John Hench

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John Hench (born June 29, 1908 in Cedar Rapids , Iowa , † February 5, 2004 in Burbank , California ) was an American illustrator , storyboard artist and production designer . He was one of the first signatories of the Walt Disney Company , participated in numerous cartoon classics such as Dumbo , Peter Pan or Cinderella with and was after the death of Walt Disney instrumental in the development of the 1966 Disneyland - theme parks involved. John Hench was the "official" painter of Mickey Mouse and made the respective portraits of the world-famous comic characters for his 25th, 50th, 60th and 75th birthday.

Live and act

The famous Cinderella Castle is based on designs by John Hench

In his youth, John Hench attended numerous art schools, including the Art Students League in New York , the Otis Art Institute and the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles, as well as the San Francisco Art Institute . In 1939, Hench began as a “storyboard artist” in the animation department of Walt Disney Studios, where he was responsible for the layouts and special effects in connection with the production of Fantasia . In 1945/46 he made the acquaintance of Salvador Dalí , with whom he designed the script and storyboard for the surrealist short film Destino , which, however, was only to be realized in 2003. In 1954, Hench worked on the production design (uncredited) and on the animation sequences of the Jules Verne film adaptation, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea . For the fighting scenes in the sea, he developed a gigantic hydraulic giant squid. The film was awarded the Oscar for Best Visual Effects the following year. With the completion of the shooting, Hench switched to WED Enterprises (later Walt Disney Imagineering ) as chief designer to develop attractions for a new type of amusement park : Disneyland. For the Magic Kingdom of the first Disneyland in Anaheim he designed, among other things, the significant Cinderella Castle and the Space Mountains . After Walt Disney's death in 1966, Hench played a leading role in the design of other theme parks: for example, he worked on the development of the visionary Epcot Center (opened in 1982) or on Tokyo Disneyland (1983) as the first Disney park outside the USA.

In 1990, Hench was honored by Disney CEO Michael Eisner with the Disney Legend Award , the company's highest honor. In 1998 he received the THEA Award from the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) for his life's work. Hench was active at Walt Disney Imagineering's headquarters in Glendale , California, until shortly before his death . His name is closely linked to the history of the creation of the Disney empire. John Hench died of heart failure on February 5, 2004 in a Burbank hospital.

Others

Due to a certain resemblance to Walt Disney and its presence in the Disney parks, Hench was often mistaken for Disney itself by visitors and asked to sign autographs or pose for photos.

One of the most famous works by John Hench is his version of the Olympic Torch , the Olympic torch , which he designed for the VIII Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley in 1960 and on which many later designs are based.

Filmography (selection)

  • 1941: Dumbo ( Dumbo ) - storyboard and coloring
  • 1944: Drei Caballeros ( Three Caballeros ) - storyboard and coloring
  • 1946: Destino - screenplay and storyboard with Salvador Dalí; realized in 2003
  • 1950: Cinderella ( Cinderella ) - storyboard and coloring
  • 1951: Alice in Wonderland ( Alice in Wonderland ) - storyboard and coloring
  • 1951: Earth, the great unknown (Nature's Half Acre) - animation effects
  • 1953: Peter Pan ( Peter Pan ) - storyboard and coloring
  • 1953: The Living Desert ( The Living Desert ) - animation effects
  • 1954: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea ( 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea ) - Stage and animation effects
  • 1954: Disneyland: The Disneyland Story writer
  • 1959: Donald in Mathmagic Land - Storyboard
  • from 1965: Author of various TV productions, some of which he himself appeared in: Disneyland: Disneyland 10th Anniversary (1965), Walt: The Man Behind the Myth (2001), The Making of 20000 Leagues Under the Sea (2003)

Publications

  • Walt Disney's Magnificent Mr. Toad with Walt Disney (Author), Grosset and Dunlap 1949
  • Walt Disney's Peter Pan with Al Dempster, Simon & Schuster, 1952
  • Designing Disney: Imagineering and the Art of the Show: The Art of Color, Character, and Show with Peggy Van Pelt (author); Disney Editions, 2001, ISBN 0-7868-5406-5

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Hench, John
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American illustrator, storyboarder, film designer and Disney draftsman
DATE OF BIRTH June 29, 1908
PLACE OF BIRTH Cedar Rapids, Iowa
DATE OF DEATH February 5, 2004
Place of death Burbank, Los Angeles County