-
Content Standards
4.4 Students explain how California became an agricultural and industrial power, tracing the transformation of the California economy and its political and cultural development since the 1850s. 4.4.9. Analyze the impact of twentieth-century Californians on the nation’s artistic and cultural development, including the rise of the entertainment industry (e.g., Louis B. Meyer, Walt Disney, John Steinbeck, Ansel Adams, Dorothea Lange, John Wayne). -
Walter Elias Disney is born
Walter Elias Disney was born on December 5, 1901 in Chicago Illinois, to his father, Elias Disney, an Irish-Canadian, and his mother, Flora Call Disney, who was of German-American descent. Walt was one of five children, four boys and a girl. -
Walt receives his diploma
Walt graduates from Benton High School. -
Walt joins Red Cross, too young for army
During the fall of 1918, Disney attempted to enlist for military service. Rejected because he was under age, only sixteen years old at the time. Instead, Walt joined the Red Cross and was sent overseas to France, where he spent a year driving an ambulance and chauffeuring Red Cross officials. His ambulance was covered from stem to stern, not with stock camouflage, but with Disney cartoons. -
Period: to
American Ambulance Corp
Walt works as a member of the American Ambulance Corps in France. Walt lied about his age to be accepted. -
From France back to the United States
After driving an ambulance through Europe, Walt returns to the US, moves to Kansas City and gets job at the Posman-Rubin Commercial Art Studio for $50 a month. -
Walt files bankruptcy
After a few failed partnerships, Walt resigns himself to bankrupcy, moves to Hollywood planning to become a director. Roy (Walt's brother) was already in California. -
Disney Company is born
Walt & Roy, Walt's older brother, sign a contract with M.J. Winkler, a New York cartoon distributor. They rent a room at the back of a real estate office. Roy operates a secondhand camera while two girls were hired to ink & paint the celluloids. Walt does the animation. -
Disney Bros. Studio
Walt hires the first animator, Rollin Hamilton and moves into a small store with a window bearing "Disney Bros. Studio." -
Walt concentrates on films
Ub Iwerks moves to California to join Disney Productions. Walt wanted to concentrate on the scenarios of the film; his career as an animator is over. -
Roy ties the knot
Roy marries Edna Francis. Walt meets Lillian Bounds, hired by the Studios as an inker. Walt recalled "I couldn't afford to pay her, so I married her!" -
Walt ties the knot
Walt married one of his first employees, Lillian Bounds, in Lewiston, Idaho. Later on they would be blessed with two daughters, Diane and Sharon. -
Walt's first color cartoon Academy Award winner.
Flowers and trees was the name of the first production in which Walt's studio won their first Academy Award. -
The Old Mill
The Old Mill was released and was the first short subject to utilize the multi-plane camera technique. -
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
On December 21, 1937, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the first full-length animated musical feature, premiered at the Carthay Theater in Los Angeles. The film produced at the unheard cost of $1,499,000 during the depths of the Depression, the film is still considered one of the great feats and imperishable monuments of the motion picture industry. During the next five years, Walt Disney Studios completed other full-length animated classics such as Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo, and Bambi. -
Disneyland Park Opens
Disneyland Park was opened to the public on July 18, 1955 with only 20 attractions. A special "International Press Preview" event was held on Sunday, July 17, 1955, which was only open to invited guests and the media. As a fabulous $17-million magic kingdom, soon had increased its investment tenfold, and by the beginning of its second quarter-century, had entertained more than 200 million people, including presidents, kings and queens, and royalty from all over the globe. -
Disney is first to present full-color programming.
Disney began television production in 1954, and was among the first to present full-color programming with his Wonderful World of Color in 1961. -
The California Institute of the Arts
The California Institute of the Arts was founded in 1961 with the combination of two schools, the Los Angeles Conservatory of Music and the Chouinard Art Institute. The campus is located in the city of Valencia, 32 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles. Walt Disney conceived the new school as a place where all the performing and creative arts would be taught under one roof in a "community of the arts" as a completely new approach to professional arts training. -
Walt Disney passes.
Walt Disney is a legend; a folk hero of the 20th century. His worldwide popularity was based upon the ideals which his name represents: imagination, optimism, creation, and self-made success in the American tradition. Walt Disney did more to touch the hearts, minds, and emotions of millions of Americans than any other person in the past century. Through his work he brought joy, happiness, and a universal means of communication to the people of every nation. -
Magic Kingdom Opens
Magic Kingdom opened as the first part of Walt Disney's planned Florida Project on Oct. 1, 1971. It was the only theme park on the resort at the time and opened concurrently with two hotels on the property: Disney's Contemporary Resort and Disney's Polynesian Resort. The park opened with 23 attractions, three unique to the park and 20 copies of attractions at Disneyland. -
Walt Disney World Dedication
“Walt Disney World is a tribute to the philosophy and life of Walter Elias Disney... and to the talents, the dedication, and the loyalty of the entire Disney organization that made Walt Disney's dream come true. May Walt Disney World bring Joy and Inspiration and New Knowledge to all who come to this happy place ... a Magic Kingdom where the young at heart of all ages can laugh and play and learn — together.”
—Roy Oliver Disney, 25th October 1971 -
EPCOT Opens
Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow Epcot is a theme park in the Walt Disney World Resort, located near Orlando, Florida. The park is dedicated to the celebration of human achievement, namely international culture and technological innovation. The second park built at the resort, it opened on October 1, 1982 and was initially named EPCOT Center. In 1994, the "Center" was dropped from the park's name, and by 1996, the park was simply named Epcot. -
MGM Studios
Disney'sThe Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park opened.
Now named, Disney's Hollowood STudios
“The World you have entered was created by The Walt Disney Company and is dedicated to Hollywood—not a place on a map, but a state of mind that exists wherever people dream and wonder and imagine, a place where illusion and reality are fused by technological magic. We welcome you to a Hollywood that never was—and always will be.”
—Michael Eisner, May 1, 1989 -
