This Day in Disney History

[tiggerguy]

April 12

1925:
Roy Oliver Disney (Walt's brother & business partner) marries Edna Francis at Uncle Robert Disney's house in Los Angeles, California. It is the same house where Walt lived and set up shop after first arriving in Hollywood. As Walt owns a motion picture camera, he shoots the days events.

1992:
The Euro Disney Resort, featuring the Euro Disneyland park, opens in France, east of Paris. Inaugural ceremonies are broadcast to the entire continent by five national networks.

1995:
In Florida, the Polynesian's Papeete Bay Varandah, opened since 1971, becomes the 'Ohana restaurant - featuring the world's largest fire pit.

[tiggerguy]

April 13

1887:
Character actor Christian Rub - the voice & physical likeness for Geppetto in Disney's 1940 Pinocchio - is born in Austria.

1935:
The Walt Disney Mickey Mouse cartoon Mickey's Kangaroo, directed by David Hand, is released. It is the last Disney cartoon produced in black and white.

1954:
Disney supervising animator and storyboard artist Glen Keane is born in Arbington, Pennsylvania. His Disney credits include such classics as Pocahontas, Aladdin, and Tarzan.

[tiggerguy]

April 14

1934:
Disney's Silly Symphony cartoon The Big Bad Wolf is released.

1936:
Kenneth Mars, the voice of King Triton in Disney's 1989 classic The Little Mermaid, is born in Chicago, Illinois. His Disney credits also include the 1979 live-action film The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again as Marshal Woolly Bill Hitchcock, and a 2007 episode of Hannah Montana in which he plays Gunther the Innkeeper.

1960:
Comedian & actor Brad Garrett - the voices of Auguste Gusteau in the 2007 Ratatouille, Bloat in the 2003 Finding Nemo, and Fred in the 2002 The Country Bears - is born in Woodland Hills, California.

[tiggerguy]

April 15

1917:
Comic character actor Hans Conried, the voices of Mr. George Darling and Captain Hook in Disney's Peter Pan, is born in Baltimore, Maryland. He also appears in the live-action films The Cat From Outer Space, The Shaggy D.A., and Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier.

1938:
Disney's Donald Duck cartoon Donald's Nephews is released. It is the first film appearance of Huey, Dewey and Louie.

1959:
Actress-comedienne-screenwriter Emma Thompson, the voice of Captain Amelia in Disney's 2002 animated feature Treasure Planet, is born in London, England.

1972:
Lou Romano, the voice of Bernie Kropp in the 2004 The Incredibles, Snotrod in the 2006 Cars, and Linguini in the 2007 Ratatouille, is born in San Diego, California.

1983:
Tokyo Disneyland opens. It is Disney's fourth theme park but the first outside the United States. A light rain moves the opening ceremony under the cover of World Bazaar. Among the attractions featured is Space Mountain - a virtual duplicate of the Anaheim, California version. Sponsored by the Coca-Cola Company of Japan, it is the first Space Mountain to open with its park.

[tiggerguy]

April 16

1889:
Charles Spencer Chaplin, Jr. - better known as comedy actor Charlie Chaplin, is born in London, England. Chaplin will have a prolific relationship with Walt Disney. He will be caricatured in the 1936 Disney short Mickey's Polo Team and even attend the Hollywood premiere of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937.

1921:
Actor Peter Ustinov, the voice of Prince John in Disney's 1973 Robin Hood, and Captain Edward 'Blackbeard' Teach in Disney's live-action 1968 Blackbeard's Ghost, is born in London, England.

1924:
Award-winning composer/arranger Henry Mancini - who wrote the music for Disney's The Great Mouse Detective - is born in Cleveland, Ohio.

2001:
Disney World's newest resort, Animal Kingdom Lodge opens. The six-story resort, which features deluxe facilities and luxury suites, recreates the feel of a South African game reserve lodge.

2007:
Disney announces that Disneyland's fleet of antique passenger trains have been converted from diesel to biofuel. The switch saves as much as 150,000 gallons of diesel fuel each year, while potentially reducing carbon dioxide emissions by up to 80 percent.

[tiggerguy]

April 17

1987:
At Disneyland the Mark V monorails debut in Tomorrowland.

1997:
Gibson Guitars holds a demonstration at Disney World's Pleasure Island. Guitarists have the opportunity to see new models and check out a display of classic guitars.

[tiggerguy]

April 18

1941:
Disney's Goofy short Baggage Buster is released.

1946:
Actress Hayley Mills is born to actor John Mills and playwright Mary Hayley Bell in London, England. Walt Disney's wife will later see Hayley perform in the movie Tiger Bay. She'll arrange for Hayley to meet Walt and the result will be her American film debut Pollyanna.

1950:
Award-winning director, choreographer, and producer Kenny Ortega is born in Palo Alto, California. His Disney credits include Newsies, High School Musical and The Cheetah Girls 2.

1954:
Actor Rick Moranis, the voice of Tuke in Disney's animated 2003 Brother Bear and Wayne Szalinski in Honey, I Shrunk the Audience, is born Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

1984:
Actress America Ferrera is born in Los Angeles, California.
She appears in Disney Channel's 2002 Gotta Kick It Up.

[tiggerguy]

April 19

1946:
Actor-singer Tim Curry, the voice of SIR (Simulated Intelligence Robotics) for Walt Disney World's now extinct Alien Encounter attraction, is born in Cheshire, England. His Disney voice credits include Teacher's Pet, Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas, and Gargoyles.

1957:
Shirley Temple takes part in the rededication of Sleeping Beauty's Castle at Disneyland. In attendance is Walt Disney and Temple's oldest daughter Linda, son Charles, and youngest daughter Lori. Back in 1939 child star Shirley Temple had presented Walt with an honorary Academy Award - one big Oscar & seven little ones - for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

[tiggerguy]

April 20

1914:
Disney Legend Betty Lou Gerson - the narrator of Disney's 1950 classic Cinderella and the voice of Cruella De Vil in the 1961 One Hundred and One Dalmations - is born in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

1937:
Actor George Takei - the voice of First Ancestor in Disney's Mulan and Mulan II - is born in Los Angeles, California.

1959:
Actor Clint Howard, the voice of Roo in Disney's 1968 classic Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day, is born in Burbank, California. Younger brother of actor-turned-director Ron Howard, Clint was also the voice of the elephant Hathi's son Hathi, Jr. in the 1967 The Jungle Book.

[tiggerguy]

April 21

1920:
Cartoonist, animator and Disney Legend Bob Moore is born in Los Angeles, California. He will join Disney as an apprentice in 1940 and work on such classics as Dumbo and The Reluctant Dragon. In 1951 Moore will head the one-man art department for publicity, which he will run for 3 decades, single-handedly developing clever promotional art concepts for Disney films and later its theme parks.

1983:
"Believe You Can ... and You Can!" a TV special on the new Fantasyland at Disneyland, airs.

[tiggerguy]

April 22

Earth Day

1868:
Flora Call is born to Charles and Henrietta Call. Flora will go on to marry Elias Disney in 1888 and give birth to 5 children ... including a son named Walter.

1906:
Actor Eddie Albert, who appears in Disney's 1995 The Barefoot Executive, the 1982 Beyond Witch Mountain, and the 1975 Escape to Witch Mountain, is born in Rock Island, Illinois.

1971:
Award-winning singer-songwriter Kellie Coffey is born in Moore, Oklahoma. It is her voice you hear singing "We Go On" during Epcot's Illuminations fireworks show.

1998:
Disney World's Animal Kingdom opens in, Florida with 5 attractions, 9 exhibits, 12 live entertainment shows, 11 merchandise locations, and 8 food locations. Spanning 500 acres, Animal Kingdom is billed as "a new species of theme park." Two of the three major "lands" - Africa & DinoLand U.S.A. - open on this date, Asia will open in early 1999.

2005:
At Disneyland Jiminy Cricket Environmentality buttons are handed out to guests to celebrate Earth Day.

[tiggerguy]

April 23

1923:
The parents of child actress Virginia Davis sign a contract with Disney's Laugh-O-gram Films, giving her 5% of receipts from the film, Alice's Wonderland (for which she stars in).

1928:
Shirley Jane Temple, the child star who presented Walt Disney with special Oscars for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, is born in Santa Monica, California. The actress was also caricatured in the 1939 Disney animated short Autograph Hound. As an adult, she served on the board of directors of some of the largest enterprises including The Walt Disney Company (1974–75).

1957:
The Midget Autopia opens in Disneyland. It is the third, and smallest, Autopia track. The Midget Autopia, located right next to the Storybook Land Canal Boats, is for very young guests who are too small to ride the other Autopia attractions.

[tiggerguy]

April 24

1959:
The TV series Walt Disney Presents airs the 1957 film "The Wetback Hound" on ABC.

[tiggerguy]

April 25

1929:
Disney's Mickey Mouse short The Barnyard Battle is released. It is the first short to depict Mickey as a soldier and the first to place him in combat.

1953:
Ron Clements, an animator/director/writer whose Disney credits include Treasure Planet, Hercules, and Aladdin, is born in Sioux City, Iowa.

1964:
Actor Hank Azaria, who portrays Charles Danner in Disney's 1999 comedy movie Mystery, Alaska, is born in Queens, New York.

1970:
Actor Jason Lee, the voice of Buddy Pine/Syndrome in the 2004 Disney/Pixar animated feature The Incredibles, is born in Huntington Beach, California.

[tiggerguy]

April 26

1916:
Actor & voice artist Vic Perrin - one time narrator of Epcot's Spaceship Earth and Universe of Energy - is born in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin.

1940:
Disney's Mickey Mouse cartoon Tugboat Mickey is released.

1987:
The Wonderful World of Disney airs the 1981 film "The Devil and Max Devlin," starring Elliott Gould and Bill Cosby.