Paul Edward Wenzel (February 14, 1935 – May 27, 2022) was an American artist, best known for his career with

The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was founded on October 16 ...

, creating illustrations for movie posters and retail merchandise.Dave Smith, ''Disney A to Z: The Updated Official Encyclopedia'',

Career

Wenzel first began at Disney in 1958, working for the studio for 42 years, creating thousands of illustrations for movies and consumer products. Wenzel worked on over 100 movie posters during his tenure as a designer/illustrator for the Motion Picture Advertising Department, including the Academy Award winning ''

Mary Poppins Mary Poppins may refer to: * Mary Poppins (character), a nanny with magical powers * Mary Poppins (franchise), based on the fictional nanny ** Mary Poppins (book series), ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fanta ...

''; re-releases of ''

Pinocchio Pinocchio ( , ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the children's novel, ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (1883) by Italian writer Carlo Collodi of Florence, Tuscany. Pinocchio was carved by a poor man named Geppetto in a Tuscan vil ...

'' and ''

Song of the South ''Song of the South'' is a 1946 American Live-action animated film, live-action/animated musical film, musical comedy-drama film directed by Harve Foster and Wilfred Jackson, produced by Walt Disney, and released by RKO Pictures, RKO Radio Pi ...

''; '' The Parent Trap''; ''

Herbie Goes Bananas ''Herbie Goes Bananas'' is a 1980 American adventure comedy film directed by Vincent McEveety and written by Don Tait. The film is the fourth installment in the ''Herbie'' film series and the sequel to '' Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo'' (1977). ...

''; '' Gus''; '' The Monkey's Uncle''; '' The Misadventures of Merlin Jones''; '' The Horse in the Gray Flannel Suit''; '' Moon Pilot''; '' Summer Magic''; '' Pete's Dragon''; '' Dragonslayer''; '' The Black Cauldron''; and '' Fox and the Hound''. Wenzel created concept paintings for '' Primeval World'' as part of Walt Disney's Ford Motor Company ''Magic Skyway'' attraction at the 1964–1965 New York World's Fair. Wenzel created concept art of

The Haunted Mansion The Haunted Mansion is a dark ride, dark-ride attraction located at Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, and Tokyo Disneyland. The haunted house attraction features a ride-through tour in Omnimover vehicles called “Doom Buggies”, and a walk-through s ...

that would later become the cover of the 1964 Disneyland Records album '' Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of the Haunted House''. Wenzel also designed nearly a dozen Disney Company Christmas cards. Wenzel became

Disney Consumer Products Disney Consumer Products, Inc. is the retailing and licensing subsidiary of the Disney Experiences segment of The Walt Disney Company. Previously, Consumer Products was a segment of Disney until 2016, then a unit of Disney Consumer Products and I ...

first Art Director for their creative publishing team, and in 1985, Paul was made Creative Director of Character Art, supervising over 25 artists.

Walt Disney commemorative stamp

Wenzel's most famous work is the

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...

portrait made, after Disney's passing in 1966, for a 6-cent

commemorative stamp A commemorative stamp is a postage stamp, often issued on a significant date such as an anniversary, to honor or commemorate a place, event, person, or object. The ''subject'' of the commemorative stamp is usually spelled out in print, unlike defi ...

issued in the United States on September 11, 1968. The stamp represents Walt Disney with a line of ''

It's A Small World It's a Small World (stylized in all lowercase and in quotations or with exclamation mark) is an Old Mill boat ride located in the Fantasyland area at various Disney theme parks around the world. Versions of the ride are installed at Disney ...

'' styled children coming out of a silhouette of Disneyland's

Sleeping Beauty Castle Sleeping Beauty Castle is a fairy tale castle at the center of Disneyland and formerly at Hong Kong Disneyland. It is based on the late 19th century Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, Germany.Imagineers (1998). Walt Disney Imagineering: A Behind t ...

on the edge of a sphere. The portrait was illustrated by Wenzel while the children and the castle were made by Bob Moore. During the first 10 days that the Disney stamp was on sale throughout the United States, more than 150 million copies were sold, making the Disney stamp one of the most popular and successful issues in United States history.

Other work and retirement

Throughout the 1960s Wenzel was also an illustrator for science-fiction magazines creating covers and interior art for titles such as ''Space Travel''; ''

Galaxy Science Fiction ''Galaxy Science Fiction'' was an American digest-size science fiction magazine, published in Boston from 1950 to 1980. It was founded by a French-Italian company, World Editions, which was looking to break into the American market. World Edi ...

''; '' Worlds of Tomorrow''; '' Fantastic Stories of Imagination''; and '' if''. In 2000, Wenzel retired from Disney to reside in Prescott, Arizona and pursue his fine art paintings of animals and American Indians. His work is exhibited by the Mountain Spirit Gallery. Wenzel died at his home in Prescott, Arizona, on May 27, 2022.

References

External links

Paul Wenzel at Mountain Spirit Gallery

Discogs entry for Paul Wenzel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wenzel, Paul 1935 births 2022 deaths Artists from California American illustrators Film poster artists American poster artists Disney people