Walter Elias Disney was born on December 5, 1901 in Chicago, Illinois. His mother, Flora Disney, and his father, Elias Disney, had lived in Chicago prior to his birth. Walter grew up in Chicago and attended local schools for his first five years. Then, his father bought a 45 acre farm on the outskirts of a small-town located between St. Louis and Kansas City, Missouri.
During Walt's childhood, one of the more humorous incidents in which he was involved occurred when he and his younger sister, Ruth, painted a series of white houses with black tar. After they finished painting the houses, Walt and Ruth learned that the tar could not be removed. Their father exploded with rage, cut a branch off of a nearby apple tree, and used it as a switch on both Walt and Ruth. Needless to say, that was the end of Walt's house painting career.
Walt was never a particularly good student in school. Instead of occupying himself with his studies, he was constantly doodling and drawing cartoons. Walt's older brothers, Raymond and Herbert, failed to help around the house and the farm, and moved back to Chicago by hopping a train at night. In 1911, Walt and the rest of his family moved into a smaller house near suburban Kansas City.
Despite the fact that he was bored with studies, Walt's mother and his brother, Roy, encouraged him to continue with his drawing and other art work. In 1914, Walt attended McKinley High School, where he studied fine arts and photography. He applied those studies to the school newspaper where he worked during his student career.
In 1917, America entered the “Great War,” which had been raging in Europe since 1914. We know this war now as the “First World War,” but he called it the “Great War” until the Axis powers started World War II. With America's entry into the "Great War," Walt tried to enlist in the military. He was rejected because he was only 16 years old at the time. Walt refused to let that rejection prevent him from serving, and he joined the Red Cross. He was sent to France to drive ambulances. Even during wartime, Walt found an outlet for his art by drawing cartoons on the sides of his ambulance. This helped make the troops feel a little bit more at home.
After the war was over, Walt tried to start a company to manage his creativity. He began to draw the "Alice Comedies." Despite his hard work, the company he had formed to do the Alice Comedies ended up in bankruptcy. This failure did not stop Walt. Instead, he packed his bags and headed for Hollywood to start a new business. His brother, Roy Disney, was already in Hollywood and encouraged Walt to start a new business with him. Walt took $750 and set up a shop in their uncle's garage. These humble beginnings were the ultimate start of the mighty Disney Empire.
Walt Disney was a tall, thin, and handsome man. He always dreamed of inspiring children with his cartoons and by building theme parks based upon those cartoons. Walt was quick to anger, however, and was also very stubborn. In addition to his stubborn nature, Walt had an extraordinary eye for detail. He also drove his employees extremely hard, and worked their fingers to the bone.
Walt ultimately married one of his employees, Lillian Bounds. Walt and Lillian were married in April, 1925. On December 18, 1933 their first child, Diana Mary Disney, was born. Thereafter, in January, 1937, Lillian and Walt decided to adopt a two week old girl which they named Sharon May Disney.
Walt Disney died at the premature age of 65 years on December 15, 1966 in Los Angeles due to lung cancer. It is rumored that his will directed that his body be frozen and kept in deep cryogenic freeze. Whether this is true is open to debate.
During his life, Walt Disney achieved many goals and was honored for his work. Walt's first cartoon show, which was done in 1926, was called the “Alice Comedies." As I have said before, the Alice Comedies were not particularly successful, and Walt did not make a lot of money from them.
One of Walt's favorite drawings was of a mouse, named “Mickey.” Mickey Mouse and his girlfriend “Minnie” were fairly popular, and in November, 1920, they evolved to into an animated characters. Walt's cartoon “Steamboat Willie,” was groundbreaking for its combination of animation and sound. Mickey Mouse would soon become one of the most recognizable cartoon characters in the entire world. Mickey soon appeared in lots of shows in addition to "Steamboat Willie" such as "Fantasia."
On December 21, 1937, Walt Disney premiered a full-length feature color cartoon called "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." In addition to being the first full-length color animation, it was also a musical feature and premiered at the Los Angeles theater. The movie earned a then unheard-of $1,499,000 during the depths of the Depression. We have to bear in mind that the cost for a ticket to this movie was only $.10 per child. In that light $1.5 million dollars seems a great deal more.
