Bruce Bushman(1911-1972)

Art director Bruce Bushman (born Francis X. Bruce Bushman) was born in New Jersey in 1911, the son of silent-film star Francis X. Bushman. He was raised in Baltimore, Maryland, and later moved to Los Angeles, California, where he attended UCLA and the prestigious Chouinard Art Institute. In 1936 he was hired by Walt Disney Studios as a layout artist, but eventually worked his way up to art director; among the projects he worked on was Fantasia (1940). He married Mary Ena Cousineau, a fellow Disney employee, in 1945 and they had two children.

In 1953 Bushman was assigned to help in the development of Disney's signature theme park, Disneyland. He helped to design Tomorrowland and Fantasyland--he designed the Fantasyland Castle, among other things--and the overall layout of the park itself. At the same time he worked as a sketch artist on the Disney film 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954). After he finished with those projects, he was assigned as the Art Director for a new TV show Disney was developing: The Mickey Mouse Club (1955). He designed the look of the show and created the famous Mickey Mouse Club logo and the logos for all the T-shirts and caps for the The Adventures of Spin and Marty (1955) series. For "The Mickey Mouse Club" he also designed the shows's sets and props, including the famous clubhouse used for "Anything Can Happen Day".

Bushman left Disney in late 1959 or early 1960--sources differ--and went to work for producer Ivan Tors, where he worked as art director on three of Tors' series: Sea Hunt (1958), Bat Masterson (1958) and Gentle Ben (1967). After leaving Tors he went to Hanna-Barbera Productions as a layout artist, working on such series as Jonny Quest (1964), The Jetsons (1962) and The Flintstones (1960).

He died in Los Angeles on February 15, 1972, at the age of 60.