It was only recently that Roy Disney stepped back into the spotlight for Disney. He was a key player in bringing Disney and Pixar together, while ousting Michael Eisner and pointing them in what, by now, has proven to be very much the right direction. He did the same thing two decades earlier when, fearing the company was drifting away from his family’s original vision, he threw out another CEO and set them back on the path.

In short, for decades now Roy E. Disney has been the only real guardian of Walt Disney’s original, masterful, dream. He died this afternoon at the age of 79, one month short of reaching 80. The son of Walt’s brother Roy O. Disney, who co-founded the company with Walt Disney, leaves behind one of the most monumental achievements in the history of Hollywood. His guardianship of what Walt wanted Disney to be, will now have to pass to others. With John Lasseter on the job, Disney’s still in good hands.