1941 Disney Strike Footage

[Thedeadcircus]

Henry Sorrell was really the ring leader that got Hollywoods biggest stars to help with the strike. However Art Babbitt was the one that got most of the studio to strike against Walt including Bill Tytla who is most notable for his Fantasia work. How genius was the guild tho? Find a million dollar industry, tell it's employees they are under paid, then get a fat settlement just to leave them alone while the employees get minor raises!

[herrderdinge93]

Hi,

I do only know the basic facts about him(meaning in which films he took part as an animator).

I'm not working on a book or anything else, I'm "just" sending letters to animators to ask them about their life at Disney and some background information concerning the work in the studios.

[snowqueen831]

Both my grandpa and grandma worked at Disney, and sadly both are deceased.My grandma's name is Tota D. Shull.Are you compiling a book or another resource? I'm happy to help find what I can. If you find or have any information about them, I'd be interested in it. I want to be able to share it with my children.

[snowqueen831]

Bill Shull is my grandpa. Thanks for sharing. I've never seen this.

[herrderdinge93]

@snowqueen831 I'm a huge Disney fan and I'm searching for contacts to former Disney animators. Would you tell where Mr shull lives?

[FranthonyZarcoza]

The reason and first hand experience for the strike conted by Bill Melendenez, I just stumbled over this video. watch?v=LiUHKzllisk&NR=1&featu­re=fvwp

it's an 8 part interview. But this one speaks about what happened.

[trollheimer]

Bill Tytla wasn't a participant of the strike. He worked on Dumbo as the directing animator for Dumbo during the strike and was one of Walt's most trusted and closest animators.

[WillScarlet16]

The strikers got a lot of support from Chuck Jones and the rest of the Warner bros. crew. They volunteered their cars as transportation, sent supplies and even formed a motorcade around the Disney studio while the strike was going on.

[FritzOmnibus]

I'm going to pass this footage on to Gunther Lessing and have the whole lot of you Commies fired!

[hackensac]

Aren't the animators depicted as clowns in Dumbo? Dumbo was released out after the strike

[disneyfan85]

@hackensac Yes, they were. They are depicted as going to go "hit the big boss for a raise".

[RetroVideoFan]

This stirke is still very well known. In fact, there's even an article on Wikipedia about it.

[dawnnaYT]

I have to commend the comments here- well done!

[buddhamania]

The Asian man could very well be Cy Young, however, he was not the only Asian working at Disney at the time. Tyrus Wong, a "Disney Legend" and influential background artist on Bambi, was at the studio from 1938-1941. Tyrus did NOT strike, but was let go after the strike and served as a production illustrator at Warner Bros until 1968.

[Marbles471]

That Asian man at 1:27 --- could that possibly be special effects head Cy Young? He's the only Asian I know about who worked at the studio back then.

[cartoonzrule]

Notable people in the Disney strike: Kenneth Muse, Ray Patterson, Ed Love, Bill Melendez, Preston Blair, Grant Simmons, Art Babbit, Bill Tytla, William Shull, Jack Bradbury, Emery Hawkins, Walt Kelly, Ted Bonnicskin, Alfred Ambranz, Cornett Wood,Maurice Noble and many others. Try to point out these names on any Warner Bros. or MGM cartoon from the 1940s.

[disneyfan85]

I seem to recall Hawkins being on the credits for one Donald Duck cartoon in 1947: "Donald's Dilemma".

[cartoonzrule]

That was his return to Disney right before he went to Warner Bros.

[MrUnidyne]

It was during this strike that background artist Walt Kelly met cel painter Selby Daley, who in 1969 would become Mrs. Walt Kelly.

[acholl980]

Ken Muse, Ed Love, Preston Blair.Grant Simmons-MGM

Ray Patterson-Walter Lantz, MGM

Bill Tytla-Paramount

Emery Hawkins-Warner Bros, Walter Lantz

JC 'Bill' Melendez-Warner Bros, UPA

William Shull-Columbia, MGM

Maurice Noble, Ted Bonnicskin-Warners

[disneyfan85]

I'm amazed that they managed to get the film in COLOR! I'd have thought it would just be black and white. Most impressive. What is that song that's playing? I think that's Fats Domino singing it.

[disneyfan85]

I just figured out what that song is called: "I'm Gonna Be a Wheel Someday" by Fats Domino (from 1959).

[checkeredgeek]

This is some amazing footage...

[heine71]

Why did Disney go on strike in 1941?

[disneyfan85]

Well, unfortunately, there is no one reason why this happened. Lots of things have occurred that resulted in this event.

[heine71]

Not unlike the 1967 AFTRA strike, the 1980 Actors strike, and the 1981 and 1988 Writers Guild of America strike.

[disneyfan85]

And now the 2007 WGA strike, too.