Tyrus Wong, best known for his sketches for the Walt Disney animated feature "Bambi", died Friday, according to a statement released by The Walt Disney Family Museum.
Wong was 106.
"Legendary Disney artist Tyrus Wong had a gift for evoking incredible feeling in his art with simple, gestural composition," the statement said.
Wong got his foot in the door at Disney as an entry level animator in 1938 -- drawing hundreds of Mickey Mouse sketches, the statement said.
But his first big break came with "Bambi", the story of the white-tailed deer.
While "Bambi" was in pre-production, Wong made his mark.
At home, he painted several elaborate sketches of deer in the forest -- these sketches quickly drew the attention of Walt Disney and became the basis for the visual style of the animated classic. Wong left Disney to join Warner Brothers in 1941, before the release of "Bambi" in 1942.
