Walt Disney

WALT DISNEY

Where did Walt Disney grow up?

Walter Elias Disney was born in Chicago, Illinois on December 5, 1901. When he was four years old his parents, Elias and Flora, moved the family to a farm in Marceline, Missouri. Walt enjoyed living on the farm with his three older brothers (Herbert, Raymond, and Roy) and his younger sister (Ruth). It was in Marceline that Walt first developed a love for drawing and art. After four years in Marceline, the Disneys moved to Kansas City. Walt continued to draw and took art classes on the weekends. He even traded his drawings to the local barber for free haircuts. One summer Walt got a job working on a train. He walked back and forth on the train selling snacks and newspapers. Walt enjoyed his job on the train and would be fascinated by trains for the rest of his life.

Early life

About the time Walt was entering high school, his family moved to the big city of Chicago. Walt took classes at the Chicago Art Institute and drew for the school newspaper. When he was sixteen, Walt decided he wanted to help fight in World War I. Since he was still too young to join the army, he dropped out of school and joined the Red Cross. He spent the next year driving ambulances for the Red Cross in France.

Work as an Artist

Disney returned from the war ready to begin his career as an artist. He worked at an art studio and then later at an advertising company. It was during this time that he met artist Ubbe Iwerks and learned about animation.

Walt wanted to make his own animation cartoons. He started his own company called Laugh-O-Gram. He hired some of his friends including Ubbe Iwerks. They created short animated cartoons. Although the cartoons were popular, the business didn't make enough money and Walt had to declare bankruptcy. One failure was not going stop Disney, however. In 1923, he moved to Hollywood, California and opened a new business with his brother Roy called Disney Brothers' Studio. He again hired Ubbe Iwerks and number of other animators. They developed the popular character Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. The business was a success. However, Universal Studios gained control of the Oswald trademark and took all of Disney's animators except for Iwerks. Once again, Walt had to start over. This time he created a new character named Mickey Mouse. He created the first animated film to have sound. It was called Steamboat Willie and starred Mickey and Minnie Mouse. Walt performed the voices for Steamboat Willie himself. The film was a great success. Disney continued to work, creating new characters such as Donald Duck, Goofy, and Pluto. He had further success with the releases of the cartoon Silly Symphonies and the first color animated film, Flowers and Trees.

Early Animation

Snow White.

In 1932, Disney decided he wanted to make a full-length animated film called Snow White. People thought he was crazy for trying to make a cartoon that long. They called the film "Disney's folly." However, Disney was sure the film would be a success. It took five years to complete the film which was finally released in 1937. The film was a huge box office success becoming the top film of 1938.