I Love Walt Disney

I am a huge fan of Walt Disney and I often think people really don't appreciate the marvel that he was. Here are some interesting points about someone who is the biggest oscar winner, parent, visionary, and somehow who helped create the animal rights movement.

The Impact of Snow White

According to Neal Gabler, author of the leading Walt Disney biography, Snow White may be the most watched film of all time. For nearly 80 years, generations have watched Snow White all around the world. Do you know anyone who hasn't? What movie can say that?

It's hard to imagine today what an impact Snow White made when it was released. Normally when a film is amazing it gets nominated for an Oscar. Not so with Snow White. The film was so original and so amazing the Academy actually created a one time Oscar for the movie along with seven little oscars.

Clark Gable, someone proud of being a man who never cried, was apparently sobbing during the movie.

The Princess Story

I often feel bad when I hear people accusing Disney of promoting the princess agenda. This is because Walt's point of view had to do more with escaping abuse and neglect through having a kind heart and good character than being saved by a prince. Walt himself grew up in a abusive and neglectful household. The idea of escaping from that was a story that always appealed to him.

Walt in general was not a fan of princess films, but sadly it was what made the studio the most money, while his more artistic pieces, like Fantasia didn't. The success of movies like Sleeping Beauty actually lead to Walt being disenfranchised with movies and encouraged him the direction of his theme parks.

The princess battle is one the studio has continued to wrestle with, because audiences seem to crave it, but the message is not always the best. The Disney Studio has worked hard to undermine the princess theme over and over again, the most recent and creative attempt in Frozen.

The Birth of Animal Rights

It was because of Walt's background of abuse and neglect he allowed himself to escape into the fantasy world. Growing up on a farm, he gravitated towards connecting with animals. Walt's animation personified animals in a way that people had not seen before. It's so common today it's hard to imagine it otherwise. Walt showed people that animals have feelings. Bambi is often sited as an anti-hunting film.

Or consider the nature documentary that is so popular today. Those did not always exist and people would have thought they were boring. Walt however saw it differently. In 1947, Walt shot a movie about seals. It is now considered perhaps the first nature documentary. Many people laughed at him and told him the idea was boring and silly. RKO refused to even show it in theaters. Nonetheless Walt moved forward on the film against everyone's judgment. It was so entertaining that it won an Oscar and set the stage for nature documentaries as a genre.

How Many Oscars?

Katherine Hepburn was one of the most successful actresses and has won more oscars than anyone else: four. Walt Disney won 26. In 1953 alone he won 4, the most ever in a single year.

Hello Julie Andrews

Walt selected Julie Andrews for Mary Poppins. This doesn't sound too remarkable until you understand the story. Prior to Poppins, Julie Andrews was the lead in My Fair Lady on Broadway. When the film was made into a movie, Julie Andrews was one of the only cast members not to be selected to play in the Hollywood version of the movie because she was considered unattractive. Audrey Hepburn was selected instead. During the Oscars, My Fair Lady swept winning 8 oscars, except for Best Actress which went to Julie Andrews for Mary Poppins. This cemented her Andrew's role in future movies such as the Sound of Music.

Paying for Disney Land as a Passionate Father

It was Walt's love of his children that inspired Disney Land. He loved playing with his children but found traditional parks a bit boring for adults. So he dreamed up Disney Land a place to support the family being together and having fun together. It was the first of it's kind.

Paying for Disney Land was a problem, but he found a creative way. He signed a contract with ABC to produce the Wonderful World of Disney as a regular TV series. Rather than using the money to create a show, he funneled it into the making of Disney Land. The show was basically a behind the scenes of building the park and the Disney studio, and as also a tool to generating publicity for the park and movies. In essence ABC paid for the building of Disneyland and promoting Disney.

Disney World: A City Not An Amusement Park

Have you ever seen the original plans for Disney World? You should. Watch it here.

Neal Gabler

Do you want to learn more? Read more from Neal Gabler's biography Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination.