Dawn Little Sky, the pioneering indigenous teacher, actress, and artist for Disney, died on Oct. 24 at the age of 95.
Little Sky’s death was announced by her family via an official obituary on the website for the Sioux Funeral Home in Pine Ridge, S.D.
“Eunice ‘Dawn’ Elsie Little Sky was born on April 17, 1930, in Fort Yates, N.D. to John and Ethe (Bruguier) Gates,” the obituary reads. “Eunice made her journey to the Spirit World on October 24, 2025 at the Monument Health Hospital in Rapid City, S.D.”
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Little Sky’s obituary notes that she was raised on the Standing Rock Reservation, which belongs to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe of North and South Dakota and occupies territory that spans both states.
While attending college at Haskell Indian Nations University in Kansas, Little Sky met Eddie Little Sky, the man she would marry and remain with until his death in 1997. The pair married in Roswell, N.M., and then decamped for California, where their twin careers in entertainment began to blossom.
Dawn blazed a monumental path forward by landing a job at Disney’s Frontierland, leading to her role as an artist at Walt Disney Studios, where, as the obituary notes, “she was the first Native American artist to color Disney cells.”
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From there, both Little Skys segued into on-camera roles. Dawn appeared in episodes of several popular Western television series, including Gunsmoke, Rawhide, and Daniel Boone. She also appeared as Arita Red Feather in the Anthony Mann classic Cimarron, one of several adaptations of the 1930 Edna Ferber novel of the same name.
Both Dawn and Eddie appeared in episodes of The Magical World of Disney and Have Gun — Will Travel, as well as films like Journey Through Rosebud, Crazy Horse, and the Gregory Peck-starring Western Billy Two Hats.
The couple moved back to South Dakota in the late 1970s, where Dawn took up a post as the director of the Eagle Butte Cultural Center and taught art and culture at the Little Wound School in the town of Kyle. Dawn was given South Dakota’s prestigious Indian Living Treasure Award in 2005 for her traditional dancing.
“Dawn lived an extraordinary life and left a positive impact on all who had the honor to interact with her,” her obituary read. “Her life was full of so many adventures and unforgettable experiences, and she was the best storyteller with the most amazing sense of humor! Dawn’s warm presence and one of a kind smile will be missed dearly by all who knew and loved her.”