2005:
Paul Winchell, the voice of Tigger, passes away at age 82 in Moorpark,
California. A versatile ventriloquist who became a fixture in early children's television along with his
puppet side-kicks Jerry Mahoney and Knucklehead Smiff, Winchell first became the lovable Tigger in 1968
for Disney's Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day. Winchell earned a Grammy in 1974 for Best Children's
Recording with "The Most Wonderful Things About Tiggers" from the feature Winnie the Pooh and Tigger
Too. In addition, he was nominated for an Annie award for the 1998 animated feature-length Pooh's Grand
Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin. A giant in the field of cartoon voices, Winchell's Disney credits
also include Zummi Gummi in episodes of Adventures of the Gummi Bears, Boomer in the feature The Fox
and the Hound, and Shun Gon in The Aristocats. (Winchell was also the voice of Fleegle for TV's The
Banana Splits Adventure Hour.)
Disney's Herbie: Fully Loaded hits the big screen.
The sixth (and final) Star Wars Weekends of the 2005 season takes place at Disney-MGM Studios. Celebrity guests include Jake Lloyd and Warren Fu.
1893:
Roy Oliver Disney is born in Chicago, Illinois. The middle of 5 children, he
along with his younger brother Walt started what is today The Walt Disney Company. Roy
guided the business side of the Disney company leavng his brother, Walt, free to produce and
create. Roy served as president of Walt Disney Productions from 1945 to 1968 and chairman of
the board from 1964 until his death in 1971. A modest man, it was Roy's idea to change the name
of the Florida park from simply Disney World to Walt Disney World (after the death of his brother in
1966). Married to Edna Francis in 1925, Roy was the father of Roy E. Disney.
Today there is a statue of Roy O. Disney seated on a park bench beside Minnie Mouse at the
Town Square section of Main Street, U.S.A., at the Magic Kingdom theme park in Florida, and
outside the Team Disney building at Disney's corporate headquarters in Burbank, California.
1904:
Singer, songwriter, jazz musician, actor and comedian Phil Harris - the voice
behind Disney's Thomas O'Malley in The Aristocats and Baloo the Bear in The Jungle Book - is born in Linton, Indiana. He also voiced the character of Little John for Disney's 1973 Robin Hood and in 1989 briefly returned to Disney to once again voice Baloo for the series TaleSpin. (Harris began his
career in show business as a drummer in San Francisco before becoming the musical director for Jack Benny's radio show in 1936. Though successful as an orchestra leader, Harris is remembered today for his recordings as a vocalist, his voice work in animation and as a pioneer in radio situation comedy.)
1913:
Alan Alexander Milne (future creator of Winnie-the-Pooh) marries Daphne de
Selincourt. In 1920, they will have a son and name him Christopher Robin.
1942:
Actress Michele Lee, who played Miss Carole Bennett in Disney's The Love Bug, is
born in Los Angeles, California. A singer, dancer, actress, producer, director and frequent game show
panelist of the 1970s, Lee is perhaps best known for her role as Karen Cooper Fairgate MacKenzie on the 1980s
prime-time soap opera, Knots Landing.
1949:
Disney's Pluto cartoon Bubble Bee, directed by Charles Nichols, is released.
The short features the second appearance of a bee named Spike.
1956:
Walt Disney appears on Ed Sullivan's 8th Anniversary Show. Walt along
with Ronald Reagan, Natalie Wood, Robert Walker, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz sing "Happy
Anniversary" in a tribute to Sullivan.
1959:
Disney's Darby O'Gill and the Little People premieres in Dublin, Ireland. A wily old codger
(played by Albert Sharpe) matches wits with the king of the leprechauns and helps play matchmaker for his
daughter (Janet Munro) and the strapping lad (Sean Connery) who has replaced him as caretaker. The film will be
generally released two days later.
1977:
Disney's Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo, starring Dean Jones and
Don Knotts, is released. The third in the series of Herbie films, Jones returns to the role
as champion race car driver Jim Douglas along with Knotts as his mechanic. Herbie, the "Love Bug," takes part in the (fictional) Trans-France Race, from Paris, France to Monte Carlo, Monaco.
1994:
Disney's 32nd animated film The Lion King is generally released in U.S.
theaters. With award-winning music by Hans Zimmer, Elton John and Tim Rice, the film features the voices of Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Matthew Broderick, James Earl Jones, Jeremy Irons, Rowan
Atkinson, Jim Cummings, and Nathan Lane. Unlike previous Disney animated films, which featured only a select few famous voice actors alongside lesser-known performers, nearly all of the voice acting work
for this film is done by well-known actors. (It will rapidly becomes the most successful Disney film ever
and one of the top ten highest-grossing movies of all time!)
At Epcot, the Electric Umbrella fast-food facility opens in Communicore East.
1998:
Jacqueline D'Ambrosi, a 9-year-old from Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey, becomes the 600-millionth person to walk through the turnstiles of the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World! With a click of the turnstile at 7:37 a.m., Jacqueline is immediately mobbed by Mickey Mouse and a cast of other Disney characters. She is awarded lifetime passes to the Florida park, and to Disney's 3 other theme parks, for her and her family.
2002:
The June 24th issue of TIME includes an article on Disney's newest animated feature Lilo & Stitch.
2003:
Disney's direct-to-video sequel Air Bud Spikes Back is released.
2006:
The Disneyland Resort hosts a world premiere event for the new feature film Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest.
Disney Channel first airs "Ill of the Future" the 40th Phil of the
Future episode.
1919:
Actor Al Molinaro, who appeared in Disney's 1976 Freaky Friday, is born in Kenosha,
Wisconsin. TV fans know him best as Police Officer Murray Greshler on The Odd Couple and Al Delveccio on Happy Days.
2007:
The Nuts, Bolts & Thingamajigs Foundation host a prerelease charity screening for Disney/Pixar's new animated film Ratatouille
at the Disney Studio lot in Burbank, California.
Disney Channel debuts the Hanna Montana 2-part episode
"Achy Jakey Heart."
JUNE
"Television and its use of computers can make everything talk, so there's no need for the art of ventriloquism anymore." -Paul Winchell
2008:
The soundtrack for Disney/Pixar's WALL•E is released. The CD features an original score by Thomas Newman and a new Peter Gabriel single "Down To Earth."
Disney and NASA host a screening of the new movie WALL•E at the Newseum, a 250000-square-foot museum of news in Washington,D.C.
Disney is awarded six times at the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror’s 34th annual Saturn Awards, held at the Universal Hilton Hotel in Universal City, California. Disney's Enchanted takes home three awards for Best Fantasy Film, Best Actress (Amy Adams), and Best Music (Alan Menken). Other Disney winners include Brad Bird (Ratatouilee) for Best Writing, Ve Neill & Martin Samuel (Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End) for Best Make-Up, and Ratatouilee for Best Animated Film.
1938:
Walt Disney graces the cover of this day's issue of The Family Circle periodical.
The cover's text reads: WALT DISNEY ... gave The Family Circle an exclusive interview, with emphasis on his
animals (which is why we show your friend Donald Duck here too). We believe you will be as much
interested as we were in George Kent's account of his tour of the Disney studio and his visit with Walt.
The inside article is titled Snow White's Daddy.
JUNE 24
JUNE 24
THIS DAY MADE
IN THE
USA
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The Lion King generally released
Ventriloquist Paul Winchell credited Jean Freeman, his British-born wife, for coming up with Tigger's signature phrase "TTFN,"
or "Ta-ta for now."
2009:
The 35th Annual Saturn Awards (presented by the Academy of Science-Fiction,
Fantasy and Horror Films) are handed out in California. Best Animated Film goes
to Disney/Pixar's WALL•E.
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"My job is to help Walt do the things he wants to do."
2011:
Cars 2, Pixar's sequel to to the 2006 animated Cars, is generally released in U.S. theaters. Lightning McQueen (voiced by Owen Wilson) and tow truck Mater (voiced by Larry the Cable Guy) head to Japan and Europe to compete in the World Grand Prix ... but Mater becomes sidetracked with international espionage!
Released along with Cars 2 is the Pixar animated short Toy Story Toons: Hawaiian Vacation. Directed by Gary Rydstrom, it features the voices of Jodi Benson and Michael Keaton as Barbie and Ken; who plan a romantic get-away to a tropical paradise.
On this same day, Walt Disney World opens a new meet-and-greet at Disney’s Hollywood Studios featuring Lightning McQueen and Tow Mater, two of the characters from the Disney-Pixar movies Cars and Cars 2.
Disney Publishing Worldwide announces its new Disney Comics App for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch available on the App Store. Disney Comics gives readers instant access to an extensive collections of comics, short stories and graphic novels, ranging from classic adventures starring Mickey Mouse to brand new comics from Toy Story and Cars 2.
2012:
The 1-hour episode, Good Luck Charlie: Special Delivery premieres on
Disney Channel.
June 24
This Day in Disney History - THE FIRST - THE ORIGINAL
Traveling in time since 1999!
