The Making of Snow White by Men and 'Girls'

In 1938 Popular Science Magazine did a fascinating 5-page article with lots of pictures on the making of Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The article is full of technical details on the invention of the giant multi-plane camera that made scenes with great depth and many background layers possible.

Unfortunately, the article is also filled with telling examples of the magazine's and Disney's prehistoric attitudes toward women. All female Disney workers in the article are referred to as 'girls' or 'girl artists.' Here's an example of a caption: 'A girl in the paint department mixes colors to be applied to celluloid by the 140 girl artists. Each tint must conform to specifications.' Hmmm... I think actually that Disney needed more of these 'girl artists' on the job. Then maybe their movies wouldn't have been so boring. Or maybe they should have hired some 'boy artists' since men were so obviously in short supply.

Go read the article about interesting Disney attitudes and techniques

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