Disney Wiki
Advertisement
Disney Wiki

Kenneth Lorin "Ken" Darby was an American composer, vocal arranger, lyricist, and conductor, who worked on Disney films throughout the 1940s, like Dumbo, Make Mine Music, Melody Time, and So Dear to My Heart. He was also a writer and production supervisor for the studio.

Darby was born in Hebron, Nebraska, on May 13, 1909, to Lorin Edward Darby and Clara Alice Powell and was educated at Christian College alongside Tibor Serly, Ernst Toch, Herman Hand, and Victor Young. He originated The King's Men male vocal quartet in 1929 and appeared on radio, films, concerts, television, and recordings. Such film appearances included Honolulu, You're a Lucky Fellow, Mr. Smith, Call Out the Marines, For Me and My Gal, Two-Faced Woman, Renegade Trail, Broadway Serenade, Going Hollywood, and Alexander's Ragtime Band. Later, he led and arranged music for the Ken Darby Singers for people, like Bing Crosby, where the group provided background vocals for his recording of "White Christmas".

Joining ASCAP in 1946, his popular-song compositions included "The Chool Song", "Love Song of Kalua", "Saga of the Ponderosa", "Ports of Paradise", "Merry Christmas Neighbor", "Endless Prairie", "Whispering Wind", "Army Air Corps Song", a musical version of "T'was the Night Before Christmas", "This Friendly World", "I'm Gonna File My Claim"), "The River of No Return", "You're Easy to Dance With", "Once You Kiss a Stranger", "Ballad of the Green Berets", "New York", "Vicki", "Sunday Morning", and "Love Me Tender".

Darby's film scores were recognized by the awarding of three Academy Awards and one Grammy Award. His first major film contribution was providing musical arrangement for the Munchkinland sequence in The Wizard of Oz, as well as vocals for the mayor, portrayed by Charlie Becker. he would continue to work as a composer, arranger, and vocal director for movies, like The King and I, South Pacific, Porgy and Bess, Flower Drum Song, How the West Was Won, Camelot, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, There's No Business Like Show Business, Love Me Tender, Bus Stop, Finian's Rainbow, The Greatest Story Ever Told, State Fair, River of No Return, The Girl Next Door, Call Me Madam, Stars and Stripes Forever, With a Song in My Heart, Mr. Belvedere Goes to College, The Canadians, The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing, Garden of Evil, Carousal, Rancho Notorious, Elmer Gantry, Journey to the Center of the Earth, and An Affair to Remember. He also provided the theme songs for the television shows: The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp and The Adventures of Jim Bowie.

In later life, Darby wrote a biography of author Neo Wolfe titled "The Brownstone House of Nero Wolfe". He was in the final process of writing "Hollywood Holyland: The Filming and Scoring of 'The Greatest Story Ever Told" when he died in 1992. He was buried at the Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles.

Filmography[]

Year Film Position
1941 Dumbo Musical Director - uncredited
1942 Bambi Choral Arrangements - uncredited
1946 Song of the South Vocal Director
Songwriter: "Who Wants to Live Like That?"
"Let the Rain Pour Down"
"All I Want" - uncredited
1946 Make Mine Music Associate Music Director
Choral Director: Ken Darby Chorus & The King's Men
Songwriter: "Make Mine Music"
"Casey (The Pride of Them All)"
Composer: "Casey at the Bat"
Musical Director: "Willie the Operatic Whale"
Performer: "Blue Bayou"
1948 Melody Time Musical Director
Composer: "Little Toot"
"Once Upon a Wintertime"
1949 So Dear to My Heart Vocal Director
1949 The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad Vocal Arranger
1950 The Brave Engineer Composer
Singer (as The King's Men)

Trivia[]

External links[]

v - e - d
Walt Disney Animation Studios - Transparent Logo
1920s—1970s
Disney's Nine Old Men: Milt KahlFrank ThomasOllie JohnstonLes ClarkJohn LounsberyMarc DavisWard KimballEric LarsonWolfgang Reitherman

Animators: Bill TytlaArt BabbittLee BlairPreston BlairFred MooreShamus CulhaneCy YoungDon LuskNorman FergusonHal KingJack HannahDick KinneyHal AmbroKen O'BrienJudge WhitakerBill JusticeDon BluthGary GoldmanCharles A. NicholsBlaine GibsonJohn EwingWalt StanchfieldRolly CrumpFred HellmichAmby PaliwodaWilfred JacksonXavier AtencioBen SharpsteenEarl HurdDale OliverEric CleworthDavid HandFred SpencerJulius SvendsenJack BradburyKenneth MuseRudolf IsingHugh HarmanFriz FrelengWalt KellyLeo SalkinJohn DehnerRetta ScottDavid SwiftMel ShawJack CuttingGrant SimmonsArt StevensFrank TashlinWathel RogersTyrus WongJohnny CannonBernard WolfJohn W. DunnHenry SelickTony StroblChuck WilliamsBurny MattinsonDave SudingAndy Gaskill
Visual Development, Layout, Background Artists and Character Designers: Gustaf TenggrenMary BlairMarjorie RalstonLillian BoundsJoe GrantMel ShawClaude CoatsDon DaGradiJohn HenchEyvind EarleKen O'ConnorThor PutnamAlbert HurterJohn HubleyHerbert RymanDon GriffithBasil DavidovichJack BoydPeter EllenshawRuthie TompsonEarl DuvallRetta DavidsonUb IwerksVance GerryHazel SewellJames BodreroLance NolleyGrace BaileyMaurice NobleDale BarnhartAndy EngmanEustace LycettJohn EmersonJoe HaleLeota ToombsFerdinand HorvathJerry ReesDan HansenJim ColemanDorse Lanpher
Storyboard Artists and Writers: Bill PeetRalph WrightDick HuemerFloyd NormanYale GraceyTed SearsErdman PennerJoe RinaldiWinston HiblerOtto EnglanderWilliam CottrellBill BergAl BertinoT. HeeHomer BrightmanTed OsbourneLarry ClemmonsHarry ReevesJesse MarshChuck CouchWebb SmithDick SebastPeter Young
Directors: Clyde GeronimiHamilton LuskeJack KinneyTed BermanRichard RichGeorge ScribnerRiley ThomsonDick LundyJack KingBurt GillettJames AlgarBill RobertsLarry LansburghRichard Irvine
Producers: Walt DisneyRon MillerKen AndersonDon DuckwallPerce PearceMargaret J. Winkler

1980s—present
Renaissance Directors: Rob MinkoffRoger AllersGary TrousdaleKirk WiseChris SandersMark DindalJohn MuskerMike Gabriel

Story Trust Directors: Ron ClementsChris BuckByron HowardDon HallChris WilliamsRich MooreStephen J. AndersonNathan GrenoFawn Veerasunthorn
Producers: Peter Del VechoClark SpencerRoy ConliDorothy McKimDon HahnShane MorrisPeter Schneider
Chief Creative Officer: Jennifer Lee
Associated Figures: Bob IgerRoy Edward DisneyMichael EisnerJohn LasseterEd CatmullJeffrey KatzenbergBob Chapek
Signature Voice Actors: Jim CummingsAlan TudykKatie LowesJohn DiMaggioMaurice LaMarcheJodi BensonDavid Ogden StiersJesse CortiPaul BriggsRaymond S. PersiPhil JohnstonFrank WelkerBill FarmerBrian Cummings
Signature Musicians: Robert B. Sherman Richard M. Sherman Alan Menken Kristen Anderson-Lopez Robert LopezLin-Manuel MirandaHoward AshmanTim RicePhil CollinsStephen SchwartzMarc ShaimanDanny Troob
Supervising Animators: Glen KeaneAndreas DejaEric GoldbergMark HennJohn PomeroyRandy HaycockDale BaerTony BancroftTom BancroftTony FucileAnthony DeRosaRuss EdmondsBruce W. SmithMichael SurreyDuncan MarjoribanksRuben AquinoNik RanieriRon HusbandRick FarmiloeTom SitoTony AnselmoWill FinnKathy ZielinskiHendel ButoyEllen WoodburyMatthew O'CallaghanDavid PruiksmaBob WalkerAaron BlaiseJay JacksonNancy KniepJames BaxterTony FucileSergio Pablos
Visual Development & Storyboard Artists: Dean DeBloisClaire KeaneBrittney LeeJin KimShiyoon KimRyan GreenSue C. NicholsMichael Peraza, Jr.Kevin LimaKelly AsburyKelvin YasudaToby SheltonBarry CookSteve StarrJohn TuckerPeter GullerudMark KennedyMabel L. GesnerCarole HollidayJorgen KlubienDon PaulVan ShirvanianBrian PimentalDonovan CookDavid PimentelJoseph Christopher PepeAlex MannGeoffrey C. EvertsRob GibbsGraham WoodsRay Hofstedt
Other Animators: Kaaren LundeenTimothy O'DonnellMichael HumphriesTim BurtonBrenda ChapmanDavid CutlerSandro CleuzoJane BaerEd GombertBarry TempleGary M. EgglestonBrian CliftBrad BirdDavid StephanRay HarrisLureline WeatherlyMark KalesnikoJoe LanziseroRuben ProcopioPhilip PhillipsonRaul Aguirre Jr.Barry AtkinsonThomas BakerChris BaileyGeefwee BoedoeJane MisekRob CorleyDaan JippesEric PigorsDorothea Baker PaulTrey FinneyPres RomanillosMartin SchwartzMichael ShowKevin M. SmithEdward R. GutierrezJuliet StroudBill ThinnesAsh BrannonGilda PalinginisDonald ParmeleDana ReemesTheresa WisemanMarianne TuckerLillian A. ChapmanClaudia V. KeeneLorna CookChristine Lawrence FinneyLaurey FoulkesMarsha ParkMike CosaJody KooistraAndrew RamosMary-Jean RepchukEric WallsElizabeth S. WatasinJames Young JacksonJymn MagonButch HartmanBill WaldmanChris SonnenburgMarc TosoliniGontran HoarauLieve MiessenFlorence MontceauMarco AllardBert KleinJim SniderJames LopezMarc SmithMark KoetsierBradley RaymondCathie Karas WilkeClay KaytisMichael LesterMichael BenetBilly GeorgeBrooks CampbellJohn PuglisiDoug PostAnthony Wayne Michaels

Advertisement