In 1928, a small animation studio in Los Angeles released a short film that would change the course of entertainment history forever. Steamboat Willie, featuring a mouse named Mickey, was the first cartoon to use synchronized sound, a technical feat that turned a struggling animation business into a global phenomenon. Before this moment, Walt Disney and his brother Roy had been fighting for survival after the bankruptcy of their Laugh-O-Gram Studio in Kansas City. The brothers had moved to Los Angeles to join Roy, who was recovering from tuberculosis, and had just signed a contract to produce Alice Comedies. When their distributor Charles Mintz threatened to take away the rights to their popular character Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Walt and his lead animator Ub Iwerks were left with nothing but a mouse character originally named Mortimer. Walt's wife Lillian suggested the name Mickey, and the rest is history. The film's success was immediate, with the Colony Theater in New York seeing such a crowd that it became a cultural sensation. By 1930, the first Mickey Mouse comic strip appeared in the New York Daily Mirror, and within two years, the character had generated $35 million in merchandise sales, a figure that saved the company during the Great Depression. The Waterbury Clock Company created a Mickey Mouse watch that sold 2.5 million units in just two years, proving that the character was more than just a cartoon; it was a brand that could sustain a business through economic collapse.
The Folly That Became A Fortune
In 1934, Walt Disney announced a project that his brother Roy and many critics called "Disney's Folly". Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was to be the first cel-animated feature film in the United States, a risky venture that would cost ten times the original budget of $150,000, eventually reaching $1.5 million. The production required the invention of the multiplane camera, a device using glass layers to create depth, and the studio's animators worked for three years to bring the story to life. When the film premiered on the 12th of December 1937, it became the highest-grossing film up to that point, earning $8 million in its first year and eventually $998 million adjusted for inflation. The success of Snow White allowed Disney to build a new 51-acre studio complex in Burbank, California, which the company fully moved into in 1940. However, the financial strain of the project left the studio vulnerable. In 1941, 300 of the 800 animators went on strike for unionization and higher pay, a conflict that led Walt Disney to publicly accuse the strikers of communist conspiracy and fire many of them, including some of the studio's best talent. The strike, combined with the poor box office performance of Pinocchio and Fantasia during World War II, left the company in financial ruin. To survive, Disney agreed to produce propaganda films for the U.S. government, including Victory Through Air Power, and rushed the production of Dumbo on a reduced budget to generate cash. The wartime era also saw 500 U.S. Army soldiers occupy the studio for eight months to protect a nearby Lockheed aircraft plant, turning soundstages into ammunition depots and storage sheds into military facilities.
In 1955, a 150-acre plot of orange groves in Anaheim, California, became the site of a dream that Walt Disney had conceived during a visit to Griffith Park with his daughters. He watched them ride a carousel and thought there should be an amusement enterprise where parents and children could have fun together. The plan to build an eight-acre park near the Burbank studio was abandoned when Walt realized the space was insufficient, leading him to acquire 160 acres for $6,200 per acre. Construction began in July 1954, and the park, originally named Disneylandia and then Disneyland, opened on the 17th of July 1955. The opening day was a disaster, with restaurants running out of food, the Mark Twain Riverboat sinking, and drinking fountains malfunctioning in 100-degree heat. Yet, the park became a massive success, attracting 161,657 visitors in its first week and 20,000 visitors a day in its first month. By the end of the first year, 3.6 million people had visited, making it more popular than the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone National Park. The park's success was funded by a television series of the same name aired on ABC, which garnered over 50% of viewers in its time slot. The show included a daily Disney cartoon, a children's newsreel, and a talent show hosted by "Mousketeers" and "Mooseketeers," selling two million Mickey Mouse ears. The park's success also led to the creation of the Sherman Brothers, Robert and Richard, who wrote the theme song for Zorro and became exclusive staff songwriters for 10 years, composing many hits for Disney's films and theme parks. In 1965, Walt announced plans for a larger park in Florida, called Walt Disney World, which included Magic Kingdom and the City of Tomorrow, later renamed EPCOT. Walt Disney died on the 15th of December 1966, of lung cancer, aged 65, at St. Joseph Hospital across the street from the studio, leaving behind a legacy that would be expanded by his brother Roy and the company he built.
The Renaissance And The Fall
In 1984, after Walt Disney's death and a period of decline, shareholders forced out CEO Ron W. Miller and replaced him with Michael Eisner, a former president of Paramount Pictures. Eisner's first act was to make Disney a major film studio, appointing Jeffrey Katzenberg as chairman and Roy E. Disney as head of animation. The company began producing animated films every 18 months instead of every four years, leading to the Disney Renaissance, a period of hugely successful and critically acclaimed animated films. The Little Mermaid, released on the 17th of November 1989, became the animated film with the highest gross from its initial run, earning $233 million and winning two Academy Awards. The Renaissance continued with Beauty and the Beast, which was the first animated film to win a Golden Globe for Best Picture and receive six Academy Award nominations, and Aladdin, which became the highest-grossing animated film to that point, earning $504 million. The period also saw the release of The Lion King, which became the second-highest-grossing film of all time behind Jurassic Park, earning $969 million. However, the success was not without controversy. In 1994, Frank Wells, who had helped the company's market value go from $2 billion to $22 billion, died in a helicopter crash. Later, Katzenberg left the company after Eisner refused to promote him to president, co-founding DreamWorks SKG. The company also faced internal strife, with Roy E. Disney and board member Stanley Gold forming the "Save Disney" campaign to call on Eisner to retire. In 2004, shareholders voted Eisner out as chairman, and he was replaced by George J. Mitchell. The company also sold the loss-making Disney Stores chain of 313 stores to Children's Place and the NHL team Mighty Ducks, signaling a shift in strategy. Despite these challenges, the Renaissance period established Disney as a dominant force in animation, with films like Toy Story, Finding Nemo, and The Incredibles becoming cultural phenomena.
The Colossus Of Entertainment
In 2005, Bob Iger became CEO of Disney, marking the beginning of an era of massive expansion and acquisition. Iger's first major move was to acquire Pixar from Steve Jobs for $7.4 billion, bringing John Lasseter and Edwin Catmull to lead Walt Disney Animation Studios. The company then acquired Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion in 2009, adding Marvel's comic-book characters to its merchandising lineup. In 2012, Disney bought Lucasfilm for $4.05 billion, gaining access to franchises such as Star Wars and Indiana Jones. The company's most significant acquisition came in 2019, when it purchased 21st Century Fox's assets for $71 billion, making it the biggest acquisition in Disney's history. Through this deal, Disney gained 20th Century Fox, 20th Century Fox Television, Fox Searchlight Pictures, National Geographic Partners, and a 30% stake in Hulu. The company also launched Disney+ in 2019, a streaming service that had over 10 million subscriptions within the first day and reached 135 million by 2022. The company's strategy of acquiring major franchises and expanding into streaming transformed it into an entertainment colossus, with seven films grossing over $1 billion in a single year. However, the company also faced challenges, including the departure of CCO John Lasseter due to sexual misconduct allegations and the cancellation of a deal to buy Twitter. Despite these issues, Disney continued to dominate the box office, with films like Avengers: Endgame becoming the highest-grossing film of all time up to that point at $2.8 billion. The company's expansion into streaming and international markets, including the opening of Shanghai Disneyland in 2016, solidified its position as one of the most influential entertainment brands in history.
The Pandemic And The Return
In 2020, Bob Chapek became CEO of Disney after Bob Iger's resignation, but the company faced unprecedented challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Disney temporarily closed all its theme parks, delayed the release of several movies, and stopped all cruises. Due to the closures, Disney announced it would stop paying 100,000 employees but still provide healthcare benefits, saving the company $500 million a month. Iger resumed operational duties as executive chairman to help the company during the pandemic, and Chapek was appointed to the board of directors. However, Chapek's leadership was short-lived, as he was ousted in 2022 and Iger was reinstated as CEO. The company also faced internal strife, with the departure of CCO John Lasseter due to sexual misconduct allegations and the cancellation of a deal to buy Twitter. Despite these challenges, Disney continued to dominate the box office, with films like Avengers: Endgame becoming the highest-grossing film of all time up to that point at $2.8 billion. The company's expansion into streaming and international markets, including the opening of Shanghai Disneyland in 2016, solidified its position as one of the most influential entertainment brands in history. In 2023, the company celebrated its 100th anniversary, having won 135 Academy Awards, 26 of which were awarded to Walt Disney. The company's ability to adapt to changing times, from the Great Depression to the digital age, has made it a enduring symbol of American entertainment.