From comedy and drama to video games, animation, and game shows, Anthony Anderson’s career has touched nearly every corner of pop culture over the last two-plus decades. Born in Augusta, Maine, and raised in Compton, California, he would often accompany his mother Doris to film sets, where she worked as a background actor. It’s no …
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Actress. Producer. CEO. Creative. Tracee Ellis Ross has forged a unique path in Hollywood. After appearing in 1996’s Far Harbor, she landed her first studio film role in Hanging Up (2000). That year would prove to be her breakthrough—not only did she became a regular on the MTV series The Lyricist Lounge Show, a hip-hop …
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Josh Gad is a Tony Award®-nominated and Grammy®-winning actor and singer who has warmed the hearts of countless viewers around theglobe as Olaf, the lovable snowman from the 2013 box office hit Frozen and its popular follow-up, Frozen 2 (2019). Gad and Disney havebeen a perfect match at least since the actor’s guest role as …
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It doesn’t take a detective to deduce that Kristen Bell is a true quintuple threat—an actress, a singer, a producer, a philanthropist, and an entrepreneur. Born in Huntington Woods, Michigan, Kristen started performing early. As a child, she once appeared in the pivotal dual role of “banana and tree” in a suburban Detroit theater production …
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When Doris Hardoon arrived in 1979 for an interview at WED Enterprises—as Walt Disney Imagineering was then called—three future Disney Legends sat in judgment of this recent graduate from San Francisco’s California College of the Arts: Marty Sklar, John Hench, and Rolly Crump. Her creativity and design experience at a small animal-themed park in Northern …
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Don Hahn has experienced the past, the present, and the future of The Walt Disney Company in a way very few others have. Born in Chicago, Illinois, and raised in Southern California, Don developed an interest in both music and animation early on. “My favorite films were One Hundred and One Dalmatians and The Jungle …
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Whether on stage or screen, Idina Menzel’s unequivocal signature talents have shone through countless projects across her almost 30-year career. She was born in Manhattan and grew up on Long Island, where her vocal chops appeared early. “I’ve been singing and acting and running around putting on shows in my living room since I was a …
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Culminating a nearly 30-year career at Walt Disney Imagineering that included work on some of Disney’s most popular attractions, Robert “Rob’t” Coltrin was named a Disney Legend in 2020. To his surprise, Rob’t was notified of this prestigious honor on August 25, 2020, during a private presentation at home with a few friends and his …
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Without the man who proudly referred to himself as “Disney’s official clod kicker,” the Walt Disney World Resort we know wouldnot have been possible. Robert Price “Bob” Foster orchestrated the purchase of thousands of acres that the resort covers todayin total secrecy in the early 1960s, involving hundreds of transactions. He joined The Walt Disney …
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Since Mickey Mouse first whistled in 1928’s Steamboat Willie, music has played an integral role in the success of The Walt Disney Company, and for over 30 years, Chris Montan helped define that Disney signature sound. One of the most well-respected executives in Hollywood, Chris re-established Disney’s music as a cultural phenomenon. As he explains, …
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