In 1919, after serving in WWI, Walt Disney was searching for work as an artist. After a few failed attempts in the business and being told he did not have the talent needed, he headed for Hollywood. There he and his brother, Roy, became the founders of The Disney Brothers Studios, which was later renamed The Walt Disney Studios. Walt began with a character named “Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.” Due to a struggle with Universal Productions, the rights to the character were lost. He was at a turning point and vowed to never work for someone else again.
Mickey Mouse became the next character and has been center stage ever since. Disney’s first two films with Mickey were not a big success because of being silent films. The release of “Steamboat Willie”
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“Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” released in 1937, was the first full length animated feature film. Poor box office sales and the high cost of making the film put the Disney brothers in debt. In 1940, the first stock shares were sold to raise capital for the company and brought in $3.5 million dollars.
More animated movies followed including, “Bambi,” Fantasia,” and “Cinderella”. Although at the time they were not big money makers, all three are now considered Disney classics. Walt Disney Studios furthered the film industry with the use of the multiplane camera created by a Disney employee, William Garity. This camera gave more depth to the animated scenes, by using up to seven layers of art work moving independently.
Walt Disney began to dream of a place where parents and kids could visit and have fun together. The plans for Disneyland were begun and the theme park opened on July 17, 1955. Using private loans, and even a loan from Walt Disney’s own life insurance policy, the building began. The need for more funding brought about an offer to create a TV series for ABC in exchange for financial investment from the broadcast company. The series had several names over the years but aired on Sunday nights for 29 years on the ABC