Del Connell(1918-2011)
- Writer
Del Connell was a prolific writer, artist, and sculptor who started as a charter member of the Walt Disney Studios in 1939. He began in the Character Model Department where he sculpted models to provide three-dimensional reference for the animators in such films as "Fantasia," "Dumbo," "The Reluctant Dragon," and "Lady and the Tramp." He soon began writing shorts such as "The Pelican and the Snipe," and was assigned as one of the first two writers on "Alice in Wonderland" before WWII. While serving in the Army during the war, he wrote "The Cold-Blooded Penguin," which was seen in movie "The Three Caballeros." After the war he rejoined the "Alice in Wonderland" team and also wrote the short "Ben and Me," as well as writing on an abandoned version of "The Pied Piper of Hamelin." In 1955, he wrote and sketched the earliest known drafts for the first souvenir guide to Disneyland. Connell soon began a long career in comic books at Western Publishing Company, where he wrote and edited thousands of stories for various studios including Disney, Warner Bros., Hanna-Barbera, MGM, and Walter Lantz. He created many beloved comic book characters such as April, May, and June, Daisy Duck's nieces, and Super Goof, Goofy's superhero alter ego. He also created Mighty Knight, Wacky Witch, and The Close Shaves of Pauline Peril. One of his most popular creations was the comic book series "Space Family Robinson," which was reborn (with the Robinsons, but without attribution to Connell) as Irwin Allen's successful television show "Lost in Space" which ran for three seasons and in turn inspired a 1998 feature film. While editor-in-chief of the west coast office of Western Publishing, Connell continued his relationship with Disney as the writer of the popular Mickey Mouse newspaper strip for over 20 years until his retirement in 1988. Del's original pencil drawings and proof sheets reside at the UCLA special collections at the Charles E. Young Research Library. Connell died at age 93, having contributed to many classic Disney films, and having written thousands of books and comic strips that were the regular reading matter for a generation of youngsters in America and around the world.
