2003:
"La Vida Mickey 2," a Latin dance party CD, is released.
To mark the launch of of Disney's Visa Card by Bank One, Walt Disney Chairman and CEO Michael Eisner and Bank One Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon ring the Opening Bell at the New York Stock Exchange.
Toy Story is voted #1 in the Top 100 Animated Features of All Time by the Online Film Critics Society. Other Disney films in the top 10 include Fantasia, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Beauty and the Beast, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Who Framed Roger Rabbit. (Founded in 1997, the Online Film Critics Society has been the key force in establishing Internet-based film journalism.)
Bringing Down the House, the soundtrack to Adam Shankman's 2003 comedy film
Bringing Down the House, is released through Hollywood Records.
2005:
Disney's live-action comedy The Pacifier, starring Vin Diesel, is released in theaters.
Elite Navy SEAL Shane Wolfe (Diesel) can handle just about anything thrown his way, but even the best have
their limits. When he fails to keep scientist Howard Plummer (played by Tate Donovan) safe from assassination,
Wolfe has a shot at redemption by being assigned to protect Plummer's five children. The cast includes
Lauren Graham, Brittany Snow, Max Thieriot, Morgan York, Faith Ford, Carol Kane, and Brad Garrett.
Disneyland President Matt Ouimet’s "State of the Resort" presentation is
held at the Hyperion Theatre in Disney’s California Adventure. Special guests
include Art Linkletter, who took part in Disneyland's opening day TV broadcast in 1955.
1914:
Disney animator/director Ward Kimball is born in
Minneapolis, Minnesota. Kimball is best remembered as
one of Walt's "Nine Old Men" and for his contributions to such
classics as Fantasia, Pinocchio, and Dumbo.
1932:
Administrator and Disney Legend Frank Wells is born in Coronado, California. In
September 1984, he joined The Walt Disney Company as its President and Chief Operating Officer. He served as
President of the Walt Disney Company until his untimely death in 1994. Wells played a major role in the turnaround of
Disney after he was recruited in 1984 along with Michael D. Eisner, the company's chairman and chief executive.
Wells was known for adhering to a strict work regimen that began at 6 A.M. He handled the details of Disney's day-to-
day operations, but was often overshadowed in the public eye by the more colorful Eisner. (Before his tenure with Disney, Wells worked for Warner Brothers.)
1937:
Disney's short The Country Cousin wins an Oscar (Short Subjects, Cartoon) at the 9th
Annual Academy Awards (held at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles). Released in October 1936,
The Country Cousin tells the story of a country mouse who moves to the big city to live with his cousin mouse.
1943:
Disney's Der Fuehrer's Face wins an Oscar (Short Subjects, Cartoon)
at the 15th Academy Awards (held at the Coconut Grove of the
Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles). Although Frank Churchill and Edward Plumb
are nominated for Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture (for their work in
Bambi), Max Steiner takes home the Oscar for his contribution to Now Voyager.
1954:
Actress Catherine O'Hara, the voice of Tina in the 2005 animated Chicken Little, is born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She also supplied the voices of Sally for the 1993 The Nightmare Before Christmas and Kata for the 2006 Brother Bear 2. As of 2020 she can be heard in the Circle-Vision 360° film attraction Canada: Far and Wide at Epcot. (You will recognize her from such films as Beetlejuice, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, A Mighty Wind, and Home Alone, and the television series SCTV.)
1956:
Walt Disney appears on The Ed Sullivan Show. Walt presents a Look Magazine Award to actor Fess Parker for his Davy Crockett role.
1960:
The ABC-TV series Walt Disney Presents airs the episode
"Texas John Slaughter: Geronimo's Revenge."
1962:
The NBC-TV series Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color airs "Carnival Time."
1979:
The Wonderful World of Disney airs the 2-hour "Never A Dull Moment."
1994:
Canadian comic actor John Candy dies while on location in Mexico during the filming
of Wagons East. A heart attack claims the life of the 44-year-old. The Toronto-born funnyman was the voice of
Albatross Wilbur in Disney's 1990 animated film The Rescuers Down Under and co-starred in the 1984 live-action
Splash (Touchstone Pictures' first release). Candy had recently recorded a large amount of material for a turkey
character named Redfeather, who was to be Pocahontas's sidekick in the Disney feature Pocahontas. Although
executives perceived the character to lighten the tone of the film, the turkey was replaced with the characters Meeko
and Flit. He also appeared in the 1993 comedy Cool Runnings, distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. Candy was originally offered the role of Wayne Szalinski in the comedy Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, but he turned it down knowing that his buddy Rick Moranis would be better suited for the part. (Comedy fans know Candy best from the television series SCTV and such films as Uncle Buck, Spaceballs and Home Alone.)
1999:
In New York City, Sotheby's holds an auction for "The Art of Disney's Mulan."
Film director, animator, and illustrator Hawley Pratt passes away at age 87 in California.
Best known for his work at Warner Bros. Cartoons and as the right-hand man of director Friz Freleng (as a layout artist and later as a director), Pratt also worked for Walt Disney Studios for a short time beginning in 1933. He was awarded a Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists Award in 1992.
2004:
It is reported that embattled Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Michael Eisner was
stripped of his role as chairman at yesterday's annual shareholders meeting.
Disney's board elected former U.S. Senator George Mitchell as the company's new chairman. (Eisner will
continues to keep his position as chief executive even though 43 percent of shareholders voted against him
in an unprecedented protest.)
The Walt Disney World Resort and Amerada Hess Corp. enter into a multi-year
agreement that includes the operation of three Hess Express service stations on
property in Florida. Hess also will become the title sponsor of the Sports Fields venue at Disney's
Wide World of Sports Complex.
2006:
An article about Gene Simmons of KISS - "The Outrageous Entrepreneur" by
Josh Friedman - runs in The L.A. Times. A portion of the article reads:
A matinee showing of Walt Disney Co.'s "Pinocchio" helped inspire Simmons to think big, he said."When
Jiminy Cricket sang 'When You Wish Upon a Star,' I thought that little bug was singing to me," he said. "I
walked out of that movie theater, and he had done more for me than any religious figure ever could. I was
empowered. It was electrifying." Simmons also calls himself "Disney without the overhead."
2000:
ABC-TV airs Mickey Mouse Works. The program features the Donald Duck
shorts "Donald's Halloween Scare," & "Donald's Lighthouse," and
"How to Take Care of Your Yard" - featuring Goofy.
2007:
Dr. Honeydew and his assistant Beaker - characters from The Muppet Show, and
Disney's first roving machines - entertain visitors at California Adventure. Disney's
newest "living characters initiative" are free ranging and totally independent!
Mulan was the 1st feature length
production that was created by
Walt Disney Feature Animation
Florida ... at one time located at
Disney World's Disney-MGM Studios.
Built as a satellite to the Burbank
Studio, Walt Disney Feature
Animation Florida opened its doors
for business on
2008:
A re-dedication ceremony is held at Epcot for Spaceship Earth
(now presented by Siemens).
Disney releases the animated classic 101 Dalmatians on a two-disc edition DVD, for a limited time.
Comedian/actor Frank Caliendo takes a ride aboard Expedition Everest at
Disney's Animal Kingdom. The star of Frank TV, Caliendo is in the midst of a
Walt Disney World vacation.
1992:
Arthur Harold Babitsky, better known as animator Art Babbitt, passes away at the
age of 84. Born in 1907, he started his career in New York City working for Paul Terry's Terrytoons Studio. In the
early 1930s Babbitt moved to Los Angeles and got a job animating for the Walt Disney Studio. Although best known
for his work at Disney, Babbitt received over 80 awards during his lifetime for his work as an animation director and animator. He is most famous for creating Goofy and animating the Wicked Queen in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,
Geppetto in Pinocchio, Zeus, Vulcan, and the dancing mushrooms in Fantasia, and the stork in Dumbo. Earning
Walt Disney's everlasting enmity for leaving the Disney company and joining the "Screen Cartoonists' Guild
Local 852," Babbitt actually returned to Disney for a time, following an unfair labor practices suit. In 1991 Disney
Company chief Roy E. Disney, the nephew of Walt, contacted Babbitt and ended the long feud. Animators Frank
Thomas and Ollie Johnston, will give Babbitt a warm and moving eulogy at his funeral service.
1981:
Olivier Award-winning English actress and singer Laura Michelle Kelly is born in England. Kelly's West End musical credits include Beauty and the Beast and Mary Poppins (in the title role).
MARCH 4
MARCH 04
THIS SITE MADE IN THE USA
Ward Kimball born
Spaceship Earth re-dedicated
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1980:
Disney releases its very first video tapes to the home VHS market. The 13 titles are
licensed for rental to Fotomat (a retail chain of photo development drive-thru kiosks located in shopping center
parking lots) in a four-city test. The titles include the live-action features Pete's Dragon, The Black Hole, The
Love Bug, Escape to Witch Mountain, Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,
Bedknobs and Broomsticks, The North Avenue Irregulars, The Apple Dumpling Gang, and Hot Lead and Cold
Feet; and three of the compilations of short cartoons previously released by DiscoVision: On Vacation with
Mickey Mouse and Friends, Kids is Kids starring Donald Duck, and Adventures of Chip 'n' Dale.
1955:
Walt Disney, along with cartoons of Minnie Mouse and Donald Duck, grace the cover
of this week's issue of TV-Radio Life (a regional magazine featuring news about television
stars & programs, and local TV listings).
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"I know. I'm lazy. But I made myself a New Years resolution that I would write myself something really special. Which means I have 'til December, right?" -Catherine O'Hara
2010:
Disney's Alice in Wonderland, directed by Tim Burton and starring Mia Wasikowska
and Johnny Depp, is released in Australia.
Disney announces that their program in which volunteers work a shift at accepted
charities and get a free pass to a Disney theme park could end soon. The goal of one
million shifts has nearly been reached, just two months into the promotion. (As of Feb. 18, 600,000 people had
signed up!)
"We are close to our goal of inspiring one-million people to make a difference by volunteering. This spirit of volunteerism
is making a significant impact in communities across the country." -Suzi Brown, Disneyland Resort spokeswoman
1977:
Episode 35 of The New Mickey Mouse Club airs on television. Rowena Givens, a 13-year-old
piano prodigy from Wilmington, California, and Jodi Light, a 12-year-old vocalist from Lima, Ohio, are featured guest
talent for Showtime Day.
1995:
40 Years of Adventure, a one-hour syndicated television special commemorating
the 40th Anniversary of Disneyland and the opening of the Indiana Jones
Adventure attraction, airs.
(1950-1994)
(1907-1992)
2011:
opened on July 18, 1955, visits the Anaheim park. A renowned author, MacPherson and his
wife Wanda visit Disneyland with good friend and fellow author Joe Ortiz and his wife Martha. This is the
second time Joe and his wife have joined Dave and his wife on one of MacPherson's many visits to Disneyland.
Jose Feliciano kicks off the Flower Power Concert Series at Epcot with 3 shows at
America Gardens Theatre.
Disney Channel debuts the third season of Phineas and Ferb with episode 113
"The Great Indoors."
Film and television director Charles Jarott passes away at age 83 in California.
His Disney credits include The Littlest Horse Thieves (1977) and The Last Flight of Noah's Ark (1980).
MAR
MAR
March 4
This Day in Disney History - THE FIRST - THE ORIGINAL
Traveling in time since 1999!
2015:
The 22nd Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival: A Spring Tradition
begins at Walt Disney World. It will run through May 17, 2015.
2016:
The computer-animated feature Zootopia opens in
U.S. theaters. Produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and
released by Walt Disney Pictures, it is the 55th Disney animated
feature film. Directed by Byron Howard and Rich Moore, the film
details the unlikely partnership between a rabbit police officer,
voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin, and a red fox con artist, voiced by
Jason Bateman, as they uncover a conspiracy. The voice cast
includes singer-songwriter Shakira as Gazelle, Tommy Chong as
Yax, a laid-back domestic yak, Idris Elba as Chief Bogo, an African
buffalo, Jenny Slate as Bellwether, a diminutive sheep, Nate
Torrence as Officer Clawhauser, an obese cheetah, and Bonnie
Hunt as Bonnie Hopps, a European rabbit.
The soundtrack for Zootopia is released on this
same day by Walt Disney Records. The score is
composed by Michael Giacchino (known for his work at Pixar), his
first feature-length project for Walt Disney Animation Studios. In
addition to her voice role of Gazelle, pop star Shakira also
contributes the original song "Try Everything", written by Sia and
Stargate.
2018:
The 90th Academy Awards takes place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California.
The Disney-Pixar Coco wins Best Animated Feature Film. The film also wins Best Original Song for
"Remember Me," written by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez.
The romantic comedy-drama Angie is released by Hollywood Pictures &
Caravan Pictures. Starring Geena Davis as the title character, it is based on the 1991 novel Angie, I Says
by Avra Wing. A pregnant Brooklynite (Davis) dumps her plumber boyfriend Vinnie (James Gandolfini) to date a lawyer named Noel (Stephen Rea).
1972:
The Country Bear Jamboree, a stage show with audio-animatronic figures, opens at
Disneyland. Originally intended by Walt to be placed at Disney's Mineral King Ski Resort in California, which he
was trying to build in the mid-1960s, the first Country Bear Jamboree opened its doors in the Magic Kingdom at Walt
Disney World in October 1971. It received so much good feedback that Imagineers immediately planned a replica of
the show to be placed in Disneyland's Critter Country. The attraction will entertain Disneyland guests for nearly 30 years before closing in 2001.
1945:
Actress Lucille La Verne passes away at the age of 72 in Culver City, California. Known for her appearances in silent, scolding, obnoxious, vituperative, sarcastic, cunning, and vengeful roles, she is most widely rememered as the voice of the first Disney villain Queen Grimhilde (and her alter ego the old hag) in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), Walt Disney's first animated film.
1990:
Actress & singer Andrea Bowen is born in Columbus, Ohio. In 2004, she began playing the role of Julie Mayer on the ABC comedy-drama series Desperate Housewives (a role she played on a regular basis until 2008). Bowen also supplied the voice for Faline in the 2006 animated Bambi II.
1958:
Actress Patrica Heaton is born in Bay Village, Ohio. She played Frances "Frankie" Heck on the ABC sitcom The Middle (2009–2018). Television viewers will also recognize her as Debra Barone on the CBS sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond (1996–2005).
2020:
Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway, a dark ride attraction, opens at Disney's Hollywood Studios in the Walt Disney World Resort. It is the first ride at any Disney park that stars Mickey Mouse and friends.
The 27th Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival kicks off at Walt Disney World. The 90-day spring extravaganza at Epcot runs through June 1 with seasonal sights, sounds and flavors designed to delight guests.
1997:
The Hunchback of Notre Dame is released on VHS.
1985:
Actor Scott Michael Foster is born in Winfield, Illinois. He is best known for his roles as Captain John Paul "Cappie" Jones in the ABC Family comedy-drama series Greek (2007-2011), Leo Hendrie in the ABC Family drama Chasing Life (2014-2015) and the recurring role of Kristoff in ABC's Once Upon a Time (2014).
1948:
Voice actor Brian Cummings is born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Along with voice actor Mark Elliot, Cummings has been one of the long-time voices of Buena Vista Home Entertainment (later Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment) for trailers and promotions. His Disney credits also include Beauty and the Beast, Jungle Book 2, DuckTales, Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears, Timon & Pumbaa, and Emperor's New School.
1986:
Actress Margo Harshman is born in San Diego, Califronia. She portrayed Tawny Dean (Louis' best friend and eventual girlfriend) on 47 episodes of the Disney Channel series Even Stevens (2000-2003). Harshman also played the character in the 2003 Disney Channel Original Movie The Even Stevens Movie. In 2005, Harshman was nominated for two awards at the Young Artist Awards, one for Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special by a Supporting Young Actress for The Even Stevens Movie and the other for Best Performance in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) by a Supporting Young Actress for Even Stevens (2001). (Fans of The Big Bang Theory may remember Harshman for her role as Alex Jensen; Sheldon Cooper's assistant.)
1989:
"Stevie," the 11th episode of the teen sitcom Good Morning, Miss Bliss, airs for the first time on the Disney Channel. Starring Hayley Mills as Carrie Bliss, a teacher at John F. Kennedy Junior High School in Indianapolis, Indiana, it features Mark-Paul Gosselaar as Zachary "Zack" Morris, Max Battimo as Michael "Mikey" Gonzalez, Dustin Diamond as Samuel "Screech" Powers, and Heather Hopper as Nicole "Nikki" Coleman. Zack bets Nikki he can kiss pop singer Stevie (played by Suzanne Tara). (The series will run through March 1989 before being retooled as the NBC sitcom Saved by the Bell - minus Mills.)
