Overview
- Disney confirmed late Thursday that Don Iwerks died the evening of July 9 at age 96, and CEO Josh D’Amaro issued a statement praising his ingenuity; the family obituary said he died surrounded by loved ones and named his wife Betty and children John, Larry and Leslie as survivors.
- Iwerks joined Walt Disney Productions in 1950, served in the U.S. Army Signal Photo Corps during the Korean War, and rose from studio camera technician to lead the Machine Shop, Camera Service Department and Technical Engineering and Manufacturing Division.
- He helped refine the sodium‑vapor traveling matte process that let live actors be combined with animated backgrounds in Mary Poppins and developed the Circle‑Vision 360 camera and projection systems that produce panoramic films for Disney parks.
- After a 35‑year Disney career he co‑founded Iwerks Entertainment in 1986 to build giant‑screen, 3D and motion‑simulator attractions worldwide, and that company was acquired by SimEx in 2001.
- His work earned major honors including the Academy’s Gordon E. Sawyer Award and status as a 2009 Disney Legend, and his restorations, writings and family connections to Ub Iwerks and filmmaker Leslie Iwerks helped preserve technical history for new generations.