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Biography

Reitherman began working for Disney in 1934, along with future Disney legends Ward Kimball and Milt Kahl. The three worked together on a number of classic Disney shorts, including The Band Concert, Music Land, and Elmer Elephant and in all, Reitherman worked on various Disney feature films produced from 1937 to 1981, including Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Slave in the Magic Mirror) to The Fox and the Hound (co-producer). He did the climatic dinosaur fight in Igor Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring in Fantasia, the Headless Horseman chase in "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" section in The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, the Crocodile in Peter Pan, and Maleficent as a dragon in Sleeping Beauty (the former three he animated and the latter he directed). Beginning with 1961's One Hundred and One Dalmatians, "Woolie", as he was called by friends, served as Disney's chief animation director. One of Reitherman's productions, the 1968 short Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day, won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. He also served as a producer and sequence director, and starred as himself in the 1941 feature film The Reluctant Dragon. All three of Reitherman's sons — Bruce, Richard and Robert — provided voices for Disney characters, including Mowgli in The Jungle Book, Christopher Robin in Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree, and Wart in The Sword in the Stone. Reitherman directed several Disney animated feature films including, One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961), The Sword in the Stone (1963), The Jungle Book (1967), The Aristocats (1970),Robin Hood (1973) and The Rescuers (1977). He is also known for reusing animation in movies directed by him. According to Floyd Norman, this was just one of his trademarks, and had nothing to do with time or cost savings: "Woolie was our director on The Jungle Book. Reuse was just Woolie’s thing. He never did it to save money. I really don’t think the “Old Guard” ever had any interest in saving money. I was never a big fan of reuse, but it wasn’t my place to tell these old guys what to do. One final thought. It never seemed to bother Walt, and I never heard him complain about reuse."

The Rescuers ( 1977) | IMDb: 6.9

Adventure , Animation , Family , Fantasy

Two agents of the mouse-run International Rescue Aid Society search for a little orphan girl kidnapped by sinister treasure hunters.

Starring:

Bob Newhart , Eva Gabor , Geraldine Page , Joe Flynn , Jeanette Nolan , Pat Buttram

Directed by:

John Lounsbery , Wolfgang Reitherman , Sylvia Roemer

Produced by:

Ron Miller , Wolfgang Reitherman

Robin Hood ( 1973) | IMDb: 7.5

Adventure , Animation , Family

With King Richard off to the Crusades, Prince John and his slithering minion, Sir Hiss, set about taxing Nottingham's citizens with support from the corrupt sheriff - and staunch opposition by the wily Robin Hood and his band of merry men.

Starring:

Brian Bedford , Phil Harris , Andy Devine , Monica Evans , Peter Ustinov , Terry-Thomas

Directed by:

Ed Templer Jr. , Basil Davidovich , Wolfgang Reitherman

Produced by:

Wolfgang Reitherman , Don A. Duckwall

The Aristocats ( 1970) | IMDb: 7.1

Adventure , Animation , Comedy , Family

When Madame Adelaide Bonfamille leaves her fortune to Duchess and her children—Bonfamille’s beloved family of cats—the butler plots to steal the money and kidnaps the legatees, leaving them out on a country road. All seems lost until the wily Thomas O’Malley Cat and his jazz-playing alley cats come to the aristocats’ rescue.

Starring:

Phil Harris , Eva Gabor , Sterling Holloway , Scatman Crothers , Paul Winchell , Lord Tim Hudson

Directed by:

Wolfgang Reitherman , Sylvia Roemer

Produced by:

Wolfgang Reitherman , Winston Hibler

The Jungle Book ( 1967) | IMDb: 7.6

Adventure , Animation , Family

The boy Mowgli makes his way to the man-village with Bagheera, the wise panther. Along the way he meets jazzy King Louie, the hypnotic snake Kaa and the lovable, happy-go-lucky bear Baloo, who teaches Mowgli "The Bare Necessities" of life and the true meaning of friendship.

Starring:

Bruce Reitherman , Phil Harris , Sebastian Cabot , George Sanders , Sterling Holloway , Louis Prima

Directed by:

Dale Barnhart , Don Griffith , Wolfgang Reitherman

Produced by:

Walt Disney , Don A. Duckwall

The Sword in the Stone ( 1963) | IMDb: 7.1

Animation , Family , Fantasy

Wart is a young boy who aspires to be a knight's squire. On a hunting trip he falls in on Merlin, a powerful but amnesiac wizard who has plans for him beyond mere squiredom. He starts by trying to give him an education, believing that once one has an education, one can go anywhere. Needless to say, it doesn't quite work out that way.

Starring:

Sebastian Cabot , Karl Swenson , Junius Matthews , Martha Wentworth , Norman Alden , Rickie Sorensen

Directed by:

Wolfgang Reitherman , Sylvia Roemer

Produced by:

Walt Disney

One Hundred and One Dalmatians ( 1961) | IMDb: 7.3

Adventure , Animation , Comedy , Family

When a litter of dalmatian puppies are abducted by the minions of Cruella De Vil, the parents must find them before she uses them for a diabolical fashion statement.

Starring:

Rod Taylor , J. Pat O'Malley , Betty Lou Gerson , Martha Wentworth , Ben Wright , Cate Bauer

Directed by:

Clyde Geronimi , Hamilton Luske , Sylvia Roemer

Produced by:

Walt Disney , Ken Peterson

Wolfgang Reitherman Movies: Top 6 Performances by a Successful Director

Biography