Watch Ub Iwerks Videos

Ub Iwerks, A.S.C. ( /ˈʌb ˈaɪwɜrks/; March 24, 1901 – July 7, 1971) was a two-time Academy Award winning American animator, cartoonist, character designer, inventor, creator of Mickey Mouse, and special effects technician, who was famous for his work for Walt Disney. He was born Ubbe Ert Iwwerks in Kansas City, Missouri. His father, Eert Ubbe Iwwerks, emigrated to the USA in 1869 from the village of Uttum in East Frisia (northwest Germany, today part of the municipality of Krummhörn). Ub's birth name can be seen on early “Alice” shorts that he signed. Several years later he... MORE

Ub Iwerks, A.S.C. ( /ˈʌb ˈaɪwɜrks/; March 24, 1901 – July 7, 1971) was a two-time Academy Award winning American animator, cartoonist, character designer, inventor, creator of Mickey Mouse, and special effects technician, who was famous for his work for Walt Disney. He was born Ubbe Ert Iwwerks in Kansas City, Missouri. His father, Eert Ubbe Iwwerks, emigrated to the USA in 1869 from the village of Uttum in East Frisia (northwest Germany, today part of the municipality of Krummhörn). Ub's birth name can be seen on early “Alice” shorts that he signed. Several years later he simplified his name to “Ub Iwerks”, sometimes written as "U. B. Iwerks". He is father to Disney Legend Don Iwerks and grandfather to documentary film producer Leslie Iwerks. Iwerks was considered by many to be Walt Disney's oldest friend, and spent most of his career with Disney. The two met in 1919 while working for the Pesmen-Rubin Art Studio in Kansas City, and would eventually start their own commercial art business together. Disney and Iwerks then found work as illustrators for the Kansas City Slide Newspaper Company (which would later be named The Kansas City Film Ad Company). While working for the Kansas LESS