A Closer Look at Art Scott

A Closer Look at Art Scott
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Scott's work is still hitting new audiences like in the newly released DVD Beany and Cecil: The Special Edition.

Scott was born in Astoria, Oregon in 1914; he grew up in British Columbia and moved to Long Beach, California at age ten. After graduating from high school he went to Long Beach Junior College, where he sang and was a catcher on the baseball team. It was not until he entered UCLA that he had any art classes. He recalls: "I wanted to take the easiest thing I could do, and that was an art course. So I signed up for art, and ended up taking all kinds of art." At a dance, he met Herb Rothwill who was at the time working at the Mintz studio. Scott recalls: "He asked me, 'What do ya think about working in the animation business?' I said, 'I don't know anything about it. I've only seen stuff on the screen.' He had an animation board made for me with a light and the pegs and he used to bring scenes for me, and he'd take out all the in-betweens. As you know in animation, the first thing you learn as an animator is to in-between, and that's how I started." He began working at the Mintz studio himself shortly after graduation.

Scott posing in full magician dress with partner Bob "Tiger" West. Courtesy of Art Scott.

From Mintz he went to Disney and was assistant animator to Dick Lundy. With two features in production plus short subjects, there was a shuffling of personnel. Art recalls: "Dick's moved upstairs, and I'm pushed in with another animator named Ed Love. Real work horse, heck of a good animator too. Virtually everything I learned about animation really came from Ed Love. He had a system that was fantastic for getting work done. Some animators would start with a character here and going down to here, and then they would rough in everything as they go. Ed would make these drawings and just make a chart showing how these drawings should be spaced. And it was an easy thing."

One of Art's fondest memories was of the camp show. He sang with a jazz group which included Ward Kimball on trombone and Frank Thomas on piano. He also had a magic act and was assisted by Bob "Tiger" West. The shows featured short plays, juggling and dancing. Scott reminisces: "We did the show every other week. Two buses would take us to different camps, as far up as Santa Barbara, as far down as San Diego, and a lot of stops in-between. That was the most fun time with the studio, to have that camp show, because even when we weren't doing the show, Ward would take his orchestra and go out on the sound stage and they'd have a noontime dance and I'd be up there singing some of their numbers. It was a fun time in the studio that Walt built."


Scott making the moment magic. Courtesy of Art Scott.	The audience enjoys Scott's act. Courtesy of Art Scott.