2007:
Tonight is the official opening night for Disney's newest touring production
of "High School Musical" at Chicago's LaSalle Bank Theatre. The show
features an entirely new cast of 35 adult performers and a live orchestra. "High School Musical" will remain at the LaSalle Bank Theatre through September 2 before touring some 60 U.S. cities.
Disney officially acquires the online virtual world known as Club Penguin.
Originally launched in October 2005, it has grown to 700,000 paid subscribers and 12 million users.
2006:
Disney releases Winnie the Pooh Wonderful Word Adventure and The Shaggy Dog each on DVD.
It is announced in Playbill that Stagedoor Manor (the New York summer theatre
camp made famous by the movie Camp) will be home to the first stage
production of Disney Channel's original movie High School Musical.
The three teachers from Dutchtown Middle School in Geismar, Louisiana, who
swept the 2006 Disney Teacher Awards, are celebrated at a Disneyland ceremony
in Anaheim. Kathryn Pilcher and LSU alumnae Amanda Mayeaux and Monique Wild are awarded thre
times for: the 2006 Youth Service America Award, the 2006 Disney Outstanding Middle School Teacher
Award and the prestigious 2006 Disney Teacher of the Year Award.
1997:
Bob Penfield, the last of the original Disneyland opening day Cast Members, is
honored for more than 42 years of service. To commemorate his retirement, Bob is honored
with a window on Main Street displaying the legend "Club 55 School of Golf, Bob Penfield, Instructor."
Walt Disney World's Coronado Springs Resort, featuring a Southwestern
U.S.-Mexican theme, opens at 1000 W. Buena Vista Blvd., with 1,967
rooms and suites. Categorized as a 'moderate' resort, it is considered the main convention
hotel at Disney World - offering almost 100,000 square feet of meeting and convention space.
The entire resort circles Lago Dorado, a large lake which features an island that includes the
Dig Site swimming pool.
The Golden Age of Walt Disney Records 1933-1988 by
R. Michael Murray hits bookstore shelves.
The feature Air Bud, about a Golden Retriever who can play basketball, is
released. (The film will gross $4 million in its opening weekend!)
2004:
Classic "Disneylander" Chuck Boyajian, the first Manager of Custodial
operations at the Anaheim park starting in 1955, passes away. He began his career at
Disneyland when Walt Disney himself put Boyajian in charge of the janitorial team - assigning him
the somewhat daunting task of keeping the Magic Kingdom clean. He later assisted with the opening of Walt
Disney World in 1971 and with Tokyo Disneyland in 1983. Boyajian trained a "Disney Dynasty" of Custodial
Hosts and Hostesses, who 50 years later are proud to say that they are members of "The Team that Chuck
Built." A year later, Boyajian will be named a Disney Legend.
1922:
The second Laugh-O-Gram black & white silent cartoon The Four Musicians
of Bremen (adapted from a fairy tale first recorded by the Brothers Grimm) is released.
Walt Disney has written, directed, produced, and co-animated (along with Rudolph Ising) the short.
1936:
Disney's Mickey Mouse cartoon Mickey's Circus is released. Directed by
Ben Sharpsteen, the short features the voices of Walt Disney (as Mickey), Marcellite Garner
(as Minnie Mouse), and Clarence Nash (as Donald Duck). A group of orphans, Donald Duck
and a destructive seal wreak havoc on Mickey's circus!
1953:
Disney releases the Donald Duck short The New Neighbor. Donald
(voiced by Clarence Nash) moves into a new home, only to discovers his neighbor is a slob,
a mooch, and has an out-of-control dog!
1958:
Disney's 17-minute animated short Paul Bunyan, directed by Les Clark
and featuring the voice of Thurl Ravenscroft as Bunyan, is released.
It is a retelling of the classic Canadian/American tall tale of an enormous lumberjack and his
loyal companion; an equally huge blue ox named Babe. Bunyan must compete in a
woodcutting contest against the newfangled chainsaw. Paul Bunyan will later be included in
the direct-to-video release Disney's American Legends.
Disneyland sponsors Disney Night at the Hollywood Bowl (in California).
The show's highlight is a 1000-foot glide over the audience by Helen "Tiny Kline" Klein dressed as Tinker Bell (for the
very first time)! Three years later she will appear nightly at Disneyland to do her part in Tinker Bell’s magical flight.
1995:
The CD Walt Disney's Greatest Hits by the Mike Curb Congregation is released.
Curb is a musician, record company executive, race car owner (in both NASCAR and IRL), and politician who served
as Lieutenant Governor of California from 1979-1983. His group's recording of It's a Small World was chosen by Disneyland as the ride's official theme song!
1998:
Disney A to Z: The Updated Official Encyclopedia written by Disney Archivist Dave Smith, is published by Disney's Hyperion Books.
2002:
Once Upon A Toy, a 16,000-square-foot toy store, officially opens its doors
at Walt Disney World's Downtown Disney Marketplace.
Oona Laurence, an actress who is best known for originating the role of Matilda Wormwood in Matilda on Broadway, is born in New York City. Disney fans will recognize her
as Natalie from the 2016 film Pete's Dragon.
1955:
The publication Popular Science runs the article "Kids' Dream World Comes True."
It describes the new Disneyland park (which opened last month) and all of its "fantastic" attractions.
1956:
The trade publication Radio & TV News runs an article titled "Sound Effects Add
Realism To Disneyland." Readers are told that - "A full-time service crew consisting of six technicians is
required to maintain 290 loudspeakers, more than 40 miles of wiring, 13 long-playing magnetic tape playback units,
and some 150 cartridge-type tape program repeaters. In addition, associated timers, amplifiers, and other
equipment is spread over the lot. All in all, there are seven control centers on the grounds at Disneyland."
1957:
The article "If You Plan To Visit Disneyland" appears in the publication Sunset. The
article gives advice on how to prepare for a trip to "the wonderful world of make-believe called Disneyland."
1933:
Comedic actor, chef & author Dom DeLuise is born in Brooklyn,
New York. His Disney credits include the animated TV series Hercules (as the voice of
Bacchus) and the animated feature Oliver & Company (as the voice of Fagin). He also
hosted a 1972 episode of The Mouse Factory and made a cameo appearance in the 1979 The Muppet Movie.
DeLuise is probably best known as a regular in such Mel Brooks films as Blazing Saddles, Silent Movie, History
of the World, Part I, Spaceballs and Robin Hood: Men in Tights. His youngest son David DeLuise starred as
Jerry Russo on the Disney Channel series Wizards of Waverly Place.
THIS DAY
MADE IN
THE USA
AUGUST 1
Today is the first day of
Admit Your Happy Month.
AUGUST 1
Coronado Springs Resort opens
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2008:
Disney's Touchstone Pictures releases Swing Vote starring Kevin Costner.
In a remarkable turn-of-events, the result of the presidential election comes down to one man's vote; an apathetic, beer-slinging, lovable loser named Bud Johnson. He becomes the most famous man in the world for ten days as both sides campaign to get his vote. The cast includes Paula Patton, Kelsey Grammer, Dennis Hopper, Nathan Lane, Stanley Tucci, George Lopez , Judge Reinhold, and Willie Nelson.
"I'm actually a thin, serious person, but I play fat and funny, but only for the movies." -Dom DeLuise
1924:
Disney's Alice Comedy Alice the Peacemaker is released. Alice (played by Virginia Davis)
breaks up a fight between 2 boys by telling them a story about a feuding cat named Mike and a mouse named Ike.
1976:
"The Old Disney Magic," an article by John Culhane appears in this day's
issue of The New York Times Magazine. Culhane asks "Can a new generation of artists make audiences cry the way they did for Snow White?"
1914:
Chuck Keehne, a costumer and an expert on historical dress and costuming, is born
in St. Louis, Missouri. First hired by Walt Disney in 1947, Keehne was made Chief of the Wardrobe
Department in 1955. His long list of 70 plus Disney credits include The Shaggy Dog, Pollyana, The Love Bug, Mary
Poppins and The Black Hole. He also created costumes for Disney's TV shows Mickey Mouse Club and Zorro. It
was Keehne who turned Roy Williams' idea of mouse ear caps for the Mouseketeers into a reality. He was also
responsible for dressing Walt Disney himself for all of Disney's introductions to the Disneyland television series.
Keehne stayed as head of Disney's Wardrobe Department until his retirement in 1979.
Paul Bunyan released
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In August 1965 Walt Disney met
with Brian Epstein - manager of
The Beatles - to discuss the
possibility of the popular Fab
Four performing songs for the
upcoming film The Jungle Book.
Later band member John Lennon
nixed the idea so Walt ended up
using semi-soundalikes to
voice the vultures in the film.
August 01
This Day in Disney History - THE FIRST - THE ORIGINAL
Traveling in time since 1999!
2014:
The Four Seasons Resort Orlando at Disney World Resort opens in Florida with a ribbon cutting ceremony attended by Mickey Mouse. The new resort is one of the largest in the global Four Seasons portfolio at 443-rooms including 68 suites (one with nine bedrooms). With a dedicated "Disney Planning Center" in its lobby, the luxury hotel also offers character breakfasts.
Guardians of the Galaxy, a science-fiction superhero film
based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same
name, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt
Disney Studios Motion Pictures, is released to U.S. theaters.
Brash adventurer Peter Quill finds himself the object of an unrelenting bounty
hunt after stealing a mysterious orb coveted by Ronan, a powerful villain with
ambitions that threaten the entire universe. To evade the ever-persistent Ronan,
Quill is forced into an uneasy truce with a group of disparate misfits. The film
stars Chris Pratt (as Peter Quill / Star-Lord), Lee Pace (as Ronan the Accuser),
Zoe Saldana (as Gamora), Dave Bautista (Drax the Destroyer), Vin Diesel (the
voice and motion capture for Groot), Bradley Cooper (the voice of Rocket, a
genetically-engineered raccoon), Karen Gillan (as Nebula), John C. Reilly
(as corpsman Rhomann Dey), and Glenn Close (as Irani Rael). The film
incorporates songs from the 1960s and 1970s, such as "Hooked on a Feeling"
and "Go All the Way". Directed by James Gunn, he also wrote the screenplay
with Nicole Perlman.
1946:
Original Mouseketeer Karen Pendleton is born in North Hollywood, California. She was
one of only nine Mouseketeers who were on Mickey Mouse Club during its entire original run from 1955-1959.
1974:
Disney's live-action The Castaway Cowboy starring James
Garner as a Texas rancher who finds himself shanghaied in
Hawaii, is released. Also featuring Vera Miles, Eric Shea and
Robert Culp, the film was shot on location in Hawaii.
Cowboy Lincoln Costain (Garner), gets "shanghaied" in San Francisco, then jumps
ship and washes ashore on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, right into the arms of
widow Henrietta MacAvoy (Miles) and her son (Shea) who are struggling to make
a living as farmers. The Hawaiian farm hands don't readily take to the American
cowboy who wants to help, including banker Calvin Bryson (Culp), who has eyes
for Henrietta's farm ... and maybe Henrietta herself.
2019:
O Canada!, the long-running World Showcase Circle-Vision 360 movie at Epcot, temporarily closes for upgrades. The film will be “refreshed” with new footage along with a
projection-system upgrade that is meant to visually enhance the experience.
1996:
Cymphonique Miller, known professionally as Cymphonique, a singer-songwriter and actress, is born in New Orleans, Louisiana. She voiced the recurring role of Holly in seasons 1-3 of the animated Phineas and Ferb.
2000:
Another wave of the Walt Disney Gold Classic Collection (or the Gold Classic Collection for short), a series of VHS and DVD animated Disney films, are released.
This day's releases include The Rescuers Down Under, Hercules, and A Bug's Life.
1973:
British born actor Frederick Worlock passes away at age 86 in California. Known for his
work in various films during the 1940s and 1950s, he was the voice of Horace for Disney's 1961 animated
One Hundred and One Dalmatians.
1966:
Screenwriter and voice actor Dan Gerson is born in New York City. Best known for his work with Pixar Animation Studios and Walt Disney Animation Studios, he co-wrote the screenplays of Monsters, Inc., Monsters University and Big Hero 6. Gerson also contributed material to Chicken Little, Cars, Meet the Robinsons, Up, Inside Out and Zootopia.
