He was a Disney artist from 1938 until 1965, when he became an Imagineer to help design the Disneyland Railroad's Primeval World diorama segment. He then contributed to various Disney attractions. He wrote the script for both Adventure Thru Inner Space and Pirates of the Caribbean, for which he also penned the lyrics to the theme song, "Yo Ho (A Pirate's Life for Me)" and provided the voice of the talking skull early on