Milton Quon, 'Fantasia' Animator and 'Speed' Actor, Dies At Age 105
Milton Quon might not be a household name, but chances are you've seen the animator's work in classic Disney movies "Dumbo" and "Fantasia."
He also acted on occasion, including as an "additional passenger" on the bomb-rigged bus in "Speed."
As Quon told Uproxx in 2014 on the film's 20th anniversary, "I had just turned 80 at that time, I think. I was sketching the day after the audition at Santa Monica airport and when I got home my wife was waiting at the curb, and she says, 'You got the part!' I had to go down to SAG to pay $1,200 or something because you had to become a union member to participate."
In 2017, his son, artist Mike Quon, shared a photo to Instagram from the "Speed" set of his father with star Keanu Reeves. He added that his dad got "danger pay" for appearing in the action film.
As Quon Sr. told Uproxx, "We got extra pay when we transferred from the bus to the rescue vehicle. It was really going at pretty good speed. Someone would grab you on this side and someone would reach for you on the other side and it was really fast-moving. So we got a couple hundred dollars extra for that bit."
Mike Quon told The Hollywood Reporter today that his father, who passed away on June 18, was "drawing right up until his last days."
His father told Uproxx in 2014 that he also drew on the set of "Speed." "I remember I would make sketches and come back and make xeroxes and give them to some of the actors the next day. Somewhere I have a sketchbook that I made along the way."
Quon was born on August 22, 1913, in Los Angeles. After graduating from Chouinard Art Institute (now the California Institute of the Arts) he joined Walt Disney Studios in 1939.
He worked on the "Waltz of the Flowers" and the "Arabian Dance" scenes in "Fantasia" (1940) and was first assistant animator on "Dumbo" (1941).
The Chinese American Museum in Los Angeles presented a retrospective exhibit of his work in 2005.
Asked often about the secret to his longevity, he replied, "A good wife and Chinese food."
In an Instagram post after his father's death, Mike Quon shared that his dad will be "teaching the angels how to draw very soon."
[Via THR]
![](https://cdn.moviefone.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/mf-follow-us-instagram-1.png)