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Friday, March 9, 2018

Roland Hill Sr. - my 191st pick to be named a Disney Legend

Roland was a pilot in World War One; crashed his plane, and spent the remainder of the War driving officers around France and doing American Government reparations. While on the road, he sketched many of the castles that he saw, both in France and Germany, including Neuschwanstein Castle, in Bavaria. In October, 1919, he met Walt Disney, also a driver in France, (American Red Cross), showed him the castle drawings, and formed a friendship. Disney particularly liked his drawings of Neuschwanstein, with its columns and turrets. Roland's family descendants still have his original castle drawing book from France. Roland stayed in France until 1924, and graduated from the Beaux Arts School. He collected art and paintings from several prominent artists in the Paris area in the early 1920s. In about 1925, Roland joined Walt Disney in the Los Angeles area to advise on castle design and medieval architecture, including stone masonry design and interior castle details. He contributed his castle knowledge to Disney's animation department for the original full length feature film Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs, released in 1937. Roland stayed close to Walt Disney for many years, traveling with him on several occasions as part of a group. He became known as the premier castle expert in Hollywood, continuing to provide castle information to Walt Disney on Fantasia and Sleeping Beauty, in the 1940s and 1950s. Ultimately, Walt invited Roland to design the Disneyland Castle at Disneyland, in Anaheim, California, in 1953, and the park opened in 1955. The Disneyland Castle is probably the most photographed building in the world, and has been used a a basis of castle design for countless projects through the decades.


- IMDb Mini Biography By: Steven Edward Hill, grandson of Roland Hill

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