Not only does the finished version of Ward Kimball’s TOOT WHISTLE PLUNK AND BOOM contain tons of gorgeous design, but the development artwork for that film is also a tour de force of exemplary design work. Below are some of the film’s incredibly drawn storyboards by Tom Oreb along with a batch of concept paintings by an unidentified artist. It’s frustating that nobody’s ever been able to figure out who did these concept paintings. The film’s assistant art director Vic Haboush says they aren’t his; they’re definitely not by TOOT’s bg painter Eyvind Earle; and they don’t look much like Tom Oreb’s painting style either (though there’s a chance a few of them might be by him). Perhaps it was Kimball himself? Or the film’s art director Ken O’Connor, though that’s unlikely since he dealt mostly with staging and layout and not styling. In any case, I should note that TOOT WHISTLE is available on the Disney Rarities dvd collection along with dozens of other rare Disney shorts.

Storyboards by Tom Oreb

Concepts paintings by unidentified artist