By the D23 Team Most Disney Parks fans can guide you through Disneyland with ease, thanks to their countless trips to The Happiest Place on Earth and a passion for learning the park’s history—but perhaps the only person who could explore the park more in-depth is Walt Disney himself! With that idea in mind, author …
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By Jim Fanning Hello there, you kooky people, you! Are you in for a treat! 60 years ago—on September 24, 1961—the egotistical, erudite, eccentric professor Ludwig Von Drake made his debut on the premiere episode of Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color. The only major animated character Walt created especially for television, Professor Von Drake …
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By Beth Deitchman For the first time ever, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City will feature the work of Walt Disney Animation Studios’ hand-drawn animation in a new exhibition opening December 10, 2021, and continuing through March 6, 2022. Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts will draw new parallels …
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By Courtney Potter It’s true: Walt and Oscar go way back. All told, he won or received 32 Oscars®, from an incredible 67 nominations, during an iconic decades-long career—and he still holds the record for most Oscars in history. As D23 has highlighted in years past, Walt weaves a truly historic path through film industry …
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By Becky Cline, Director, Walt Disney Archives When doing research in the collections of the Walt Disney Archives, it’s always fun when you stumble across interesting tidbits from Disney History. One day, while looking in Walt Disney’s 1955 correspondence files (for something else entirely), I came across this very charming note to Walt—and his equally …
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By Kevin Kern, Walt Disney Archives Sometimes, the most memorable delights are those which are the simplest. Walt Disney’s Dumbo the Flying Elephant attraction has withstood the tests of time to become not only a beloved tradition for families to seek out when visiting Disney Parks, but also as a sort of “rite of passage” …
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By Max Lark Walt Disney once said: “I’ve always wanted to work on something alive, something that keeps growing. We’ve got that in Disneyland.” Anyone fortunate enough to visit Walt Disney’s office suite in the 3-H wing at the original Animation Building will see pictorial proof of Walt’s commitment to evolving and adding to his …
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By Mike Buckhoff, Walt Disney Archives In perhaps the most iconic photo of Walt Disney, Walt stands with a serious gaze out of a doorway as the shadow of his most famous creation reflects off the wall. For many years, the most puzzling aspect of this photo was… where was this taken? Of course, those …
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By Dave Smith In helping to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Walt Disney Archives, the Archives staff wanted to dig deep into their vaults to share an enlightening historical article with Disney fans. The following is an essay that Disney Legend, and Walt Disney Archives founder, Dave Smith wrote for a screening series hosted by …
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By Kevin Kern, Walt Disney Archives “The wonders of nature are endless. Sometimes we can recognize ourselves in animals, that’s what makes them so interesting.” – Walt Disney Starting in 1948 with the first of the True-Life Adventures films, Seal Island, Walt Disney set out to expand further upon his previous projects that tackled the …
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By Nicole Carroll, Walt Disney Archives Anyone familiar with Walt Disney has probably heard that one of his favorite foods was chili. Simply put, Walt was a Midwestern boy and had a Midwestern appetite; he stuck to familiar “meat and potatoes” dishes. So, of course, Walt liked his chili. As his wife Lillian recalled, “He …
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By Courtney Potter Walt Disney and the Academy Awards® have a long and storied past… Incredibly, he won or received 32 Oscars®—from a whopping 67 nominations—during his career, and still holds the record for most Oscars in history. So with that kind of extraordinary legacy, it’s no wonder today’s actors and actresses (both here in …
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By D23 Team “There was little variety or adventure for a boy growing up in the American Midwest in the early years of the twentieth century. . . . For Walt Disney, though, the appeal of exploration was strong,” writes author and Disney historian Jeff Kurtti in his book Travels with Walt Disney. “As much …
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Magic is everywhere, especially for Brad Meltzer. From spontaneous trips to Walt Disney World and first Disney movie experiences to a mission to give kids more—these are just some of the many inspirations behind the 18th edition of Meltzer’s bestselling biographic series. Read all about what prompted him to write I am Walt Disney and just …
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By Jim Fanning A pot of gold in the form of Disney movie magic—‘tis Darby O’Gill and the Little People (1959)! One of Walt Disney’s most lively live-action fantasies, this combination of Irish wit, whimsical wishes, and mind-bending special effects has been enchanting audiences for 60 years. Originally released on June 26, 1959, this live-action …
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By D23 Team Legendary movie historian Leonard Maltin recently wrote a touching tribute to Disney Legend Dave Smith, recounting an unforgettable article Dave wrote about Walt Disney back in 1981. Check out Leonard’s website for a full look at the article, here.
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By Karina Schink On this day in 1967, Pirates of the Caribbean opened at Disneyland. Whether for its uplifting music, its ragtag band of characters, or the enthralling story witnessed from aboard your bateaux, this seafaring attraction has become a favorite in the hearts of Disney fans around the world. In celebration of its anniversary, …
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By Courtney Potter Walt Disney is truly iconic in so many different ways… but did you know he won or received an incredible 32 Academy Awards—from a whopping 67 nominations—during his career? He still holds the record for most Oscars® in history! That astonishing legacy is still felt in every corner of Hollywood; actors and …
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By Jocelyn Buhlman Today, we celebrate Walt Disney’s birthday and all the magic and joy he brought to the world. During this holiday season, magic is important—not just the magic in our own lives, but the magic we can bring to others when we give back. In honor of Walt’s legacy, we encourage you to …
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By D23 Team If you’ll be visiting Walt Disney World Resort in November, you are in for a special treat! Find the perfect holiday gifts for the Disney fans in your life at the Disney Book Shop at Disney’s Contemporary Resort. There you can choose from a variety of titles about Disney history, art, and …
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By Jim Fanning D23 members well know the “23” in D23 means October 16, 1923, the date on which Walt Disney founded the company bearing his name. Today, to celebrate 95 years of magic, let’s look back to the yearlong, multi-faceted party entitled 50 Happy Years. Here are eight golden anniversary facts about the happy …
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By Jim Fanning One of Mickey Mouse’s greatest adventures, Brave Little Tailor is also one of Walt Disney’s most splendid animated films. This critically acclaimed audience-pleaser, released 80 years ago on September 23, 1938, is a swashbuckling tale of a gentle tailor who vanquishes a Giant armed with only sewing shears, a needle and thread, …
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By Tyler Slater On Friday, May 25, D23 Gold and Gold Family Members met in Missouri for truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience in Walt’s boyhood hometown of Marceline. Guests gathered in Excelsior Springs to be shuttled across the beautiful Midwest to the town of Marceline. During the journey, guests enjoyed two very special presentations, one by …
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By D23 Team D23 sat down with Jeff Kurtti for a behind-the-scenes chat about his book Travels With Walt Disney, available now.
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By Jim Fanning Melody Time is not just a Disney classic. It’s seven Disney classics in one. Celebrating seven decades of delighting audiences with its animated delicacies, Melody Time is one of Walt Disney’s “package films,” comprised of several short animated pieces “packaged” together to form one feature. With its cornucopia of varied stories, dynamic …
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By Courtney Potter With dozens of Oscars® to his name, Walt Disney’s presence in the film industry is undeniable. Even today, actors and actresses can still trace a path from their own careers back to Walt himself. In preparation for the 90th Academy Awards®, D23 took a look at all of the 2018 nominees for Actor …
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By D23 Team From his earliest years, Walt Disney aimed to expand his boundaries: physical, creative, and intellectual. Throughout his life, Walt was a frequent and enthusiastic “tourist,” visiting destinations around the United States of America and across the globe. Whether attending a premiere, supervising a film production, or simply vacationing with his family, the …
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By Jocelyn Buhlman Did Walt design the Animation building to secretly be a hospital? And WHO is that mustachioed singing bust inside the Haunted Mansion? D23 investigated the most famous Disney myths and has the surprising truths every Disney fanatic should know. MYTH: Walt Disney personally said, “If you can dream it, you can do …
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By Beth Deitchman “How about seals?” This was the wire sent to Walt Disney by Alfred Milotte in the early 1940s. Walt had contracted Al and his wife, Elma, to shoot film in Alaska for a planned documentary—an early foray for the Company into stories about real people and places, which Walt hoped would have …
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Celebrate some of the most legendary artists behind classic Disney animated films with this year’s D23 Member Gift. By Greg Ehrbar The first “nine old men” were Supreme Court justices—all more than 90 years old—who were trying to block President Franklin Roosevelt’s “New Deal” in the mid-1930s. When Walt Disney selected his first-string supervising animators, …
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