Earl Duvall was an American artist and animator, best known for his work on Walt Disney comic strips in the early 1930s and for a handful of animated cartoon short subjects he directed at Warner Bros. Cartoons.
Born in Washington D.C., he became a page for Senator Joseph Weldon Baily of Texas and served in the U.S. Army during World War I. He started his career as a newspaper cartoonist for The New York World, The Washington Times, The Washington Post, and the Bell Syndicate.
In 1930, Duvall started as a layout artist and later as a member of the story department at Walt Disney Productions. During this time, he also worked as a cartoonist on Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies newspaper strips. Duvall was periodically an inker for Floyd Gottfredson on the newspaper version of the Mickey Mouse daily edition comic strip in 1930-1932. He also drew and wrote the Silly Symphonies comic strip Bucky Bug for Disney.
According to Jack Kinney, a director who worked at Disney for many decades, Duvall was a "charming story man" who dressed well and was "the spitting image of the Prince of Wales", but often "lived beyond his means". Duvall left Disney's in rather unusual circumstances - pressed by Disney for several weeks to show his storyboards, Duvall simply gathered his belongings one day and left the company, "leaving Walt holding the bag".
Gaining employment at Warner Brothers' animation studio, Duvall directed five shorts, including Honeymoon Hotel, however, clashes with studio head Leon Schlesinger led to his termination. He spent some time in Ub Iwerks' independent studio, and then returned to Disney for a short while, after which he retired. Duvall passed away in 1950 at the age of 52.
