2005:
Pooh's Heffalump Halloween (an all-new original movie) is released direct to DVD and VHS.
1925:
Legendary singer-songwriter Mel Tormé, best known for
co-writing "The Christmas Song", is born in Chicago, Illinois.
He will write the song "County Fair" for Disney's 1948 live-action
So Dear to My Heart and in 1996 record and release A&E: An Evening With Mel Tormé Live From the Disney Institute.
1941:
Walt Disney's father Elias passes away in Los Angeles, California at the age of 82.
1942:
Original Mouseketeer Judy Harriet Spiegelman is born in Los Angeles, California. A veteran performer with over 8 years of experience before becoming a Mouseketeer, she will be signed to a 7-year contract with the Disney Studios.
1977:
Conductor Leopold Stokowski passes away in his house in Hampshire,
England, at age 95. In 1940, Stokowski made the famous film Fantasia together with Walt
Disney, in which cartoon figures move in ballet-like sequences to classical music. Stokowski was
also a transcriber of music originally written in other forms. He arranged many of J.S. Bach's
keyboard and instrumental works, as well as songs and cantata movements. Probably his best
known work is the "Toccata and Fugue in D minor," (originally composed for organ) which serves
as the opening piece in Disney's Fantasia.
1979:
Animator Don Bluth quits Disney and takes a third of the top artists with him. (Often controversial, Bluth will become Disney's most serious rival since Max Fleischer!)
1981:
The TV series Disney's Wonderful World airs for the last time on NBC. Starting on September 26, the series will be called simply Walt Disney and air on CBS.
1997:
The Themed Entertainment Association presents its 1997 THEA Awards at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Among the winners is Disneyland's Pirates of the Caribbean.
One Saturday Morning, a two-hour ABC Saturday morning show (airing various
episodes of animated series along with various short segments) debuts.
Muppets Tonight, an updated version of The Muppet Show, debuts on Disney Channel. It is the second season for the series, as the first 10 episodes aired on ABC-TV in 1996.
1999:
Members of Disney's stage show The Lion King perform "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" on ABC-TV's Good Morning America.
2001:
Disney World enters what they call "Level 5 Hurricane Preparedness" as tropical storm Gabrielle threatens Florida.
Out of respect for the victim's of the September 11th terrorists attack, Disney World's New Year's Eve celebration (held nightly at Pleasure Island) is again cancelled.
Actress Dorothy McGuire, known for her roles in many live-action Disney films such as Summer Magic, Swiss Family Robinson, and Old Yeller, passes at the age of 85 in Los Angeles, California. (Film fans will remember McGuire for her roles in such classics as A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, The Spiral Staircase, and Gentlemen's Agreement.)
Singer-actress Maya Days steps into the role of Aida for the first time in Disney's Broadway musical Aida. She is the second actress to portray the lead character.
2002:
The Lizzie McGuire episode "Movin' On Up" debuts on Disney Channel.
1996:
The campy and glamorous Mistress of the Dark, Elvira, hosts a wild Friday the 13th party at Disney-MGM Studios.
Latin Rhythm Nights kicks off with Marc Anthony at
Pleasure Island, Florida.
Disney World recycles over 1 million pounds of scrap metal and 1.5 million pounds of wooden pallets
each year.
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2007:
Disney World's Haunted Mansion reopens after a summer
refurbishment ... just in time for the Halloween season.
1929:
A special afternoon event takes place at the Fox Dome Theater in Ocean Park, California. Walt Disney, Ub Iwerks, and Carl Stalling (Disney's musical director) give a live presentation on how the Mickey Mouse shorts are created.
1991:
The Walt Disney Company acquires Discover - a science magazine. The monthly publication was originally launched in October 1980 by Time Inc. Disney will later sell Discover in October 2005 to Bob Guccione Jr.
1916:
British novelist, short story writer and screenwriter Roald Dahl is born in Wales.
His most popular books include "The Twits," "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," and "James and the Giant Peach."
First published in the USA in 1961, "James and the Giant Peach" was released as a film by Walt Disney Pictures in
1996. Dahl also received posthumous songwriting credits for the soundtrack of Tim Burton's 2005 film adaptation of
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, as several songs written by Dahl for the novel were used in the film, set to music
composed by Danny Elfman. (Dahl's book Revolting Rhymes features a rewritten version of Snow White. His Snow
White is a savvy young woman who steals the magic mirror to help the dwarfs gamble on winning horses!)
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2009:
The fourth and final day of the D23 Expo takes place at the
Anaheim Convention Center in California. Among this day's 17
events - "The Making of Toy Story Mania!," a glimpse of what the future holds for
Disney/Pixar, a Silver Banjo Barbecue Panel with David and Ron DeFore - sons
of film & TV star Don DeFore, "From Annette to Miley: How Disney Pop Changed
the World," and a sneak peek at what's in store for Toy Story 3.
"Music can be all things to all persons. It is like a great dynamic sun in the center of a solar system which sends out its rays and inspiration in every direction .... music makes us feel that the heavens open and a divine voice calls. Something in our souls responds and understands." -Leopold Stokowski
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WDW Haunted Mansion re-opens
