Walter Elias Disney (
/ˈdɪzni/;
[1] December 5, 1901 – December 15, 1966) was an American entrepreneur, animator, voice actor and film producer. A pioneer of the
American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of
cartoons. As a film producer, Disney holds the record for most
Academy Awards earned by an individual, having won 22 Oscars from 59 nominations. He was presented with two
Golden Globe Special Achievement Awards and an
Emmy Award, among other honors. Several of his films are included in the
National Film Registry by the
Library of Congress.
Born in Chicago in 1901, Disney developed an early interest in drawing. He took art classes as a boy and got a job as a commercial illustrator at the age of 18. He moved to California in the early 1920s and set up the
Disney Brothers Studio with his brother
Roy. With
Ub Iwerks, Walt developed the character
Mickey Mouse in 1928, his first highly popular success; he also provided the voice for his creation in the early years. As the studio grew, Disney became more adventurous, introducing synchronized sound, full-color three-strip
Technicolor,
feature-length cartoons and technical developments in cameras. The results, seen in features such as
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937),
Pinocchio,
Fantasia (both 1940),
Dumbo (1941), and
Bambi (1942), furthered the development of animated film. New animated and
live-action films followed after World War II, including the critically successful
Cinderella (1950) and
Mary Poppins (1964), the latter of which received five Academy Awards.
In the 1950s, Disney expanded into the
amusement park industry, and in 1955 he opened
Disneyland. To fund the project he diversified into television programs, such as
Walt Disney's Disneyland and
The Mickey Mouse Club; he was also involved in planning the
1959 Moscow Fair, the
1960 Winter Olympics, and the
1964 New York World's Fair. In 1965, he began development of another theme park,
Disney World, the heart of which was to be a new type of city, the "
Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow" (EPCOT). Disney was a heavy smoker throughout his life, and died of lung cancer in December 1966 before either the park or the EPCOT project were completed.
Disney was a shy, self-deprecating and insecure man in private but adopted a warm and outgoing public persona. He had high standards and high expectations of those with whom he worked. Although there have been accusations that he was
racist or
anti-Semitic, they have been contradicted by many who knew him. His reputation changed in the years after his death, from a purveyor of homely patriotic values to a representative of
American imperialism. He nevertheless remains an important figure in the history of animation and in the cultural history of the United States, where he is considered a national
cultural icon. His film work continues to be shown and adapted; his namesake studio and company maintains high standards in its production of popular entertainment, and the Disney amusement parks have grown in size and number to attract visitors in several countries.