Dunder Mifflin’s Disney Clientele

On July 9th, 2001, the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) began to air a sit-com about a group of office co-workers who reluctantly work together underneath a tyrannical manager named David Brent, played by Ricky Gervais. The series won two Golden Globes for Best Television Series-Comedy or Musical and Best Actor in a Television Series Comedy or Musical for Gervais. The show ran for two seasons on the BBC. Two years after it went off the BBC, it was reinvented with a cast of American actors on the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) and on that network it aired for nine seasons from 2005-2013, winning one Golden Globe and five Primetime Emmy Awards. Many of the stars of this beloved sit-com, have been in films for Disney.

Steve Carrell won a Golden Globe for his performance as Michael Scott, the manager of Dunder Mifflin. In the midst of the show’s 3rd and 4th seasons, Carrell played Dan in Touchstone Pictures’ Dan in Real Life (2007). Carrell departed “The Office” toward the end of the show’s seventh season in 2011, and later portrayed Ben Cooper, father of Alex Cooper in Disney’s Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (2014). He was the voice of Mr. Delancey in the Toon Disney Series Filmore! (2002-2004), Hammy the squirrel in Dreamworks’ Over the Hedge (2006) and Felonius Gru in the Despicable Me series (2010-2017). Steve Carrell is also known for having made three films with Jim Carrey, (who ironically appeared in one of the “Michael-less,” episodes of “The Office,”): Bruce Almighty (2003), The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013) and both lent their voices to Blue Sky Studios’ animated film of Horton Hears a Who! (2008).

John Krasinski played Jim Halpert in all 188 episodes of “The Office.” For Disney, Krasinski and his wife, Emily Blunt, both made cameos in The Muppets (2011). He also provided the voice of Frightening in Monsters University (2013) and narrated the Disneynature documentary, Born in China (2016). Krasinski is also a skilled director, having directed three episodes of “The Office,” the drama comedies Brief Interviews With Hideous Men (2009) and The Hollars (2016) and this year’s horror flick A Quiet Place (2018). Outside of his acting and directing skills, John Krasinski received two Primetime Emmy Nominations for appearing as himself on the show Lip Sync Battle (2015-present).

Phyllis Smith played Phyllis Vance on “The Office,” and Mindy Kaling played Kelly Kapor on the show as well. Smith and Kaling were the voices of Sadness and Disgust in Disney/Pixar’s Inside Out (2015). Kaling also was the voice of Taffyta Muttonfudge in Wreck-It Ralph (2012) and portrayed Mrs. Who in A Wrinkle in Time (2018). Smith appeared in an episode of Disney/ABC’s The Middle (2009-2018), and like Kaling, has reprised her character from “Inside Out,” for the short Riley’s First Date? (2015) and for the Disney Infinity 3.0 (2015) video game.

B.J. Novak played the role of Ryan Howard on “The Office.” He also wrote 15 episodes of “The Office,” and even served as one of the show’s executive producers. The year the show went off the air, B.J. Novak was cast as Robert B. Sherman, brother of Richard M. Sherman, in Saving Mr. Banks (2013), Disney’s biopic on the making of Mary Poppins (1964) in which Novak and Jason Schwartzman played the Academy-Award-winning composer/lyricist team of “Mary Poppins.” His character of Ryan Howard had an on-again/off-again relationship with Kelly Kapor on the show, and that ironically mirrored a real life relationship that Novak had with Mindy Kaling. While they are no longer together, they reunited on Mindy’s show The Mindy Project (2012-2017), in which he acted and was a consulting producer through the show’s first season.

Melora Hardin portrayed Jan Levinson-Gould, a love interest of Michael’s on “The Office.” At just 12 years of age, Melora Hardin made her feature film debut in Disney’s The North Avenue Irregulars (1979). At 24 she played the South Seas Singer in The Rocketeer (1991). She later played Claire Poulet in the Wonderful World of Disney film Tower of Terror (1997) based on the Disney Park Attraction of the same name, Mrs. Carol Spencer in Buena Vista’s The Hot Chick (2002) with Rob Schneider, and Lorelai in Hannah Montana: The Movie (2009). Hardin also played Trudy Monk/Cameron on the Universal/ABC show Monk (2002-2009), and currently stars on Freeform’s drama series The Bold Type (2017-present).

Each of these actors will be best remembered for who they played on “The Office,” though they have managed to achieve versatility with their roles in both Disney films and by writing, producing, directing, etc. They are all truly talented!

Disney Nature Voices

The Disneynature film company was founded on April 21st, 2008. It is headquartered in Paris, France and run by Jean-Francois Camilleri who also serves as senior vice president and general manager for Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures France. Disney decided to create this company as a result of the Warner Bros. documentary March of the Penguins winning the Academy Award for Best Documentary Film in 2006. It is reminiscent of Walt Disney himself, who produced the True-Life Adventure Series from 1948-1960 (which also won a great deal of Academy Awards). Today the Disneynature company has produced several interesting films. Most of them have had theatrical releases, though some have been direct-to-video. Each of them, however, has been narrated by talented actors who have also worked on other films for the Disney Studios.

James Earl Jones was the narrator of Disneynature’s very first film Earth (2007). Jones provided the voice of Mufasa in The Lion King (1994) and it’s direct-to-video sequel The Lion King 2: Simba’s Pride (1998). He will portray Mufasa again in Disney’s upcoming live-action adaptation of The Lion King in 2019. Besides Mufasa, James Earl Jones was also one of the segment introductory hosts in Fantasia 2000 (1999) and narrated Disney’s American Legends (2002) which is a direct-to-video compilation of shorts about people like John Henry and Johnny Appleseed. He narrated the “Lion King” segment of the feature “The Story Behind the Story,” for the 2001 DVD edition release of Beauty and the Beast (1991) and was the voice of Santa Claus in the Disney Channel Original series Recess (1997-2001) and its direct-to-video movie, Recess Christmas: Miracle on 3rd Street (2001). Jones also reprised his trademark voice-over performance as Darth Vader for the Disney Park Attraction Star Tours: The Adventures Continue and the Oscar-nominated film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2014). 

Pierce Brosnan narrated Disneynature’s Oceans (2010). When Brosnan played James Bond from 1995-2002, he made a guest appearance on the show Muppets Tonight (1996-1998) as James Bond. He is also the current voice of Grimsby, Prince Eric’s elderly guardian from The Little Mermaid (1989) whenever the character makes an appearance in a Disney video game. He will next be seen reprising his role as Sam Carmichael, one of the three “fathers” in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018), the sequel to Mamma Mia! (2008) with Meryl Streep.

  

Meryl Streep narrated Wings of Life (2011) which was Disney’s first direct-to-video film. For Disney, Streep played the Witch in Into the Woods (2014) which earner her a 19th Academy Award Nomination. She will next be seen as Mary Poppins’ cousin Topsy in Disney’s upcoming sequel Mary Poppins Returns (2018), which will reunite her with “Into the Woods,”/The Devil Wears Prada (2006) co-star, Emily Blunt as the title character and “Into the Woods,” director Rob Marshall.

Samuel L. Jackson narrated African Cats (2011). Jackson voiced Frozone in The Incredibles (2004) and he will be back for the sequel as well. He is also known for portraying the role of Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe including the films: Iron Man (2008), Iron Man 2 (2010), Thor (2011), Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), The Avengers (2012), Captain America: The Winder Soldier (2014), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Avengers: Infinity War (2018). He also portrayed the character in Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013-present) and will do it again in the upcoming films Captain Marvel (2019) and Avengers 4 (2019).

Tim Allen narrated Chimpanzee (2012). Allen made his Disney debut as Tim “The Toolman” Taylor in the ABC series Home Improvement (1991-1999), which is a role that earned him five Golden Globe Nominations and one Primetime Emmy Nomination. He later lent his voice to Buzz Lightyear in Toy Story (1995) and since then has voiced the character for all of its sequels and short films, including the upcoming Toy Story 4 (2019). Prior to the first “Toy Story,” he played the role of Scott Calvin/Santa Claus in The Santa Clause (1994), and reprised that role for two sequels The Santa Clause 2 (2002) and The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause (2006). “The Santa Clause 3,” reunited him with Martin Short, with whom Allen worked on Disney’s Jungle 2 Jungle (1997). He also made a remake of The Shaggy Dog for Disney in 2006 and in 2007, he made Touchstone’s Wild Hogs.

John C. Reilly narrated Bears (2014). Reilly voiced Wreck-It Ralph in Wreck-It Ralph (2012) and its sequel Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2 (2018). Reilly is also given screen credit for having made story contribution to the first film. Besides “Ralph,” Reilly played Rhomann Dey in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy (2014). He also had roles in Touchstone’s Boys (1996), Gangs of New York (2002), Dark Water (2005), and he played Amos Hart in Mirimax’s smash hit film adaptation of Chicago (2002) which earned him an Academy Award Nomination as Best Supporting Actor for the performance.

Tina Fey narrated Monkey Kingdom (2015). Fey also voiced Lisa in the Disney/Studio Ghibli film Ponyo (2008) and she played Nadya in Muppets Most Wanted (2014). She was the  voice of Jenny Johnson on the Disney Channel Series Phineas and Ferb (2007-2015). Fey has written and collaborated with close friend, Amy Poehler (who is known at Disney as the voice of Joy in Disney/Pixar’s Inside Out (2015)) on three films: Mean Girls (2004), Baby Mama (2008), and Sisters (2015).

   

John Krasinski narrated Born in China (2016). Before narrating that film, Krasinski made a cameo as himself in The Muppets (2011) and also voiced Frank McCay in Monsters University (2013), the prequel to Monsters, Inc. (2001). Krasinski is also known for playing the role of Jim Halpert on the NBC sitcom The Office (2005-2013).

A Disneynature documentary is appealing for all kinds of reasons: scenic locations, cute subjects, etc., but one of the things that makes the story worth hearing is a well-chosen narrator. And while each of these people are exceptional actors, they also have done noteworthy work as narrators. And thanks to each of their talented voices, the movies themselves have all done reasonably well for the studio. 

Simply Incredible

On November 5, 2004, Disney and Pixar released a film called The Incredibles. The film told a story about a family of superheroes, despite attempting to live a quiet suburban life, team up for an adventure to save the world from evil. On the way, they discover what makes themselves unique both individually and as a family. It was the very first film that Disney produced with Pixar that told a story in which the main characters were humans, and it won two Academy Awards for Best Animated Feature and Best Sound Editing. And on June 15th, 2018, the family Incredible will finally be coming back to movie theaters in Incredibles 2 (2018). Many of the cast and crew members from “The Incredibles,” have worked on other films for the Disney Studios as well, both before and in between production of the “Incredibles,” films.

Craig T. Nelson was the voice of the family patriarch Mr. Incredible in “The Incredibles,” otherwise known as Bob Parr, and he will reprise his role for the sequel. Before he lent his voice to Mr. Incredible he won one Emmy and received four Golden Globe nomination for his role as Coach Hayden Fox in the ABC sit-com Coach (1989-1997). The same year that “Coach,” went on the air, he appeared in the Touchstone Pictures film Turner & Hooch (1989) with Tom Hanks and 20 years after that, he was in Touchstone’s The Proposal (2009) with Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds. Nelson also played Dr. Rovinsky in Soul Surfer (2011), and in addition to “Incredibles 2,” he has a part in the upcoming comedy Book Club (2018) which reunites him with Diane Keaton, whom he worked with in The Family Stone (2005) and Mary Steenburgen who played his wife in “The Proposal.”   

Holly Hunter provided the voice of the fiercely independent, though loving wife and mother, Mrs. Incredible, and she also will voice the character in the sequel. Before lending her voice to Mrs. Incredible, like Craig T. Nelson, she acted in two different Touchstone Pictures film also. She played Penny Wharvey McGill in O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), opposite George Clooney, John Turturro, and Tim Blake Nelson and then she played Mona Camp in Moonlight Mile (2002) opposite Dustin Hoffman and Jake Gyllenhaal. In “Brother,” she was directed by Ethan and Joel Coen. Having been roommates with Coen brothers in the early 1980s, Hunter’s first leading female role was in the Coen brothers’ romantic comedy Raising Arizona (1987). The same year, she starred in Broadcast News (1987), which earned her first Academy Award Nomination as Best Actress. (Her “Broadcast News,” co-star Albert Brooks, was the voice of Marlin in Finding Nemo (2003) which was released the year prior to “The Incredibles.”) She lost that year to Cher in Moonstruck, though she won six years later for the film The Piano (1993), making her the only “Incredible,” to win an Oscar.

Samuel L. Jackson voiced the Incredibles best friend Frozone, and he will be back for the sequel as well. Jackson was the narrator for the Disneynature film African Cats (2011). He is known for portraying the role of Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe including the films: Iron Man (2008), Iron Man 2 (2010), Thor (2011), Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), The Avengers (2012), Captain America: The Winder Soldier (2014), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Avengers: Infinity War (2018). He also portrayed the character in Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013-present) and will do it again in the upcoming films Captain Marvel (2019) and Avengers 4 (2019). Jackson is also known for portraying Jedi Master Mace Windu in the Star Wars prequel trilogy: The Phantom Menace (1999), Attack of the Clones (2002), and Revenge of the Sith (2005). He received a Best Supporting Actor Oscar Nomination for his performance as Jules Winnfield in Pulp Fiction (1994).

Jason Lee lent his voice to the character of Buddy Pine, who grew up to be the villainous Syndrome in “The Incredibles.” After voicing the main antagonist in the film, he voiced the heroic Underdog in the live-action/CGI animatronic Disney film Underdog (2007). He also acted in Buena Vista’s Enemy of the State (1998) opposite Gene Hackman and Will Smith, Touchstone’s Mumford (1999), Mirimax’s Jay and Silent Bob Strikes Back (2001), Jersey Girl (2004), the last two both of which he starred opposite Ben Affleck. While he will not be returning for the “Incredibles,” sequel, he will have a part in Disney’s upcoming sequel to Wreck-It Ralph (2012), Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2 (2018). He also received two Golden Globe nominations for his role as Earl Hickey in the NBC comedy series My Name is Earl (2005-2009).          

Brad Bird is the writer/director of both “Incredibles,” movies. In addition to winning the Best Animated Feature Film for the first “Incredibles,” he won a second Best Animated Feature Oscar for Ratatouille (2007) and directed the “Incredibles” short film Jack-Jack Attack (2005), which was released as a special feature on the ’05 DVD release of the first “Incredibles.” He was the voices of Edna Mode the superhero costume designer in “The Incredibles,” and Ambrister Minion in “Ratatouille.” Besides animation, he also has directed live-action films including: Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011), the fourth film in the series, and Disney’s Tomorrowland (2015). He made his film directorial debut with Warner Bros. The Iron Giant (1999). (Both “Iron Giant,” and “The Incredibles 2,” featured caricatures of Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston who were members of Walt Disney’s “Nine Old Men.”)

Michael Giacchino composed the music for both “Incredibles,” movies. Before writing music for movies, he began his career writing music for short films and video games such as: Gargoyles (1995) and The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997). His music made its feature film debut in the film Sin (2003) with Gary Oldman and Ving Rhames. He reunited with Brad Bird to write the music for “Ratatouille,” “Tomorrowland,” and “Ghost Protocol.” Besides his collaborations with Bird, he has also written the music for a variety of classic Disney animated and live-action films including: Up (2009) which awarded him the Oscar for Best Original Score, Inside Out (2015), Zootopia (2016), and Coco (2017). And he wrote the music for Marvel’s Doctor Strange (2016) and Spiderman: Homecoming (2017). Outside of Disney, Pixar, and Marvel, he wrote the music for Star Trek (2009), Jurassic World (2015), and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018).

“The Incredibles,” is one of Disney/Pixar’s best films. Whether or not the sequel will be as “incredible” as the first remains to be seen. The contributions that each of these people made to the first film made it an absolute blockbuster.   

Jon Favreau: The Real First Avenger

When we think of “multi-talented” people in the entertainment industry, it’s those who literally do it all: act, sing, produce, executive produce, direct, compose, etc. Few names come to mind who are able to master all those tasks simultaneously, but examples include Tom Hanks, who wrote, directed, wrote the music for and acted in That Thing You Do! (1996) and all the same in addition to producing Larry Crowne (2011). Lin-Manuel Miranda composed the music, wrote lyrics, was the librettist for, and originated the role of Alexander Hamilton in the Broadway musical Hamilton (2015), which won Miranda Tony’s in all of those categories, except acting. Jon Favreau is a member of this illustrious group, as well. A writer, producer, executive producer, director, and actor and for a little over three decades, he has been juggling all of these talents in addition to being a husband and father. 

Born in October 19th, 1966 in Queens, New York, his mother, Madeline, was a schoolteacher who was of Russian Jewish descent. She unfortunately died of leukemia when Favreau was only 13. His father was a Catholic of Italian and French-Canadian descent. Favreau graduated from Bronx High School of Science in 1984 and attended Queens College from ’84-’87. He worked for Bear Stearns Companies, Inc. for a short time but decided to go back to Queens College for another semester in early 1988. He ultimately dropped out of college for good in the summer of ’88 and moved to Chicago where he pursued a career in comedy. He performed at improvisational theaters, including ImprovOlympics and the Improv Institute.

Favreau made his film debut in the comedy Folks! (1992) opposite Tom Selleck and Don Ameche. The next year he landed a role in the film Rudy (1993) opposite Sean Astin. While filming “Rudy” he met and befriended Vince Vaughan, who also had a small role in the film. He later moved to Los Angeles where he appeared in an episode of Seinfeld (1989-1994) as Eric the Clown in 1994 and co-wrote, co-produced and starred in the film The Swingers (1996), along with pal Vince Vaughan. He also landed a recurring role on the third season of Friends (1994-2004). Around this time, he created his production company, Fairview Entertainment and is still releasing films under that label. Favreau’s directorial debut reunited him with Vaughan in the film Made (2001), and the year before, he married physician Joya Tillem with whom he has three children with: a son, Max and two daughters, Madeline and Brighton Rose Favreau. The same year as “Made,” he produced a comedy talk-show series called Dinner for Five (2001-2005) which earned him and his fellow producers a Primetime Emmy Nomination in its fifth season. Two years following “Made,” he directed the Christmas cult classic Elf (2003), playing the role of the doctor who confirms Buddy the Elf’s parentage.

In 2006, Jon Favreau was hired by Marvel Entertainment to direct the first Iron Man (2008). He was offered the chance to direct Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) but chose to do “Iron Man,” instead. In the film, he portrayed the role of Happy Hogan, Tony Stark’s chauffeur/bodyguard/Head of Stark Industries in the film and was an executive producer. There is also a roadster in the film that Tony Stark works on that in real life is owned by Jon Favreau. He reprised the role of Happy Hogan, and continued as executive producer and director for Iron Man 2 (2010), though remained only as an executive producer for Iron Man 3 (2010). He was also an executive producer on The Avengers (2012), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), and The Avengers 4 (2019). He also reprised the role of Happy Hogan for Spiderman: Homecoming (2017) and will do the same for “Avengers 4.” 

In 2014, Favreau made Chef (2014), a film that he wrote, produced, directed, and acted in. In preparation for the film, Favreau hired chef Roy Choi to be his mentor and Choi is also credited as a producer of the film. “Chef,” reunited him with “Iron Man 2,” co-stars Robert Downey Jr. and Scarlett Johansson. Not long after that film, Favreau was hired by Disney to direct the all-new live-action adaptation of The Jungle Book (2016) where he cast Johansson as the voice of Kaa the Snake. Favreau cast Gary Shandling, whom he had directed in “Iron Man 2,” as the voice of Ikki the porcupine in “Jungle Book.” Shandling unfortunately passed away before the film was released, and there is a dedication to him at the very end of the film. The film received 2016’s Best Visual Effects Oscar for its unique use of Motion-Capture Technology. Jon Favreau’s three children are all the voices of three of the wolf cubs whose parents adopted the boy Mowgli as part of their family in the movie. He is currently directing a new live-action adaptation of The Lion King for Disney which will be released in July of 2019. 

In addition to the films he has directed for Disney, Jon Favreau has also lent his voice to several Disney animated television series and films. He was a voice for the series Hercules (1998-1999) based on the 1997 film of the same name, Buzz Lightyear of Star Command (2000-2001), and was the voice of Hurley the guinea pig in G-Force (2009) and played the role of the Thark Bookie in Disney’s John Carter (2012). He will have a voice-over role in the upcoming film Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018). He is currently working with Disney to produce a new “Star Wars,” series, a possible sequel to “Jungle Book,” and a film called “Magic Kingdom,” which will tell a story of a family at Disneyland noticing the attractions of the park coming to life. The release of all three of the projects have yet to be determined.

Jon Favreau is an exceptional prodigy of movie-making. His films have made us laugh, cry, and have taken us as a movie audience on adventures that we never could have imagined. From “Iron Man 1 and 2,” to “Elf,” and “Chef,” to “Jungle Book,” and the forthcoming “Lion King,” his films are just great, period. 

Mary Blair: Disney’s “Modern Woman”

In the early days of the Walt Disney Studios, it was primarily populated by male staff members. The majority of animators, in-betweeners, layout artists, etc. were all men. There were, however a few “unsung” female artists, and one of the studios greatest was Mary Blair. During her career, Blair developed a style very unique to classic Disney, driving development of conceptual art. She introduced modernism, in which color is used to form deep contrast and may be unnatural to the image that they are illustrating. She also applied that style to the “It’s a Small World” Attraction at the Disney Parks, and many other projects outside of Disney. 

Mary Blair was born in McAlester, Oklahoma on October 21st, 1911. She moved with her family to Texas and later to Morgan Hill, California in the early 1920s. She graduated from San Jose State University in 1931 and won a scholarship to the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles, where she graduated in 1933. The next year she married an artist named Lee Blair and the two of them became members of the California School of Watercolor, where Mary also gained a reputation for being an imaginative colorist and designer. 

Her first job out of school was as animator at MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer). She joined Disney in 1940 and her first assignment was working on concept art for Dumbo (1941). Following that, she worked on a second version of Fantasia (1940), Bambi (1942) an earlier version of Lady and the Tramp (1955). She also accompanied Walt and Lillian Disney, along with a group of other artists, on a special tour of South America during the 1940s studio strike. Because of her imaginative use of watercolors, she became known for “creating new worlds,” and as a result, Walt promoted her to a art supervisor on the films Saludos Amigos (1943), The Three Caballeros (1944), and The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949). She was also able to apply her skills to the studios’ early live-action/animated films Song of the South (1946), Fun & Fancy Free (1947), and So Dear to My Heart (1949).

As the Walt Disney Studios transitioned into the 1950s, Blair worked as a color stylist on several feature-length films: Cinderella (1950), Alice in Wonderland (1951), and Peter Pan (1953) and the short films Susie the Blue Coupe (1952), The Little House (1952), and Donald Duck Visits Lake Titicaca (1955). After “Peter Pan,” she resigned from Disney and moved to New York where she worked as a freelance graphic designer and illustrator creating the advertising for companies such as Nabisco, Pepsodent, Maxwell House, and Beatrice Foods. She also illustrated several Little Golden Books published by Simon & Schuster, created clothing designs, and even designed Christmas and Easter sets for the Radio City Music Hall. However, Walt Disney invited her back to the studio to apply her style to the “It’s a Small World,” attraction at Disneyland, which opened at the park on May 28th, 1966. 

Blair later created a mural patterned after “It’s a Small World,” for Dr. Jules Stein’s Pediatric Surgery’s waiting room. Stein had summoned Walt Disney to create a mural for his waiting room to ease children’s tension as they were waiting for surgery, and Walt asked Blair to do it. (The mural can be seen today in UCLA’s Stein Eye Institute’s Pediatric Center.) Not long after Walt Disney’s death, in 1967, Mary Blair created mural art for the Tomorrowland Promenade. Since then, her murals have been replaced by other park attractions, however there is still a 90-foot mosaic of her work that can be seen inside Disney’s Contemporary Resort in Walt Disney World. She also created sets of Walt Disney note cards for Hallmark.

Mary Blair retired to Soquel, California where she tragically died of a cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 66 on July 26th, 1978. She was honored as a Disney Legend in 1991, being one of the first women to be given that honor. Her artwork was featured in an exhibition called “The Colors of Mary Blair,” which was at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Tokyo, Japan in July 2009. The Walt Disney Family Museum also held an exhibition of her work called “Magic, Color, Flair: The World of Mary Blair,” from March 13th to September 7th, 2014. In August 2017, Simon & Schuster published Pocketful of Colors, which is a picture book biography on Mary Blair. Blair was undoubtedly a pioneer among women animators and an artist who changed the face of Disney.   

Dorothy McGuire: Triple Crown of Disney Movie Mothers

When we think of mothers/motherly figures in Disney films, there aren’t necessarily many animated characters which comes which come to mind, considering most of the mothers of the Disney princesses are deceased in each of their movies-typically it’s a father or their stepmothers. (But Sleeping Beauty (1959), Mulan (1998) and Tangled (2010) are notable exceptions). There are, however, many mothers as key parts of Disney’s live-action films. Maureen O’Hara played the role of Margaret McKendrick, mother of Sharon and Susan McKendrick-Evers in The Parent Trap (1961), Glynis Johns played Mrs. Winifred Banks, mother of Jane and Michael Banks in Mary Poppins (1964), and in more recent years Caroline Goodall portrayed Helen Thermopolis, mother of Anne Hathaway as Mia Thermopolis in The Princess Diaries (2001) and its sequel The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (2004). Another person who is right up there with these actresses is Dorothy McGuire. McGuire played the mother of many different children, starring as the loving mother in three different Disney films, as well as several other films, including the role of Mary, the mother of Jesus at one point.

Dorothy McGuire was born in Omaha, Nebraska on June 14th, 1916. She was the only child of Thomas Johnson McGuire and Isabelle Flaherty McGuire. Her acting career started in the Omaha Community Playhouse where as a teenager she was in “A Kiss for Cinderella,” which starred visiting alumni member, Henry Fonda. She moved with her parents to Indianapolis, Indiana and later to Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts where she attended Pine Manor Junior College, serving as the president of the school’s drama club. She graduated from Pine Manor at the age of 19, with the intent of pursuing acting full-time.

McGuire began her career on Radio in the soap opera Big Sister in 1936. Two years later, she was cast as an understudy in the original Broadway cast of Our Town in 1938. Three years later, she was permanently cast as the female lead in the comedy Claudia. Her performance in the play caught the attention of David O. Selznick, who called her a “born actress” and asked her to reprise her role for Selznick Studios and Twentieth Century Fox’s film adaptation of “Claudia” in 1943. The film spawned a sequel, Claudia and David, in 1946. In between those films she reunited with her co-star who had played her husband, Robert Young in the drama The Enchanted Cottage (1945). The same year as “Claudia,” she married photographer John Swope, who she was introduced to by fellow Omaha Nebraska Playhouse member, Henry Fonda. (Fonda’s close friend, Jimmy Stewart served as the best man at their wedding.) She had two children with Swope: a son, Mark Swope, who like his father, became a photographer, and a daughter, Topo Swope, who like her mother, became an actress. 

The year after “Claudia and David,” she starred in Gentlemen’s Agreement (1947) opposite Gregory Peck and Celeste Holm. (The film was a remake of an older film of the same name which starred Vivien Leigh and Frederick Peisley). The film was nominated for eight academy awards, including Best Picture and Best Actress for McGuire. While McGuire unfortunately did not win, the film did receive the trophies for Best Picture, Best Supporting Actress for Celeste Holm, and Best Director for Elia Kazan. After making the film, she, along with Gregory Peck and Mel Ferrer, founded the La Jolla Playhouse on the campus of the University of California in San Diego, California. In 1951, Dorothy McGuire made the movies Callaway Went Thataway and I Want You and also made her television debut in the “Dark Victory” episode of Robert Montgomery Presents. She received an Emmy Nomination for her performance in an episode of the show Climax! (1954-1958) in 1954.

In 1957, she was cast by the Walt Disney Studios as the mother Katie Coates in Old Yeller. Her children were portrayed by Tommy Kirk and Kevin Corcoran. She reunited with Kirk and Corcoran three years later where she again played their mother in Disney’s epic, action-packed blockbuster Swiss Family Robinson (1960). In this film, James MacArthur played her oldest son, and Sir John Mills played her husband. Around this time, Mills’ daughter, Disney child star legend, Hayley Mills, was working on Pollyanna, which also came out in 1960, and also featured Kevin Corcoran. McGuire, herself, later played Hayley’s mother in a film called Summer Magic (1963), which would be McGuire’s last film with Disney. In between “Old Yeller,” and “Swiss Family Robinson,” she played mothers that were more on the flawed/not-so-redeeming side in the films  A Summer Place (1959) and The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (1960). And at 49 years of age, Dorothy McGuire played the Mary, Christ’s mother, in The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965).

After “Greatest Story Ever Told,” McGuire continued to act primarily in television, though she did make a few more movies. Her last theatrical film appearance was as Granny O’Flaherty in Flight of the Doves (1971). She made guest appearances on The Love Boat (1977-1986) and Fantasy Island (1977-1984) and she played Marmee March in the mini series of Little Women (1978). Her final acting role was in the made-for-television movie The Last Best Year (1990) starring opposite Bernadette Peters and Mary Tyler Moore, as Peters’ mother. She passed away on September 13th, 2001 of cardiac arrest, following a short illness, three days after 9/11. She will always be remembered for her motherly roles, particularly in three of Disney’s live-action classics. 

Jerry Orbach: He’s Our Guest

He was a performer of Broadway, Television, and Film and his debonair smile helped create the souls of the characters he portrayed from Jake Houseman (father of Baby Houseman) in Dirty Dancing (1987) to Detective Lennie Briscoe on Law & Order (1990-2010). On the Broadway stage, he received a total of four Tony Award Nominations (and won one) for a variety of leading male roles. And in later movies, he even provided the voice of the beloved candelabra from Beauty and the Beast (1991). Through every role he played, Jerry Orbach never ceased to entertain audiences with his own unique definition of charm.

Jerome Bernard Orbach was born in the Bronx, New York on October 20th, 1935. He was the only child of Leon Orbach, who was a restaurant manager and vaudevillian performer, and Emily, who was a radio singer and a greeting card manufacturer. Throughout his childhood, he moved very often with his folks, from Mount Vernon, New York, Wilkes-Bare, Nanticoke, and Scranton, Pennsylvania, Springfield Massachusetts, and Waukegan, Illinois. Young Jerry attended Waukegan High School and graduated in 1952 at the age of 17 because he was fortunate enough to skip two grades in elementary school due to a high IQ. Although he played on the high school football team, he learned about acting in a speech class and decided to pursue it full-time. The summer after he graduated high school, he worked at the theatre of Chevy Chase Country Club in Wheeling, Illinois and later enrolled at Northwestern University in Chicago. He left Northwestern University before his senior year and moved to New York City in 1955 to pursue acting full-time and study at the Actor’s Studio under Lee Strasberg. He found himself a home in a high-rise on 53rd Street off of 8th Avenue in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan and was a regular at some of the Italian restaurants nearby. (In 2007, the intersection of 53rd Street and 8th Avenue was named in honor of him).

It didn’t take long for Jerry Orbach to find success. The same year he moved to New York, he landed three different roles in the off-Broadway revival of The Threepenny Opera by Bertolt Brecht. Five years later, he got his first major role as El Gallo in the original off-Broadway Production of The Fantasticks. (I once had the privilege of seeing an off-Broadway revival of “The Fantasticks,” in the Jerry Orbach Theatre in 2011). Orbach made his official Broadway debut in 1961 in the musical Carnival! (the stage version of the film Lili, which starred Leslie Caron.) He received his very first Tony Award Nomination for the role of Sky Masterson in a revival of Guys and Dolls in 1965. In 1968, he starred in the musical Promises, Promises which was based on the 1960 film The Apartment. In this show, Jerry Orbach recreated the role of Chuck “C.C.” Baxter which was originated by Jack Lemmon in the film version and Orbach was awarded his first and only Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical as well as a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical. Orbach later originated the roles of Billy Flynn in Chicago in 1975 and Julian Marsh in 42nd Street in 1980 and both roles earned him two more Tony Award Nominations.

While he was on Broadway, he also made some uncredited appearances in the film version of Guys and Dolls (1955) and Marty (1955) which won the Best Picture Oscar that year, and in Ensign Pulver (1964), the sequel to Mister Roberts (1955). He played the Gang Leader “Mumzer,” in the movie Cop Hater (1958) and Joe Clegg in Mad Dog Coll (1961). In the 1980s, he transitioned to Television and Film full-time. He landed a recurring role as Detective Harry McGraw on the murder-mystery/drama series Murder, She Wrote (1984-1996) which starred Orbach’s good “Broadway” friend, Angela Lansbury. His first appearance on the show was so well-received, that it led the creation of a short-lived spin-off series called The Law and Harry McGraw (1987-1988). In 1987 he was cast as Dr. Jake Houseman in “Dirty Dancing,” and three years later, in 1990 made a guest appearance on NBC’s The Golden Girls (1985-1992) which reunited him with former “Threepenny Opera,” co-star, Beatrice Arthur. The appearance earned him his first of Three Emmy Nominations. In 1991, he was hired by the Walt Disney Studios to provide the voice of Lumiere in “Beauty and the Beast,” which reunited him with Angela Lansbury as Mrs. Potts. Both he and Lansbury reprised their roles for the direct-to-video sequels to the film, Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas (1997), and Beauty and the Beast: Belle’s Magical World (1998). Orbach also lent his voice to the character of Sa’Luk in Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996), the direct-to-video sequel to Aladdin (1992), and provided the voice of Pierre the Bird at the Enchanted Tiki Room (Under New Management) Attraction which opened at Walt Disney’s Magic Kingdom in Disney World in 1998 and closed in 2011. 

After lending his voice to “Beauty and the Beast,” he was cast in the role with which he would be most often identified: Detective Lennie Briscoe on Law & Order (1990-2010). He was on the show for 12 of its 20 year-run on television and in 2000, he earned his third Emmy nomination in the category of Best Actor in a Drama Series. He also became the show’s third longest-serving main cast member as well as one of its most popular just behind S. Epatha Merkerson and Sam Waterston, with whom Jerry Orbach had previously worked with on Woody Allen’s Crime and Misdemeanors (1989). Both of his children guest-starred on the show. His older son, Anthony “Tony” Orbach, guest-starred in the “Doubles” episode of the show as a reporter, and his younger son, Chris Orbach, guest starred as his Lennie Briscoe’s nephew, Ken Briscoe, on the first season of Law and Order: Special Victims Unit (1999-present).

Jerry Orbach tragically died of prostate cancer on December 28th, 2004 in Manhattan, New York at the age of 69. Many of his close friends attended the memorial service including his “Law & Order,” co-stars, S. Epatha Merkerson, Chris Noth, and Angela Lansbury. Lansbury also spoke at the funeral, saying “….to have Jerry on the set with me, it was like a breath of Broadway. Jerry was a warm and accessible person, so kind and generous-hearted. I’m so very proud to have known Jerry and to have been a part of his circle.” Jerry Orbach will always be remembered by adults as Detective Lennie Briscoe on “Law and Order,” but to kids and kids at heart, he will always be the voice of Lumiere in “Beauty and the Beast.”