Ralph Wright

Ralph Wright
Ralph Wright posing in front of the Oscar awarded for Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day which was awarded the 1968 Academy Award for Animated Short Film
Born	May 17, 1908 Grants Pass, Oregon, U.S.
Died	December 30, 1983 (age 75) Los Osos, CA, U.S.
Occupation	Writer, Actor, Director, Animation Pioneer
Years active	1931–1983
Spouse	Irmgard Julia Wright (1956–1983)

Ralph Waldo Wright (May 17, 1908 – December 30, 1983) was a Disney animator and story/storyboard writer who is best known for providing the gloomy, sullen voice of Eeyore from the popular Winnie-the-Pooh franchise. Wright came to the studio in the 1940s and became well known throughout the ensuing decades for his endearingly gloomy and sullen personality traits as well as his bass voice. He turned out to be a natural model for Eeyore when the studio began development on Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree. He, along with his fellow Disney contemporaries, was a pioneer in the use of "gags" within cartoons, often acted out in front of the "story board," a bulletin board pinned with sequential sketches of the cartoon's scenes. This technique still in use today in most major animation studios. He spent the last 30 years of his life in San Luis Obispo County in Los Osos. He loved his grandchildren dearly and spent many hours teaching them to see the minute details in life, which were extrodinarily fascinating and humorous to him. He died at his home in Los Osos, CA from a heart attack.

Disney credits

Writer/storyboard team

• The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977) (story)
• Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too! (1974)
• Rogue's Rock (1974) TV Series (writer)
• Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971) (animation story)
• The Aristocats (1970)
• Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (1968) (story)
• The Jungle Book (1967)
• Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966)
• The Wonderful World of Disney (3 episodes, 1957-1964)
• All About Magic (1957) TV Episode (writer)
• Yellowstone Cubs (1963)
• Gay Purr-ee (1962)
• Aquamania (1961) (story)
• Nikki, Wild Dog of the North (1961)
• Sleeping Beauty (1959) (additional story)
• Perri (1957)
• Lady and the Tramp (1955)
• Siam (1954)
• Don's Fountain of Youth (1953) (story)
• Peter Pan (1953)
• Trick or Treat (1952) (story)
• R'coon Dawg (1951) (story)
• Plutopia (1951) (story)
• Dude Duck (1951) (story)
• Lambert the Sheepish Lion (1951) (story)
• Crazy with the Heat (1947) (story)
• Song of the South (1946) (cartoon story)
• Donald's Crime (1945) (story)
• The Eyes Have It (1945) (story)
• The Three Caballeros (1944)
• Saludos Amigos (1942)
• How to Ride a Horse (1941)

Actor

• Winnie the Pooh and a Day for Eeyore (1983) (voice) .... Eeyore
• The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977) (voice) .... Eeyore
• Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (1968) (voice) .... Eeyore
• The Jungle Book (1967) (voice) .... Gloomy Elephant
• Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966) (voice) .... Eeyore

Director

• Perri (1957)
• Siam (1954)

Miscellaneous crew

• Bambi (1942) (story developer)
• The Art of Self Defense (1941) (animator)
• The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977) (performer: "Hip Hip Pooh-ray!")

External links

• Ralph Wright at the Internet Movie Database