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Oscar-winner dies in Eagle Point By AL REISS Lawrence M. "Larry" Lansburgh, 89, died Sunday (March 25, 2001), at his home in Eagle Point. Mr. Lansburgh was born May 18, 1911, in San Francisco, a son of G. Albert Lansburgh and Irene Muzzi Lansburgh. On May 21, 1975, in Mission Hills, Kan., he married Olive Beaham Wright, who survives. In the mid-1930s, he entered the world of motion picture production, beginning as a "gofer�� in the Disney Studios in Burbank, Calif. He worked in and with the studios until the late 1960s, and worked personally with Walt Disney, as cameraman, producer, director and in many other capacities. He was an active, voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, in the short subject division. He received two Academy Awards for pictures he produced and directed: "The Wetback Hound," a short subject (1958), and a documentary, "The Horse With the Flying Tail" (1961). He also received an Academy Award nomination for his short feature, "Cow Dog," in 1957. He received Citations of Merit from the Southern California Motion Picture Council for the quality of his family films "Arizona Sheepdog," (1965) and "Hang Your Hat on the Wind," (1969). Mr. Lansburgh, intentionally, never showed a gun being fired in any of his motion pictures. Mr. Lansburgh worked in the production of the original "Fantasia," (1940), the animated "Cinderella," (1950), and "The Horse in the Gray Flannel Suit" (1968), among many others. In his career, Mr. Lansburgh accompanied Walt Disney to several foreign locations, from Argentina to Ireland. In Mexico, he produced the feature film "The Littlest Outlaw," released by Disney�s Buena Vista company in 1955. Mr. Lansburgh was an accomplished horseman. In the Depression era of the early 1930s he worked as a cowboy on a ranch in west Texas, for 75 cents a day and room and board. After moving to his LL Ranch near Eagle Point in 1971 from La Canada, Calif., Mr. Lansburgh continued filmmaking, combining it with cattle, horse and sheep ranching. In the mid- and late 1970s, from his southern Oregon home, he produced and directed shows for "The Wonderful World of Disney" on network TV. Among them are "Runaway on the Rogue River," "Chester, Yesterday�s Horse" and "Twister, the Bull From the Sky." He often cast local people in his productions, and he filmed at events and locations throughout Oregon, including the Albany Timber Carnival, the Pendleton Roundup and Wildlife Safari in Winston. In October 1998, he was named a ``Legend of Disney�� and was recognized with an inscribed statue presented to people who have contributed significant achievements to the (then) 75-year history of Disney. The presentations were made by Roy E. Disney (Walt�s nephew) and Michael Eisner, CEO, in special ceremonies at Disney Studios. Mr. Lansburgh�s short films, originally for theater release, include "The Tattooed Police Horse," "Run, Appaloosa, Run," and "The Amish Horse," which he presented, with his personal commentary, at the first Jacksonville Film Festival last year. In 2000, he received the Pegasus Award from the American Horse Shows Association for a lifetime of promoting horses and horse sports in film. He was a member of the association, registered to judge horse shows. He judged the western, hunter and jumper divisions at many major horse shows, including, often, the American Royal in Kansas City. As an adjunct teacher Mr. Lansburgh taught film production at Southern Oregon University. For several years he served as a guest speaker for the Rogue Valley Writers� Conference held there in the late 1980s and early �90s. The Lansburghs have long been active in local civic affairs. In 1990, they were grand marshals of the Eagle Point Fourth of July Parade. In addition to being in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Mr. Lansburgh was a member of the Directors� Guild of America, Local 659 of the Camera Operators� Union, and the Rogue Valley Country Club. Survivors besides his wife include two sons from an earlier marriage, Lawrence Martin Lansburgh, Nevada City, Calif., and Brian Ward Lansburgh, Jacksonville, Fla.; stepdaughterJennifer Wright Berrigan, Pleasanton, Calif., and stepson Allen Purd Wright, Overland Park, Kan., and eight grandchildren. Memorials may be made to the District 9 Community Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 548, Eagle Point, OR 97524; or to Rogue Valley Medical Center Home Health Care, 2825 E. Barnett Road, Medford, OR 97504. Arrangements: Conger-Morris Funeral Directors, Medford. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.