Information
Full name: Percival Cooke Pearce Jr.
Birth: September 17, 1899 in Waukegan, Illinois
Death: July 4, 1955 in London, England
Marriage:
June Herrig Swan (April 13, 1930 – July 4, 1955)
Worked at the Disney studio between:
1935 – 1955
Job on Snow White:
Director of sequences 2A, 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, 4A, 4C, 4D, 5A, 5B, 6A, 6B, 10A.
Model for Doc and the dwarfs
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Perce Pearce directed several sequences in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, primarily those featuring Snow White and the dwarfs early in the film. He had no involvement in scenes with the Queen. He was reportedly filmed as a live-action model for Doc, especially for the moment when Snow White asks to see the dwarfs’ hands. Joe Grant believed that Pearce’s gestures may also have inspired Bill Tytla’s animation of Grumpy.
Ken Anderson recalled that Pearce skillfully manipulated George Drake into recommending him to Walt Disney by letting him win at bridge. Several Disney artists, including Shamus Culhane, have described Pearce as a manipulator who often appropriated others’ ideas. This reputation may have stemmed in part from the fact that he was older than most of the studio’s creative team.
Pearce later became the producer of numerous live-action features. He relocated to Great Britain for this work, where he died prematurely.
