Lighter than air, Donald Duck glides along the icy surface of a winter pond on a pair of ice skates. Suddenly, his regal performance of “duck lake” is put to a halt when his pesky nephews show up to play hockey. Donald pulls out a trophy that he happens to have on hand. It reads: …
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On this day in 1939, the beautiful Silly Symphony The Ugly Duckling swam into theaters, and although released early in Disney’s history, this was not Disney’s first version of the classic Hans Christian Andersen story. In the 1981 television special, Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life, Frank Thomas explained, “In 1931 we made the first …
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Something goofy happened on this day in 1939, when, after appearing in Mickey Mouse cartoon shorts, Goofy finally starred in his own cartoon, Goofy and Wilbur. Co-starring was a non-verbal grasshopper, Wilbur, and some other incidental critters, and although Pinto Colvig was the original creator of Goofy’s voice and trademark laugh, in Goofy and Wilbur …
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Disney’s successful Silly Symphony, 1933’s Three Little Pigs, led to three little sequels. The third, The Practical Pig, first danced onto screens on this day in 1939. When the pig who built the wolf-proof house is working on his latest practical invention, a lie detector, the other two pigs laugh and make sport of the …
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“Once upon a time in sunny Spain, there was a little bull and his name was Ferdinand. All the other little bulls he lived with would run and jump and butt their heads together, but not Ferdinand. He had his favorite spot out in the pasture under a cork tree, and he would sit just …
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On this day at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, California, the 11th annual Academy Awards® were held. And while neither Walt Disney nor his first film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs had been nominated the previous year, on this date in 1939 Walt managed to walk away with much more than just a …
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On this day in 1939 it was Friday the 13th, giving an element of reality to the Donald Duck cartoon short Donald’s Lucky Day, which was released on this day that year. This time, Donald portrays a messenger who is instructed to deliver a ticking package to 1313 13th Street by midnight. With the seed …
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Extra! Extra! Read all about it! It was on this day in 1939 that Disney Studio employees could read all about the happenings in their company with the first issue of The Bulletin. Why was it called The Bulletin? According to the newsletter, it’s “as good as any name, we thought. We assure you that …
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On this day in 1938, a Silly Symphony cartoon short was released that was particularly silly. Mother Goose Goes Hollywood depicts a collection of Mother Goose rhymes, as portrayed by some of the time’s biggest stars. Katherine Hepburn is Little Bo Peep, who cannot find her sheep throughout the film. Merry ol’ Hugh Herbert is …
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In this sequel to 1935’s Water Babies, Merbabies depicts the activities of the adorable aquatic beings as they hold an underwater circus, complete with elephant-style octopi, an underwater band, and a shark tamer, proving that life is the bubbles under the sea. Just a year after the release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, …
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