Walt Disney-- the Man Who Started it All

It all started on December 5, 1901.  That was the day Disney was born--literally.  Walter Elias Disney was born.  Growing up in a family with three other boys and a girl, this man who would grow up to be maybe one of the most famous men in the world was basically just a normal kid.  Well, normal other than being able to sell some of his sketches by the time he was seven. 

When that neighbor bought those pictures from the little farm boy named Walt, I bet no one could have imagined that they were buying a piece of history from a man who will be remembered for all time.  However, in just a few years this boy would find his way to Hollywood where he and his brother would put their meager resources together to begin one of biggest entertainment industries in the business.

Before moving to Hollywood however, Disney’s life was filled with other jobs.  He did delivered papers, worked for the railroad, sold sodas and snacks, and even drove an ambulance for the Red Cross after he couldn’t go into the service.  Overall, Disney was a man of great character who worked hard and worked a lot.  It was this kind of work ethic that helped him overcome all the odds against him in order to use his talent to change the world.

His success in Hollywood didn’t come immediately.  For some time Walt lived on very little.  Sometimes he ate very little, but he persevered.  The show “Alice in Cartoonland” was the show that finally brought him some success. 

The big day happened in 1928.  Walt developed the most important character he would ever draw.  A little mouse with big ears.  Mickey Mouse burst onto the screen first with “Plane Crazy” and then with “Steamboat Willie.”  Nearing eighty-two years later Mickey is still one of the most loved and recognized characters on screen.

Several of years later, this great artist moved on to a full length animated story.  Snow White was and is an amazing show of Walt Disney’s amazing talents.  The movie is as well loved today as it was back in 1937. 

Walt Disney was a perfectionist.  His desire to make cartoons better and better is why we now have such great clarity in cartoons now.  The advances in this kind of film were very much due to Walt’s work to continue making things a little more clear than it was before. 

Of course, Walt Disney is known for far more than his delightful cartoon characters.  He was a humanitarian, a businessman, a father and a husband.  He cared about families, education, and making the world a better place.  It was because of his great desire to make the world a better place that we now have Disney World and EPCOT. 

On December 15, 1966, at the age of sixty-five, the man who changed the face of entertainment left this world.  However, his work will live on.  Today as we sit watching the Toy Story in 3-D we can thank Mr. Walter Disney for his contributions to the world of animation.  Truly, without him this kind of movie would never have been available to us.