Walt Disney – the Legend
Walt Disney (1901-1966) was truly a man before his time. He had an imagination far beyond reality. He also had the courage to follow his dreams despite ridicule and poverty. His initial attempts at starting an animation business went bankrupt. His colleagues mocked him – “Who’s ever heard of a talking mouse?”
Walt and his brother Roy created Steamboat Willie in 1928. It was the first production to synchronize music, vocals and animation. In 1929 he renames Steamboat Willie as Micky Mouse and their cartoons become a national sensation across USA. In 1930, during the Great Depression, they launch the Mickey Mouse Club and start licensing Micky Mouse merchandise. A year later, over one million members were singing:-
Who’s the leader of the club
That’s made for you and me
M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E
Hey! there, Hi! there, Ho! there
You’re as welcome as can be
M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E
In 1933, Disney Studios distribute The Three Little Pigs as a silly symphony with the song: “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf” which becomes an anthem of the Great Depression.
In 1937, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm became the first movie length cartoon with sound and Technicolor. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs became one of only two animated films to rank in the American Film Institute‘s list of the 100 greatest American films of all time in 1997 (the other being Disney’s Fantasia), ranking number 49.
In 1964, Mary Poppins was nominated for 13 Academy Awards and Walt Disney is presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom (which is equivalent to a knighthood from the Queen of England). Not bad for a 16 year old kid for started his career as a newspaper cartoonist earning $50 a month!
Sources:
http://adisney.go.com/disneyatoz/familymuseum/global/pdf/WDFM-Walt-Disney-Timeline.pdf
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snow_White_and_the_Seven_Dwarfs_(1937_film)
http://www.stlyrics.com/lyrics/classicdisney/mickeymouseclubmarch.htm
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