Evelyn Kennedy Explained
| Evelyn Kennedy |
| Alias: | Evelyn Kennedy Myers |
| Birth Date: | 1915 |
| Death Date: | 1990 |
| Occupation: | Music editor |
| Years Active: | 1955–1981 |
| Birth Place: | Amarillo, Texas |
| Module: | |
Evelyn Kennedy Myers (1915 – 1990) was a music editor for the Walt Disney Company, where she contributed to over 100 movies, including Lady and the Tramp (1955), Sleeping Beauty (1959), Mary Poppins (1964), and The Jungle Book (1967).
Biography
Early life
Evelyn Kennedy was born in Amarillo, Texas. She studied at the Amarillo School of Music. There, she became a pupil of Lila Austin, who had studied under E. Robert Schmitz and Joseph Lhevine.[1] On July 12, 1936, Kennedy married Austen Myers.[2]
Kennedy was an accomplished pianist and accordionist, and began teaching at her alma mater. Kennedy held recitals for her students performing keys on stage. During World War II, Kennedy joined the United States Navy and was hired to be a stenographer typist for Walt Disney Productions, where they were commissioned to provide wartime propaganda.[3]
Career at Disney
Because of World War II, the gender shift in the workforce had changed with women taking a larger role in the workplace. Breaking into the film industry, which was heavily male dominated, was difficult; however, Kennedy's skill solidified her position. She was hired by Walt Disney Productions in 1954, with her first film being Lady and the Tramp (1955). The film earned an estimated $6.5 million in distributor rentals within the United States and Canada.[4] Over the next three decades, Kennedy collaborated with several musical composers, editing and compiling recorded dialogue, sound effects, and instrumental score music to match every visual cue for over 100 films.[5]
In an interview with Richard Sherman (of the Sherman Brothers), he talks about his work-relationship with Evelyn Kennedy. "She was a bit older than me, so I was kind of like 'the kid' wandering around, but I was so interested in how she did it. She never let anybody [else] into her editing room where she worked with the Moviola – switching and pushing the film around to make it work. She had a little sign that said, 'Nobody can enter except Richard Sherman.' I was the one guy she would let come in. I was not supposed to talk, so I could just stand there and watch how she worked and how she did it. I was fascinated by it.... It was 'lessons' for me. I was learning so much in those days."
In 1977, when discussing her job as a film music editor, Kennedy's only lament was that she "there were more openings for young people looking for a career".
Filmography
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|
| 1955 | Lady and the Tramp |
| The African Lion (Documentary) |
| Men Against the Arctic |
| 1956 | Secrets of Life |
| 1957 | Public Pigeon No. 1 |
| Perri (Documentary) |
| Old Yeller |
| 1958 | The Light in the Forest |
| White Wilderness (Documentary) |
| Tonka |
| 1959 | Sleeping Beauty |
| The Shaggy Dog |
| Darby O'Gill and the Little People |
| 1960 | Toby Tyler or Ten Weeks with a Circus |
| Pollyanna |
| Jungle Cat (Documentary) |
| The Hound That Thought He Was a Raccoon (Short) |
| Ten Who Dared |
| 1961 | One Hundred and One Dalmatians[6] |
| The Absent-Minded Professor |
| The Parent Trap |
| Nikki, Wild Dog of the North |
| Babes in Toyland |
| 1962 | Moon Pilot |
| Bon Voyage! |
| Big Red |
| The Legend of Lobo (Documentary) |
| 1963 | Son of Flubber |
| Summer Magic |
| Savage Sam |
| The Incredible Journey |
| The Three Lives of Thomasina |
| The Sword in the Stone |
| 1964 | The Misadventures of Merlin Jones |
| A Tiger Walks |
| Mary Poppins |
| 1965 | Those Calloways |
| That Darn Cat! |
| 1966 | The Ugly Dachshund |
| Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (Short) | Uncredited |
| Lt. Robin Crusoe, U.S.N. |
| Follow Me, Boys! |
| 1963–1981 | Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color (TV series) | Archive footage |
| 1967 | Monkeys, Go Home! |
| The Adventures of Bullwhip Griffin |
| The Gnome-Mobile |
| The Jungle Book |
| The Happiest Millionaire |
| 1968 | Blackbeard's Ghost |
| The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band |
| Never a Dull Moment |
| The Horse in the Gray Flannel Suit |
| Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (Short) | Uncredited |
| The Love Bug |
| 1969 | Rascal |
| The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes |
| 1970 | King of the Grizzlies |
| The Boatniks |
| The Aristocats |
| The Wild Country |
| The Courtship of Eddie's Father (TV series) |
| 1971 | The Barefoot Executive |
| Scandalous John |
| The Million Dollar Duck |
| Bedknobs and Broomsticks |
| The Biscuit Eater |
| 1972 | Napoleon and Samantha |
| Now You See Him, Now You Don't |
| Run, Cougar, Run |
| Snowball Express |
| 1973 | The World's Greatest Athlete |
| Charley and the Angel |
| One Little Indian |
| Robin Hood |
| Superdad |
| 1974 | Herbie Rides Again |
| The Bears and I |
| The Castaway Cowboy |
| The Island at the Top of the World |
| Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too (Short) | Uncredited |
| 1975 | The Strongest Man in the World |
| Escape to Witch Mountain |
| The Apple Dumpling Gang |
| 1976 | No Deposit, No Return |
| Treasure of Matecumbe |
| Gus |
| The Shaggy D.A. |
| Freaky Friday |
| 1977 | The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh |
| The Rescuers |
| A Tale of Two Critters (Documentary) |
| Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo |
| Pete's Dragon |
| 1978 | Return from Witch Mountain |
| The Cat from Outer Space |
| Hot Lead and Cold Feet |
| The Small One (Short) |
| 1979 | The North Avenue Irregulars |
| The Black Hole |
| 1980 | The Last Flight of Noah's Ark |
| Herbie Goes Bananas |
| 1981 | The Fox and the Hound |
| 1982 | Tex | Supervising music editor
Credited as Eve Kennedy |
| 1983 | Never Cry Wolf | Supervising music editor |
| 1984 | Splash | Supervising music editor | |
Notes and References
- News: 1937-09-01. Lila Austin Myers Returns from Studies in Denver. 8. The Amarillo Globe-Times. 2021-04-27. Newspapers.com.
- News: 1936-07-23. Ex-Students Wed on July 12 in Amarillo. 5. Canyon News. 2021-04-27. Newspapers.com.
- Kennedy. Evelyn. March 1977. Film Music Editor. Music Educators Journal. 63. 7. 71. 10.2307/3395214. 3396097. 221051320. 0027-4321.
- 1955's Top Film Grossers. 1. Variety. January 25, 1956. Internet Archive.
- News: Brown . Ray . Eight wins don't add up to much . . 5 . October 14, 1975 . Newspapers.com.
- Book: Holt, Nathalia. Nathalia Holt. The Queens of Animation: The Untold Story of the Women Who Transformed the World of Disney and Made Cinematic History. 2019. 978-0-316-43916-9. New York. Little, Brown and Company. 1124852972.
