this day in disney history

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8/25

1913:
Actor Don DeFore, who appeared on the TV programs Disneyland '59
and Dateline: Disneyland is born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Walt Disney and
DeFore became friends while DeFore served as the president of the Television Academy of Arts and Sciences (1954 & 1955). As president DeFore, along with Ed Sullivan, sold the first live nationally-broadcast Emmy Awards to NBC. An impressed Walt Disney later wanted to meet "the guy that was able to do that." Beginning in 1957, DeFore and his brother Verne operated Don Defore's Silver Banjo Barbecue restaurant located in Disneyland's
Frontierland - the only concession in the park with the name of a real living person! (Fans of classic TV will remember Don DeFore as "Thorny" Thornberry on The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriett and as George Baxter on Hazel.)
1923:
Walt Disney (now residing in California) writes a letter to film distributor
M. J. Winkler of New York City informing her that he is no longer
connected with the Laugh-O-Gram Films in Kansas City, Missouri. Walt writes that "I am establishing a studio in Los Angeles for the purpose of producing the new and novel series of cartoons I have previously written you about." (The novel series will be called Alice Comedies.)
1933:
Regis Philbin, the host of Who Wants To Be a Millionaire and Live with Regis & Kathie Lee (later Regis & Kelly), is born in New York City. He was also the co-host of Disney's Christmas Day parades for many years. In 2011 Philbin was named a Disney Legend. (Live with Regis & Kathie Lee was the first daytime television talk show ever produced by Disney.)
1956:
The Disneyland Hotel celebrates its "official" grand opening with many Hollywood stars and celebrities attending the festivities (although it has been opened since October 5, 1955). Celebrity guests include Art Linkletter, William Bendix, Alan Ladd, Yvonne DeCarlo, Jeanne Crain, Anaheim Mayor Charles Pearson and of course Walt Disney.
1989:
The Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular attraction is dedicated at the Disney-MGM Studios in Florida. It is the first theme park attraction to use a computer based show control system in conjunction with a programmable logic controller system to trigger, control and sequence complex live events in real time ... in many cases controlled by the actors! The 30-minute stunt show recreates some of the most thrilling and heart-pounding moments from the Indiana Jones films.
2000:
Disney Legend Carl Barks, the cartoonist who drew Donald Duck comic
books for three decades, passes at the age of 99 at his home in Grants Pass,
Oregon. Born in 1901, he started at Disney in 1935. From 1943 to 1966 Barks, often referred to as "The Duck Man," wrote and drew hundreds of Disney's Donald Duck comics.
2008:
It is reported that Pixar has hired actor Michael Keaton as the voice of
Ken (Barbie's boyfriend) for the new Toy Story 3 (scheduled for a summer 2010 release).

Disney announces it has sold 298 acres of Florida land to Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts for a hotel and golf course to anchor a previously announced luxury development on the northeast border of Walt Disney World Resort.

 

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8/26

1918:
A young Walt Disney forges his parents' signatures to enlist in the American Ambulance Corps (part of the Red Cross). He changes his birth from 1901 to 1900.
1948:
Walt Disney and animator Ward Kimball (both railroad enthusiasts) return to the Studio after a 10-day trip visiting the Chicago Railroad Fair and Henry Ford's Greenfield Village. The Railroad Fair in Illinois, an event celebrating 100 years of railroad history west of Chicago, features locomotives, and various lands including - Vacationland, an Indian Village, a New Orleans section, a Gold Gulch (frontier section) with a haunted house and opera house, as well as shows and a nightly fireworks display. Henry Ford's Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Michigan, features four centuries of historic buildings (moved from their original locations) and laid out in an old fashioned Main Street design. The Wright Brothers' bicycle shop and Thomas Edison's laboratory are part of the impressive collection of buildings that Ford has assembled. Walt will be greatly influenced by what he has experienced on this trip.
(The Chicago Railroad Fair was a one-time event, but Greenfield Village continues to offer visitors a trip back to the sights, sounds and sensations of America’s past.)
1990:
Retta Scott, the first woman to receive screen credit as an animator at Walt Disney Studios, passes away in Foster City, California. First hired in 1938, her Bambi work includes the vicious hunting dogs in the sequence where the dogs pursue Faline and fight with Bambi. Scott also worked on Fantasia, Dumbo, and The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad. She will be named a Disney Legend in 2000.
2005:
Disney Legend Fred Joerger, a master model maker who helped create Disneyland's look by molding three-dimensional models of the Sleeping Beauty Castle, the Haunted Mansion, and other attractions, passes away at age 91. Walt Disney handpicked Joerger back in 1953 to become one of his first three model makers. Joerger also built miniature sets and props for Disney motion pictures, including Mary Poppins, Darby O'Gill and the Little People, and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.
2008:
The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning is released on DVD, as is Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas: 2-Disc Collector's Edition DVD. Ariel's Beginning is set before the events of the original film, where all music has been banned from the underwater kingdom of Atlantica by King Triton, and his youngest daughter Ariel attempts to challenge this law.

Disney opens its newest exhibit - a hurricane simulator at Epcot which aims to teach visitors how to better protect their homes ahead of dangerous storms. Meteorologists and emergency management experts are among the first to experience the exhibit in the morning before it is opened to the public later in the afternoon.

Kingdom Keepers II: Disney at Dawn, the second book in The Kingdom Keepers series set inside the Walt Disney World Resort, written by Ridley Pearson, is published by Disney Book Group.
2009:
A keel laying ceremony is held for the Disney Dream in Papenburg, Germany,
where the new ship is starting to come to life after a lengthy design phase. The keel laying ceremony - attended by Donald Duck - is a maritime tradition in which the first block of the ship is lowered into the building dock. Builders then place a coin under the keel for good luck. The Disney Dream is expected to set sail in 2011.
2010:
As of today, Toy Story 3 has tallied more than $592.9 million internationally, Disney’s largest international animated release.

 

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8/27

1908:
Lyndon Baines Johnson, the thirty-sixth United States President, is born near Stonewall, Texas. In 1964 he presented Walt Disney with the Medal of
Freedom, the nation's highest civil honor. Four years later Johnson presented a Congressional Gold Medal to Walt's widow in honor of his distinguished public service. Visit President Johnson and all the U.S. Chief Executives at Disney World's The Hall of Presidents
1934:
Fifteen months after its release, Disney's short Three Little Pigs has grossed $150,000. (A movie theater ticket sells for about 5 cents.)
1950:
Funnyman/actor Charles Fleischer - best known as the voice of Roger Rabbit - is born in Washington, D.C. Actually, he is the voice of both Roger Rabbit and
Benny The Cab in Disney & Amblin Entertainment's 1988 live action/animated hybrid film Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Fleischer also portrays Crazy Larry who can be spotted on the TV monitors as you wait in line for Walt Disney World's Space Mountain. His Disney TV credits include House of Mouse, Buzz Lightyear of Star Command, and the Disney Channel movie Genius. Fleischer also supplied the voice of Quiz Challenge Host for "Walt Disney World Explorer," a 1996 interactive computer game.
1952:
Paul Reubens (a.k.a. ______ Wee Herman), the voice of REX the Star Tours pilot for the Star Tours theme park attractions, is born in Peekskill, New York. Reubens' credits also include the voices of Fife for Disney's animated feature Beauty and the Beast, Dennis in Teacher's Pet and Lock in The Nightmare Before Christmas. The Smurfs as Jokey (voice) and Disney's Flight of the Navigator as Max (voice)
1964:
Disney's live-action and animated film Mary Poppins has a lavish world Premiere at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. The comedy-musical stars Julie Andrews (who will win an Academy Award for Best Actress) and ________ Van . (The film will also win Academy Awards for Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, Best Song, and Best Special Visual Effect.) Some of Hollywood's biggest stars, like Angie Dickinson, George Hamilton, Angela Lansbury, Carl Reiner, and Debbie Reynolds are in attendance. After the screening (and a 5-minute standing ovation) the audience moves on to an elegant party hosted by the Technicolor Corporation.
1993:
Disney's Hollywood Studios releases Father Hood a comedy-drama starring
Patrick Swayze and Halle Berry.
1998:
Town Square Exhibition Hall, which houses the Camera Center (hosted by Kodak), opens in the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World.
2006:
The top 10 water parks in the U.S. are announced. Disney World's Blizzard Beach (at number 6) and Typhoon Lagoon (at number 9) are included on the select list.
2009:
After beating out hundreds of applicants from more than a dozen countries, Kyle Post and Stacey Doornbos (from New York City) begin the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau’s 67 Days of Smiles. Named Orlando’s Smile Ambassadors, the duo are awarded $25,000, put up in a luxury condo at The Paramount on Lake Eola in downtown Orlando, and are provided with a Dollar Rent A Car. Kyle and Stacey will experiene more than 120 Orlando attractions and events; produce hundreds of tweets, Facebook updates & pictures, and write more than 160 blog posts before serving as Grand Marshalls in a parade at the Magic Kingdom on November 1. (The Orlando CVB created the Smile Ambassador positions to launch their social media sites and showcase the diversity of experiences Orlando has to offer.)

 

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8/28

1921:
Actress Nancy Kulp is born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. She is the voice of Frou-Frou the Carriage Horse in the 1970 The Aristocats, portrays Miss Grunecker in the 1961 live-action The Parent Trap, and portrays a Space Nutritionist in the 1962 comedy Moon Pilot. (A veteran television actress, Kulp is probably best known as Jane Hathaway on the long-running series The Beverly Hillbillies.)
1966:
Mr. and Mrs. Roy O. Disney set sail on this day aboard the Grace Lines S.S.
Santa Paula, for a thirteen day cruise to South America and the West Indies.
1989:
At Disney-MGM Studios Jim Henson (who is making a special appearance to announce his pending partnership with the Walt Disney Company) and Kermit the Frog leave their imprints & signatures on the courtyard of The Great Movie Ride.
1990:
Mother Goose Stories, a television show combining live-action child actors with elaborate puppets from Jim Henson's Creature Shop, debuts in the U.S. on the Disney Channel. It is the company's first new television series to debut after the death of Jim Henson.
2003:
A test run of the Magic Kingdom's newest attraction Mickey's Philharmagic takes place at Walt Disney World.

Lucky the Dinosaur, the first Audio-Animatronic figure to walk freely and interact with park guests, is introduced at Disney's California Adventure as a test.
2007:
The Walt Disney World Resort contributes $1 million to the Downtown Orlando
Entrepreneur Center, which has been renamed The Disney Entrepreneur Center.(First founded in 2003, the center provides a single location where small businesses can access a variety of business resources, technology, and research tools.)

 

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8/29

1905:
Cartoonist and Disney Legend Al Taliaferro is born Charles Alfred Taliaferro in Montrose, Colorado. He was hired by Disney in 1931 as an animator, but later moved to the comic book department where he lettered the Mickey Mouse strips. Starting in 1938, Taliaferro began drawing the daily Donald Duck comic strips - which greatly contributed to the development of the character. He drew Donald until his death in 1969. Today Taliaferro is best known as the first artist of Donald Duck newspaper comics (which were at the time distributed by King Features Syndicate).
1955:
At Disneyland, the Chicken of the Sea Pirate Ship and Restaurant opens in Fantasyland. It will be a popular park landmark. (When the new Fantasyland opens in 1983, the ship will be replaced with a new version of the Dumbo attraction.)
1964:
Disney's Mary Poppins, starring Julie Andrews, ________ Van , David Tomlinson,and Glynis Johns is generally released. Based on a series of children's books by P. L. Travers about a magical nanny who comes to work for a cold banker's unhappy family, the film features music by Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman.
1982:
At Disneyland, Peter Pan's Flight closes for extensive remodeling. (It will reopen in May 1983.)
1989:
Disney announces an agreement-in-principle with Jim Henson to acquire
the merchandising, licensing, and publishing rights to the Muppets.
(Sadly, Henson will suddenly pass away in May 1990 causing the deal to temporarily end the following December.)
1992:
British children's author Mary Norton passes away in Devon, England. Her first book - "The Magic Bed ; or, How to Become a Witch in Ten Easy Lessons" published in 1943, and the sequel "Bonfires and Broomsticks" - became the basis for Disney's 1971 live-action feature Bedknobs and Broomsticks.
2008:
Passengers on the August 28-31 sailing of the Disney Wonder cruise ship
experience a "Hollywood-style, red-carpet" event with the premiere of the new Disney Channel television series, The Suite Life on Deck. A spin-off of Disney’s popular The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, passengers get a sneak peak at the first episode and a question-and-answer session with cast members.

Starting this day, Hollywood's El Capitan Theatre presents a digitally restored version of Disney's 1958 Sleeping Beauty. Guests can view this animated classic in wide-screen through September 18
2010:
Doug Parks of Gotha, Florida - the man widely believed to be the very first Mickey Mouse at Walt Disney World - passes away at age 60. An entertainment Cast Member for 39 years, he began working at WDW when the park debuted in 1971. It was Parks who stood at Roy O. Disney's side at the formal dedication of the Magic Kingdom on October 25, 1971. Standing 4 feet, 7 inches, Parks was the perfect size to play Mickey.
2011:
At approximately 6:30 a.m. Hawai'i time the doors to the Maka'ala
lobby of Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa, open and the first guests
enter. Disney's first resort in Hawaii, it is a built-from-scratch complex designed to provide a unique mix of mouse-inspired "imagineering" and Native Hawaiian culture. Located in the Ko Olima resort area, 20 miles west of downtown Honolulu, Aulani sits at the southern end of Oahu’s Waianae or Leeward Coast.

 

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8/30

1908:
Actor Fred MacMurray is born in Kankakee, Illinois (though he was raised in Wisconsin). His Disney film credits include The gy Dog (1959), The Absent-Minded Professor (1961), Bon Voyage (1962), Son of Flubber (1963), Follow Me, Boys! (1966), and The Happiest Millionaire (1967). MacMurray was one of many celebrities who took part in Walt Disney World's three-day opening festivities in October 1971. Television fans know him as Steve Douglas from the classic sitcom My Three Sons (which ran from 1960-1972). In 1987 MacMurray was the very first recipient of the Disney Legends award.
1943:
Walt Disney is awarded (along with other notable Hollywood celebrities) the
Mexican Order of the Aztec Eagle at a ceremony held at the National Palace in Mexico. The medal is given to luminaries as a reward for services to humankind or Mexico.
1994:
A ground-breaking ceremony for Disney's Wedding Pavilion takes place at Disney World. The Victorian-theme structure will be nestled on its own
private island in the Seven Seas Lagoon between the Grand Floridian and Polynesian Resorts. The non-denominational chapel will seat up to 300 guests and will have the ability to host up to 6 ceremonies per day.
Disney's Wedding Pavilion will open July 15, 1995
1995:
Ground is broken for Disney World's Coronado Springs Resort.
Set around a 15-acre lake, it will be themed to regions of Mexico and the American Southwest and be Disney's first moderately priced convention hotel. Coronado Springs will have its grand opening August 1, 1997.
2001:
The Disney Cruise Line celebrates its one-millionth guest family!
2007:
Disneyland guests experience the newest version of ASIMO at the Honda ASIMO Theater inside the Innoventions attraction. With the ability to run nearly 4 miles per hour, the all-new ASIMO (Advanced Step in Innovative Mobility) humanoid robot interacts with a live host in a new 15-minute show.

 

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8/31

1924:
Buddy Hackett, famed comedian, actor and 2003 Disney Legend honoree is
born Leonard Hacker in Brooklyn, New York. He portrayed Tennessee Steinmetz in the 1969 live-action feature The Love Bug and supplied the voice for Scuttle the seagull in both the 1989 The Little Mermaid and
the 2000 direct-to-video sequel The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea. (Fans know Hackett from such films as The Music Man, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, and Scrooged and from countless TV appearances.)
1938:
Walt and Roy Disney place a $10,000 deposit on a 51-acre tract on
Buena Vista Street in Burbank, California. They will use this land to build a new modern studio. The success of Snow White has enabled the Disney brothers to purchase the $100,000 property from the Burbank Dept. of Water and Power. (Construction will begin in 1939.)
1948:
Walt Disney circulates a memo in his studio describing ideas for an amusement park, which he calls "Mickey Mouse Park." He and Ward Kimball have recently returned from a trip to the Chicago Railroad Fair and Henry Ford's Greenfield Village ... and Walt has many ideas.
1962:
Artist Josh Agle, better known by the nickname , is born. (Agle's nickname is derived from the last two letters of his first name, and the first two letters of his last name.) To help celebrate the 40th anniversary of Walt Disney World, designed artwork, merchandise and apparel and even appeared at the Magic Kingdom and Downtown Disney to sign his work in June 2011.

Voice actor Dee Bradley Baker is born in Indiana. He is the voice of Perry the Platypus for Disney Channel's Phineas and Ferb. Baker's Disney credits also include The Replacements, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Lilo & Stitch: The Series, Higglytown Heroes and The Emperor's New School. (He is noted for his long-running-role as Squilliam Fancyson and other various characters in the hit TV series SpongeBob SquarePants.)
1965:
The U.S. Forest Service announces it has received six bids to develop a ski resort on Mineral King in California. A $35 million proposal from Disney is one of two leading candidates. Disney's proposal includes up to 27 chair lifts (with capacity for 11,400 seats per hour), hotels for up to 3,000 guests, and ten-story underground parking for 3,600 cars. (The resort will never be built.)
1973:
Ward Kimball (one of Walt's Nine Old Men) officially retires.
1985:
At 5:00 PM, the Walt Disney World Resort closes, due to advancing Hurricane Elena! The eye of Elena will remain essentially stationary this day off the Florida coast (near the town of Cedar Key) but will continue to intensify. The fifth tropical storm, fourth hurricane, and first major hurricane of the season, Elena first developed near Cuba from a tropical wave.
1994:
Disney executive Ron Dominguez, who started as a Disneyland Cast Member on opening day in July 1955, retires after 39 years. Vice President of Walt Disney Attractions, his family originally owned and lived on 10 acres of the orange grove-covered property which was purchased by Walt Disney for his Anaheim theme park in 1954. Dominguez will be inducted a Disney Legend in 2000.
2005:
The Walt Disney Company announces it will pledge $2.5 million to aid relief and rebuilding in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
2007:
L’Originale Alfredo di Roma Ristorante, located in the Italy Pavilion in Epcot's World Showcase, closes. (The restaurant will later re-open as Tutto Italia.)
L' Originale Alfredo di Roma Ristorante was created by the direct descendants
of Alfredo di Lelio, the inventor of Fettuccini Alfredo!
2009:
The Walt Disney Company announces that it is buying Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion. Marvel Entertainment, Inc. is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a library of over 5,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy years. Publisher Martin Goodman founded the company later known as "Marvel Comics" under the name "Timely Publications" back in 1939.
"This transaction combines Marvel's strong global brand and world-renowned library of characters including Iron Man, Spider-Man, X-Men, Captain America, Fantastic Four and Thor with Disney's creative skills, unparalleled global portfolio of entertainment properties, and a business structure that maximizes the value of creative properties across multiple platforms and territories." -Robert A. Iger, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company

 

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9/1

1875:
Edgar Rice Burroughs, the creator of Tarzan and one of the great pioneers of modern science fiction, is born in Chicago, Illinois. Burroughs was a soldier, business executive, gold miner, cowboy, storekeeper, and policeman before he turned to writing as a career. He wrote more than 20 novels depicting the adventures of Tarzan. After the release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, he wrote a letter to Walt Disney about the possibility of making his creation into an animated feature. His work eventually did become the inspiration for Disney's 1999 animated feature Tarzan and later a Disney produced Broadway stage musical. Burroughs also wrote popular science fiction and fantasy stories involving Earthly adventurers and Martians. He began writing a series called the Barsoom books in the second half of 1911. (Barsoom was his fictional representation of the planet Mars.) The final book in the series was titled John Carter of Mars (to be released as a major motion picture by Disney in 2012). In the early twentieth century, Burroughs compiled a glossary of the terms used in these novels. In 1957, Walt Disney created an animated version of it for his "Mars and Beyond" TV episode. Today Burroughs even has a large crater on Mars named for him!
1934:
Disney's 6-minute Silly Symphony cartoon Peculiar Penguins is released.

Walt and Lillian Disney return home to Los Angeles from a trip to Hawaii
aboard the Matson liner SS Malolo. (When built in 1926, the Malolo was the largest, technically advanced and most luxurious cruise liner to be built in the United States.)
1989:
Disneyland welcomes Claudine Masson, its 300-millionth guest! It has taken 34 years to accomplish this feat. From Chatearoux, France, the 28-year-old
Claudine is the first international visitor to become an attendance milestone guest.
1993:
Disney announces that AT&T has renewed its sponsorship of Spaceship Earth at EPCOT Center in the Walt Disney World Resort. (Spaceship Earth was originally sponsored by the Bell System from 1982 until 1984. When Bell was broken up into smaller companies in 1984, its parent company, AT&T became its own independent company and began sponsoring Spaceship Earth. It will continue to do so until 2004 - when Siemens picks up sponsorship.)
2005:
Disney Editions releases Ridley Pearson's The Kingdom Keepers, the first in a series of novels. This suspense thriller, subtitled Disney After Dark, is about five teenagers who end up inside Disney World after dark, and must solve a riddle in order to save the park from the dark side of Walt Disney's imagination.

Pooh's Playful Spot, a playground for 2-5 year-olds, opens in the Magic Kingdom at Disney World.
2007:
Epcot re-opens the film O Canada (a Circle-Vision 360° movie in the Canada Pavilion). It is an updated version hosted by Martin Short. Walt Disney Imagineers collaborated with the Canadian Tourism Commission to revise the film, which now includes new orchestration and images, and Canadian Idol winner Eva Avila singing the music of "O Canada!"
2008:
Don LaFontaine, the highly sought-after voice-over artist often referred to as "Thunder Throat" and "The Voice of God," passes away at age 68 in Los Angeles.
During his career, La Fontaine recorded over 5,000 movie trailers and over 350,000 television commercials, network promotions, and video game trailers. His Disney credits include the animated series Fillmore! and the feature Meet the Robinsons.
2009:
At Disneyland, Fantasmic’s animatronic dragon debuts during a water-and-light show on the Rivers of America after facing technical trouble all summer.

 

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9/2

1902:
William Norman "Norm" Ferguson, an animator for the the Walt Disney Studios and a central contributor to the studio's stylistic development in the 1930s, is born in New York City. After starting at the studio in 1929 as a cameraman, "Fergy" will switch to the animation department and rise rapidly - despite a lack of formal art training. He will be noted for his contribution to the creation of Pluto and the witch in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. His credits will also include Pinocchio, Fantasia, Cinderella, and Alice in Wonderland. Ferguson will be posthumously inducted as a Disney Legend in 1999.
1906:
Comedienne, writer & actress Barbara Jo Allen, the voice of Fauna
(the green good fairy) in Disney's 1959 classic Sleeping Beauty, is
born in New York City. Barbara is also the voice of Scullery Maid in Disney's 1963 The Sword in the Stone. In the 1960s, she did a recording for the character of Madame Leota for Disneyland's Haunted Mansion ... but she was later replaced by Eleanor Audley (whose voice can also be heard in Sleeping Beauty).
1935:
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the founding of Marceline, Missouri, the Marceline News runs the article "The Marceline I Knew," by Walt Disney.
Walt's written words include:
I was extremely glad to receive your letter asking me to write some impressions of Marceline as I remember it from my childhood days.
To tell the truth more things of importance happened to me in Marceline than have happened since—or are likely to in the future. Things I mean, like seeing my first circus parade, attending my first school, seeing my first motion picture. I know you’ll agree with me that such childhood “first” as those are of utmost importance in any human being’s life. I went with my family to live in Marceline when I was five years old and I stayed there until I was nine. I clearly remember the day we arrived there on the train. A Mr. Coffman met us in his wagon and we rode out to our house in the country just outside the city limits. I believe it was called the Crane Farm. My first impression of it was that it had a beautiful front yard with lots of weeping willow trees.
1950:
Children's Fairyland, USA (the first theme park created to cater to families with young children) opens on the shore of Lake Merritt in Oakland, California. The park will be nationally recognized for its unique value and even Walt Disney will visit often to gather ideas. He will later hire Fairyland's first director, Dorothy Manes, to work at his park! (Today known as simply Children's Fairyland, the park continues to delight children and their parents with whimsical storybook sets, gentle rides, friendly animals, wonder-filled puppet shows, and inspired live entertainment.)
1979:
The Big Thunder Mountain Railroad attraction opens in Disneyland's Frontierland. The "wildest ride in the wilderness" takes guests careening through dark caverns and abandoned mines. Imagineer Tony Baxter modeled the attraction after the scenery of Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. The exciting Big Thunder Mountain replaces the more sedate Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland.
(A second Big Thunder will open at Disney World in November 1980.)

Disney's long-running television series airs for the last time on NBC under the name The Wonderful World of Disney. Seven days later it will debut as Disney's Wonderful World. (It is the 5th title since the show's 1954 debut.)
1985:
Disneyland's Adventure Thru Inner Space attraction closes in Tomorrowland. It had first opened in August 1967.
(The attraction will later be replaced with Star Tours.)
2004:
Epcot's newest gallery exhibit, Echoes of Africa, opens in the American Adventure.

Walt Disney World announces that its theme and water parks will operate on an abbreviated schedule on Friday September 3, due to the threat of Hurricane Frances. Downtown Disney will close at 6 p.m. and Pleasure Island will not open for the evening. On this day, Frances will strike the Bahamas directly, pass directly over San Salvador Island and very near to Cat Island. The storm will move west northwest and weaken through the day ... eventually dropping down to a Category 3 by 2:00 p.m.
2008:
"HSM3 School Spirit Contest," presented by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures and MySpace, kicks off. Gearing up for the highly anticipated theatrical release of High School Musical 3: Senior Year (on October 24th), the contest encourages students to show their best school spirit. One U.S. high school whose students best showcase their inner Wildcat could win a magical Disney Grad Nite celebration at Walt Disney World or Disneyland Resort. The contest runs through November 3, 2008.

Emmy Award-winning animator Bill Melendez who transformed the two-dimensional drawings of the "Peanuts" comic strip into some of the most beloved cartoon characters on television and film, dies at St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California at age 91. He began his career at the Hollywood animation studios of Disney and Warner Brothers. At Disney, Melendez worked on such classic animated features as Fantasia, Pinocchio, Bambi, and Dumbo.

 

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9/3

1910:
Imagineer Yale Gracey, best known for his brilliant special effects in the
Haunted Mansion and the Pirates of the Caribbean park attractions, is born in
Shanghai, China (his father was an American Consul). Master Gracey, whose name can be found on tombstones outside the Disneyland and Disney World mansions, gets his name from Yale! Gracey first worked as a layout artist on such features as Pinocchio and Fantasia before becoming a special effects and lighting artist at Walt Disney Imagineering (then called WED).
1919:
Red Cross volunteer Walt Disney leaves Paris, France for Marseilles and the
voyage back to the United States. Unfortunately a dock strike will prevent him from sailing as scheduled and he will spend 23 days waiting out the strike.
1969:
The comedy motion picture The Trouble with Girls, starring Elvis Presley,
is released. Appearing in the film is the quartet vocal group The Mellowmen (best known to Disney fans for their contributions to many features and park attractions). The quartet, which includes Thurl Ravenscroft, plays the part of a gospel group called The Bible Singers.
1988:
Live with Regis and Kathie Lee (a Disney production) debuts on TV.
1996:
The Disneyana Convention 1996 kicks off for 5 days at Walt Disney World.

The animated series Quack Pack, part of the Disney Afternoon weekday
program, debuts on Toon Disney. Featuring Donald Duck (voiced by Tony Anselmo) and his nephews who are now rebellious teens, Quack Pack will run for 39 episodes.
2002:
Disney's Where The Toys Come From is released on DVD. This 1984 live-action film is directed & written by Ted Thomas (son of veteran animator Frank Thomas - one of Walt's Nine Old Men). Two comical toys, Peepers and Zoom (voiced by John Harvey & Larry Wright), curious about where they came from, embark on a journey - along with their owner Robin (Erin Young) - to discover their origins. Thomas earned a Golden Gate Award for Best Children's Program.
2008:
The 11th annual Amusement Today Golden Ticket Awards (given to the "Best of the Best" in the amusement industry) are handed out during a ceremony at Give Kids The World Village in Kissimmee, Florida. Disney is awarded Best Outdoor Night Show Production for Epcot's IllumiNations: Reflections of the Earth.
2009:
At about 12:45 AM Disney Wonder rescues a 34-year-old man at sea who had fallen off a Carnival Cruise Lines ship during the night. While on its way into Port Canaveral, Disney's crew heard a call for help and plucked the man from the ocean off the Florida coast even before the Coast Guard arrived. The man was aboard The Sensation, a Carnival Cruise Lines ship returning from the Bahamas.

 

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9/4

1918:
Postal employee Walt Disney (who is a substitute mail carrier) is walking through the West Adams Street lobby of the Federal Building in Chicago when he hears a deafening blast that shakes the ground. Someone has planted a bomb. More than 75 are injured and four are killed - including a co-worker of Walt's named William Wheeler. The force of the blast also kills a horse on the street, damages a streetcar and shatters windows on nearby buildings.

"I was in the post office. I just got though sorting my mail, or finishing my route. I was walking out ... going out a certain entrance ... when it was bombed. I was right in the lobby when, FOOOOOM, this thing went off. Here comes the dust shooting out and everything. That was the way I went out every night. I missed that darn thing by about three minutes." -Walt Disney
1919:
Actor and director Howard Morris is born in New York City. He was the original
voice of Gopher for Disney's Winnie the Pooh features. (TV fans will know Morris for his comedic role of Ernest T. Bass on The Andy Griffith Show and as the voice of Jughead for the animated Archie Show.)
1922:
The Laugh-O-Gram black & white silent cartoon Jack and the Beanstalk is released. It is directed and co-animated by Walt Disney.
1942:
Disney's Goofy cartoon How To Play Baseball is released.
1997:
"The Spirit of Pocahontas," performed at the Fantasyland Theater in Disneyland, gives its final performance after nearly a 2 1/2 year run.

Buena Vista Home Entertainment announces that it is entering the DVD market in the U.S. and abroad, with product to be available in the U.S. as early as Christmas.
1998:
Fifty-one Miss America contestants, led by reigning Miss America Kate Shindle, greet fans and sign autographs at Disney World's BoardWalk. This is the only opportunity fans have to meet all 51 contestants before they take the stage in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
1999:
The Disney Channel Original Movie P.U.N.K.S., about a group of misfit teens who evade a corrupt scientist when they steal and attempt to return a suit that delivers supernatural strength to its wearer, premieres.
2000:
Hundreds of Mary Poppins' fans gathered at the El Capitan Theater in Hollywood where moviegoers are invited to sing-along with the film as lyrics appear along the bottom. Before the film starts, the Sherman Brothers and others involved with Mary Poppins speak about creating the film.
2001:
Disney's new theme park Tokyo DisneySea has its grand opening at
the Tokyo Disney Resort. Featuring over 20 attractions, it is Disney's second theme park in Japan and ninth in the world. The park has a nautical theme and is broken up into 7 distinct areas. The park's two iconic symbols are the DisneySea AquaSphere - a water fountain (located in the entrance plaza) and a gigantic volcano - Mount Prometheus (located in the center of the park). Also on this day, Tokyo Disney Resort celebrates the grand opening of the first hotel to be built inside a Disney Park in Japan, Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta.
2003:
Disney On Ice Presents Disney/Pixar's Monsters, Inc pulls into Orlando's TD Waterhouse Centre for a 4-day engagement.
2006:
Another Tower of Terror opens ... this time at Tokyo DisneySea Park!
The attraction opens in American Waterfront, a "port of call" representing the northeastern seaboard of the United States in the early 20th century. The Tower of Terror at Tokyo DisneySea has no connection or tie-ins
with The Twilight Zone, but is instead themed as the Hotel Hightower, an 1890s' New York City hotel owned by eccentric billionaire Harrison Hightower III. He disappeared on December 31, 1899 while taking the elevator up
to his private quarters shortly after taking a mysterious idol of a trickster spirit called Shiriki Utundu from an ancient civilization in Africa!
2009:
Disney World hosts the very first Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party of the 2009 season at the Magic Kingdom

 

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9/5

1929:
Legendary comedian-actor Bob Newhart, the voice of Bernard the Mouse in Disney's 1990 release The Rescuers Down Under, is born in Oak Park, Illinois. (Newhart's 1960 comedy album, The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart, was number one on the charts, actually beating Elvis Presley and the cast album of The Sound of Music! TV fans known him best from the popular sitcoms Bob
Newhart Show and Newhart.)
1951:
Actor Michael Keaton is born in Corapolis, Pennsylvania. His Disney credits include the 2005 live-action feature Herbie: Fully Loaded and the 1982 television special Kraft Salutes Walt Disney World's 10th Anniversary. Keaton is also the voice of Chick Hicks for the 2006 Cars and Ken for the 2010 Toy Story 3.
1964:
Walt Disney visits Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, Denmark. The European theme park has greatly influenced Disneyland (as Walt had visited Tivoli
once before prior to opening his Anaheim park). On this day Walt poses for a photo with 13-year-old Sven Hansem, a drummer in the Boys Guard - a uniformed band, which marches and plays on a route through Tivoli several times a week.
1966:
Disneyland's Flying Saucers attraction (located in Tomorrowland)
closes after just 5 years in operation. Also closing in Tomorrowland
on this day ... the Tomorrowland Jets (which will return in August 1967 as the Rocket Jets).
1974:
A professional troupe of Disney World entertainers (soon to be known as the Pioneer Hall Players) continue the production of Disney’s "Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue" dinner show. Originally a college workshop summer production (that began last June), guest response to the show has been so positive that Disney has decided to continue running it in Pioneer Hall at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground.
1983:
Tokyo Disneyland welcomes its 5-millionth guest!

A tragedy occurs when 73-year-old retired Imagineer Yale Gracey and his wife are killed in Pacific Palisades, California. A transient breaks into their cabana at the Bel Air Bay Club and shoots to death the couple as they sleep - just 2 days after Yale's birthday. The senseless and shocking crime will remain a mystery. With no special effects training other than his own hands-on experimentation, Yale first worked as a layout artist and then a research and development designer - creating illusions, such as the "999 grim, grinning ghosts" featured in the Haunted Mansion and the flames of the burning city in Pirates of the Caribbean. First joining the Disney Studio in 1939, he worked on Pinocchio and Fantasia. Gracey evenutally teamed up with Rolly Crump at
WED. Called an "IIllusioner" in the days before the term "Imagineer" was coined, Gracey was a wiz at coming up with unusual effects.
1984:
Ray Watson informs Michael Eisner that he will recommend him as new CEO of Disney, to the board of directors.
1994:
Disney World's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea attraction "temporarily closes" at the end of this day. Opened since October 14, 1971, the attraction was held inside one of 14 submarines, each with a capacity of 38 passengers. It was based on Disney's first big-budget live-action 1954 movie, which starred Kirk Douglas and James Mason. (The film was inspired by Jules Verne's classic novel.) Almost 2 years later Disney will officially call the attraction forever closed. Some of the submarines will be sunk off of Castaway Cay, Disney's private island in the Caribbean.
2000:
The 2000 Disneyana Convention kicks off at the Contemporary Hotel (for 5 days) at Disney World.

Over at Disneyland, Rocket Rods (a high-speed Tomorrowland attraction opened since May 1998) closes.
2004:
Disney World theme parks remain closed for the second day in a row as slow-moving Hurricane Frances (which will slowly become Tropical Depression Frances) continues to slam Florida with heavy rainfall.
2008:
The 26th Night of Joy at Walt Disney World kicks off for the first of two evenings at Disney’s Hollywood Studios (a first for the Florida theme park). Performers on this evening include Brandon Heath, Britt Nicole, Matthew West, Chris Tomlin, BarlowGirl, Rush of Fools, Rebecca St. James, and MercyMe.

Meanwhile over at the Magic Kingdom, Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is held for the first time this season.

 

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9/6

1869:
Writer Felix Salten is born Siegmund Salzmann in Budapest, Hungary.
His 1926 book "Bambi, A Life in the Woods" will later be made into an animated feature by Walt Disney. The idea will come to Salten while on vacation in the Alps after being charmed by the wildlife there. He will base the name, Bambi, on the Italian word "bambino", meaning baby. Another of his stories "The Hound of Florence," a fantasy about a man who turns into a dog will be the inspiration for Walt Disney's 1959 live-action film The gy Dog.
1937:
Actress-comedienne Jo Anne Worley, known for her performances on TV's
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, and her work in Disney films and TV specials, is born in Lowell, Indiana. Her Disney voice credits include Kim Possible: The Secret Files, A Goofy Movie,and Beauty and the Beast. Worley also hosted a 1972 episode of The Mouse Factory, and appeared in the 1976 live-action comedy The gy D.A. and the 1977 TV episode The Mouseketeers at Walt Disney World.
1976:
America on Parade has its final run at both Disneyland and Disney World.
Featuring oversized head costumes of historic Americans, the parade's unique soundtrack - synthesizers and antique carousel organs - has been prepared by Don Dorsey (his first project for Disney).
1982:
The Disneyland attraction Alice in Wonderland temporarily closes while Fantasyland is being updated. ("Alice" will re-open in April 1985.)

Still about a month away from officially debuting, EPCOT Center opens at 9 a.m. on this Labor Day for the Family Construction Preview. Family members of any of the park's construction workers can wander through Future World and World Showcase until 6 p.m.
2001:
A 24-karat gold sculpture called "Celebration Mickey ... 100 Golden Years of Magic" is the main auction item at the 2001 Official Disneyana Convention. The live auction, held at the Disneyland Resort, starts at 7 p.m. Valued at over $1 million, the two-foot tall "Celebration Mickey" was created to observe Walt Disney's 100th birthday. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to The Walt Disney Company's compassion program for children with life-threatening illnesses.
2003:
Jules Engel, a pioneering animator and the founding director of the California
Institute of the Arts Experimental Animation Program, passes at the age of 94 in California. Engel began his career in the late 1940s at Walt Disney Studios where he was first recognized for his work on the Chinese and Russian dance sequences in Fantasia and on the animated feature Bambi. (Engel was one of the original members of the animation studio United Productions of America, and with the late Robert Cannon, developed such cartoons as Gerald Mc Boing Boing, Madeline and Mr. Magoo!)
2004:
After a weekend of punishment from Hurricane Frances, Walt Disney World re-opens with a limited schedule. Only the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Typhoon Lagoon, Downtown Disney and the Wide World of Sports Complex are opened.
2005:
Toy Story celebrates its 10th anniversary with the release of a special two-disc DVD edition. The film is also released on UMD (a first for Buena Vista). UMD (Universal Media Disc) is a Sony created disc format for use on their PlayStation Portable entertainment system.

It is reported that Disney's Buena Vista Music Group (which produces soundtracks for Disney movies and albums for singers such as Hilary Duff) has signed a deal with EMI, the world's third-largest music company.
2008:
The Disney Magic enters dry dock for a bow-to-stern overhaul that is scheduled be completed September 24. Among the changes Disney plans for the 10-year-old ship is a big revamping of the adults-only Quiet Cove retreat area. The Cove Café coffee lounge will get a new seating area with plush chairs, and the Cove's adults-only pool will be redone with a cascading waterfall. Disney also plans an upgrade to cabins, which will include new flat-screen LCD television sets mounted on swivel arms.
2009:
The fourth annual Disneyland Half Marathon, which winds through the
Disneyland Resort area and out into Anaheim itself, takes place. Jaeyung Hyung, 38, of Las Cruces, New Mexico, crosses the finish line with a time of 1:10:44 to lead the estimated field of nearly 12,000 participants!

Five of Pixar's directors - Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter, John Lasseter, Brad Bird and Lee Unkrich - receive the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 66th Venice International Film Festival. Presented by George Lucas, it is the first time the accolade has been given to a group rather than an individual filmmaker.
"I really enjoyed running the race here. There were so many people, and Disney made it a lot of fun." -Hyung
2010:
Today is the final day Disney California Adventure visitors will be able to ride the tall Maliboomer attraction. Tomorrow crews plan to start removing the ride which Disney has long planned to demolish. The thrill ride, which shoots visitors up 180 feet, will no longer fit with the theme of the Paradise Pier area, which will take on an early 1900s feel

 

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9/7

1911:
Master animator, artist and Disney Legend Robert Fred Moore is born in Los Angeles, California. "Freddie" will work on such Disney classics as Pinocchio, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Fantasia, Dumbo and Peter Pan. He will later become resident specialist on animating Mickey Mouse! Moore's animation of the earlier Mickey design is especially memorable in the 1938 short Brave Little Tailor - the last significant appearance of the "pie-eyed" Mickey.

When Fred Moore animated Mickey Mouse in the Fantasia segment "The Sorcerer's Apprentice," he drew the character for the first time with eyes that had pupils!
1956:
Songwriter Hall of Famer Diane Warren is born in Van Nuys, California. Her music can be heard in such Disney & Touchstone films as Snow Dogs, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Pearl Harbor, and My Favorite Martian. Fans of pop and country music know Warren from such penned hits as "Because You Loved Me" and "Un-Break My Heart." (As of 2006, her songs have received six Academy Award nominations, four Golden Globe nominations, and seven Grammy Award nominations.)
1984:
Morocco - the first new World Showcase pavilion to be added to the original roster since the park's 1982 opening - debuts at EPCOT. Located between France and Japan, the Morocco pavilion re-creates the architecture and atmosphere of Casablanca, Fez, and Marrakesh. It is the first country in World Showcase sponsored by the government and not a corporation. The king of Morocco actually sent his royal craftsmen to lay all the tile work, carvings and paintings in the pavilion!

The Disney board asks for, and receives, Ron Miller's resignation. (Despite rumors, Michael Eisner president of Paramount Pictures, is not chosen as new CEO at this time.)
1994:
Disney theme parks welcome their 1 billionth guest - Mary Smith from Illinois!
After walking through the main gate of Walt Disney World, she is awarded a lifetime pass for her and her family, and a cross-country flight to Disneyland.
1996:
At Disneyland Paris, a major fire damages portions of the Sequoia Lodge hotel
at 6:45 a.m., forcing hundreds of groggy guests to flee. Thankfully, most guests are already awake ready for the park's Saturday opening, but about 100 people flee with little more than the pajamas on their backs. Disney officials give these guests a free spending spree in the park's shops to re-clothe themselves. The blaze is extinguished in three hours, but guts much of the roof of one section, and damages dozens of rooms.

The Themed Entertainment Association presents its 1996 THEA Awards at the Beverly Hills Hotel. The winners include Epcot's Honey I Shrunk the Audience, Disneyland's Indiana Jones Adventure - The Temple of the Forbidden
1997:
Disneyland's Circle-Vision theater, which offered daily showings of America the Beautiful, the last film Walt Disney worked on, closes in Tomorrowland. Opened since 1955, the theater (originally called Circarama) will subsequently be integrated into the Rocket Rods preshow.
1998:
Labor Day: At Walt Disney World, Mr. Toad takes his last Wild Ride as the popular Fantasyland attraction is scheduled to close after this day.

At Disneyland, the Hercules Victory Parade makes a final appearance.
2004:
Due to complications created by Hurricane Frances, the Disney Cruise Line sends its two ships, the Disney Magic and the Disney Wonder, to Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale (instead of Port Canaveral) to disembark.
2008:
Today is the final day for Golden Dreams, a film about the history of California, featured at Disney California Adventure Park. An original opening day attraction, Golden Dreams starred Whoopi Goldberg as Califia, the Queen of California. It is scheduled for removal to make way for the "Voyage of the Little Mermaid" a new dark ride attraction.
2010:
Today is the last day Disney fans can wander and splash around in the Bountiful Valley Farm area of Disney California Adventure. The farm area in A Bug’s Land is set to close the following day so workers can start building the entrance to Cars Land, which is under construction south of the farm area. The 12-acre Cars Land is scheduled to open in 2012.

 

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9/8

1943:
Engineer and noted pioneer in computer graphics Alvy Ray Smith is born. Receiving his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from New Mexico State University in 1965, ten years later he was recruited to join the new Computer Graphics Laboratory at New York Institute of Technology, one of the leading computer graphics research groups of the 1970s. There he worked alongside a young computer scientist named Ed Catmull (who later became president of Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios). When their work was brought to the attention of George Lucas, they were hired away to start the the Lucasfilm Computer Division ... which eventually became Pixar.
1955:
Five-year-old Elsa Marquez is welcomed as the one-millionth guest entering Disneyland (just 7 weeks after the park's grand opening)!
1981:
Actor Jonathan Taylor Thomas, the voice of Young Simba in Disney's 1994
animated feature The Lion King, is born in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. His Disney
credits include the 1995 film Tom and Huck as Tom Sawyer and the 1998 teen-comedy film I'll Be Home for Christmas. Fans of the ABC/Touchstone sitcom Home Improvement will remember him as Randy Taylor.
1995:
Night of Joy 1995 begins at Disney World's Magic Kingdom featuring Carman, Steven Curtis Chapman, Audio Adrenaline, Shirley Caesar, and Point of Grace. An annual event, it will also be held September 9 and 16. Night of Joy 1995 will be filmed and broadcast live on both the Trinity Broadcasting Network and on the Family Channel.
1998:
Disneyland's Submarine Voyage attraction closes with a 7 a.m. ceremony officiated by U.S. Navy Commander Robert Thomas. Starting in June 1959, the Nautilus and seven sister submarines - the Triton, Sea Wolf, Skate, Skipjack, George Washington, Patrick Henry, and Ethan Allen - had allowed 38 Disneyland guests at a time to take their own voyage to the "North Pole." (20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was the Florida counterpart of the Submarine Voyage.)

It's official ... the Walt Disney World attraction Mr. Toad's Wild Ride is permanently closed. On this day work begins on Mr Toad's home as it will become The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. One of the park's opening day attractions, it was modeled after the Disneyland attraction. Despite the ride's popularity and many protests, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride entertained guests for the very last time yesterday.
2002:
Disney World's 2,112-room Caribbean Beach Resort closes for renovation. In a first for Disney World, the entire hotel is shut down while the resort's restaurant is updated. (It is expected to be completed for the December holidays.)

As part of the One Hundred Mickeys exhibit, the Disneyland Resort hosts the "Where's Mickey?" pin event.
2004:
Disney Legend Frank Thomas, one of Walt's "Nine Old Men," passes
away at age 92 in California. His Disney credits during his 43-year career include animating Thumper and Bambi on the ice in Bambi, Lady and Tramp eating a romantic spaghetti dinner in Lady and the Tramp, and Mad Madam Mim in the Sword in the Stone. A native Californian, Thomas played piano for the Disney Dixieland jazz group, The Firehouse Five plus Two.
2005:
It is reported that an 11-year-old boy from Chicago (who battles cerebal palsy) has convinced his family to donate the $2500 they had saved up for a Walt Disney World vaction to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

 

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9/9

1938:
The Disney short Mickey's Parrot, directed by Bill Roberts and animated by
Les Clark, is released. A talking parrot wanders through Mickey's house while Mickey (voiced by Walt Disney) and Pluto (voiced by Pinto Colvig) think they're tracking an escaped criminal!
1966:
Comedian, actor, writer, and film producer Adam Sandler is born Adam Richard Sandler in Brooklyn, New York (though he was raised in Manchester, New Hampshire). A Saturday Night Live alumni, Sandler starred in the Walt Disney Pictures 2008 comedy feature Bedtime Stories - his first family film and first film under the Walt Disney banner - although Touchstone Pictures released his The Waterboy in 1998. (Film fans recognize Sandler from such features as Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, The Wedding Singer, and 50 First Dates.)
1973:
At Disneyland, the General Electric Carousel of Progress closes. It will
be moved to Walt Disney World and be replaced in Disneyland by America Sings in June 1974. The popular COP attraction had originally been part of the 1964-1965 World's Fair in New York.
1979:
The NBC-TV series The Wonderful World of Disney changes its name on this evening's program. It is now titled Disney's Wonderful World. Part 1 of the 1961 release "The Absent-Minded Professor," starring Fred MacMurray, is shown.
1990:
NBC's popular Disney television series airs for the last time as The Magical
World of Disney. Starting September 28, 1997 it will return to ABC as The Wonderful World of Disney.
2001:
Disneyland's "Country Bear Playhouse" attraction (originally known as the Country Bear Jamboree) lowers its curtain after 29 years. The space will be used for The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.
2004:
In a letter dated September 9, Walt Disney Company CEO Michael Eisner announces that he will retire from the Walt Disney Company after September 2006, when his contract with the company expires.
2009:
Walt Disney Records celebrates the 40th Anniversary of The Haunted Mansion with two new CD releases - The Story and Song From The Haunted Mansion and The Haunted Mansion.

 

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9/10

1925:
Animation work begins on Walt Disney's Alice Comedy film, Alice Rattled by Rats.
1938:
A morning story meeting for Fantasia takes place at the studio's conference room. Among those present - Walt Disney, orchestral conductor Leopold Stokowski, composer Deems Taylor (who will act as the film's Master of Ceremonies), animator ________ Huemer and artist-writer Joe Grant.
1982:
Illustrator and voice actor Bret Iwan, the fourth official person to voice Mickey Mouse, is born in California. With the passing of Wayne Allwine (the third official voice of Mickey) in 2009, Disney looked within the company to find someone to perform the recognizable voice. Iwan won the role after a company-wide search where a relative submitted Iwan as a possibility. In a final audition, Russi Taylor, the voice of Minnie Mouse and the widow of Wayne Allwine, helped in selecting Iwan. (The only other two to voice Mickey full-time was Walt Disney himself and sound effects artist Jimmy Macdonald.)
1983:
The very first Night of Joy takes place at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World. Performers include Leon Patillo, Shirley Caesar, Petra, Phil Keaggy, Sheila Walsh, Benny Hestor, David Meece, and Scott Wesley Brown. It will become an annual contemporary Christian music event and one of only two Christian rock festivals to be held yearly in the Orlando, Florida area.
1990:
The Disney Afternoon, a created-for-syndication two-hour television programming block, first airs. The show is broken up into four half-hour segments, each of which contain a cartoon series. (The Disney Afternoon will run until 1997 and even lead to a temporary area at Disneyland called Disney Afternoon Avenue.)
2005:
Mickey and Minnie Mouse, along with Goofy and Pluto visit Reliant Center in Houston, Texas, a Red Cross Shelter and home to many New Orleans Hurricane Katrina survivors.
2007:
Walt Disney World honors the crew of the NASA space shuttle Endeavour mission and the achievement of teacher-turned-astronaut Barbara Morgan. This is the first official appearance of the STS-118 crew since returning to Earth on August 21. Epcot and Magic Kingdom hold ceremonies (which include a dedication at Mission: SPACE) and allow school children to interact with the Endeavour astronauts.

Disney Legend Ralph Kent (a 41-year veteran) passes away in Orlando, Florida. He worked for Walt himself beginning back in the early 1960s as an art director. Retired since 2004, Kent was also a merchandise artist, marketer, and Director of Walt Disney Imagineering East overseeing Florida staff support for EPCOT Center and Tokyo Disneyland. Known by some as "The Keeper of the Mouse," Kent trained other artists to draw the mouse uniformly, and helped determine which merchandise would carry his image. A friend of many in the collecting world of Disneyana, Kent was a collector of comics, chess sets, and animation.
2009:
Walt Disney Company President and CEO Bob Iger launches the first-ever D23 Expo with an hour-long presentation in the Anaheim Convention Center Arena in California. Following the presentation, the 2009 Disney Legends Awards are handed out at a ceremony hosted by ABC personality Tom Bergeron. It is the first time the awards are ever handed out off Disney property. Thisyear's Disney Legends Award honorees include Robin Williams and Betty White. The D23 Expo will continue with special events, guest speakers, and exclusive screenings through Sunday September 13.

Also at the D23 Expo, Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment announces the
launch of the new Diamond Collection - the definitive collection of the Walt Disney Studios most historic and beloved animated classics that will debut on Blu-ray Hi-Def. As part of the new Diamond Collection criteria, each film (starting with Snow White and the Seven Dwars in October) will be thoroughly restored to the highest level of picture and sound and feature
groundbreaking, state-of-the-art immersive bonus content.

Amusement Today announces the winners of its prestigious 2009 Golden Ticket Awards. Presented to the "Best of the Best" in the amusement industry calculated from an international poll conducted by Amusement Today, this year's winners include IllumiNations: Reflections of the Earth at
Walt Disney World’s Epcot Center for Best Outdoor Night Show Production.
2010:
A star-powered, 16-act Christian music lineup kicks off the 28th Night of Joy at Walt Disney World. After 2 years at Disney's Hollywood Studios, Night of Joy 2010 returns to the Magic Kingdom. The special-ticket event features live performances (over the next two nights) on several stages throughout the park. This night's entertainment includes such names as Casting Crowns, Tenth Avenue North, Barlow Girl, and Point of Grace.

 

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9/11

Patriot Day occurs on September 11 of each year,designated in memory of
the nearly three thousand who died in the September 11, 2001 attacks.

1892:
Pinto Colvig, known as the 'Dean of Hollywood Voicemen' is born Vance DeBar Colvig in Jacksonville, Oregon. He will go on to lend his voice to such classic Disney characters as Goofy, Pluto, Sleepy & Grumpy from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and the pig who built the "house of bricks" in the Disney short Three Little Pigs.
1923:
Engineer and Imagineer Don Edgren is born in Los Angeles, California. His 33 years of Disney problem-solving began in 1954 when the engineering firm he worked for (Wheeler & Gray, Structural Engineers) was hired to help ready Disneyland for its opening. Edgren was later hired by Disney in 1961 and went on to help build the Ford Motor Company exhibit for the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair and such park attractions as Pirates of the Caribbean and Space Mountain. Inducted a Disney Legend in 2006, today Edgren's name appears on a window on Disneyland's Main Street, USA.
1957:
The Mellomen (a vocal group featuring Thurl Ravenscroft) appear on the Disneyland television series opener for the 4th season. This 75th episode of the overall series starts off with a celebration party from the Mickey Mouse Club, as they help celebrate the 4th anniversary of the ABC-TV series.

Oscar-winning director, animator and screenwriter Brad Bird is born in Kalispell,
Montana. Best known for directing and writing Pixar's The Incredibles, he also directed and wrote the screenplay for the 2007 Ratatouille. Upon graduating from the California Institute of the Arts, Bird began working for Disney - though his tenure was brief, and he left the company shortly after working on The Fox and the Hound in 1981. He next worked on animated television series, which included The Simpsons, The Critic and King of the Hill. Bird's TV work led to writing and directing the animated film The Iron Giant and ultimatley a position with Pixar.
1962:
Actress and singer E.G. Daily, the singing voice of Beary Barrington in
Disney's 2002 Country Bears, is born Elizabeth Guttman in Los Angeles,
California. Known as the voice of Tommy Pickles on TV's animated Rugrats, her Disney voice credits include the animated series Aladdin, the animated feature A Goofy Movie, and the series Hercules. (Movie fans know Daily for her role as Dottie in the live-action comedy ______-Wee's Big Adventure. Her singing voice can also be heard on the theme for TV's Two and A Half Men.)
1968:
The United States Postal Service pays tribute to Walt Disney with the release of a commemorative 6-cent postage stamp (issued only two years after his death). The stamp features a portrait of Walt surrounded by the children of the world emerging from Sleeping Beauty Castle in the background. The portrait has been created by Disney artist Paul Wenzel with further design by Bob Moore. A limited number of the stamps are adhered to commemorative envelopes and hand canceled in Marceline, Missouri, Walt's boyhood home. Roy O. Disney, Walt's wife Lillian, and members of the Disney family attend a First Day of Issue Ceremony in Marceline along with the governor of Missouri - who has declared this day officially "Walt Disney Day."(During the first 10 days that the Disney stamp is on sale throughout the United States, more than 150 million copies will be sold!)
1979:
Legendary animator Les Clark (the first of Disney's "Nine Old Men") dies, just 6
months after being diagnosed with cancer. He was the only one of the original
9 animators whose career spanned the silent-movie era and the age of television.
1988:
The Disney Sunday Movie airs for the last time on ABC. The following month the long-running television series will move to NBC and be called The Magical World of Disney.
2001:
Tuesday:
Following the morning terrorist attacks on The Pentagon, New York City's World Trade Center, and in the air over Pennsylvania, The Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, and The Disneyland Resort in California, close without incident. All the resort hotels remain open and provide accommodations to guests who are unable to leave. Phone charges are suspended so that guests can reach family. (The closures marks only the second time Disneyland has locked its gates in its 56-year history due to a national tragedy. The first time followed the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in November 1963.)

At Disney World, Cast Members in all 4 parks are instructed to hold hands and
form a human wall and gently (without touching guests) walk towards the hub
of each park and eventually towards the exit. This calmly forces all guests out of the park. Security follows each human wall to make sure no one gets past.

At Disneyland Resort, food and beverage stations remain open at no charge for guests who are on property. AMC Theaters at Downtown Disney show free
Disney films for stranded Resort guests. (Due to the time difference, the California theme parks have been able to close before any guest can enter.)

The Disney Stores close as well for the day as do Disney's Broadway
shows in New York and on the road.

Michael Eisner releases a statement to Cast Members explaining the Disney closings. He ends his note with these words:

"Finally let me say our company around the world will continue to operate in this sometimes violent world in which we live, offering products that reach to the higher and more positive side of the human equation."
2007:
A special flag retreat ceremony takes place in the Magic Kingdom to commemorate Patriot Day.
2009:
Day 2 of the very first D23 Expo continues at the Anaheim Convention Center in California, with over a dozen events. Today's schedule includes discussions by authors Ridley Pearson and Dave Barry, a sneak peek at new live-action films presented by ________ Cook, Imagineer Steven Davison's presentation of World of Color, and a Walt and El Grupo screening and panel discussion.

Johnny Depp, dressed as Jack Sparrow, makes a rare surprise appearance at the expo, arrivig on stage in a gliding replica of the Black Pearl pirate ship!

The annual contemporary Christian music festival, Night of Joy kicks off for the first of a two-night engagement at Disney' Hollywood Studios in Florida. This evening's line-up includes Chris Tomlin, P.O.D., Kutless, NewsBoys, Leeland, Superchick, and NeedtoBreathe.

Buzz Lightyear returns home when Space Shuttle Discovery and its crew of seven astronauts end a 14-day journey of more than 5.7 million miles with a late afternoon landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California. Disney's toy astronaut Buzz Lightyear first journeyed to the International Space Station last May 2008 on shuttle Discovery's STS-124 mission - making him the longest tenured "crew member" in space! While on the station, Buzz supported
NASA's education outreach by creating a series of online educational outreach programs.

 

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9/12

1894:
, the voice of Sneezy in Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, is born in Louisville, Kentucky. The son of singers in the Metropolitan Opera, Billy began performing in vaudeville at age 12. He developed a drawn-out, explosive sneezing routine that became his trademark! (During his career Gilbert appeared in over 200 feature films and worked with Laurel & Hardy and The Three Stooges!)
1931:
Tony Award-winning actor Sir Ian Holm, the voice of Skinner in the Disney/Pixar Ratatouille, is born in Goodmayes, Essex, England. (Film fans know him as the hobbit Bilbo Baggins in the first and third films of the Lord of the Rings film trilogy.)
1941:
The Disney animation strike (which started in May) is ended by federal mediators. From this day forward the studio will be a union shop.
1951:
Songwriter Mark Mueller, whose career spans pop music, television, film and
stage, is born in Los Angeles, California. His Disney music credits include Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers, Duck Tales, and Honey I Blew Up the Kid.
(His non-Disney hits include Heart's "Nothin' at All" and Amy Grant's "That's What Love Is For.")
1984:
Michael Eisner resigns from Paramount Pictures. He hopes to become CEO of Disney.
1985:
Steve Jobs announces he is leaving Apple, a computer company he
co-founded with Steve Wozniak. (Jobs will go on to help create Pixar Animation Studios.)
1986:
Captain EO, a 3-D, 70mm, Sci-fi, fantasy, musical movie attraction
starring Michael Jackson, opens at EPCOT. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola
and executive-produced by George Lucas, the movie tells the story of Captain EO (Jackson) and his ragtag crew of space travelers. The seventeen-minute film has cost an estimated $30 million dollars to produce - at this time the most expensive film ever produced on a per-minute basis. EPCOT is the first Disney park to present the film (as six days later Captain EO will debut in Disneyland).
2001:
The day after the U.S. is attacked by terrorists, all Disney parks in the U.S. re-open for business. To help insure the safety of all Disney guests, a decision is made to increase the security measures within the parks, effective immediately. The most obvious of these increased measures include the inspection of all packages, parcels, backpacks, etc., being carried by guests prior to entering the parks. The New Year's Eve nightly celebration in Pleasure Island is cancelled.

The Aida touring company and the Lion King company in Los Angeles raise $10,000 for the Red Cross by asking audiences for donations following the performances.
2004:
Christy Carlson Romano (who on this day finishes a 32-week run as Belle
in Disney's Broadway hit Beauty and the Beast) and Broadway newcomer Wayne Brady (who will appear in Chicago) co-host the 13th annual "Broadway on Broadway" concert in New York's Times Square.

Higglytown Heroes, a new children's television series, debuts on Disney Channel. Higglytown heroes range from firefighters to dentists to snow plow operators, and are voiced by guest celebrities. The theme song Here in Higglytown is performed by They Might Be Giants.
2005:
After six years of planning and building costs of $1.8 billion, Hong Kong Disneyland has its grand opening. It is Disney's 5th vacation resort and 11th theme park in the world. It consists of the Hong Kong Disneyland theme park, two hotels (Disneyland Hotel and Disney's Hollywood Hotel), and retail, dining
and entertainment facilities stretching over 310 acres on Lantau Island. Hong Kong Disneyland's Adventureland is the largest Adventureland of all the Magic Kingdom parks around the world!
2006:
Disney's The Wild (a computer-animated film) is released on DVD.

It is announced that Orlando's Walt Disney World has replaced Illinois Avenue on the new Monopoly: Here & Now edition. At $2.4 million for the Disney property, Orlando beat out other large American cities such as Phoenix & Honolulu, whose landmarks will cost $2.2 million each! Hasbro, maker of Monopoly, let people vote online in the Spring for the top landmark to represent each city.
2009:
The first annual D23 Expo continues for the third day at the Anaheim Convention Center in California. This day's schedule of more than
15 events include "So You Want to Be an Imagineer" with Marty Sklar, a behind the scenes look at Walt Disney Parks and Resorts with Chairman Jay Rasulo, a Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs panel discussion with Don Hahn, and a D23 Expo live auction.

 

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Disney World recycles over 1 million pounds of scrap metal and 1.5 million pounds of wooden pallets each year.

1916:
British novelist, short story writer and screenwriter Roald Dahl is born in Wales. His most popular books include "The Twits," "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," and "James and the Giant Peach." First published in the USA in 1961, "James and the Giant Peach" was released as a film by Walt Disney Pictures in 1996. Dahl also received posthumous songwriting credits for the soundtrack of Tim Burton's 2005 film adaptation of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, as several songs written by Dahl for the novel were used in the film, set to music composed by Danny Elfman. (Dahl's book Revolting Rhymes features a rewritten version of Snow White. His Snow White is a savvy young woman who steals the magic mirror to help the dwarfs gamble on winning horses!)
1920:
Entertainer and Disney Legend Wallace Vincent Boag is born in
Portland, Oregon. In 1955, a friend told Boag about auditions for Disneyland's
Golden Horseshoe Revue. "Wally" won the role of Pecos Bill and quickly became one of Walt's favorite comedic actors and an important part of Disneyland's live entertainment. At Disneyland, Boag also provided the voice of the Audio-Animatronics parrot, Jose, in the Enchanted Tiki Room, and later, opened the Diamond Horseshoe Revue at Walt Disney World, in 1971. He also appeared in such live-action 1960s films as The Love Bug and Son of Flubber.
1940:
Actor Richard Dawson Kiel, best known for his role as the steel-toothed Jaws in two James Bond movies, is born in Detroit, Michigan. He is the voice of Vladamir in Disney's 2010 animated Tangled.
1977:
Conductor Leopold Stokowski passes away in his house in Hampshire,
England, at age 95. In 1940, Stokowski made the famous film Fantasia together with Walt Disney, in which cartoon figures move in ballet-like sequences to classical music. Stokowski was also a transcriber of music originally written in other forms. He arranged many of J.S. Bach's keyboard and instrumental works, as well as songs and cantata movements. Probably his best known work is the "Toccata and Fugue in D minor," (originally composed for organ) which serves as the opening piece in Disney's Fantasia.
1979:
Animator Don Bluth quits Disney and takes a third of the top artists with him. (Often controversial, Bluth will become Disney's most serious rival since Max Fleischer!)
1991:
The Walt Disney Company acquires Discover - a science magazine. The monthly publication was originally launched in October 1980 by Time Inc. Disney will later sell Discover in October 2005 to Bob Guccione Jr
1996:
The campy and glamorous Mistress of the Dark, Elvira, hosts a wild Friday the 13th party at Disney-MGM Studios.
2001:
Disney World enters what they call "Level 5 Hurricane Preparedness" as tropical storm Gabrielle threatens Florida.

Out of respect for the victim's of the September 11th terrorists attack, Disney World's New Year's Eve celebration (held nightly at Pleasure Island) is again canceled.

Actress Dorothy McGuire, known for her roles in many live-action Disney films such as Summer Magic, Swiss Family Robinson, and Old Yeller, passes at the age of 85 in Los Angeles, California. (Film fans will remember McGuire for her roles in such classics as A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, The Spiral Staircase, and Gentlemen's Agreement.)

Singer-actress Maya Days steps into the role of Aida for the first time in Disney's Broadway musical Aida. She is the second actress to portray the lead character.
2007:
Disney World's Haunted Mansion reopens after a summer refurbishment ... just in time for the Halloween season.
2009:
The fourth and final day of the D23 Expo takes place at the Anaheim Convention Center in California. Among this day's 17 events - "The Making of Toy Story Mania!," a glimpse of what the future holds for Disney/Pixar, a Silver Banjo Barbecue Panel with David and Ron DeFore - sons of film & TV star Don DeFore, "From Annette to Miley: How Disney Pop Changed the World," and a sneak peek at what's in store for Toy Story 3.
2010:
Disneyland employees take part in Minnie's Moonlit Madness. An annual fundraiser, the event pits four-person teams of Disney employees, their family members and friends against each other in a trivia game and scavenger hunt.
2011:
Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is held for the very time this
season at the Magic Kingdom in Disney World. The family-friendly after-hours event (from 7PM-midnight) offers loads of treats, character meet and greets and special entertainment unique to the party. Mickey's annual Halloween bash is scheduled for 22 more selected nights through November 1.