Stuart Buchanan

Stuart Buchanan (March 18, 1894 – February 4, 1974) was an American voice actor, announcer, radio and TV producer, adversiting executive, athlete and educator. He is known for his work at The Walt Disney Company as a casting director and voicing the Huntsman in the animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)^[1] and voicing Goofy in The Mickey Mouse Theater of the Air (1938).^[2]

Stuart Buchanan
Stuart Buchanan
Born	Paul Stuart Buchanan Sr. (1894-03-18)March 18, 1894 Eldora, Iowa, U.S.
Died	February 4, 1974(1974-02-04) (aged 79) Shaker Heights, Ohio, U.S.
Alma mater	College of Wooster and Harvard University
Occupation(s)	Educator, actor, announcer, radio and TV producer
Years active	1935–1973
Spouse(s)	Anna Hall Hilditch and Rita Whearty
Children	5

Buchanan also produced the Ohio Story radio and TV series (1953-1961). In its time, the series held the record for the longest-running regional scripted program in the nation.^[3]

Early years

Born Paul Stuart Buchanan in Eldora, Iowa. His father, the late Rev. Edgar Lloyd Buchanan, was a Presbyterian minister in Wooster, Ohio. Buchanan graduated from the College of Wooster and received a doctorate from Harvard University^[4] and he served as a U.S. Army officer for two years in World War I (1917-1919).^[5] His mother was Nelly Mae Smith.

In the early years of his career, he taught poetry and drama at the University of Florida and West Virginia University. During those tenures, he also directed Little Theatre productions. While he taught at the University of Florida, Buchanan helped to launch the school's radio station.^[6]

Hollywood

In May 1930, Buchanan became program director at radio station KHJ in Los Angeles. He directed episodes of the radio programs Hollywood Hotel and Lux Radio Theatre. He also worked for ABC radio as program supervisor and as head of the script department. On stage, he toured in a production of Mister Antonio, acted in summer stock theatre in Denver,^[7] and acted and directed at the Pasadena Playhouse.^[8]

Buchanan was a dialogue and casting director at Walt Disney Studios. For a time, he was in charge of all foreign versions of Disney productions.^[9] He is known for voicing The Huntsman^[10] in the 1937 Disney animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.^[11] He had roles in Saludos Amigos (1942) and Super-Speed (1935) and he was the voice of Goofy in The Mickey Mouse Theater of the Air (1938)^[12]

In the 1940s, Buchanan was head of the script department and program supervision for American Broadcasting Company in New York before taking a job directing the radio and television department of the McCann-Erickson advertising agency in 1947.^[13]

The Ohio Story Radio and TV Series

Stuart Buchanan, producer of the film Milestones of Motoring seated in front row (1954), with the film's cast and crew. Photo courtesy of the Hagley Museum & Library.

Frank Siedel (left) was the scriptwriter and Buchanan was the producer for 1,300 radio and 175 TV episodes of the Ohio Story. Photo courtesy of the Hagley Museum & Library.

Buchanan was co-creator of The Ohio Story, a series that ran from 1947 to 1955 on radio and from 1953 to 1961 on TV.^{[14][15][16][17]} He picked Robert Waldrop to narrate the series,^[18] and actor Nelson Olmsted to replace him in 1952. Additionally, he chose Ray Culley of Cinécraft Productions, a Cleveland-based sponsored film studio, to direct the series. Approximately 1,300 radio and 175 Ohio Story TV episodes were produced.^[19]

In an interview with Todd Raper of the Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch, Buchanan said: "There has never been – or will be, a radio series that commanded the respect and attention of this state, or, for that fact, the nation. The Ohio Story reached its peak in the heyday of radio - the late 1940s. Only one show in the nation had a higher rating - that was the Jack Benny show. I guess of all the things I've done in my lifetime, I'm most proud to have had a hand in developing and producing The Ohio Story".^[20]

Personal life

Buchanan was married to Anna Hall Hilditch and later to Rita J. Whearty. Buchanan died on February 4, 1974, in Shaker Heights, Ohio, at the age of 79 and was buried in Wooster, Ohio. His wife, Rita, three sons and two daughters survived him.^[21]

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1935	Super-Speed	Announcer	Voice, uncredited
1937	Moose Hunters	Goofy (some lines)	Voice, short film; uncredited
	Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)	Humbert the Huntsman	Voice, uncredited
1938	The Mickey Mouse Theater of the Air	Goofy	Voice
1940	Pinocchio	Carnival Barker	Voice, uncredited
1943	Saludos Amigos	Flight Attendant	Voice, uncredited
1947–1955	Ohio Story Radio Series	Producer	1,309 episodes[22]
1951	Demonstrate to Sell Rings the Bell	Co-star of the Westinghouse sales training film	uncredited[23][24]
1953–1961	Ohio Story Television Series	Producer	179 episodes[25]