Last night, a dozen new Disney Legends were honored at the 20th annual Walt Disney Co. event at the Burbank studio, including animators Floyd Norman (SLEEPING BEAUTY, JUNGLE BOOK, TOY STORY 2, MONSTERS, INC.); Art Babbitt (The Wicked Queen in SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS, Geppetto in PINOCCHIO and Dancing Mushrooms in FANTASIA), whose firing in 1941 led to the Disney animators' strike; and Dick Huemer (Baby Weems from THE RELUCTANT DRAGON, DUMBO, SALUDOS AMIGOS, MAKE MINE MUSIC, ALICE IN WONDERLAND and SILLY SYMPHONIES shorts).

Joining the animators were Disney/Pixar composer Randy Newman (TOY STORY and THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG); Carl Bongirno of Imagineering (responsible for Walt Disney World financial matters); actress Marge Champion (live-action reference model for animated characters in SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS, FANTASIA); make-up artist Bob Schiffer (TRON); Chief Archivist Dave Smith; Tom Murphy, head of Capital Cities/ABC Inc.; Roone Arledge, ABC News president and sports pioneer; Ron Logan of Parks and Resorts; and Lucille Martin, Walt Disney's last personal assistant.

Presiding over the special ceremony was Disney President and CEO Robert A. Iger, along with fellow presenters Dick Cook, chairman of The Walt Disney Studios; Roy E. Disney, Disney director emeritus; and Marty Sklar, exec VP and Walt Disney Imagineering Ambassador.