Bill Littlejohn, RIP

Bill Littlejohn, one of the sturdy oaks of the animation business, passes away at 96 ....

Cartoon Brew has a long and excellent recap of Mr. Littlejohn's long career. We'll only add that Bill Littlejohn was a long-time union man, serving as the Screen Cartoonists Guild's President when Walt Disney Productions was organized.

As Tom Sito notes in his book Drawing the Line:

... Littlejohn worked to get Walt Disney artists to abandon the company union and sign cards in the independent Screen Cartoonists Guild ... {During the strike that followed] Bill .. flew his small plane overhead and did victory rolls to the cheers of the picketeers ...

And Tom has just written:

"Bill Littlejohn was a friend, and a great animator. More than that, he was a helluva union president. As a Guild activist, He probably tweaked more than one nose of the powerful to make conditions better for all us artists. He was an inspiration. God Bless you Bill, and give your craft a nice tailwind as you begin your final ascent. ".