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This interview was initially released in The Carmel Pine Cone on October 28, 1993. It is reproduced in this volume, courtesy of both Anne Papineau and The Carmel Pine Cone.

In animation-art circles, the work of artist, illustrator, and author Eyvind Earle is renowned, revered, and still influential today. That this remarkable and diverse talent came to call The Walt Disney Studios home for nearly a decade of his career is a testament to his talent—and to the artistic vision of Walt Disney himself.

Born on April 26, 1916, in New York City, Eyvind moved with his family to California two years later. His father, Ferdinand Pinney Earle, was, in Eyvind’s words, “...an artist, a writer, a poet, played the violin, produced and directed a motion picture... just to mention a few of his activities.” His mother, Charlotte, was a concert pianist.

At age 10, Eyvind’s father challenged his son to either read 50 pages of a book or paint a picture every day—he did both. By age 14, he had already had his art exhibited in France, and in 1937 he had his first show in New York City. Subsequent exhibitions sold out, with one piece going into the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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