- Was part of the inner circle of Disney animators, known as the "nine old men". The other members were Frank Thomas, Ollie Johnston, Milt Kahl, Marc Davis, Eric Larson, Ward Kimball, John Lounsbery and Les Clark.
- Served in the U.S. Air Force during World War II and won the Distinguished Flying Cross, having seen action in Africa, China, India and the South Pacific.
- Before joining Walt Disney Studios in 1934, he was employed as a draftsman by Douglas Aircraft.
- Retired from Walt Disney Productions in 1981 after his last produce animated film The Fox and the Hound (1981).
- Was fatally injured when his car veered into a tree just a few blocks from his home in Burbank, CA. He died at St. Joseph Medical Center, the same hospital where Walt Disney died in 1966.
- Was posthumously named a Disney Legend in 1989.
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