1993:
Mickey's Toontown opens at Disneyland in California. A small-scale recreation of the
Mickey Mouse universe, visitors can meet the characters and visit their homes which are constructed
in a vibrant cartoon-style. Inspired by "Toontown" from the 1988 film Who Framed Roger Rabbit, the themed land
features such attractions as Gadget's Go Coaster, Goofy's Bounce House, Gag Warehouse and Jolly Trolley.
Opening festivities for Toontownwill continue over the next 3 days.
The 50th Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best in film and television for 1992 are
presented. Disney's Aladdin wins Best Original Score (by Alan Menken) and Best Original Song - "A Whole New
World" (performed by Peabo Bryson & Regina Belle and written by Menken & Tim Rice). Although nominated for
Best Motion Picture - Comedy/Musical, Aladdin is edged out by The Player. Robin Williams is given a Special Award
for his vocal contribution to Aladdin as the Genie.
"Animation has always been the heart and soul of the Walt Disney Company and it is wonderful to see Bob Iger and the company embrace that heritage by bringing the outstanding animation talent of the Pixar team back into the fold. This clearly solidifies
the Walt Disney Company's position as the dominant leader in motion picture animation
and we applaud and support Bob Iger's vision."
-Roy E. Disney's statement to the press on the acquisition of Pixar;
This Day in Disney History 2006
2006:
Robert A. Iger, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company, announces that Disney has agreed to acquire computer animation leader Pixar in an all-stock transaction (totaled to be worth approximately $7.4 billion), expected to be completed by this summer.
1776:
German romantic and fantasy author/composer Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann is born in Prussia. Better known by his pen name E.T.A. Hoffman, he is the author of the novelette The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, on which the famous ballet The Nutcracker is based. The music from The Nutcracker (an 1892 ballet composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) can be heard in Disney's 1940 Fantasia during the "Nutcracker Suite" segment.
1906:
Director, animator, and Disney Legend Wilfred Jackson
is born in Chicago, Illinois. He contributed to 11 animated features
and countless early Mickey and Silly Symphony shorts. It was Jackson who
helped devise a method of synchronizing animation with music, by using a
metronome to mark time that could then be converted to a music track!
1927:
The Alice Comedy Alice Foils the Pirates, starring Margie Gay, is released.
1930:
Walt Disney signs a contract with King Features to distribute his Mickey Mouse comic
strip. (King Features Syndicate is a print syndication company owned by The Hearst Corporation.)
1965:
Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color premieres a new mini-series titled "Gallegher." Gallegher, played by Roger Mobley, is a turn-of-the-century copyboy with a nose for news, first created by American writer Richard Harding Davis. The cast also includes Edmond O'Brien as Jefferson Crowley (Gallegher's boss) and Harvey Korman as Brownie. The MelloMen (a vocal quartet featuring Thurl Ravenscroft) make a brief appearance singing the theme song. On this evening's episode, Gallegher helps solve a bank robbery. This particular 3-episode mini-series will air over the next few weeks.
2000:
Robert A. Iger (former chairman of the Disney-owned ABC Group and president of Walt Disney International) is named president and chief operating officer of The Walt Disney Co., as well as a member of its board of directors. This makes Iger the company's number two executive under Chairman and CEO Michael Eisner.
SoapNet - a cable station launched by Disney/ABC - hits the air.
2002:
Disney announces it will release its major holiday 2002 animated feature, Treasure
Planet, simultaneously in 35mm venues as well as in IMAX theaters on November 27.
The film is directed by John Musker and Ron Clements (the team responsible for such classics as The Little
Mermaid) and features the vocal talents of Emma Thompson, Martin Short, and Brian Murray. Loosely based on
Robert Louis Stevenson's novel "Treasure Island," Treasure Planet is an animated space adventure that follows a
fifteen-year-olds' fantastic journey across a parallel universe.
2003:
More than 100 Oscar statuettes presented over the past 75 years are
featured in a new exhibition at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences beginning this day. Included in the exhibit is the regular sized statuette and its seven smaller friends that were awarded to Walt Disney for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
The Lizzie McGuire episode "Dear Lizzie" debuts on the Disney Channel. Premiering the same night is That's So Raven with the episode "A Fish Called Raven". The episode is directed by Fred Savage (star of the 1980s TV series The Wonder Years.)
1986:
Ricky Ullman, the star of Disney Channel's Phil of the Future, is born in Eilat, Israel. (Shortly after his first birthday his family moved to Fairfield, Connecticut.) He also appeared in Disney's 2004 made-for-TV movie Pixel Perfect and provided the voice of Eric for the 2005 Kim Possible: So the Drama.
NBC-TV airs Disney's Living Seas, a special combining music and humor, with a look at life beneath the seas and the spectacular new Living Seas Pavilion at Walt Disney World's Epcot Center. The Living Seas officially opened January 15.
1953:
Vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer Matthew Wilder, first known for his 1983 hit song Break My Stride, is born in New York City. In 1998 he lent his singing voice to the character of Ling and was nominated for an Academy Award for Original Music Score (along with David Zippel and Jerry Goldsmith) for his work on the Disney animated film Mulan. The Wilder/Zippel songs included "Honor to Us All," "Reflection," "I'll Make a Man Out of You," "A Girl Worth Fighting For," and "True to Your Heart." Wilder also co-wrote "G.N.O. (Girls' Night Out)," the 2007 single by Miley Cyrus from her album Hannah Montana 2: Meet Miley Cyrus.
(During his long career, Wilder has written songs and or produced albums for such recording artists as No Doubt, Kelly Clarkson, Christina Aguilera, and Selena Gomez.)
2007:
It is reported that Walt Disney World’s "Strive for Five" energy reduction program has
won the second-annual Florida Energy Achievement Award. The award is presented by the
University of Central Florida’s Florida Solar Energy Center to a company, organization or individual that has made a
significant achievement in the efficient use of energy, energy conservation, energy education or renewable energy in
Florida.
The official grand openings for Finding Nemo - The Musical at Disney's Animal Kingdom
and The Seas with Nemo and Friends at Epcot both take place.
Finding Nemo - The Musical is a forty-minute show (performed five times daily) at the Theater in the Wild at DAK. The
Theater in the Wild holds 1,500 guests and is the largest theater in Disney's Animal Kingdom. Finding Nemo - The
Musical marks the first time Disney has taken a non-musical movie and transformed it into a musical show for the parks.
The Seas with Nemo & Friends (previously The Living Seas) is a Pavilion and a ride themed as an underwater
exploration base, with several exhibits devoted to oceanic study. The pavilion features The Sea Base and Caribbean
Coral Reef Aquarium, The Seas with Nemo & Friends ride, The Turtle Talk with Crush show, Coral Reef Restaurant,
special programs, and an ocean-themed gift shop.
(Both Finding Nemo - The Musical and The Seas with Nemo and Friends have been in previews since Autumn 2006.)
Pixar was founded as the Graphics Group - the computer division of Lucasfilm in 1979.
It was purchased in 1986 by Steve Jobs
(of Apple Computer fame) for $5 million and given its current name. Today it is part of the Disney family.
JANUARY 24
1999:
At the Golden Globe Awards, "Reflection" (written by Matthew Wilder & David Zippel from Disney's Mulan) is edged out by "The Prayer" (from Quest for Camelot) for Best Original Song - Motion Picture. Best Original Score - Motion Picture goes to Burkhard von Dallwitz &
Philip Glass for their contribution to The Truman Show, beating out Randy Newman's music for Pixar's A Bug's Life.
The Walt Disney World Speedway hosts the first Indy 200 car race of the season.
Eddie Cheever wins with a time of 1'41:14.800.
1941:
The Disney short Pluto's Playmate, directed by Norm Ferguson, is released. Pluto fights with a baby seal during a visit to the beach ... but the seal soon has to come to his rescue from an attacking squid.
DEBUTS IN DISNEYLAND
JANUARY 24
THIS DAY MADE
IN THE
USA
"A Whole New World" wins Golden Globe
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"Wilfred Jackson ... taught us thoroughness and the importance of detail. He had an immensely creative grasp of his whole picture and what he wanted it to do, but his big strength was in the astounding attention he gave to every last detail."
-animators Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas from their book The Illusion of Life
2010:
John Lasseter receives the 2010 David O. Selznick Achievement Award in
Motion Pictures at the 21st Annual Producers Guild Awards. Lasseter (currently chief creative
officer of Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios and principal creative advisor of Walt Disney Imagineering)
is the first producer of animated films to receive the Selznick Award.
1978:
Actress, writer, and comedienne Kristen Schaal is born in Longmont, Colorado. She is the voice of Trixie in Toy Story 3. Her film credits include Touchstone Pictures' When in Rome and Miramax Films' Kate & Leopold. (Best known for her role as Mel in the HBO series Flight of the
Conchords and as a contributor on The Daily Show, Schaal was named "Best Alternative Comedian" in 2006.)
Actress Christina Moses is born in Los Angeles, California. She portrays Regina in the ABC series A Million Little Things.
1956:
Actress Helene Stanley appears on the ABC-TV series Mickey Mouse Club. Today is
Guest Star Day. Stanley is currently known for her role of Polly Crockett on Disney's Davy Crockett serial. She was also the animator's model for Cinderella.
1977:
It's Who, What, Why, Where, When and How Day on The New Mickey Mouse Club. The 6th episode of the new series features Disney sound effects specialist Jimmy Macdonald (the second voice of Mickey Mouse) visiting the Mouseketeers and showing them a few tricks of his trade. Today's Mousekartoon is the short Elmer Elephant.
1964:
The Restless Sea, an episode of the Bell Laboratory Science Series, airs on television. Produced by the Disney Studios, it features the voices of Sterling Holloway and Lawrence Dobkin.
1988:
ABC-TV airs part two of The Disney Sunday Movie, "Earth Star Voyager." Spaceship Earth Star Voyager is sent to another solar system to prepare it for colonization because Earth is horribly polluted. But as the departing starship gets under way, signs begin to emerge that the mission may unwittingly be part of a larger conspiracy! The cast features Brian McNamara, Duncan Regehr, Julia Montgomery,
Jason Michas and Tom Bresnahan.
1992:
Disney premieres the Hollywood Pictures feature film Blame it on the Bellboy in London, England. Starring Dudley Moore, the film focuses on a case of mistaken identity of three individuals with similar sounding surnames staying at the same hotel. (The film will be released in the U.S. on March 6.)
Grammy Award-winning composer, vocal arranger, lyricist, and conductor Ken Darby passes away at age 82 in California. Best known for his work on The King and I, Porgy and Bess, and Flower Drum Song, Darby was also a composer and production supervisor for Walt Disney Studios. He was a choral and vocal director on the 1946 Disney film classic Song of the South, and wrote music for such shorts as Casey at the Bat, Once Upon a Wintertime, and The Brave Engineer.
Jackson's credits at a glance
Steamboat Willie
Midnight in a Toy Shop
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Pinocchio
Fantasia
Dumbo
Saludos Amigos
Song of the South
Cinderella
Alice in Wonderland
Peter Pan
Lady and the Tramp
Dateline: Disneyland
JAN
JAN
2012:
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announces nominations for the 84th
Annual Academy Awards®. Disney's films and those it distributed earn 13 Oscar nominations. Among them are:
-Best Picture: The Help & War Horse (both distributed by Touchstone Pictures)
-Music (Original Song): "Man or Muppet” from The Muppets (music and lyric by Bret McKenzie)
-Short Film (Animated): Pixar's La Luna (written & directed by Enrico Casarosa)
-Visual Effects - Touchstone Pictures' Real Steel (Erik Nash, John Rosengrant, Dan Taylor, and Swen Gillberg)
Oscars will be awarded February 26 at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, CA.
January 24
This Day in Disney History - THE FIRST - THE ORIGINAL
Traveling in time since 1999!
"We had to return to the glory days of animation. So I began focusing on how to do that, and it really begins
with finding the right people. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that Pixar had more of the right
people than probably any other place in the world, from an animation perspective." -Robert Iger
2017:
The nominations for the 89th Academy Awards are announced. Among the nominations:
-Best Animated Feature: Zootopia and Moana
-Best Animated Short: Piper
-Best Original Song: "How Far I’ll Go" (from Moana – Music and Lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda)
-Best Visual Effects: The Jungle Book, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Doctor Strange
-Best Sound Mixing: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (David Parker, Christopher Scarabosio and Stuart Wilson)
Winners will be announced on February 26, 2017.
1997:
The biographical film Prefontaine, chronicling the life of the American long-distance runner Steve Prefontaine and his death at age 24, is released. Produced by Disney's Hollywood Pictures and distributed by Disney's Buena Vista Pictures, the film stars Jared Leto, Ed O'Neill, R. Lee Ermey, and Kurtwood Smith.
2011:
Mickey's PhilharMagic, a 4-D film attraction directed by George Scribner, debuts at Tokyo Disneyland. First premiering at Walt Disney World in 2003, Mickey's PhilharMagic is a 12-minute-long show featuring 3D effects, scents, and water, as well as a number of characters from Disney movies.
1960:
Abigail E. Disney is born to Patricia Ann (née Dailey) and Roy E. Disney in Los Angeles, California. Granddaughter of Roy O. Disney, co-founder of The Walt Disney Company with
her great uncle Walt Disney, she is a documentary filmmaker, philanthropist, and social activist.
1925:
Actress of stage, screen, and television Helen Stenborg is born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She had a small role in Disney's live action/animated musical fantasy romantic comedy Enchanted (2007).
2022:
At Disneyland on this early Monday morning, a new Main Street, U.S.A. window is unveiled.
It is dedicated to the founder and first chief archivist of The Walt Disney Archives, Disney Legend Dave Smith (who passed in 2019). The window advertises the "New Century Historical Society," and Smith is listed as the "Town Archivist."
