John Lasseter in his own words to Fortune

I do what I do in life because of Walt Disney - his films and his theme park and his characters and his joy in entertaining. The emotional feeling that his creations gave me is something that I want to turn around and give to others. I believe in the nobility of entertaining people, and I take great, great pride that people are willing to give me two or three hours out of their busy lives.

Pixar's John Lasseter relates what essentially amounts to his (and Pixar's) condensed autobiography to Fortune magazine, including how the merger with Disney came to be. One particularly fascinating revelation: I was a sweeper in Tomorrowland the summer that Space Mountain opened [1977], and then I transferred to be a ride operator on the Jungle Cruise ride. No one really believes this, but the Jungle Cruise taught me a lot of what I know about comedy and comic timing. This is a must-read.