Computer Scientist Dr. Alan Kay Is Named Disney Fellow, Vp Of
R&D
BURBANK, Calif., Oct. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Personal computer expert and noted
scientist Dr. Alan Kay has
joined The Walt Disney Co as a Disney Fellow and vice president of research
and development.
For the past 12 years, Kay, 56, has been with Apple Computer, where he held
the title Apple Fellow.
Kay will be part of Walt Disney Imagineering's Research & Development
organization, where he will work
with all Disney business units to find innovative ways to enhance the
educational and entertainment value of
Disney's offerings.
"As we seek to expand the scope, quality and impact of our educational and
entertainment products, we are
finding that creative scientists such as Alan Kay are helping us to stretch
our imaginations and to extend our
reach," said Michael Eisner, Disney's chairman and CEO.
Noted Michael Ovitz, president, "Alan is the second scientist to be named a
Disney Fellow under our new
program to attract creative and innovative scientists and to recognize them
for their contributions to the arts,
education and entertainment. We look to our Disney Fellows to lead the way
in coming up with bold and
imaginative ways to entertain, educate and delight our audiences."
The Disney Fellows program was created earlier this year, when computer
scientist Dr. Danny Hillis joined the
company.
Kay, who began developing a personal computer in the 1960s, is best known
for developing the original idea of
a PC, the concept of a new generation of laptop computers and for inventing
overlapping-window interfaces
and modern object-oriented programming.
He was a scientist at Xerox's famous Palo Alto Research Center, known as
PARC. At PARC, he led one of the
research teams whose work ultimately led to development of the work
station, the Macintosh Computer,
Smalltalk, Ethernet, laser printing and network client-servers. Later, he
was chief scientist at Atari, before
joining Apple Computer in 1984.
Bran Ferren, executive vice president of Creative Technology and Research &
Development, who created and
heads the Disney Fellows program, said, "We welcome Alan as a Disney Fellow
-- to work across divisional
lines as an inventor, designer, strategist and problem solver -- and one
who will help us invent the future of
the entertainment business."
While at Apple, Kay worked with Disney on several projects, including the
Innoventions exhibit at Epcot,
where Apple is an exhibitor.
"Alan's joining Disney helps continue our relationship with Disney," said
Dr. Donald Norman, vice president
of Apple Research Laboratories. "We view this move as a gain for both
companies."
Kay holds bachelors degrees in mathematics and molecular biology from the
University of Colorado. His
masters and PhD degrees in computer science and electrical engineering are
from the University of Utah,
where he graduated with distinction.
A former professional jazz guitarist and composer, Kay is a Fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and
Sciences, and of the Royal Society of Arts. He has received numerous awards
and prizes, including the J-D
Warnier Prix D'informatique and the ACM Systems Software Award.
He and his wife Bonnie, a writer, live in Brentwood, Calif. SOURCE Walt
Disney Company
--"The future masters of technology will have to be lighthearted and intelligent. The machine easily masters the grim and the dumb." - Marshall McLuhan 1969
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