{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} {{Infobox person | name = Gavan Disney | image = <!-- filename only, no "File:" or "Image:" prefix, and no enclosing brackets --> | alt = <!-- descriptive text for use by speech synthesis (text-to-speech) software --> | caption = | birth_name = Gavin Francis Disney | birth_date = {{Birth date|1949|05|27}} | birth_place = | death_date = {{Death date and age|2018|11|02|1949|05|27}} | death_place = | other_names = | occupation = Television producer, manager<ref name=vale/> | years_active = | known_for = Executive producer Hey Hey Its Saturday<br>Healthy, Wealthy and Wise as co-creator | notable_works = Manager of John Blackman, Molly Meldrum and others<ref name=vale/> }}
'''Gavan Francis Disney''' (27 May 1949 – 6 November 2018<ref>{{cite web |title=Deceased Details |url=https://mgc.smct.org.au/deceasedsearch/result/871757 |website=mgc.smct.org.au |access-date=5 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181206001927/https://mgc.smct.org.au/deceasedsearch/result/871757 |archive-date=6 December 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref>) was an Australian television producer.<ref name=vale>Knox, David (10 November 2018) [https://tvtonight.com.au/2018/11/vale-gavan-disney.html Vale: Gavan Disney], ''TV Tonight''. Retrieved 10 November 2018.</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://performingartsaustralia.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Showcast_Ambrae_Jamae.pdf |website=performingartsaustralia.com.au |title=Showcast Ambrae Jamae |publisher=PAA-Performing Arts Australia |access-date=2018-11-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181119214531/http://performingartsaustralia.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Showcast_Ambrae_Jamae.pdf |archive-date=2018-11-19 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.traveller.com.au/flinders-beachfront-property-may-top-10m-rew2 |website=traveller.com.au |title=Flinders beachfront property may top $10m |publisher=traveller.com.au }}</ref>
==Career== Disney was best known for being an executive producer of long-running Nine Network variety show ''Hey Hey It's Saturday'' and for being co-creator of Network Ten lifestyle program ''Healthy, Wealthy and Wise''.<ref name=vale/> Television personality Bert Newton credited Disney with resurrecting his career in the 1990s by recruiting him to host Network Ten morning show ''Good Morning Australia''.<ref>(19 August 2004) [https://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/0-those-were-the-days-20040819-gdyhc3.html 0, those were the days: The resurrection of Bert], ''The Age''. Retrieved 10 November 2018.</ref> Iain Hewitson also stated in an interview that Disney helped him getting a start in television by giving him life-changing career advice.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klkemSkxp40&ab|title=Iain Hewitson Reveals Why He Walked Away From TV|website=YouTube |date=15 January 2019 }}</ref>
He also served as a manager for Hey Hey regular's John Blackman and Molly Meldrum and numerous other media personality's<ref name=vale/>
In 2009, a jury found Disney not guilty of ten counts of indecent assault and two counts of rape, after he was charged in 2008 with assaulting a 17-year-old employee while he was a senior executive at Ballarat television station BTV6 in the 1980s.<ref>Harrison, Dan; Elder, John (16 March 2008) [https://www.theage.com.au/national/hey-hey-its-saturday-producer-disney-on-sex-charge-20080316-ge6uq4.html Hey Hey It's Saturday producer Disney on sex charge], ''The Age''. Retrieved 10 November 2018.</ref><ref>Iaria, Melissa (10 July 2009) [https://www.smh.com.au/national/tv-producer-disney-cleared-of-rape-charges-20090709-deoy.html TV producer Gavan Disney cleared of rape charges], ''The Sydney Morning Herald''. Retrieved 10 November 2018.</ref> The jury had previously been directed by the judge to find Disney not guilty of an additional three counts of indecent assault due to a lack of evidence.<ref>(9 July 2009) [https://www.abc.net.au/news/2009-07-09/hey-hey-producer-cleared-of-sex-assault/1347328 Hey Hey producer cleared of sex assault], ''ABC News''. Retrieved 10 November 2018.</ref>
Disney died at the age of 69 in November 2018, following a long illness, after drinking himself to death, following the shame of the sexual assault charges in 2008. He may have been found not guilty of the charges, but, anyone who, actually, knew Gavan Disney knew that he was a sexual predator and repeatedly abused/assaulted young men who worked for him.<ref name=vale/>
== References == {{Reflist}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Disney, Gavan}} Category:1949 births Category:2018 deaths Category:Australian television producers