Biography
Master animator Arthur Babbitt is the artist who created the enduring Disney character Goofy. He began his career in the early '30s working as an animator at Terrytoons. He then moved to Disney and worked there during the studio's golden era of animation before WW II. At the studio he became noted for his exquisite artistry. In addition to bringing Goofy to life, Babbit also created the Big Bad Wolf in
The Three Little Pigs and worked on Disney's first three full-length animated features. His animation of the dancing mushrooms in the "Nutcracker Suite" segment of
Fantasia is considered one of the very best. In 1941, Babbit earned another kind of notoriety when he became a leader in the cartoonist strike that almost destroyed the Disney studios. Legend has it that the striking Babbit and "uncle" Walt almost engaged in fisticuffs during a heated argument on the picket line. Following that, the two became bitter enemies. Later Babbitt went on to work for other major animation studios. During the '50s and '60s, he became known for his innovative independent TV commercials which won him over 80 awards for such creations as the Ajax Cleanser elves. He worked for Hanna-Barbera from 1966 to 1975 and helmed the commercial department. In 1973, he began teaching master classes in animation at the London studio of Richard Williams. At the time of his death, Babbitt was working on a full-length animated feature,
The Thief and the Cobbler which was just released in 1995 as Arabian Knight. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide