1889:
Humorist, newspaper columnist, and actor Robert Charles Benchley is born in Worcester, Massachusetts. He will star in the 1941 feature film The Reluctant Dragon, giving a loose tour of the then-new Walt Disney Studios facility in Burbank, California. (Robert is the grandfather of Jaws writer Peter Benchley!)
1904:
Tom Conway, the narrator of Disney's 1953 classic film
Peter Pan, is born in St. Petersburg, Russia.
1925:
Disney's Alice comedy Alice the Jailbird is generally released.
1941:
Original Mouseketeer Don Underhill is born in Alhambra, California.
1955:
Bruce Reitherman, the voices of Christopher Robin in The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and Mowgli in The Jungle Book, is born in Burbank, California. He is the son of Disney film director (and one of Walt's "Nine Old Men") Wolfgang Reitherman.
1963:
"Davy Crockett Goes to Congress" airs on the NBC-TV series
Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color.
1967:
An article about Disneyland's new Pirates of the Caribbean attraction appears in LIFE magazine.
1983:
A special fountain is presented to Tokyo Disneyland by Walt Disney Productions.
"Cinderella's Fountain" is in commemoration of the park's 5-millionth guest.
1996:
At Epcot, the Universe of Energy reopens. It now stars comedian
and talk show host Ellen DeGeneres. (The original Universe of Energy
pavilion itself was an innovation in energy technology - its entire roof was covered in
photovoltaic solar panels that partially powered the ride vehicles.) The new DeGeneres version now features Bill Nye 'The Science Guy,' TV game show host Alex Trebek, and actress Jamie Lee Curtis. Although called Ellen's Energy Crisis, the attraction will later be re-named Ellen's Energy Adventure.
1998:
Walt Disney Home Video hosts the first-ever "Canine Carnival" in celebration of the
much-anticipated video re-release of Disney's "Lady and the Tramp," at Los
Angeles Griffith Park. Attending celebrities and their pooch pals include Charlton Heston, Lorenzo
Lamas, and Leeza Gibbons.
The soundtrack to the Disney/Pixar A Bug's Life, featuring
the music of Randy Newman, is released on Walt Disney Records.
1999:
Most of Walt Disney World remains closed due to the public threat of Hurricane Floyd. Only essential employees are asked to report to work and guests who were staying at Disney's campgrounds are given shelter at the convention center at the Contemporary Resort. It is the first time in Disney's 28-year history that it has been forced to close almost all of its parks. When the hurricane's impact is not as great as expected, officials decide to open just Animal Kingdom from noon to 8:00 p.m., for resort guests only. (The rest of Disney World will reopen the following day.)
2000:
Tokyo Disneyland celebrates Respect For The Aged Day (a national holiday in Japan) with a dance party for guests age sixty and older.
2001:
Disney's ABC-TV replaces The Peacemaker a 1997 movie about a terrorist plotting an attack in New York City, with the romantic comedy Hope Float
(in response to the September 11th terrorist attack).
Disney Channel debuts a new animated interactive series titled Stanley.
2002:
Tony Anselmo, Disney animator and the voice of Donald Duck, appears at
Walt's Barn in Griffith Park, California. Fans at the event (hosted by The Carolwood Pacific
Historical Society) purchase and have Anselmo sign a copy of The Disney Poster Book.
2004:
Tokyo Disneyland's 2-month long celebration "Disney's Halloween" begins.
The stage musical Mary Poppins (produced by Disney and Cameron Mackintosh) opens for previews in England at the Bristol Hippodrome. (Regular performances will begin 3 days later.)
2005:
The El Capitan's limited engagement of Cinderella kicks-off with a special
filmmakers' panel featuring Ilene Woods-Shaughnessy (the original voice of
Cinderella), June Foray (the voice of Lucifer the cat), Lucille Bliss (the voice
of stepsister Anastasia), and legendary Disney animator Ollie Johnston.
2006:
Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is held for the first time this season at Walt Disney World.
The 3-day Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend kicks off in Anaheim. The 13.1-mile route takes runners through the two Disneyland Resort theme parks.
Actor Dylan Riley Snyder replaces Daniel Manche as Young Tarzan in Disney's Broadway musical Tarzan.
1997:
Downtown Disney West Side premieres in Florida. The 66-acre addition is Disney World's third shopping, dining, and entertainment zone and features Wolfgang Puck Cafè, House of Blues, Bongos Cuban Cafè, Virgin Megastore, plus an expanded AMC Pleasure Island 24 Theatres.
1928:
A session to record sound for Steamboat Willie takes
place in New York. The day is filled with problems as the orchestra finds it difficult to play in synch with the animated film. By the end of this session, Walt has spent $1,000 at the studio ... and has nothing to show for it.
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The trip around the
Walt Disney World Railroad
is 1 1/2 miles
or about
20 minutes.
1958:
The Disneyland Viewliner, a narrow gauge, miniature train running since June 1957,
shuts down forever. Billed as "the fastest miniature train in the world," it was the park's first attempt at mass-
transit. Two separate trains, designed and built as scale replicas of General Motors' futuristic Aerotrain, traveled
along a figure-eight track through parts of Tomorrowland and Fantasyland. (The Aerotrain was a streamlined
trainset introduced by General Motors Electro-Motive Division in the mid-1950s.) The Disneyland Monorail System
will take the place of Viewliner in June 1959.
1857:
William Howard Taft, the twenty-seventh United States
President, is born in Cincinnati, Ohio. Visit him and all the
U.S. Chief Executives at Disney World's Hall of Presidents.
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2008:
It is reported that the first center in eastern Africa designed to rescue, rehabilitate and reintroduce orphaned gorillas back into the wild will begin construction later this month in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund will provide funding toward initial operating expenses for the facility. In addition, experts from Disney’s Animal Programs will provide materials and in-kind services to assist with development and construction of the center, help relocate the current orphaned gorillas and provide educational opportunities for students and the community.
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SEPTEMBER 15
THIS DAY MADE
IN THE
USA
SEPTEMBER 15
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1944:
Disney's Goofy short How to Play Football is released.
Directed by Jack Kinney with animation by Art Babbitt, Goofy (in multiple roles) plays all the positions on both teams to demonstrate the sport. The Goofies of Taxidermy Tech take on the Goofies of Anthropology A and M ... with hilarious results.
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"Hi, and welcome to the Universe of Energy. How are ya? No need to answer. You know, you're probably surprised to see me here, aren't you? But then, there's probably a lot of places you'd be surprised to see me when you think about it." -Ellen DeGeneres
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2009:
The World Premiere of the groundbreaking documentary Waking Sleeping Beauty
takes place at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film (directed by Don Hahn)
chronicles the revival of Walt Disney Animation beginning in the 1980s and the start of the decade-long Disney Renaissance. The Disney Renaissance refers to the era when the Walt Disney Animation Studios returned to making successful animated films mostly based on fairy tales.
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Downtopwn Disney West Side debuts
Disneyland Viewliner shuts down
