2005:
The Broadway Disney hit Beauty and the Beast celebrates its 11th anniversary. The musical, which is the sixth longest-running show in Broadway history, originally opened at the Palace Theatre on this day in 1994.
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1882:
Conductor Leopold Stokowski, who appears in Disney's 1940 release
Fantasia, is born in London, England. He was also the conductor of
the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the
NBC Symphony Orchestra, and the Hollywood Bowl Symphony
Orchestra. He was also the founder of the New York City Symphony.
1927:
Disney's Alice Comedy Alice's Circus Daze is released. This film debuts Lois Hardwick as Alice, the fourth and final actress to play the role.
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.
1953:
The Mickey Mouse cartoon The Simple Things, featuring the voice of Jim Macdonald as Mickey, is released. (It will be the last Mickey Mouse cartoon until Mickey's Christmas Carol some 30 years later!)
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. (Movie fans may recognize him from such comedy features as The Flintstones, My Blue Heaven, and Ghost Busters.)
1957:
The Disney Studio holds a screen test for a relatively unknown actor named Guy Williams for their new Zorro TV series. (When Walt sees the results, he will be convinced he has found his Zorro!)
1961:
Actress Jane Leeves - the voice of the Ladybug in Disney's 1996 James and the Giant Peach and the voice of Athena in Disney's 1998 TV series Hercules - is born in London, England. (TV fans may recognize her as Daphne Moon on the comedy series Frasier.)
1964:
"Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln" finally arrives at
the World's Fair. (It had been flown to New York the
day before but traffic had prevented the exhibit from being delivered to the Illinois Pavilion.) The WED technicians scramble to install Mr. Lincoln in hopes of having him ready for a special April 20 preview. Due to technical problems, the exhibit will not be ready for the preview nor will it open with the rest of the World's Fair.
1969:
Various musical cues are recorded at the Walt Disney Productions Recording Stage (in California) for Disneyland's much anticipated Haunted Mansion attraction.
1983:
The Disney Channel (a pay TV network) first airs at 7 a.m. with a program titled Good Morning Mickey. Other programs during the day will include a "mommy and me" themed show called You and Me, Kid.
1984:
Actress America Ferrera is born in Los Angeles, California.
She appears in Disney Channel's 2002 Gotta Kick It Up.
1994:
Disney's first stage show, Beauty and the Beast: A New
Musical, officially opens on Broadway at the Palace
Theater with Tom Bosley as Belle's father Maurice,
Terrence Mann as the Beast, and Susan Egan as Belle.
(The show will move to the Lunt-Fontanne Theater in 1999.)
1998:
The Disneyland show "Festival of Fools" gives its last performance.
Toon Disney, a 24-hour cable television channel, debuts.
2002:
An area of Disney World's Animal Kingdom - featuring the new attractions Triceratops Spin and Primeval Whirl - has an official grand opening.
2003:
Walt Disney Pictures' Holes - starring Sigourney Weaver, Jon Voight, Patricia Arquette and Shia LaBeouf - premieres in theaters.
Also released is the Walt Disney Pictures and Walden Media feature
Ghosts of the Abyss, a documentary made by filmmaker James Cameron.
2004:
Disney's Beauty and the Beast celebrates its 10th anniversary on Broadway. It ranks as the 4th highest grossing musical of all time (recently passing Miss Saigon).
2006:
A groundbreaking ceremony for the Oriental Land Company's newest project - a permanent Cirque du Soleil theater - takes place at the
Tokyo Disney Resort. The ceremony takes place at the site reserved for the theater next to the Disney Ambassador Hotel. The show is expected to open in 2008.
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APRIL 18
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1941:
Disney's Goofy short Baggage Buster is released.
1997:
The Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival begins in Florida.
Leopold Stokowski conducted the Fantasia segments
"Toccata and Fugue in D Minor" and "Night on Bald Mountain/Ave Maria" and ... even got to
talk to Mickey Mouse
while onscreen!
APRIL 18
1955:
Newsweek runs "A Wonderful World" - an article about Walt Disney's "universe" of new television shows, films and theme park.
2007:
Disney's Beauty and the Beast celebrates its 13th Broadway anniversary.
More than 125 actors who have performed in the long-running show gather onstage following this day's matinee performance for a giant cast photo. A private party follows. (Beauty and the Beast will play its final performance at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre July 29.)
1958:
Disney composer and orchestrator Edward H. Plumb passes away in California. Originally from Illinois, Plumb's work for Disney began with the 1938 short Mother Goose Goes Hollywood. Over the next 20 years his credits included Bambi (which earned him the first of four Academy Award nominations), The Three Caballeros, Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier, and Johnny Tremain.
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.
1951:
Disney Imagineer and author Bruce Gordon is born. He will work on such
Disneyland attractions as Splash Mountain, the Many Adventures of Winnie
the Pooh, Tarzan's Treehouse and, Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage.
APRIL
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"A painter paints his pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence. We provide the music, and you provide the silence." -Leopold Stokowski
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