Winston Hibler
Winston Hibler ( born October 8, 1910 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; † August 8, 1976 in Los Angeles, California ) was an American screenwriter, film producer and director as well as actor and off-speakers. Is best known his work for Walt Disney productions. The English film and television audiences he is familiar as spokesman for the Disney documentaries.
Life
Background, education and initial professional years
Winston Hibler wanted to be as a young actor, so I went to New York to attend at the city's American Academy of Dramatic Arts appropriate training, which he completed in 1930. In the same year he married the actress and figure skater Dorothy " Dottie " Johnson ( 1912-2010 ). The couple had three children, including Christopher Hibler (1942-2010), who after training in the Disney Studios was later also worked in the film business.
Initially he played in the early 1930s for a short time on Broadway and the theater season, Winston Hibler tried to gain a foothold in Hollywood. As an actor, he was in the film business, however, about extras and tiny supporting roles not excessive and kept as a freelance writer for magazines and radio stations over water.
Career at Disney Studios
In 1942 he started at the Walt Disney Studios as a camera operator, but soon worked his way up to Technical Director ( Technical Director ) military training films, which made the studio during the Second World War on behalf of the U.S. government. His first movie was pure entertainment then music, dance and rhythm (1948 ), for which he the screenplay for the Johnny Appleseed segment (Johnny Appleseed ) wrote. Walt Disney recognized his talent as a writer, and as a result Winston Hibler was then involved up to and including Sleeping Beauty and the Prince (1959 ) on the screenplay development for all long Disney animated films, except only Lady and the Tramp ( 1955). For these films, he worked as a dialogue director and contributed some lyrics, such as the written together with Ted Sears songs Following the Leader for Peter Pan's light-hearted adventure (1953) and I Wonder for Sleeping Beauty and the Prince (1959). In his role as songwriter Hibler was from 1954 a member of the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers ( ASCAP ).
The voice of Disney documentaries
However, the general public in English-speaking Winston Hibler is known primarily as a commentator for the Disney documentary series journeys of discovery in the realm of nature (True -Life Adventures ) and Land and People ( People and Places ). His calm and pleasant voice, marked by the accent of the Midwest was, beginning with The Robben Island (1948 ), a hallmark of all these films. This was Walt Disney well aware, and so Hibler had for over a decade mainly to do with this documentary productions. Already from the earth, the great unknown (1951 ), he wrote regularly also on the scripts, where he worked closely with his fellow writers Ted Sears and co-producer Ben Sharpsteen and director James Algar. In this constellation, Hibler was also significant contributors to the success of the long cinema documentaries such as The Living Desert (1953), The Vanishing Prairie (1954 ) and Secrets of the Steppe ( 1955).
In contrast, his work was for the country and people into the background. A film of travel film series, company Arctic ( 1955), he designed in personal union as a director, screenwriter and speaker with decisive. The documentation on icebreakers in the Arctic Ocean in 1956 Walt Disney brought not only the Oscar for "Best Short Documentary " but personally Hibler also the "Little Golden Plaque " at the International Film Festival in Berlin. He later led even at Seven Cities of Antarctica (1958 ) Director.
Particularly intense Hibler also worked with Ralph Wright and N. Paul Kenworthy, Jr. of Perris Adventure ( 1957), Disney's first and only True -Life Fantasy. In this live-action adaptation of the presentation of Felix Salten recordings were real animals used in reference to the style of documentaries. Hibler was there not only involved on the script and song lyrics, but also co-producer and narrator.
In addition, Hibler worked as writer, director and spokesperson with several episodes of Disney TV show Disneyland, in which he was several times also be seen in the camera. A particular success was about the staged together with Hamilton S. Luske TV special company Deep Sea (1954 ), the thematized not only the history of the exploration of the deep sea, but at the same time as making-of for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954 ) acted. The studio won an Emmy for 1955.
As a producer,
When Walt Disney was phasing out its documentary series about the early 1960s, to Hibler concentrated - starting with Nikki, Heroes of the North ( 1961) - as Production Manager primarily on those feature film productions of the studio in which animals or nature were supporting elements. Particularly, he worked closely with director Norman Tokar here and screenwriter Louis Pelletier, so at this Calloway (1965) and Forty Daredevil ( 1966). Occasionally he also directed himself, so with the sensitive animal adventure films The lone Puma ( 1967), Lefty, the lynx (1971) and Chandar, the Black Leopard ( 1972).
After Walt Disney's death in 1966 Winston Hibler was next to James Algar, Bill Anderson, Ron Miller, Bill Walsh, Harry and Roy E. Disney tytle to the staff of seven producers who took over the production line, chaired by Disney Vice President Card Walker. They were primarily responsible for the entire film production studios for the next decade. Overall, Hibler, which was simply called only Hib or Hibbie within the studio, involved in some 150 film and television productions of the Disney studios.
His last feature film was the elaborate, but not very successful science fiction film adaptation island at the end of the world ( 1974).
Just working on preparatory work for The Black Hole (1979 ), Winston Hibler died suddenly and unexpectedly at the age of 65 years on August 8, 1976.
In recognition of his services he was appointed the Walt Disney Company in 1992 posthumously to Disney Legend.