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First I want to say Thank You. Thank you for having been alive and having made Animation what it is for so many people. To me, it was and it still is even more than this. I was 8 when I became concious that I wanted to become an animator, and this choice was for a great part the result of the admiration of the work of the Disney animators, and especially Frank Thomas and Ollie Jonhston, who were the first ones that I discovered, and that I kind of considered like extra grandfathers. The talent and the passion all these guys were full of was so obvious on the screen, that anything I wanted was to be able to create such a magic with paper sheets. Now that I am an animator indeed, and although a lot of movies were done without them, their work keeps enlighting mine. These guys invented Animation. Thank you for this.

Frank Thomas, and the rest of the "Nine Old Men" at Disney have had a profound influence on me since I was about six years old. I could never watch enough of "The Jungle Book", "Lady and the Tramp",and "Sword and the Stone". I went out and bought "The Rescuers" when it came out in video because I loved the crocodile organ playing scene so much! After watching these popular Disney movies as a girl, more than anything, I wanted to be an animator, or what we incorrectly called in those days, a "cartoonist". I also watched a lot of animation on "The Wonderful World of Disney" on television back when Walt actually hosted it! No one lives forever, even great animators. But I am saddened by the fact that a legend such as Frank Thomas, and many of the other Disney "Nine Old Men" such as Ward Kimball, Milt Kahl,Woolie Reitherman, John Lounsbery, Eric Larson, Les Clark and Marc Davis are gone, and it seems that the animation we loved so much during their time has left with them. If I am not mistaken, Ollie Johnston is the only one left. What is really sad is that there seems to be a shortage of artists who share the passion for their creative talents with their animated characters as these men had expressed in their work. The only place I truly found that passion was when I attended Sheridan College back in the 1990s. The students loved what they did, and it showed. When I enrolled in a Computer Animation program in 2001, I heard comments from many students of animation today, especially 3D animation students, sadly describe drawing, character development, principles of movement, and other techniques practiced by animators such as Frank Thomas as being "too much work". In my opinion,these artists are not too far from non-animators who think "computers do everything now". Because of the complicated mathematics involved in the software making 3D animation,not to mention the stifling of creativity with all of the 3D terms you had to learn, I dropped out and switched to Web Design, because it enabled me to use 2d animation skills, which you could use in Web sites, Webisodes and Internet games. I read about how Frank Thomas embraced the 3D animation revolution, but I really do not think he meant for us to totally abandon the basic principles of animation, and throw out drawing altogether in favor of a MAMMOTH powerhouse computer workstation. Maybe that is my opinion, and it is a strong one because I have been drawing since I was six, and still think the "old school" way is the best way to prepare animators for not only 2D, but 3D animation as well. I marvel at the way that animators today (such as John Lasseter) can marry modern technology and classical animation together and make great movie shorts, but even he had been influenced by Frank Thomas to a great extent before he ventured into 3D animation.. This is proof that you cannot, as the old adage goes, "throw out the baby with the bath water". I proudly own TWO copies of Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston's "Illusion of Life" (softcover and hardback), and have absolutely no intention of letting them go. And I will never forget a fellow animation student's comment on the book. He (Enrique was his name)was sort of upset by a comment that someone made about the book, saying that it was "just another book". "It is not "just another book", Enrique snapped, "It is the BIBLE of animation!".

Frank Thomas has inspired us all- animator or not. As one of the biggest artists involved in "The Golden Era" of animation, he was one of the reasons that I wanted to be an animator; though, it wasn't until I got a lot older when I realized this. I saw Disney's adaptation of "Pinnochio" for the first time when I was about 4 or 5, and I remember how captivated I was. It was clearly different than anything that I saw on Saturday mornings- not better, just different. That was the caffeine in the coffee for me. I was addicted. So, at that ripe age, I started asking questions to my parents, 1st grade art teachers, you name it. Once I had figured out that what I saw was a series of drawings to create "The Illusion of Life", and that people made money doing this (which, at the time, my little mind was thinking, "I could buy all the candy and comic books that my little heart desired- all by drawing cartoons...") I was in heaven, and I knew what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Now, in the present, after floundering through life for many years, and a wife and 2 kids (and one on the way) later, I am proud to say that by June of '05 I will have a B.S. Degree in Animation at the Art Institute here in Southern California. Simply put, had I never seen "Snow White" those many years ago, and studied Frank's work, I would never be a student of (The Illusion of) life. Thanks Frank. I hope that someday, I can give back to other young animators and filmmakers what you have given me. You are sorely missed. Honorably, Noah Matthew Albrecht

The scene which took hold of my spirit and directed it into animation was the "wizard's duel" in Sword in the Stone. Thank you both Frank and Ollie.

Well mjones...it certainly WAS fortunate, what happened to John Lasseter, but you sound like there's a force field around Kentucky that prevented you from accessing California. Sounds like what you should've done is found out about scholarships, financial aid etc...and moved yourself to CA if that's what you wanted to do. I'm sorry your dreams didn't pan out, but we do have to take SOME responsibility for them, don't we?

John Lasseter wrote: " I started writing to the Disney studios and they invited me over. Then in my senior year I received a letter that they were starting a character animation program at CalArts. I applied" It must be nice to have been born in California. I used to write to the Disney studio, too. All the time. I still have all of the correspondence. Try wanting to be an animator, with every bit of that same passion, from the hills of Kentucky. Watch your dreams die when you find no way into college, you have to take a menial job to survive, and then find you're doomed to living that life forever. I pray that you never know the angst and dispair of unfulfilled dreams.

i just started reading illusion of life by Frank thomas and Ollie johnson and as an upcoming animator the book is invaluable thanks to Frank i,m learning so much from them the information provided by Frank has kept me way ahead of even some of my lecturers Frank will never get to know this but i thank Frank from the bottom of my heart he,s been a teacher and a greaty source of inspiration in my education as an animator. thank you Frank you,ll forever be in my thoughts