the final authority on matters of Disney history, and was an active member of the Society of California Archivists. He served from 1980 to 2001 as Executive Director of the Manuscript Society, an international association of collectors, dealers, librarians, archivists, and others interested in manuscript material.
Born and raised in Pasadena, California, the child of librarians and educators, Dave earned a B.A. in history and a Master’s Degree in Library Science from the University of California at Berkeley. Before coming to Disney, he gained library and archives experience working in the Manuscript Department of the Huntington Library in San Marino, California, interning at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., and serving on the staff of the Research Library at U.C.L.A.
Dave wrote extensively about Disney history, with regular columns in Disney fan publications and websites, as well as authoring, co-authoring, and editing numerous articles and books on Disney history, including the official Disney encyclopedia Disney A to Z, Disney: The First 100 Years, The Quotable Walt Disney, Disney Trivia from the Vault, and The Ultimate Disney Trivia Books 1, 2, 3, and 4.
In October 2007, Dave was honored with the prestigious Disney Legend Award. A resident of Burbank, California, Dave retired in 2010 after his 40th anniversary with The Walt Disney Company and continued working for the next nine years as a consultant for the Company, with the title of Chief Archivist Emeritus.
(both information courtesy of WDW News Today)
