Movie Musings: Disney and More

Disney’s Greatest Pairs: Part 1

The Walt Disney Studios spawned the careers of many adorable, young child stars whose legacy on film itself, lives on today. Tommy Kirk and Kevin Corcoran are two former child stars that began their career with Disney and were often pared as each other’s older/younger brother for a number of the studio’s most memorable, live-action films. (You would recognize their faces!) 

Kirk and Corcoran (whose nickname at the studio was “Moochie”) appeared as brothers in Old Yeller (1957), The Shaggy Dog (1959), Swiss Family Robinson (1960), Bon Voyage! (1962), and Savage Sam (1963) (the sequel to Old Yeller (1957)). Both Kirk and Corcoran also appeared Babes in Toyland (1961), though they did not portray brothers in that picture. Babes in Toyland (1961), did however, also star Kevin’s real younger brother, Brian, as his on-screen brother. There was more to the “family affair” as Fred MacMurray played their father in The Shaggy Dog (1959) and Bon Voyage (1962) and Dorothy McGuire played their mother in Old Yeller (1957) and Swiss Family Robinson (1960). 

They also appeared in a number of Disney films separate from one another. Corcoran was in Pollyanna (1960), opposite Hayley Mills, which was released the same year as Swiss Family Robinson (1960), where Mills’s real father, Sir John Mills, portrayed Corcoran’s on-screen father. Corcoran also starred in Toby Tyler, or Ten Weeks With a Circus (1960), A Tiger Walks (1964), and lent his voice to some of the studios's lesser-known cartoon shorts called Goliath 2 (1960) and Aquamania (1961). On television, he acted as numerous characters on Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color (1957-1963). 

Kirk, on the other hand, who before making films for the studio, had started as a Mouseketeer on The Mickey Mouse Club (1955-1996). (Corcoran, only appeared in 3 Mickey Mouse Club (1955-1996) serials). Kirk also acted in The Absent-Minded Professor (1961) and it’s sequel, Son of Flubber (1963) (both of which reunited him with his former, on-screen father, Fred MacMurray). Later, he starred in Moon Pilot (1962), The Misadventures of Merlin Jones (1964), and The Monkey’s Uncle (1965). 

After their time at Disney, Corcoran went to become an assistant director and producer for both Disney and non-Disney film projects. He unfortunately passed away on October 6th, 2015 at the untimely age of 66. Kirk remained an actor until the mid-1970s. Since then, he has been the owner of a carpet/upholstery cleaning business.  

Tommy Kirk and Kevin Corcoran were very close throughout their time at the studio. Both were named “Disney Legends” on October 9th, 2006, alongside their Shaggy Dog (1959) co-star, Tim Considine. The chemistry of their on-screen brotherhood continues to stand the test of time, and when you look at each of their films—whether they are acting as brothers, opposite each other, or are acting by themselves alongside Hollywood A-list actors—it is impossible to imagine anyone else in their roles.