2005:
An official dedication for the Ward Kimball, Disneyland Railroad's newest engine, takes place. (In February 2006 another dedication - a Cast
Member ceremony - will be held partly to benefit Ward Kimball's family.)
1944:
Disney's short Springtime for Pluto is released. The first cartoon directed by Charles Nichols, Pluto is awakened by the Spirit of Spring, which causes him to dance about, getting mixed up with angry bees and poison ivy. Out for revenge, he goes after the spirit. The voice cast includes Pinto Colvig and Thurl Ravenscroft.
1956:
Disneyland's Skyway to Fantasyland and Skyway to
Tomorrowland begin transporting guests across the
park. Guests take off from a small Alpine chalet seated in gondolas in
Fantasyland on their way to Tomorrowland. Tomorrowland guests pass over
such attractions as the Richfield Autopia and the Goodyear PeopleMover on
their way to Fantasyland. The Skyway was built by Von Roll, Ltd. based in Bern,
Switzerland. When Walt Disney Imagineering bought the ride, it became the first
Von Roll Type 101 aerial ropeway in the USA. (In 1959, Skyway riders will pass
through the Matterhorn mountain when the Matterhorn bobsleds attraction is added!)
1963:
At Disneyland, the Enchanted Tiki Room, the first attraction to
feature Audio-Animatronics figures patented and first developed
by WED Enterprises, opens to the public. Sponsored by United Airlines,
the presentation features over 150 talking, singing and dancing birds, flowers, a magic fountain, tiki drummers and tiki totem poles performing the attraction's signature tunes, "The Tiki Tiki Tiki Room" and "Let's All Sing Like the Birdies Sing." The Hawaiian-theme musical show is hosted by four macaws: José (voiced by Wally Boag), Michael (Fulton Burley), Pierre (Ernie Newton) and Fritz (Thurl Ravenscroft).
1967:
Disney's The Happiest Millionaire starring Fred MacMurray, Greer
Garson, Tommy Steele (Britain's first pop idol), and John Davidson (in
his film debut) opens in Hollywood, California. Based upon the true story of
Philadelphia millionaire Anthony J. Drexel Biddle, it is the last live-action feature film that Walt
Disney saw completed before his death (in December 1966). The phone booth used in the film still
exists. It is kept inside Club 33 at Disneyland. Guests of the Club can use it to make phone calls!
1989:
Disney's comedy feature Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, starring Rick Moranis, Matt
Frewer and Marcia Strassman, is released along with the Disney short Tummy
Trouble featuring Roger Rabbit and Baby Herman. Released through Walt Disney Pictures and
Silver Screen Partners III, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids tells the story of an inventor (Moranis) who accidentally
shrinks his and his neighbor's kids to 1/4 of an inch with his electromagnetic shrink ray and sends them out into
the backyard with the trash. Disney and Amblin Entertainment's first Roger Rabbit short, Tummy Trouble,
executively produced by Steven Spielberg, is produced by Don Hahn and directed by Rob Minkoff.
The Walt Disney World attraction Dreamflight (located in Tomorrowland)
opens to guests. Sponsored by Delta Airlines, it is a pop-up book version of the history of flight
using simplistic sets, some Audio-Animatronics and projection effects.
1995:
Disney's 33rd full-length animated musical feature
"Pocahontas" is generally released in the U.S. the
same day The Spirit of Pocahontas (a live show)
opens at Disneyland's new open-air Fantasyland
Theatre. (The film had opened in select cities on June 16.)
Directed by Mike Gabriel and Eric Goldberg, the film is loosely based
on the life of the Native American woman of the same name. The voice
cast includes Irene Bedard as Pocahontas, Mel Gibson as John Smith,
David Ogden Stiers as Governor Ratcliffe, John Kassir as Meeko,
Pocahontas' pet raccoon, Frank Welker as Flit, Billy Connolly as Ben,
Russell Means as Chief Powhatan, Joe Baker as Lon. and Linda Hunt
as Grandmother Willow. The singing voice of Pocahontas is supplied
by Judy Kuhn, with Jim Cummings providing the singing voice for Chief
Powhatan. The film's songs, written by Alan Menken with lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, will win 2 Academy Awards & a Grammy Award. Songs include “Just Around the Riverbend,” “Steady as the Beating Drum,” and “Colors of the Wind.” Menken has also written the film's score.
1999:
At Disneyland, Tarzan's Treehouse opens in Adventureland
replacing the Swiss Family Treehouse (which first opened in 1962).
2000:
Sotheby's in New York City hosts a 6-day exhibition of the art of Disney's
Tarzan and Fantasia/2000.
The National Jump-Rope Championships begin at Disney-MGM Studios.
The Walt Disney World Summer Jam Concert, featuring a lineup that includes
Christina Aguilera and Enrique Iglesias, airs on ABC-TV.
2004:
A set of four 37-cent postage stamps, 23-cent postal cards and printed stationary that
comes with 37 cents of postage featuring Disney characters are issued by the United
States Postal Service. In attendance at the inaugural release (held at Disneyland) is the artist responsible
for the artwork on the stamps - Peter Emmerich. (The stamps will go on sale nationwide the following day.)
2006:
The cast of Disney's newest Broadway stage musical Tarzan appears
on NBC-TV's The Today Show.
The animated film Leroy & Stitch debuts on Disney Channel. It is a spin-off
of the 2002 animated feature film Lilo & Stitch and the conclusion to the
television series Lilo & Stitch: The Series.
1964:
Producer, writer, director, composer, and lyricist Joss Whedon is born in New York.
He is best known as the creator of several television series, including Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Whedon co-wrote the Pixar animated film Toy Story (1995), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. He also wrote and directed the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero films The Avengers (2012) and its sequel Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015).
During the early planning
stages of Disneyland,
a Thomas A. Edison Square
was to be built
as an addition
to the Main Street area.
JUNE
2008:
The hit TV movie Camp Rock is shown on disney.com for the very first time. The
Disney Channel Original Movie, starring the Jonas Brothers, had already debuted
on television June 20.
Comedian-actor Jeff Garlin states in an interview about WALL-E: "I was the funniest
kid in the school. And I had a passion for comedy. You know, George Carlin passed away last night. I'm very
sad about that. My wife just called me about 20 minutes ago to tell me, and I'm hit pretty hard by that. I mean, he
and Saturday Night Live-and he hosted the first Saturday Night Live. But there was a whole era of comedy in the
'70s that had a profound effect on me. Steve Martin, you know. Enough to motivate me to become a comedian."
Best known for his role as Jeff Greene, Larry David's manager on the HBO show Curb Your Enthusiasm, Garlin
is the voice of Captain McCrea in Disney/Pixar's newest film WALL-E.
2007:
Miley Cyrus' debut album Meet Miley Cyrus is released. It is the second soundtrack from the
Disney Channel original series Hannah Montana and the debut solo album by Cyrus.
JUNE 23
THIS DAY MADE
IN THE
USA
 | ||||
| ||||
Skyway debuts
"When we crashed, my entire life flashed before my eyes. It didn't take too long." -Nick Szalinski
(from Honey, I Shrunk the Kids)
1938:
Walt Disney receives an honorary degree from Harvard University in
Cambridge, Massachusetts.
"Get me right, boys. I'm grateful for these honorary degrees and the distinction they confer. But I'll always
wish I'd had the chance to go through college in the regular way and earn a plain bachelor of arts like the
thousands of kids nobody ever heard of, who are being graduated today." -Walt Disney's press statement
| ||||
1962:
Meet Me at Disneyland (a limited TV series broadcast live on KTTV directly from the Anaheim park) airs episode 3 "Rhythm on the River." Set along the riverfront in Frontierland, the show begins with "Waiting for the Robert E. Lee" performed by The Excelsior Banjo Band. Host Johnny Jacobs is joined by Betty Taylor from the Golden Horseshoe, who introduces the Disneyland group The Young Men of New Orleans - who play a number of tunes and then hop aboard the Mark Twain steamboat for more evening entertainment. Guests include Ken Murray, Leo Diamond, Fulton Burley, and The Four Shamrocks. Meet Me at Disneyland is designed to boost park attendance during the summer weeknights.
1988:
Disneyland Grad Nite '88 takes place this evening. The live entertainment includes Exposé,
Michael Bolton, Men Without Hats and Krash.
JUNE 23
June 23
This Day in Disney History - THE FIRST - THE ORIGINAL
Traveling in time since 1999!
2018:
Sand Sculpture Festival, featuring Disney Sand Magic, begins in Ostende, Belgium.
More than 240 trucks have brought in sand to build 150 sculptures featuring characters from Disney, Pixar,
Marvel and Star Wars. The largest of its kind in the world, the festival will run through September (depending on
the artworks surviving the weather).
Games of Pixar Pier, a collection of four boardwalk games themed to several different Pixar characters, opens at Disney California Adventure. They include La Luna Star Catcher, Heimlich's Candy Corn Toss, WALL·E Space Race, and Bullseye Stallion Stampede.
1957:
Actress Frances Louise McDormand is born Cynthia Ann Smith in Gibson City, Illinois.
One of the few performers to achieve the Triple Crown of Acting (two Academy Awards, two Primetime Emmy
Awards, and a Tony Award), she supplied the voice of Momma in the 2015 animated The Good Dinosaur.
1974:
Actor and filmmaker Joel Edgerton is born in New South Wales, Australia. He played the role of Owen Lars in both Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002) and Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005). In 2012 he co-starred in The Odd Life of Timothy Green portraying James Green.
2011:
The 37th Saturn Awards, honoring the best in science fiction, fantasy and horror film and television in 2010, are held in California. Disney winners include:
-Best Fantasy Film: Alice in Wonderland
-Best Actor: Jeff Bridges - Tron: Legacy
-Best Costume: Alice in Wonderland
-Best Production Design: Tron: Legacy
-Best Animated Film: Toy Story 3
2015:
Dark Before Dawn, the fifth studio album by the rock band Breaking Benjamin, is released by Hollywood Records.
1965:
Disney generally releases the comedy film The Monkey's Uncle. Merlin Jones, played by Tommy Kirk the college whiz kid from The Misadventures of Merlin Jones, returns with more hijinks. A $10 million endowment for Midvale College is riding on whether he can get a man to fly under his own steam (and help the school's football team)! The title plays on the idiom "monkey's uncle" and refers to Merlin's chimpanzee named Stanley. The cast includes Annette Funicello, Leon Ames, Arthur O'Connell, Frank Faylon, Norman Grabowski, and The Beach Boys (performing the Sherman Brother's title tune along with Funicello). The Monkey's Uncle marks both Tommy Kirk's and Annette Funicello's last film for the studio.
