Former Palm Springs Resident Roy Disney Dies At 79
NEWPORT BEACH- Roy Edward Disney, the nephew of Walt Disney whose commitment to his uncle’s creative spirit prompted him to mount revolts that led to the unseating of two of the company’s chief executives and a revival of the studio’s legendary animation unit, has died.
He was 79. Disney, who had been battling cancer, died this morning, according to Clifford A. Miller, a spokesman for Disney’s company Shamrock Holdings.
Roy used tolive in Palm Springs. His father owned a home on Indian Trail, while his uncle Walt owned a home in Smoke TreeRanch.
A press release issued by the Disney Corporation details his life more:
Disney’s disagreements with the company’s leadership prompted him to resign as an executive in 1977 and surrender his board position in 1984. His departure helped lead to the ouster of president and CEO Ronald William Miller, who was replaced by Michael Eisner.
Disney returned to the company as vice chairman of the board and head of the animation department, which he is credited with revitalizing — leading to the production of box-office hits including “The Little Mermaid,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “Aladdin” and “The Lion King.”
Disney resigned from the board in 2003, and along with former board member and longtime business associate Stanley Gold, he helped mount an effort that led to Eisner’s resignation and replacement with Iger.
Disney and Gold initially challenged the selection of Iger, even suing the company over the process that led to Iger’s selection. But Iger and Disney buried the hatchet, and Disney was appointed a director emeritus and company consultant.
During his absence from the company in the late 1970s, Disney and Gold founded an investment firm called Shamrock Holdings, which became renowned for its corporate-takeover efforts of companies including L.A. Gear, Polaroid and Wherehouse Entertainment.
“Roy and I enjoyed a 35-year friendship and partnership that was simply special,” said Gold, who is president of Shamrock Holdings. “We faced many business challenges together, had fun in the process and enjoyed a wide variety of professional successes.
“Roy was a man who was steadfastly loyal to his principles and to his friends,” he said. “He was a gracious, humble gentleman who could make the tough decisions life sometimes requires. He carried teh torch high and proud, and the world is a better place for his tireless efforts.”
The child of Roy O. and Edna Disney, Roy E. Disney began his entertainment-industry career working as an assistant film editor on the “Dragnet” television series. He joined Walt Disney Studios in 1953 as an assistant film editor on films such as “The Living Desert” and “The Vanishing Prairie.”
An avid yachtsman, he and the crew of his yacht Pyewacket won the Transpacific Yacht Race from Los Angeles to Honolulu in 1999. He is survived by his wife Leslie, four children from a previous marriage and 16 grandchildren. Funeral services were expected to be private.
His ashes will be scattered at sea.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in his name to The Roy and Patricia Disney Family Cancer Center at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank.
