1971:
Day 2 of Walt Disney World's three-day grand opening celebration takes place.
The formal dedication of the Contemporary Resort takes place at noon on this Sunday with Bob Hope, followed
by the dedication of the Polynesian Village Resort at 6 p.m. A special luau takes place at the Polynesian followed
by the debut of Disney World's Electrical Water Pageant (the predecessor to the Main Street Electrical Parade) in
the Seven Seas Lagoon. Although opened to the public since October 1, Disney World debuts its very first official
fireworks display called Fantasy in the Sky Spectacular on this evening.
1919:
Robbins Wolcott Barstow Jr. is born in Woodstock,
Vermont (though he will grow up in Hartford).
An amateur filmmaker (starting at the age of 12), his 30-minute
16mm film Disneyland Dream (shot in July 1956) was born of a nationwide contest. In 1956, the 3M Company
offered free trips to Disneyland to the 25 families who best expressed why they loved Scotch Tape and Barstow's
youngest son Danny was one of the winners.
1969:
Russian cosmonauts Major General Georgiy Beregovoy of the Russian Air Force
and civilian scientist Konstantin Feoktistov begin the Disneyland part of their two-
week tour of the U.S. At special ceremonies held in front of Flight to the Moon, Mickey Mouse and
Pluto (dressed in space helmets and space suits) present the Russian space travelers with Mickey Mouse
watches and hats. Beregovoy had commanded the space mission Soyuz 3 in October 1968 at the age of 47,
making him the oldest human (at that time) to go into space. Feoktistov became the first civilian to make a
space flight when he flew in October 1964 aboard Voskhod 1.
1970:
Musician, songwriter, and producer Ted Bruner is born in St. Louis, Missouri. He's
written and/or produced songs for Katy Perry, Marie Digby, Selena Gomez, Plain White T's, Bowling For Soup,
Jason Castro and Miley Cyrus (most notably her song "Breakout" co-written with Gina Schock & Trey Vittetoe).
2005:
As a result of Hurricane Wilma, all 4 Disney World theme parks, 2 water parks, resort amenities (Downtown Disney, the golf courses) and Fort Wilderness
Resort and Campground are closed for the morning. All theme parks (except Disney's
Animal Kingdom and the Disney-MGM Studios) and Downtown Disney are re-opened at 1:00 pm.
After two years of testing and development, the first version of Club Penguin
(an online game developed by New Horizon Interactive) is made available to
the general public. Using cartoon penguins as avatars, players waddle around, chat, play
minigames and participate in other activities with one another in a snow-covered virtual world. Disney
will buy Club Penguin in August 2007.
"May EPCOT Center entertain, inform and inspire, and above all, may it instill a new sense of
belief and pride in man's ability to shape a world that offers hope to people everywhere."
-EPCOT dedication This Day in Disney History 1982
1910:
Publisher & Disney Legend Poul Brahe Pederson is born in Heidelberg, Germany. In 1954 he first joined Disney licensee Gutenberghus Publishing
(today called Egmont Group) in Copenhagen as its managing director of weekly publications.
1929:
Disney's third Silly Symphony cartoon Springtime is released. Directed by
Ub Iwerks, it is the first of the Silly Symphony cartoons based on the 4 seasons.
1947:
In Washington, D.C., Walt Disney heads a list of "friendly" witnesses testifying to
the first House Un-American Activities Committee investigation on Communist
subversion in Hollywood, California.
Actor Kevin Kline, the voice of Captain Phoebus in Disney's 1996 release The Hunchback of Notre Dame (and its 2002 sequel), is born in St. Louis, Missouri.
He also played the role of Maurice in Disney's 2017 live-action Beauty and the Beast.
1955:
Mickey Mouse Club airs on ABC-TV. Today is Fun With Music Day.
1958:
The TV series Walt Disney Presents airs the episode "Rusty and the Falcon."
Filmed independently by Paul Kenworthy Productions, "Rusty and the Falcon" is based on Charles
Ogburn's book The White Falcon. Filmed on location in Heber, Utah, it tells the tale of Rusty (played by Rudy Lee), a 12-year-old boy who lives in a remote Rocky Mountain mining town. With few friends his own age,
Rusty finds an injured falcon while playing alone in an abandoned mine shaft. He ultimately restores the
creature to health and grooms it as a hunting bird.
1965:
The Sentinel-Star runs the headline: WE SAY OUR 'MYSTERY'
INDUSTRY IS DISNEY! An unknown buyer has been purchasing large parcels of land in the Orlando, Florida
area and rumors are spreading about who it might be. This is a larger follow-up to Emily Bavar's article from October 21.
1982:
EPCOT Center (Disney's third theme park) is officially dedicated
at 11 a.m., by Disney Chairman E. Cardon Walker 23 days after the park's opening day. Nearly 10,000 special guests are in attendance, including Walt Disney Productions executive Donn Tatum, Mrs. Lillian Disney (Walt Disney's widow), corporate executives, foreign and American
political figures and many VIPs.
1994:
The animated series Gargoyles (produced by Walt Disney Television and distributed by Buena Vista Television) airs in syndication for the first time in the Disney Afternoon programming block. Co-created by comic book writer Greg Weisman, the series features a species of nocturnal creatures known as gargoyles that turn to stone during the day. After spending a thousand years in an enchanted petrified state, the gargoyles (who have been transported from medieval Scotland) are reawakened in modern-day New York City, and take on roles as the city's secret night-time protectors. The series, known for its complex and dramatic stories, will be hailed as one of the more ambitious Disney animated series in history. The first season (consisting of 13 episodes) will be almost entirely written by scriptwriters/story editors Michael Reaves and his wife Brynne Chandler Reaves. A total of 78 half-hour episodes will be produced over three seasons (with the 3rd season airing on ABC). The voice cast features several actors who are alumni of the Star Trek franchise, including Marina Sirtis and Jonathan Frakes.
1997:
The Orlando Sentinel runs an article over the controversy raging in Florida
about Disney World closing the Mr. Toad's Wild Ride attraction. Actors Steve
Guttenberg and Kirsten Dunst, stars of The Wonderful World of Disney's upcoming "Tower of Terror,"
come out strongly pro-Toad while Darius Rucker, lead singer of Hootie & the Blowfish, makes it clear that
he's a Pooh man.
2001:
The Walt Disney Company completes its acquisition of Fox Family Worldwide,
Inc. from Haim Saban and Fox Broadcasting Company. The acquisition closes
on this day with a final purchase price of $5.2 billion, including approximately $2.9 billion in cash and the
assumption of $2.3 billion in Fox Family obligations. (The Fox Family channel will be turned into the ABC
Family channel.)
John R. "Jack" Shively Sr., one of the original builders of Walt Disney World,
passes away at age 71. Starting in 1969, Shively carved designs into the theme
park's walls, put up fences and helped construct many attractions. He retired in 1992.
NYSNC's Lance Bass and Joey Fatone visit Disney World to lead the new
"Share a Dream Come True" parade at the Magic Kingdom and to star as grand
marshals in the new "Disney Stars and Motor Cars" parade at the
Disney-MGM Studios.
2002:
It is reported that Disney's Monsters, Inc. has sold 13 million units worth $250 million on DVD and VHS internationally.
2003:
Disney's Brother Bear (featuring 5 new songs by Phil Collins) premieres at the El
Capitan Theater in Hollywood. The 44th animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics, it is
also the third and final Disney animated feature produced primarily by the Feature Animation studio at
Disney-MGM Studios in Florida. Brother Bear will be generally released November 1.
The series finale of House of Mouse airs with the episode "Mickey and the Culture Clash."
1983:
Television personality, singer, and actress Adrienne Bailon, a member of Disney's The Cheetah Girls (from 2005-2009), is born in New York City. As an actress, Bailon appeared in "The Cheetah Girls" films, and numerous television series including "That's So Raven" (a role she reprised in the spin-off series "Raven's Home"), and "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody."
2006:
Walt Disney Records releases The Hannah Montana Soundtrack - from
Disney Channel's hit original series. (It will shatter industry records as the first-ever
TV soundtrack to enter the Billboard Top 200 at No 1!) Disney also unveils The Nightmare Before
Christmas 2-Disc Special Edition Soundtrack in celebration of the 13th anniversary of Tim
Burton's cult classic animated feature.
The stage show, Sister Act the Musical (based on the motion picture and
licensed by Disney) opens at the Pasadena Playhouse in California.
The show features the music of Alan Menken and Glenn Slater.
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1998:
The third annual Epcot International Food & Wine Festival begins in Florida.
Epcot's World Showcase
Lagoon is 15 feet deep
and has a circumference
of one and a
quarter mile.
The World
Showcase water area is
185 acres ... that's larger
than the original
Disneyland!
OCTOBER 24
1957:
Disney's third Zorro episode "Zorro Rides to the Mission" airs on ABC-TV.
John Kassir, an actor and voice artist best known as the voice of the Crypt Keeper in HBO's Tales from the Crypt franchise, is born in Baltimore, Maryland. His Disney
credits include the voice of Meeko for Pocahontas and Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World, and Elliot in the remake of Pete's Dragon.
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2007:
Disney announces that it will contribute $2 million in aid towards relief efforts
for the nearly one million victims of the ongoing Southern California wildfires.
1956:
The Disneyland TV series airs the episode "Behind the Cameras at Lapland / Alaskan Eskimo" on ABC.
1940:
Disney's Pinocchio is released in Australia.
2008:
Pixie Hollow, a new meet & greet featuring Tinker Bell and her fairy friends,
debuts at the Magic Kingdom's Mickey's Toontown Fair (at Disney World).
(Tinker Bell, a brand new movie, will be released 4 days later on DVD.)
High School Musical 3: Senior Year, the third
installment in Disney's High School Musical franchise,
has its theatrical release in the United States.
East High School seniors Troy and Gabriella face the prospect of being
separated from one another as they head off in different directions
to college. The cast includes Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley
Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel, Corbin Bleu, and Monique Coleman. Written
by Peter Barsocchini and directed by Kenny Ortega, the film was
developed immediately following the success of its predecessor. A
sing-along edition with lyrics highlighted on the screen will be released
in select theaters on November 7. Already released on October 21,
the film's soundtrack will sell 297,000 copies in the first week of sales.
Meanwhile over at Disney's California Adventure, "The High School
Musical 3: Senior Year - Right Here! Right Now!" street show premieres.
Roadside Romeo a computer-animated film written and directed by
Jugal Hansraj is released in the U.S. The film, about a dog named Romeo who's loving life until his owners leave him behind on the streets of Mumbai, is co-produced by Yash Raj Filmsfilm and Walt Disney Pictures. Distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures in United States, it the second Bollywood movie to receive a North American release by a Hollywood studio.
1968:
Voice actor, storyboard artist, and writer Mark Walton is born in Salt Lake City,
Utah. First employed at Disney in 1999 as a writer, Walton later became a storyboard artist. He also supplied the
voices for Rhino the hamster in Bolt and Goosey Loosey in Chicken Little. His production credits include
Gnomeo & Juliet, Meet the Robinsons, Home on the Range, Chicken Little, and Tarzan.
1908:
Preston Blair, character animator best known for his work at Walt Disney Productions
and the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer animation department, is born in California. At Disney, Blair
animated some of the Mickey Mouse scenes in "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" section of Fantasia, and the hippo-
alligator dance in Fantasia's "Dance of the Hours" sequence. He also worked on Disney's Pinocchio and Bambi.
Brother-in-law of artist and Disney Legend Mary Blair, Preston wrote one of the first books on how to animate.
THIS DAY MADE IN THE USA
OCTOBER 24
EPCOT Center dedicated
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Cosmonauts visit Disneyland
2009:
Disney's A Christmas Carol Train Tour pulls into Charleston, South Carolina for 2 days.
SEASON 3 EPISODE 7
1930:
Voice actor Jack Angel, the voice of Chunk in Toy Story 3, is born in Modesto, California.
His long list of Disney credits include Monsters University, Roadside Romeo, Cars, Finding Nemo, Treasure Planet,
Beauty and the Beast, A Bug's Life, Darkwing Duck, The Rescuers Down Under, Toy Story 2 and the original Toy Story.
1941:
The Disney short Donald's Camera, directed by Dick Lundy, is released. Donald
Duck's new hobby is photography - which he takes into the wilderness to snap
pictures of wildlife.
"Nearly 40,000 visits – the biggest crowd yet – jammed Walt Disney World turnstiles Saturday (October 23)
as the $400 million "Magic Kingdom" kicked off its three-day formal opening celebration with the arrival of a
plane-load of Hollywood notables." -Orlando Sentinel Oct 24
"I first showed the home-edited version of Disneyland Dream to a gathering of neighborhood families and friends,
projected on a sheet attached to the side of our house in Wethersfield (CT), with my 16mm movie projector set up in
our backyard, on Labor Day weekend, 1956, with me providing on-the-spot narration as the film went along. It proved
to be an immediate favorite and became very popular. Over the years, I received dozens of requests to show it to community groups, PTAs, schools, church and other social groups, extending throughout the state, as well as to
relatives and at family gatherings.
Finally, in 1995, after nearly 40 years, I had the film transferred to VHS Video, for wider distribution, and I recorded the
narration on tape. I was then able to have it broadcast over our local Wethersfield Public Access Community Television
Channel. When I heard that the Library of Congress was interested in adding home movies to their collections, I sent Dr.
James H. Billington, the distinguished Librarian of Congress, a copy of Disneyland Dream, along with a dozen other
home movies which I had produced with our family over a period of some 70 years." -Robbins Barstow
October Preview Month
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Formal Grand Opening of EPCOT Center - Day 3
2012:
Lucille Martin, who started at The Walt Disney Studios as a personal secretary
to Walt Disney, and rose through the ranks to serve as vice president and
special assistant to The Walt Disney Company Board of Directors at the time of
her retirement in 2006, passes away at the age of 90. During her tenure with Disney, she
also served as executive assistant to two Disney CEOs, Ron Miller and Michael Eisner. In 2007, The Walt
Disney Company inducted her as a Disney Legend.
October 24
2014:
It is reported that Disney has confirmed that it will be removing the
Sorcerer Hat from Disney's Hollywood Studios in 2015. Debuting in September 2001 as
part of the "100 Years of Magic" celebration that marked Walt's 100th birthday, the hat has served
as the icon of Disney's Hollywood Studios for the past 13 years.
2017:
Actor Robert Guillaume passes way at age 89 in Los Angeles, California. Known for his role as Isaac Jaffe on Sports Night, a Disney/Touchstone produced television series, he was also the voice of the mandrill Rafiki in the 1994 animated The Lion King. He also won a Grammy Award in 1995 for his spoken word performance of an audiobook version of The Lion King.
