Early Life and Career
Walter Elias Disney was on December 5th, 1901 in Chicago. He moved with his family to Missouri in 1911 where he spent his time trapped on a farm drawing pictures of a cartoon horse, developing his skill.
His first studio was Laugh-o-Grams Studio, but it unfortunately went bankrupt after two years. It was named after a series of cartoons he had done for Newman Theater called ‘Newman’s Laugh-o-Grams,’ which were highly successful.
The Iconic Mouse
Walt Disney’s first original cartoon was called Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. After parting ways with Universal, who owned the rights to Oswald, Disney and fellow animator Ub Iwerks began developing Mickey.
The original planned name for Mickey Mouse was meant to be Mortimer Mouse. Disney’s wife declared the name ‘Mortimer’ to be pompous and instead suggested ‘Mickey.’ Mortimer Mouse went on to become Mickey’s arch-nemesis. Walt Disney maintained a close love and attachment for his animated characters. He provided the voice for Mickey Mouse from his inception in 1928 until 1947. His favorite character was said to be Goofy.
The Happiest Place on Earth
Though the initial stages of planning took several years, the construction of Disneyland was completed within 1 year, from 1954 to 1955.
Despite initial hiccups, in its first year alone the theme park received 20,000 visitors every day. Today, Disney’s theme parks can be found around the globe.