When I was 14, I got my first "real" job at Taco Bell making $3.35 an hour. When I got my first paycheck, covering the first two weeks of my employment, I rode my bike to the mall to spend it. I headed for the store, Cartoon Junction, and plunked down around $70 for a book -- Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life.

Working at Taco Bell wasn't what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I wanted to be an animator. Not just any animator, but a Disney animator. This book, written by two of Disney's "Nine Old Men" was a virtual instruction manual on how to achieve this goal.

Unfortunately, just buying the book didn't turn me into a world-class artist. But I did learn some great techniques and further deepened my affection for Disney and all the talented people who helped brought these pencil marks to life on the big screen.

One of those talented people and one of the book's authors, Frank Thomas, passed away Wednesday at the age of 92.

My favorite chapter in The Illusion of Life dealt with eyes. Thomas had a way with eyes. I will never forget the icy stare of Lady Tremaine. To me, she was the evilist of all the Disney Villains because she was so real. What she felt towards Cinderella was clearly evident in the way she looked at her.

Thomas would go on to animate several other Disney villains -- the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland and Captain Hook from Peter Pan. His turn at bringing these characters to life no doubtedly helped in writing another collaborative work with Ollie Johnston, The Disney Villain. The duo would also share their animation expertise in two other books, Too Funny for Words and Bambi: The Story and the Film, all of which I've added to my library since my first purchase of The Illusion of Life.

Thomas' legacy will live on in these books, as well as in the characters created during his 43 years of employment with the Walt Disney Company. Home video ensures that future generations will see Lady and Tramp sharing a plate of spaghetti and Pinocchio performing to the song "I've Got No Strings." His earliest assignments included the short "Mickey's Elephant" and after working on some early story development, character design and animation for the 1981 feature, The Fox and the Hound, Thomas retired from animation in January 1978.

After a lifetime of work performing through animated characters, a real-life Thomas starred in a movie of his own. Frank and Ollie was a 1995 feature-length documentary written and directed by Frank's son, Theodore Thomas. It chronicled not only his career as an animator but also his friendship with Johnston, whom he met nearly 70 years ago when both attended Stanford University together.

In addition to his career as a top animator, Thomas also expressed his musical talents as the piano player in the popular jazz group, The Firehouse Five Plus Two. Formed in 1940s, the group consisted of other Disney employees and achieved success with their numerous Dixieland jazz recordings and personal appearances.

I was fortunate to meet Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston on a couple of occasions. The first time when I worked at the Disney Store and worked a special animation sale at the Thousand Oaks store. Dozens of cels featuring the two legends' characters were available for purchase with the opportunity to meet Thomas and Johnston and get them to sign their works. It was a unique experience to hang out and see not only how excited the guests were to meet them but how generally happy they were to meet their fans.

My second encounter with meeting Thomas was at a special event at the Disney Gallery at Disneyland. I wasn't there to see him but was visiting the Gallery just before his and Johnston's event when the two legends came into the Gallery as I was preparing to leave. There I was face to face with two heroes. I didn't say anything to them but I looked at them and smiled. I'll never forget the thrill I had being able to see them in person. Thomas had gentle, grandfathery eyes. No icy stare from him.

Thomas is survived by his wife of 58 years, Jeanette; son Theodore and his wife, Kuniko Okubo; son Doug, and his life partner, Dan Poirer; son Gregg and his children, Ukiah and Micah; and daughter, Ann Ayers, her husband, Andy Ayers, and their son, Marshall. And by millions of fans worldwide.

- Story by Matthew Walker; Photo ©Disney
Posted September 10, 2004

E-mail Matt at matt@startedbyamouse.com, discuss this article in the StartedByAMouse.com Disney Discussion Forums or use the Talkback feature below.

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