AUG 17 Disney History

2004:

Disney releases The Three Musketeers - starring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy - on DVD and video.

1786:

Congressman, frontiersman, soldier and folk hero Davy Crockett is born David

Stern Crockett near the Nolichucky River (in what is now Greene County,

Tennessee). David Crockett was the fifth of nine children of John and Rebecca Hawkins Crockett, and was

named after his paternal grandfather. In 1954 Crockett will become wildly popular through Disney movies,

television programs and even a hit song!

1882:

Actor Charles Judels - the voice of Stromboli in Disney's classic 1940 release Pinocchio - is born in Amsterdam, Netherlands. During his career, he will appear in over 130 feature films!

1936:

Veteran Disney animator Les Clark (one of Walt's "Nine Old Men") speaks at a studio training course for new animators. Since the departure of Ub Iwerks, Clark has animated Mickey Mouse in numerous films, thus becoming a specialist on the character's personality and movement.

1941:

Walt Disney leaves on a goodwill tour of Latin America (underwritten by a $70,000 government grant) accompanied by Mary Blair and other animators and designers. On this day the group arrives in Rio de Janeiro.

1984:

The Walt Disney Company informs it's chairman Ron Miller that they wanted his

resignation. Disney has fallen to 14th in film box office. Miller's only qualifications to run a conglomerate

other than being Walt's son-in-law was that he was a tight end for the LA Rams. (Within two years of the

Michael Eisner regime taking power, Disney will be number one.)

1992:

Original Mouseketeer Annette Funicello appears on the cover of People magazine.

1999:

Disney releases Belle's Tales of Friendship direct-to-video.

Airing on television is the hour-long special

EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival.

2001:

The Disney Channel Original Movie Jumping Ship premieres,

as does the Lizzie McGuire episode "Gordo and the Girl".

2002:

The Orlando Rays, the Class AA affiliate of Major League Baseball's Tampa Bay Devil Rays, take on the Carolina Mudcats (for the first of a 4-game series) at Disney's Wide World of Sports complex in Florida.

2006:

Disney announces that Meg Gilbert Crofton, a 27-year veteran,

has been named the new President of Walt Disney World. She is

the fourth executive to lead Disney World since it opened in 1971,

and the first female to ever hold that position in the Florida resort.

The Simpsons make reference to Hannah Montana in a December 2007 episode.

Bart writes on a blackboard -

"The capital of Montana

is not Hannah."

2007:

Disney Channel debuts the much-anticipated sequel High School Musical 2.

An amazing 17.2 million viewers tune in, making it the most-watched cable telecast ever!

Disney Channel follows up the sequel with a sneak peek of a new animated series - Phineas and Ferb with the episode "Rollercoaster." High School Musical's Ashley Tisdale is the voice of Candace. (The series will "officially" debut in February 2008.)

Hollywood Records recording artists Jonas Brothers appear on the new Hannah Montana episode "Me and Mr. Jonas and Mr. Jonas and Mr. Jonas."

Disney World releases a commorative pin honoring Kitchen Kabaret as part of its White Glove Remember When series. Kitchen Kabaret, an original Epcot attraction, was an Audio-Animatronic show which closed in 1994.

1990:

The Disney Channel Premiere Film The Little Kidnappers debuts. The film features Leo Wheatley and Charles Miller (as orphans Harry and Davy), and Charlton Heston (as their grandfather).

1920:

Actress/singer Maureen O'Hara is born in Ireland. Fans of Disney's 1961

The Parent Trap will know her as Margaret 'Maggie' McKendrick.

1958:

Singer Belinda Carlisle, best known as the lead singer of the all-female band The Go-

Go's, is born in Hollywood, California. She recorded two versions of "I Won't Say (I'm in Love)" - from

Disney's Hercules - for promotional purposes (although a version was released as a single in France & Germany).

1981:

A WEDWay PeopleMover opens at the Houston International Airport in Houston, Texas. The system has been constructed by Disney's Community Transportation Services division and is the first use of a Disney system outside of its theme parks.

1986:

Luxo Jr., the first film produced in 1986 by Pixar Animation Studios (following its establishment as an independent film studio) is released. A computer-animated short film (just two and a half minutes, including credits) it is John Lasseter's directorial debut.

It will be re-released in 1999 along with Toy Story 2.

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