Pete Young

Long ago, Mr. Young was an up and coming creative powerhouse at Disney Feature Animation.

... [A] good story artist has to know when to make decisive moves in story development. Pete learned not to introduce a new story element if his director wasn't ready for it. Good ideas presented at the wrong time stood a chance of getting rejected. At Disney, the politics of story can be as important as creative skills. Pete Young - along with Ron Clements sold “Basil of Baker Street” as an animated project. And sure enough the film was green lit for production by studio boss, Ron Miller. ...

In the early eighties, Pete was one of the pillars of the Disney Feature Animation. He was in his middle thirties then, but looked like he was twenty-five. Or twenty-two. He was one of the drivers in the story department, with an uncanny knack for coming up with the right story/character/gag when the Boss (whoever he happened to be) was most ready to receive it.

He's been gone almost thirty years. I think about him all the time.