Cy Young (animator)
Encyclopedia
Cy Young (1900–1964) was a Chinese American
special effects animator, best known for his work for The Walt Disney Company
.
Young's first work was as lead animator on the 1931 short "Mendelssohn's Spring Song", a project completed while he was a student in New York City
. Disney was so impressed with his work that he hired him to be head of the new special effects animation department and he partnered with animator Ugo D'Orsi.
In Frank Thomas
and Ollie Johnston
wrote in their book Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life
, they said, Through the entire thirties, the entire Effects Department consisted of only two men: Ugo D'Orsi, a straightforward, stubborn, and dedicated Italian, and Cy Young...quiet and sensitive...who loved to play the bass fiddle as a hobby. Thomas and Johnston added, Since [D'Orsi and Young] did most of the careful work themselves, they needed only a single assistant between them. The department's first major project was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
. Young also provided the delicate visual design of the woods and meadows in Bambi
. He also worked on Fantasia
and Dumbo
.
Young left the studio after the 1941 Disney animators' strike
and worked as a staff artist and clerk at the Air Force, where he worked on various projects. He committed suicide
in 1964.
Chinese American
Chinese Americans represent Americans of Chinese descent. Chinese Americans constitute one group of overseas Chinese and also a subgroup of East Asian Americans, which is further a subgroup of Asian Americans...
special effects animator, best known for his work for The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
.
Young's first work was as lead animator on the 1931 short "Mendelssohn's Spring Song", a project completed while he was a student in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Disney was so impressed with his work that he hired him to be head of the new special effects animation department and he partnered with animator Ugo D'Orsi.
In Frank Thomas
Frank Thomas (animator)
Franklin M. "Frank" Thomas was an American animator. He was one of Walt Disney's team of animators known as the Nine Old Men....
and Ollie Johnston
Ollie Johnston
Oliver Martin Johnston, Jr. was an American motion picture animator. He was one of Disney's Nine Old Men, and the last surviving at the time of his death. He was recognized by The Walt Disney Company with its Disney Legend Award in 1989...
wrote in their book Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life
Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life
Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life , 1981, is an acclaimed book by two of Disney's Nine Old Men, Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas. It is widely considered to be one of the best books ever published on the topic of character animation...
, they said, Through the entire thirties, the entire Effects Department consisted of only two men: Ugo D'Orsi, a straightforward, stubborn, and dedicated Italian, and Cy Young...quiet and sensitive...who loved to play the bass fiddle as a hobby. Thomas and Johnston added, Since [D'Orsi and Young] did most of the careful work themselves, they needed only a single assistant between them. The department's first major project was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full...
. Young also provided the delicate visual design of the woods and meadows in Bambi
Bambi
Bambi is a 1942 American animated film directed by David Hand , produced by Walt Disney and based on the book Bambi, A Life in the Woods by Austrian author Felix Salten...
. He also worked on Fantasia
Fantasia (film)
Fantasia is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released by Walt Disney Productions. The third feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film consists of eight animated segments set to pieces of classical music conducted by Leopold Stokowski, seven of which are...
and Dumbo
Dumbo
Dumbo is a 1941 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released on October 23, 1941, by RKO Radio Pictures.The fourth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, Dumbo is based upon the storyline written by Helen Aberson and illustrated by Harold Pearl for the prototype of a...
.
Young left the studio after the 1941 Disney animators' strike
Disney animators' strike
The Disney animators' strike was a labor strike by the animators of Walt Disney Studios in 1941.-History:The 1930s led to a rise of labor unions in motion pictures as in other industries such as The Screen Actors Guild which was formed in 1933. Animators of Fleischer Studios went on strike in 1937...
and worked as a staff artist and clerk at the Air Force, where he worked on various projects. He committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
in 1964.