Education
Van Osten studied at the Philadelphia College of Artist
musician art director comics creator
Van Osten studied at the Philadelphia College of Artist
In 1966, he played in the band Woody"s Truck Stop, before forming the rock group Nazz with Todd Rundgren in 1967. Van Osten was the band"s bass guitarist. He quit The Nazz in 1969.
Later, Van Osten became a writer and artist of Disney comics.
From 1969 to 1976, he created Mickey Mouse and Goofy comics for the publisher Disney Studio, which produced comics for the European market. Starting in 1976, he was art director for Disney"s comic strips department in the 1980s.
After that, it seems that he has sporadically worked on new Disney comics, including some covers and the adaptation of the Atlantis: The Lost Empire film. Van Osten created an North scale model railroad, the Rio Poco, that was featured in the June 1991 issue of Model Railroader magazine.
The layout was influenced by fellow Disney employee John Olson.
On August 19, 2015, Van Osten was one of ten individuals who were honored with a Disney Legends award. The annual awards ceremony recognizes those who have made significant contributions to the Walt Disney Company. Each recipient is honored with a bronze commemorative plaque at Legends Plaza at Disney studios in Burbank.
Living recipients receive lifetime passes to the Disney theme parks.
He died on December 22, 2015.