John William Cannon was an American animator, who worked in the early years of the Disney Studios throughout the 1930s.
Cannon was born in Terre Haute, Indiana to John and Maybelle Cannon. When he was eleven, his parents divorced and went to live with his mother. Later, he moved to California where he attended Venice High School and eventually settled in Santa Monica.
In 1927, Cannon accepted a job at Disney, where he worked on several cartoons for Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. However, after a year, the studio's contract was pulled and while the majority of Disney's staff left, Cannon was one of the few who remained with Walt and Roy. Following the success of Steamboat Willie, where he also helped with sound effects, Cannon continued animating the majority of the Mickey Mouse shorts, as well as future Donald Duck and Pluto shorts. Along with Les Clark, he helped to create the character of Mortimer Mouse in Mickey's Rival. Cannon also worked in the Silly Symphonies division where he animated shorts, such as Babes in the Woods, King Neptune, Flowers and Trees, and Broken Toys.
By 1940, Cannon had decided to leave the studio for other opportunities. He continued to work at various animation studios, such as Columbia Pictures, where teamed with Disney collaborator Ub Iwerks. However, he suffered a fatal heart attack on December 6, 1946 and died.
Filmography[]
| Year | Film | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1928 | Steamboat Willie | Animator Sound effects (uncredited) |
| 1929 | The Barn Dance | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1929 | The Opry House | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1929 | When the Cat's Away | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1929 | The Barnyard Battle | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1929 | Mickey's Choo-Choo | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1929 | The Jazz Fool | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1929 | Wild Waves | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1929 | Jungle Rhythm | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1929 | The Haunted House | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1929 | The Merry Dwarfs | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Summer | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Autumn | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | The Barnyard Concert | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Cannibal Capers | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Fiddling Around | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | The Cactus Kid | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Frolicking Fish | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | The Fire Fighters | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Arctic Antics | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Midnight in a Toy Shop | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Night | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | The Chain Gang | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Monkey Melodies | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | The Gorilla Mystery | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | The Picnic | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Winter | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Pioneer Days | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Playful Pan | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | The Birthday Party | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | Birds of a Feather | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | Traffic Troubles | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | The Castaway | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | Mother Goose Melodies | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | The China Plate | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | The Cat's Out | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | Blue Rhythm | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | Egyptian Melodies | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | Fishin' Around | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | The Spider and the Fly | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | Mickey Cuts Up | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | Mickey's Orphans | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1931 | The Ugly Duckling | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | The Duck Hunt | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | The Grocery Boy | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | Barnyard Olympics | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | Mickey's Revue | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | The Bears and Bees | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | Musical Farmer | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | Mickey in Arabia | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | Flowers and Trees | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | Just Dogs | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | Mickey's Nightmare | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | Trader Mickey | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | King Neptune | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | The Whoopee Party | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | The Klondike Kid | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | Babes in the Woods | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1932 | Mickey's Good Deed | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1933 | Building a Building | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1933 | The Mad Doctor | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1933 | Birds in the Spring | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1933 | Mickey's Mellerdrammer | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1933 | Ye Olden Days | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1933 | The Mail Pilot | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1933 | Mickey's Mechanical Man | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1933 | Old King Cole | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1933 | Puppy Love | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1933 | The Steeple-Chase | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1933 | Giantland | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1934 | Shanghaied | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1934 | Gulliver Mickey | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1934 | Orphan's Benefit | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1934 | Mickey Plays Papa | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1934 | The Dognapper | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1935 | Mickey's Man Friday | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1935 | The Band Concert | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1935 | The Cookie Carnival | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1935 | Mickey's Fire Brigade | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1935 | On Ice | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1935 | Broken Toys | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1936 | Mickey's Polo Team | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1936 | Thru the Mirror | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1936 | Mickey's Rival | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1936 | Mickey's Elephant | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1936 | The Country Cousin | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1936 | Mother Pluto | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1937 | Don Donald | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1937 | Magician Mickey | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1937 | Woodland Café | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1937 | Modern Inventions | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1937 | Donald's Ostrich | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1938 | Donald's Nephews | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1938 | Mickey's Trailer | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1938 | Good Scouts | Animator |
| 1938 | Donald's Golf Game | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1938 | Donald's Lucky Day | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1939 | The Standard Parade | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1939 | Donald's Cousin Gus | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1939 | Donald's Penguin | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1939 | Sea Scouts | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1939 | The Autograph Hound | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1940 | Donald's Dog Laundry | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1940 | Tugboat Mickey | Animator (uncredited) |
| 1940 | Put-Put Troubles | Animator (uncredited) |
Gallery[]
The Disney Bowling Team: Standing, from left: Clark, Ben Sharpsteen
Kneeling, from left: Merle Gilson, Iwerks, Cannon
Kneeling, from left: Merle Gilson, Iwerks, Cannon
.jpg "Disney staff 1930 (2).jpg (71 KB)")
Standing: Cannon, Jackson, Clark, Cutting
Kneeling, from left: Iwerks, Walt Disney, Carl Stalling
Kneeling, from left: Iwerks, Walt Disney, Carl Stalling
Seated, Carl Stalling and Iwerks; from left, Jackson, Sharpsteen, Burt Gillett, Clark, W. Disney, Cannon, and Jack King. Jackson said of this photo: "I believe Ub had just finished designing the sheet music cover."
Stalling at the piano, with, from left, Cannon, Disney, Gillett, Iwerks, Jackson, Clark, and (seated) King and Sharpsteen.
Left to Right: W. Disney, Stalling, Sharpsteen, Iwerks, Clark, Gillett, Cannon, Jackson, and (standing) King
.jpg "Disney staff in January 1930 (2).jpg (65 KB)")
Standing, from left: Clark, King, Sharpsteen, Cutting, Gillett, Iwerks, Win Smith, Jackson, William Cottrell, Floyd Gottfredson
Kneeling, from left, Dick Lundy, Charles Byrne, Carlos Manriquez, Ferguson, Gilson, Chuck Couch, Stalling, Cannon, W. Disney
Kneeling, from left, Dick Lundy, Charles Byrne, Carlos Manriquez, Ferguson, Gilson, Chuck Couch, Stalling, Cannon, W. Disney
.jpg "Disney staff 1931 (1).jpg (65 KB)")
Standing from left: Edmond Seward, Frank Churchill, Otto Englander, Sharpsteen, Bert Lewis, Gilles "Frenchy" de Tremaudan, Clark, Rudy Zamora, Jackson, King, Tom Palmer, Cutting (behind Palmer), Cannon, Norman Ferguson, Webb Smith
Seated, from left: David Hand, Ted Sears, Lundy, Gillett, W. Disney
Seated, from left: David Hand, Ted Sears, Lundy, Gillett, W. Disney
.jpg "Disney staff 1931 (2).jpg (64 KB)")
1931; Standing from left: Smith, Seward, Englander, Zamora, Hand, Palmer, Cutting, W. Disney, Churchill, Cannon, Sharpsteen
Seated from left: King, Lundy, Sears, Ferguson, de Tremaudan, Jackson, Clark, Gillett, Lewis
Seated from left: King, Lundy, Sears, Ferguson, de Tremaudan, Jackson, Clark, Gillett, Lewis
External links[]
Johnny Cannon at Find a Grave- Animation Who & Where - Johnny Cannon
- Babbitblog Caricatures and Profiles
