1941:
Disney's newest animated feature film, Dumbo (directed by Ben
Sharpsteen) world premieres at the Broadway Theater in New
York City. Walt Disney, his wife Lillian, and a handful of his staff are in attendance. The fourth of Walt
Disney's fully-animated feature films (but the 5th feature film to be released), it is based upon a storyline written by Helen Aberson and illustrated by Harold Pearl. Ridiculed because of his enormous ears, a young circus elephant is assisted by a mouse to achieve his full potential. The 64-minute film, released by RKO Pictures, will win the Oscar for Best Score for a Musical Film and "Baby Mine" (the song that plays during Dumbo's visit to his mother's cell) will be nominated for Best Song.
2005:
Walt Disney World announces that all theme parks and water parks will be
closed tomorrow due to the effects of weather related to Hurricane Wilma.
1925:
The Iris Theater in Los Angeles, California previews Disney's Alice comedy short Alice in the Jungle featuring Virginia Davis. (The film will be generally released December 15.)
1942:
Disney's Goofy cartoon How To Swim is released. An educational treatise on swimming and diving ... presented Goofy style. Directed by Jack Kinney, the short is narrated by John McLeish.
1957:
The Disneyland TV series airs the Donald Duck episode "Duck for Hire,"
directed by Jack Hannah.
1959:
The TV series Walt Disney Presents airs episode 129 - "The Birth of the
Swamp Fox," the first of an 8-part mini-series starring Leslie Nielsen. It is
based on a real-life colonial soldier named Francis Marion, who was considered one of the fathers
of modern guerrilla warfare. The show's theme song is sung by Nielsen as well.
Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic, a singer-songwriter, record producer, satirist,
film producer, actor, voice actor, comedian, and author, is born in Downey,
California. Best known for his humorous song parodies, Weird Al is the voice of Milo Murphy, the title
character of the Disney XD series Milo Murphy's Law. He also sang the introduction song of the 1996
Hollywood Pictures film Spy Hard.
1960:
Walt Disney Presents airs "All About Magic" on ABC-TV.
1964:
The first five-acre lot for the Walt Disney World project is purchased by the Ayefour Corporation. Ayefour (a spin on the name Interstate 4) is one of many puppet companies set up by Disney to secretly buy land in Florida. If news of Disney's new resort leaks out, the land prices will soar.
David Sobolov, a voice actor and director, is born in Ontario, Canada. His television voice credits include Avengers Assemble, Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H., Guardians of the Galaxy, and Sofia the First.
1982:
At Disney World's new EPCOT Center, the first World Showcase evening show,
Carnival de Lumiere debuts. Premiering on the date of World Showcase's official dedication, it celebrates
world festivals with fountains, film, music, and other special effects. Using rear projection screens on barges floating
on the World Showcase Lagoon, the show is controlled by Apple computers. Carnival de Lumiere can only be
viewed from points between Mexico and Canada. (By the following summer, it will be replaced with
A New World Fantasy.)
The night before the park's official dedication,
Disney's television series airs the episode
EPCOT Center: The Opening Celebration. Hosted by
Danny Kaye, the program also features actress
Drew Barrymore, singer-guitarist Roy Clark, author
Alex Haley, singer-actress Marie Osmond, newsman
Eric Sevareid, and space traveler Alan Shepard.
1997:
John Lefante launches his "Save Mr. Toad" website the day after
The Orlando Sentinel reports that Walt Disney World is going to
replace the classic attraction with one featuring Winnie the Pooh.
2001:
Disney releases Dumbo on video and DVD (in celebration of the film's 60th
anniversary) and the direct-to-video "Whispers: An Elephant's Tale."
Disney Online launches Main Street Merchants (www.disney.com/mainstreet), a
virtual shopping center. Similar to Disney's Main Street, USA, the on-line Main
Street offers general and Disney-themed products.
The soundtrack for Disney's Monsters, Inc., featuring the
music of Randy Newman, is released.
2003:
The first ever ESPN Zone Limited Edition Santa Claus Pin is released.
Walt Disney Concert Hall, the new home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic (designed by renowned architect Frank Gehry) has its gala opening.
1985:
The Nine Dragons Restaurant opens in EPCOT's China pavilion.
1999:
The fourth annual Epcot International Food & Wine Festival begins.
Like Dopey in Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs,
Dumbo never
utters a
single word!
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1953:
Disney's animated short Rugged Bear is released. The 6-minute cartoon features the debut
of Humphrey the Bear (voiced by James Macdonald) and good old Donald Duck (voiced by Clarence Nash).
2007:
Meet the Robinsons is released to DVD (with bonus features). Originally released to theaters in March 2007, it is the forty-seventh animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics.
The Best of Both Worlds Tour, starring Miley Cyrus (as both herself and in
character as Disney Channel's Hannah Montana) and featuring Jonas Brothers,
play the Qwest Center in Omaha, Nebraska.
"What's the matter with his ears? I don't see nothin' wrong with 'em. I think they're cute."
-Dumbo's Timothy Q. Mouse (voiced by Edward Brophy)
Here is a baby with eyes of blue, straight from heaven, right to you.
"It's like 64 minutes, and it's so concise in its storytelling. I learned a lot from it, as a student at CalArts and a young
animator at Disney." -Pixar's John Lasseter on Dumbo
1954:
Walt Disney appears on the cover of this week's TV Guide. He is
pictured in a "cartoon" TV set surrounded by Mickey, Goofy, Bashful, Donald, and Pluto.
The issue includes the article "Why Disney Changed His Mind About TV."
4
2008:
Singer Lance Bass and professional dancer Lacey Schwimmer (one of the last 7
remaining couples on the seventh season of ABC-TV's Dancing With The Stars)
visit the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World.
OCTOBER 23
THIS DAY MADE IN THE USA
OCTOBER 23
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1930:
The Mickey Mouse short The Picnic, directed by Bert Gillett, is released.
Mickey and Minnie go picnicking but make the mistake of bringing Pluto along. The excited hound chases
rabbits and damages Mickey's car!
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Dumbo premieres
Animator Bill Tytla,
known for his sinister
characterization of Pinocchio's
Stromboli, was the key animator for
Dumbo. He based the character's
childlike expressions and earnestness
on those of his son, Peter.
1928:
RCA announces the creation of the Radio-Keith-Orpheum holding company, with
David Sarnoff (general manager of RCA) as chairman of the board. More commonly
known as RKO, the production and distribution company will enter into an important distribution deal with
animator Walt Disney in late 1935. From 1936 to 1954, RKO will release Disney's features and shorts.
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1971:
Day 1 of Walt Disney World's three-day grand opening celebration begins.
(The Magic Kingdom has been opened to the public since October 1.)
Celebrities, including Rock Hudson, Robert Stack, Walter Brennan, Sebastian Cabot, Fred MacMurray and
Annette Funicello, arrive in Orlando, Florida aboard a chartered jet at McCoy Jetport. Nearly 40,000 guests
(the biggest crowd yet) jam the Magic Kingdom on this Saturday to mingle among Hollywood royalty.
That evening, the World Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of conductor Arthur Fiedler, performs in the
forecourt of Cinderella Castle to 2,500 invited guests in black tie and elegant gowns. (Fiedler is entering his
42nd season as the conductor of the popular Boston Pops Orchestra.) The 144 musicians are assembled from
60 countries and 26 states at the request of the Disney Company who wish to bring an international flavor to the
event. The orchestra performs Fanfare for the Common Man by Aaron Copland, Prelude and Love-Death from
Tristan and Isolde, The Pines of Rome by Respighi, an excerpt from Estarcia by Ginastera, and Offenbach’s
Gaite Parisienne. For encores, the orchestra plays Little Fugue in G Minor by Bach, a tribute to Walt Disney
with It’s a Small World and a stirring rendition of Stars and Stripes Forever which brings the audience to its feet.
The symphony lasts roughly an hour and a half and ends with fireworks, (although not official) the first fireworks
display ever at Walt Disney World. Guests are then escorted to the Crystal Palace for champagne and an
opportunity to mingle with VIPs and celebrities.
October Preview Month
Formal Grand Opening of EPCOT Center - Day 2
1931:
The Silly Symphony short The Spider and the Fly is released. Loosely based on the
famous poem by Mary Howitt, it features a conflict between a villainous spider and a fly.
2011:
Golfer Luke Donald wins the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic
at Walt Disney World. It is his second PGA Tour win of the year, as he also won the Vardon
Trophy for the lowest adjusted scoring average.
ABC-TV premieres the fairy tale drama series Once Upon a Time. About a
woman with a troubled past who is drawn into a small town in Maine where the magic and mystery of
Fairy Tales parallels real life, the series stars Jennifer Morrison, Ginnifer Goodwin, Lana Parrilla and
Jared Gilmore. Created by Lost and Tron: Legacy writers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz, Once Upon a
Time is distributed by Disney-ABC Domectic Television.
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2012:
The latest entry in the Disney Fairies series, Secret of the Wings is released to
Blue-ray and DVD. A Tinker Bell-themed movie, the voice cast includes Mae Whitman, Lucy Hale,
Lucy Liu, Raven-Symoné, Megan Hilty, Pamela Adlon, Matt Lanter, Timothy Dalton, Anjelica Huston and
Debby Ryan. Tinker Bell meets her sister Periwinkle and ventures into the winter woods with her and
Tinker Bell's other friends to find the secret of fairy wings.
October 23
2013:
The Villas at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa open at Walt Disney World.
The newest property of Disney Vacation Club, the 106 units of the Villas range from the studio to a 2,800-square-
foot "grand villa," which includes three bedrooms, four bathrooms, a dining table that seats 12 people and a
separate media room with home-theater system.
1963:
Film executive and producer Allison "Alli" Ivy Shearmur is born in New York City.
Representing companies including Walt Disney Studios, Universal Pictures, Paramount Pictures and Lionsgate,
her production work involved such films as the live-action remake of Cinderella, and the Star Wars Anthology
films Rogue One and Solo.
2015:
A Disney Frozen-themed airplane is unveiled by WestJet Airlines at its Calgary hangar
in Alberta, Canada. Painted in Fort Worth, Texas, over 170 gallons of paint were used to create the cold-to-
warm scene. Even the interior of the Disney Frozen-themed plane brings together a blend of colors that mimic the seasons. (Airlines occasionally come out with special liveries for planes. It’s a great way for them to attract attention
at airports and also have a marketing campaign in cooperation with another company.)
1938:
Humpy Wheeler, President and General Manager of Charlotte Motor Speedway, is born Howard Augustine Wheeler in North Carolina. He voiced the character of Tex in Cars (2006) and Cars 3 (2017).
1986:
Actress Emilia Clarke is born in London, England. She played Qi'ra (Hans Solo's childhood friend) in Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018).
2017:
The second (and final) season of Disney XD's animated series Pickle and Peanut debuts.
2020:
Once Upon a Snowman, a new chapter in the story of Frozen's favorite singing snowman Olaf, is released on Disney+. The film follows Olaf’s first steps as he comes to life and searches for his identity in the snowy mountains outside Arendelle. Josh Gad returns to voice the cheerful snowman character he played in the first two films.
Walt Disney Records releases Disney Junior Music: Mickey's Trick or Treats.
2014:
The computer animated superhero film Big Hero 6 has its premiere at the 27th Tokyo International Film Festival. Produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures, Big Hero 6 is the first Disney animated film to feature Marvel Comics characters. It will open in U.S. theaters in November 2014.
