This Week in Disney History: April 24th-April 30th

WDWNT on April 27, 2017

In this week’s edition of This Week in Disney History, we will explore some of the milestones from April 24th-April 30th that helped shape and form the Walt Disney Company as it exists today.

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NEW YORK – MARCH 12: Founder of the Torante Company Michael Eisner speaks on stage during the Nickelodeon Upfront Presentation at the Hammerstein Ballroom on March 12, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Nickelodeon)

This Week in Disney History: April 24th-April 30th

  • On April 24th, 2009, Disney Imagineering Legend Marty Sklar, wrote a letter saying he would step down from being an imagineer on July 17, 2009. Marty first became a cast member 61 years ago.
  • On April 25th, 2003, the 10th annual Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival kicked off at Epcot.
  • On April 26th, 2009, Michael Eisner made the top CEO on Forbes’ list of worst CEOS in America.
  • On April 27th, 2002, Disney’s The Lion King on Broadway kicked off their national tour by performing in Denver, Colorado.
  • On April 28th, 1997, the restaurant inside Cinderella Castle at Magic Kingdom was officially renamed Cinderella’s Royal Table. Previously, it had been called King Stefan’s Banquet Hall, a fascinating fact is that King Stefan was actually the father of Sleeping Beauty.
  • On April 29th, 2007, Disney Channel was officially launched in Turkey. The channel is on the DIGITURK platform.
  • Lastly on April 30th, 1952, the very first toy ever to be advertised on national television was portrayed to kids all across America. What was that toy? Well, it was the one and only Mr. Potato Head. Mr. Potato head was invented by George Lerner in 1949 but later the rights were sold to Henry and Merrill Hassenfeld in 1951 to produce and ship across the nation. Interesting fact about Henry and Merrill is that they themselves actually founded and created the toy company Hasbro which was founded in 1923.

I hope you have enjoyed this week’s edition of This Week in Disney History. If you have enjoyed this, stay tuned for next week’s edition.

This Week in Disney History: April 10th-April 16th

WDWNT on April 19, 2017

In this week’s edition of ‘This Week in Disney History’, we will explore some of the milestones from April 10th-April 16th that helped shape and form the Walt Disney Company as it exists today.

The Walt Disney World Monorail testing in 1971 as construction is continued on Disney's Contemporary Resort

The Walt Disney World Monorail testing in 1971 as construction is continued on Disney’s Contemporary Resort

This Week in Disney History: April 10th-April 19th

  • On April 10th, 1984, the famous Actress& Singer Mandy Moore was born in Nashua, New Hampshire. She is the voice behind Rapunzel in Tangled, Tangled Ever After, Tangled Before Ever After, and Tangled the Series. She was also the voice of Nita in Brother Bear 2.
  • On April 11th, 2006, Winnie the Pooh celebrated his 80th birthday as well as receiving the 2,308th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
  • On April 12th, 1992, the Disneyland Resort Paris, at that time was called the Euro Disney Resort, held its grand opening to guests. Only 50,000 guests were admitted into the park that day due to riots. Many of the French people felt that their culture was going to be damaged by the park.
  • On April 13th, 2015, the Boathouse at Disney Springs officially opened to the public. As of this year they are 2 years old.
  • On April 14th, 2008, one of Walt’s “Nine Old Men”, Ollie Johnston, passed away.
  • On April 15th, 1971, the construction of the WDW Monorail System was officially completed.
  • On April 16th, 2001, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge officially opened to the public.

“It’s not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are.” -Roy Disney

This Week in Disney History: April 2nd – April 8th

WDWNT on April 6, 2017

In this week’s edition of ‘This Week in Disney History’, we will explore some of the milestones from April 2nd-April 8th that helped shape and form the Walt Disney Company as it exists today.

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Image of the Giant Mickey Balloon in honor of The 50th anniversary of the Disneyland Resort

This Week in Disney History: April 2nd- April 8th

  • On April 2nd, 2007, the Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor opens to the public in Tommorowland at Magic Kingdom.
  • On April, 3rd, 2006, in honor of the Disneyland Resort’s  50th Anniversary, a 100 ft. tall hot air balloon in the shape of Mickey Mouse is flown over the State of Arizona. The balloon is called the “Happiest Balloon on Earth.” With golden ears atop the balloon, the Mickey Mouse shaped balloon makes an 11 week journey across the Western United States and Canada.
  • On April 4th, 1932, Estelle Harris, the voice of Mrs. Potato Head from Toy Story 2 and 3, is born in New York City. She is also the voice of Mrs. Turtle in House of Mouse, and Mrs. Lipsky in Kim Possible.
  • On April 5th, 1965, the iconic Julie Andrews wins an Oscar at the 37th annual Oscars for Best Actress in her role of Mary Poppins. In all, the film is nominated for 13 Oscars while winning 5.
  • OnApril 6, 2007, The Gran Fiesta Tour starring the Three Caballeros!, opens to the public, replacing El Rio de Tiempo in the Mexico Pavilion in Epcot.
  • On April 7th, 1995, Disney’s “A Goofy Movie” is released into theaters.
  •  Finally, On April 8th, the Broadway hit, ‘Beauty and the Beast’ makes its 4,500th performance!

I hope you have enjoyed all of these amazing facts this week, and I look forward to sharing more with you next week.

“To the youngsters of today, I say believe in the future, the world is getting better; there is still plenty of opportunity.” – Walt Disney

 

This Week In Disney History: March 19th-March 25th

WDWNT on March 27, 2017

In this week’s edition of ‘This Week in Disney History,’ we will explore some of the milestones from March 19th-March 25th that helped shape and form the Walt Disney Company as it exists today.

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Picture of Ub Iwerks sketching a drawing of Mickey

This Week in Disney History: March 19th-March 25th

  • On March 19th, 1995, the Penny Arcade, Main Street Bookstore, and House of Magic located on Main Street, USA at the Magic Kingdom permanently close.
  • On March 20th, 2014,  Aladdin on Broadway debuts at the New Amsterdam Theatre in New York.
  • On March 21st, 1962, actor Mathew Broderick, the voice of adult Simba in all of the Lion King films, was born in New York City.
  • On March 22nd, 1935, ‘The Golden Touch’, Walt Disney’s 50th Silly Symphony cartoon, debuts to the public.
  • During the March 23rd, 1975 episode of ‘The Wonderful World of Disney’ , the Walt Disney Company reveals the opening of Space Mountain at the Magic Kingdom.
  • On March 24th, 1901, legendary Disney animator, Ub Iwerks, was born in Kansas City, MO. Iwerks animated the first Mickey Mouse silent cartoon, and subsequently worked on visual effects for Mary Poppins and Song of The South.
  • Finally, on March 25th, 1986, Don McGrath was honored by the Walt Disney tourist attractions as the 500 millionth guest to enter Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom.

“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”- Walt Disney

This Week In Disney History: February 26th – March 4th

WDWNT on March 6, 2017

For the past few weeks, we have been bringing you a new column on WDWNT named ‘This Week In Disney History.’ Each week is meant to provide you tidbits of knowledge from the history of The Walt Disney Company. Some of these milestones may not be as important as others, but each played a specific or unique role in shaping the Walt Disney Company that we know and love today. In today’s edition of ‘This Week in Disney History’, we cover February 26th-March 4th.

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Walt Receiving the Irving Thalberg Memorial Award from David O. Selznick. (Photo courtesy Walt Disney Archives)

This Week In Disney History: February 26th-March 4th

  • February 26th, 1942 was a very special day. On this day, Walt Disney received the Irving Thalberg Memorial Award. The award, named for the legendary head of the Production Divison of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, is periodically given to “Creative producers, whose bodies of work reflect a consistently high quality of motion picture production.” The award is presented at the Governors Awards Ceremonies as part of the Academy Awards.  Disney was the youngest person at the time to receive this award. Actress Norma Shearer (the widow of Irving Thalberg) was so touched by the presentation, gave Disney a kiss as returned to his seat.
  • On February 27th, 1987, Tokyo Disneyland welcomed its 40-millionth guest into the park!
  • On February 28th, 2012, Disney Cruise Line’s ship, the Fantasy, docked at New York harbor making it the first DCL ship to ever dock in New York. Also, on February 28th, 2004, one of the most popular restaurants at Downtown Disney, Earl of Sandwich, opened to the public. The sandwich shop is named after British Navy Officer John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, who is credited with inventing the ‘sandwich.’ The 11th Earl of Sandwich and his son collaborated with Robert Earl, the founder and CEO of Planet Hollywood, to create this one-of-a-kind eatery.
  • On March 1st, 1930, Ub Iwerks, the very first animator of Mickey Mouse, left Disney to set up his own animation studio.  He eventually returned to Disney.
  • On March 2nd, 1976, Walt Disney World welcomed its 50-millionth guest into the park, who was Susan Brummer.
  • On March 3rd, 1937, Bobby Driscoll, who was the voice and model of Peter in ‘Peter Pan,’ was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Also on March 3rd, 1983, Journey Into Imagination at EPCOT Center made its grand debut to the public. The official grand opening ceremony was held on March 5th, 1983.
  • Finally on March 4th, 2011, author Dave MacPherson visited Disneyland.  Who is Dave MacPherson?  He was the very first paying customer to enter Disneyland when the gates opened to the public on July 18, 1955.

If you would like to read or learn about more Disney history, you can visit the Walt Disney Archives site here.

This Week in Disney History: March 5th – March 11th

WDWNT on March 6, 2017

This week in Disney history we will take a look at some of the milestones that happened in the history of the Walt Disney Company during the  week of March 5th-March 11th. All of the factoids are here to inform you and broaden your knowledge so that you too can “be in the know” of Disney History. History and Disney are 2 of my greatest passions and I hope you all enjoy reading and learning about the history of Disney each and every week. This article is designed to share some of the things that help shape and mold the beautiful company we know and love today.

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Original photo of Journey into Imagination at Epcot (I thank imagineeringdisney.com for allowing me to use their photo)

This Week In Disney History March 5th-March 11th. 

  • On March 5th, 1983, the attraction Journey Into Imagination debuted to the public at Epcot. The attraction was about the Dreamfinder teaching Figment and guests to use their imaginations. In 1999, the attraction was updated and reimagined with a change in name to Journey into YOUR Imagination. In 2002, it was reimagined again as guests were unhappy with the changes, becoming Journey Into Imagintion with Figment.
  • On March 6th, 2013, the 20th Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival began.
  • On March 7th, 1942, former Walt Disney Company CEO, Michael Eisner, was born in Mount Kisco, New York. His reign as CEO of the Walt Disney Company began in 1984 and ended in 2005.
  • On March 8th, 1983, former President Ronald Reagan visited EPCOT Center and made a speech about what the promises of Epcot would bring and why it was so important to Walt Disney.
  • On March 9th, 2014, the new daytime parade Festival of Fantasy debuted at Magic Kingdom.  The parade still runs daily at 3:00 PM.

  • On March 10th, 2009, D23: the first official Disney Fanclub, was founded. The “D” stands for Disney, and “23” pays homage to when the Walt Disney Company was created in 1923.
  • Finally, On March 11th, 2007, the Disney Broadway show ‘Tarzan‘ celebrated its 350th show performance.

“Happiness is a state of mind. It’s just according to the way you look at things.”-Walt Disney

This Week in Disney History: March 12th-March 18th

WDWNT on March 6, 2017

In this week’s edition of ‘This Week in Disney History’ we will explore historical events within the Walt Disney company that helped shape and form the company as it exists today. We will explore the week of March 12th – March 18th. I hope you enjoy this week’s edition as much as I love and enjoy writing about Disney history. I also hope you can have a passion for Disney history just as much as I have a passion for Disney history. I would also like to write other unique articles for the readers. If you have any suggestions or ideas on topics you would like to read, especially Disney history, please comment your ideas and I will happily consider them for future articles. After all, this is for you, not me.

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Billy Crystal- Voice actor for Mike Wazowski in Monsters Inc.

This Week in Disney History: March 12th-March 18th.

  • On March 12th, 1938, Disney’s first full-length animated feature, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, is released in the United Kingdom.
  • On March 13th, 1928, Walt Disney travels by train from New York to California. This train ride is significant because while in New York, Walt Disney lost the rights to Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. After losing the rights to Charles Mintz and Universal Pictures, he hopped on a train and decided to head home. Then while on his ride he got a crazy idea, and telegraphed a message to his brother Roy which read: “LEAVING TONITE STOPPING OVER KC ARRIVE HOME SUNDAY MORNING SEVEN THIRTY DON’T WORRY EVERYTHING OK WILL GIVE DETAILS WHEN ARRIVE.” Walt told Roy not to worry because of an idea he had, and he would explain when he got home. What was that crazy idea you ask? By losing Oswald, Disney developed on that train ride one of the most famous, beloved, and well know Disney characters of all time; Mickey Mouse.
  • On March 14th, 1948, famous comedian, and voice-over actor, Billy Crystal was born in Long Beach, New York. Crystal is the voice of Mike Wazowski from Monsters Inc., as well as the Mike Car from Cars.
  • On March 15th, 2001, the 450-millionth guest was welcomed into the Disneyland Park in California. The lucky guest was Mark Ramirez of Texas, a civilian production management specialist for the U.S. Air Force. It was his first visit to Disneyland. Ramirez, his wife, and 3 daughters were all honored during a ceremony where he was presented a lifetime pass to the Disneyland Resort (Disneyland and Disney California Adventure), a stay at the new Disney’s Grand Californian Resort and Spa Hotel and a gift pack. He was also given the honor of changing the official attendance sign at Disneyland’s Train Station from 400 million to 450 million.
  • On March 16th, 2002, The Walt Disney Studios Park at Disneyland Paris, held its grand opening. During the grand opening, the 2nd Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster debuts. The Walt Disney Studios Park is Disney’s 10th theme park worldwide.
  • On March 17th, 1999, Test Track officially opened at Epcot. The ride was presented by General Motors, and was the fastest ride Disney Imagineers have created.

  • Finally, on March 18th, 1967, the well-beloved and famous Disneyland attraction, Pirates of the Caribbean, opened to the public. The debut kicked off with great excitement, as a group of marauding sea-dogs, led by Wally Boag, first sailed the ship Columbia before bursting through the new attraction’s doors with a battering ram! This was the last attraction Walt Disney worked on extensively before his death. March 18th, 2017, marks the 50th anniversary of the attraction. For more history of this amazing attraction, tune in to Back to the Future LIVE! – The Complete history of Pirates of the Caribbean.

“Why worry? If you’ve done the very best you can, worrying won’t make it any better. I worry about many things, but not about water over the dam.” – Walt Disney

This Week in Disney History: February 12th-18th

WDWNT on February 16, 2017

Today, WDWNT is debuting a new weekly Disney history column, aptly named “This Week in Disney History.”  In this space, we take a look at several important events of this week in the history of The Walt Disney Company. We will not endeavor to cover everything, and what we highlight might not even be the most important happenings of the week, but instead we hope to give you some interesting tidbits to broaden your knowledge of Disney history.

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This Week in Disney History: February 12th-February 18th

  • On February 12th, 2009, Carrie Underwood and David Cook , former American Idol winners, held a concert at the ‘American Idol Experience’ at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in honor of the grand opening of the attraction which would take place on February 14th.
  • On February 13, 2016, Walt Disney Animation’s Zootopia premiered at the Brussels Animation Film Festival in Belgium. The movie was not released to the U.S. until March 4th, 2016. Also, on February 13, 2009, Disney debuted their new tv channel called DisneyXD along with the website DisneyXD.com. They hoped to use this new channel as a means of making shows for boys ages 6-14. The channel is still very popular in 2017.
  • On February 14th, 2013, Walt Disney World celebrated Valentine’s Day by having 50 pre-selected couples to renew their wedding vows at Cinderella Castle while Snow White, Cinderella, Auroa, and their princes were performing on stage with Mickey and Minnie Mouse.
  • On February 15th, 1899, the wife of Walt Disney, Lillian Marie Bounds, was born. They were married on July 13th, 1925. Also, on February 15th, 1950, Walt Disney Animation’s Cinderella premiered in theaters.
  • On February 16th, 2012, Disney Cruise Line’s newest ship, The Disney Fantasy, set sail from Cape Canaveral on its maiden voyage.
  • On February 17th, 1998, construction for the ‘Rock n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith’ at Disney’s MGM Studios began.
  • Finally, on February 18th, 1960, the VII Winter Olympic Games began at Squaw Valley, California. This event is significant in Disney history because Walt Disney orchestrated the opening and closing ceremonies for the Olympics. Walt’s official title for the Olympics was ‘Head of Pageantry for the Games’.

“We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” -Walt Disney

This Week in Disney History: February 19th-25th

WDWNT on February 16, 2017

Last week, we started a new weekly Disney history column aptly named ‘This Week in Disney History.’ Each week we will highlight significant events or milestons that happened during that week in the history of the Walt Disney Company. Not all events will be listed, as these are just some of the highlights. The events listed may not necessarily be the most important events in Disney history, but are intended to give you just a bit of information to broaden your knowledge.

Picture of Clarence Nash, the original voice of Donald Duck

This Week in Disney History: February 19th-February 25th

  • On February 19th, 1985 – Mickey Mouse visited China to surprise Chinese nationals in honor of Disneyland’s 30th anniversary. He traveled to 30 different cities in 30 days.
  • On February 20th, 1985 – the original voice for Donald Duck for over 50 years, Clarence Nash, passed away at age 80. He was not only the voice of Donald, but also Daisy Duck, and Donald’s nephews (Huey, Dewey, and Louie).
  • On February 21st, 1955 – the voice of Stinky Pete from Toy Story 2 and Disneyland 50th Anniversary host Kelsey Grammer was born in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands.
  • February 21st, 2010 – Walt Disney’s Broadway production of The Lion King, celebrated a very important milestone; their 5,125th performance, making it the 8th longest running show in Broadway history!
  • February 22nd, 1971 – Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga was born in the Philippines. Lea was the singing voice of Mulan in Disney’s Mulan, as well as the singing voice of Princess Jasmine in Disney’s Aladdin.
  • February 23rd, 1939 – Walt Disney received an honorary Oscar at the 11th Academy Awards for ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’. The custom-made statuette consisted of one standard Oscar statuette standing over seven minurature statuettes.
  • February 23rd, 2000 – Phil Collins, the composer for Disney’s ‘Tarzan’, wins a Grammy for his work on the film.
  • February 23rd, 2016 – Walt Disney World’s first permanent employee, Phil Smith, passes at age 83.
  • February 24th, 1940 – one of the most famous songs in Disney History, ‘When You Wish Upon A Star’, from the movie ‘Pinnochio’, was recorded by Frances Langord.
  • February 25th, 2012 – Walt Disney Imagineering and cast members from Disney California Adventure buried a time capsule containing items from the park. The capsule will not be opened by Disneyland Resort cast members until 2037.

“I love the nostalgic myself. I hope we never lose some of the things from the past.” -Walt Disney