MUMBAI: The Walt Disney Company honoured songwriter Sir Elton John, as well as 11 additional inductees, with the Disney Legends Award during a ceremony at The Walt Disney Company headquarters on 9 October.

The ceremony was presided over by Disney president and CEO Robert A. Iger and also included The Walt Disney Studios chairman Dick Cook, Disney director emeritus Roy E. Disney and Walt Disney Imagineering Ambassador executive vice president Marty Sklar.

“This annual ceremony, now in its 19th year, gives all of us at Disney a moment to remember the importance of our past achievements and to recognize those who embody this company’s constant focus on delivering unparalleled creativity, quality and innovation to our audiences around the world. As we continue the tradition this year, we also mark a special milestone as we welcome our 200th Disney Legend,” said Iger.

The 12 new Disney Legends include leaders in the fields of music, journalism, art, performance, engineering and business. Among them are: Singer and songwriter Sir Elton John,  ABC News anchor Peter Jennings, actors Tommy Kirk and Kevin Corcoran, actors Tim Considine and David Stollery, actress Ginny Tyler, Disney and Pixar animation story artist Joe Ranft, voice actor Paul Frees; Disney Imagineer Don Edgren,  Animation background artist Al Dempster and Walt Disney Records founder Jimmy Johnson.

The Disney Legends Award was established in 1987 to honor the men and women who have made significant contributions to the Disney legacy. The first recipient of this was actor Fred MacMurray (The Shaggy Dog, The Absent-Minded Professor, The Happiest Millionaire), and since that time 203 Disney Legends have been named, including this year’s recipients.

Among the past Disney Legends are Julie Andrews, Steve Martin, Dick Van Dyke, Annette Funicello, Dean Jones, Angela Lansbury, Fess Parker, Kurt Russell, Tim Allen, Hayley Mills, Phil Collins, Art Linkletter, Tim Conway, Sir Tim Rice, Howard Ashman and Alan Menken.