Oscar-winning animator rescued from Mummy Mountain in Arizona

PHOENIX (NBC, KYMA) - An Oscar-winning animator and director needed rescuing Wednesday in Phoenix.

Glen Keane was on Mummy Mountain with his grandchildren when he realized he couldn't go any further.

A Phoenix Fire Department rescue helicopter hoisted the 72-year-old off a narrow ledge and down to safety.

Keane says he's thankful for his rescuers.

"As I was being lifted up, I was looking at all the areas that I used to climb around as a kid and I thought, lord, thank you," Keane expressed. "This was just a real blessing to have that crew and they were really, really risking their own lives on the edge of that narrow, little ledge."

Keane's animation credits include Disney classics like "The Little Mermaid," "Aladdin" and "Beauty and the Beast."

He's listed as a "Disney Legend" in the Walt Disney Archives.

In 2018, Keane, along with NBA legend Kobe Bryant, won the Oscar for Best Animated Short Film for "Dear Basketball," which was based on a poem Bryant wrote on his retirement.