Biography
Donald W. Ernst was an American film, music and sound editor and producer who worked in both live-action television and animation. Born in Los Angeles, he began his career in the 1950s editing television series including Gilligan's Island, Cimarron Strip and Gunsmoke.
He later edited animated features for Ralph Bakshi, including Coonskin (1975), Wizards (1977), The Lord of the Rings (1978) and Hey Good Lookin' (1982). At Disney he edited The Brave Little Toaster (1987) and shorts such as Tummy Trouble (1989), and produced Aladdin (1992) and Fantasia 2000 (1999). He also produced the English-language version of Spirited Away (2001) and served as story supervisor on Destino (2003). Ernst died in Stevenson Ranch, California, in 2023.
