Walt Disney Biography Quotes 51 Report mistakes

Early Life and Family
Walter Elias Disney was born on December 5, 1901, in Chicago, Illinois, to Elias Disney and Flora Call Disney. His early years were shaped by moves across the Midwest. The family settled on a farm near Marceline, Missouri, where the rural landscape, small-town rhythms, and passing trains left vivid impressions on him. After the family moved to Kansas City, Missouri, he helped his father with a paper route and developed a habit of perseverance that would mark his career. In his teens he returned to Chicago, attending McKinley High School and evening classes at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts. Too young to enlist during World War I, he joined the American Red Cross and served as an ambulance driver in France, returning home in 1919 with sharpened drawing skills and a determination to work in commercial art.

Finding Animation in Kansas City
Back in the Midwest, Disney found work at the Pesmen-Rubin commercial art studio, where he met the talented draftsman Ub Iwerks. After a brief attempt to start a small studio, both men joined the Kansas City Film Ad Company, which produced animated advertising segments. Fascinated by the possibilities of animation, Walt founded Laugh-O-Gram Films in 1922 and made modernized fairy-tale shorts. Financial troubles quickly caught up with the fledgling company, and bankruptcy pushed him to seek a new start. In 1923 he moved to Hollywood, where his older brother Roy O. Disney was recovering from ill health. Together they formed the Disney Brothers Studio, with Roy managing finances and Walt driving the creative output. The earliest success was the Alice Comedies, a series that combined live action and animation, and brought stability to the studio.

Mickey Mouse, Sound, and Early Breakthroughs
By the late 1920s, Walt and his team were producing Oswald the Lucky Rabbit cartoons for distributor Charles Mintz, who held the rights through Universal. When Mintz claimed control over Oswald and lured away several animators, Disney and Iwerks responded by creating a new character, Mickey Mouse. In 1928, Steamboat Willie premiered with synchronized sound, and its energetic humor made Mickey an immediate sensation. Walt personally provided Mickey's voice for many years. The studio built on this momentum with the Silly Symphonies series, pushing innovation in music and color. Flowers and Trees (1932) was the first commercially released cartoon in three-strip Technicolor and won an Academy Award, establishing Disney's appetite for technological advancement and high production values.

Building a Feature Studio
Convinced that animation could sustain feature-length storytelling, Walt developed Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The project was dismissed in Hollywood as "Disney's folly" for its unprecedented budget and scope, but Walt, supported by Roy's careful financing and the dedication of artists such as animators Frank Thomas, Ollie Johnston, and Ward Kimball, saw it through. Released in 1937, Snow White became a critical and commercial triumph. The Academy presented Disney a special Oscar with seven miniature statuettes, given by Shirley Temple, recognizing the film's impact. The studio expanded its artistic range with Pinocchio and Fantasia in 1940, followed by Dumbo (1941) and Bambi (1942). Innovations such as the multiplane camera allowed richer depth and lighting effects, and concept artists like Mary Blair influenced the studio's distinctive color sensibilities.

War, Labor, and Reorganization
The studio faced turbulence in the early 1940s. A 1941 labor strike, supported by animators including Art Babbitt, strained internal relationships and led to lasting changes in management and pay structures. During World War II, the studio turned to government training films, propaganda shorts, and package features to keep operating. After the war, Disney reorganized and gradually returned to full-length animated features. Cinderella (1950) restored the studio's fortunes, followed by Alice in Wonderland (1951), Peter Pan (1953), and Lady and the Tramp (1955), the latter released in widescreen CinemaScope. Sleeping Beauty (1959) showcased lavish design but was costly, while 101 Dalmatians (1961) demonstrated a new approach, using xerography to transfer drawings directly to cels, a process advanced by Ub Iwerks upon his return to the studio as a technical innovator. Throughout these years, the generation later nicknamed the Nine Old Men refined character animation into a mature art.

Live Action, Nature Films, and Television
Walt expanded into live-action filmmaking with Treasure Island (1950) and earned acclaim for 20, 000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954). The studio's True-Life Adventures documentaries won awards and popularized wildlife storytelling. Recognizing television's potential, Disney forged a pivotal relationship with ABC, led by Leonard Goldenson, to fund new ventures. The weekly program Disneyland introduced audiences to the studio's characters, behind-the-scenes processes, and tomorrow-minded ideas. Davy Crockett, serialized on the show, became a cultural phenomenon starring Fess Parker. Television provided a reliable platform for promoting films, nurturing audience loyalty, and, crucially, financing a bold new idea.

Imagineering and Disneyland
Walt channeled his love of family entertainment and craftsmanship into a themed park where stories would be made tangible. He established WED Enterprises (later Walt Disney Imagineering), hiring designers and engineers such as Herb Ryman, John Hench, Ken Anderson, Harriet Burns, and Bob Gurr to translate his visions into rides and environments. Disneyland opened in Anaheim in 1955 as a meticulously designed, clean, and welcoming park organized into themed lands. It pioneered advances such as the Matterhorn Bobsleds and the Monorail in 1959, and the Enchanted Tiki Room showcased Audio-Animatronics, bringing lifelike motion to figures synchronized with audio. Roy's steady financial stewardship balanced Walt's relentless experimentation, allowing the park to evolve and expand while remaining solvent.

World's Fair Innovations and Mary Poppins
The 1964-65 New York World's Fair provided a laboratory for new technology and storytelling. Disney's team created It's a Small World for UNICEF/Pepsi, with songs by the Sherman Brothers, as well as General Electric's Carousel of Progress, Ford's Magic Skyway, and Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln for the State of Illinois. These attractions refined ride systems, figure programming, and audience flow, and many returned to Disneyland after the fair. In film, Mary Poppins (1964) blended live action and animation and became one of the studio's most beloved works. Starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, with music by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman, it followed years of negotiations with author P. L. Travers. The film earned multiple Academy Awards and validated Walt's belief in combining technical innovation with emotional storytelling.

The Florida Project and EPCOT Vision
Even as Disneyland thrived, Walt sought to build a larger, more experimental project in the eastern United States. After confidential land purchases in Central Florida, he introduced a plan that included a city of the future, the Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow (EPCOT), intended as a working community that would test transportation, urban design, and corporate collaboration. He recorded a film in 1966 to explain the vision to public officials and business partners. Walt's concept emphasized practicality and constant change, reflecting his view that progress depended on iterative design and bold partnerships. Roy and a core team of executives and planners worked in parallel to secure the legal and logistical framework needed to build.

Personal Life and Public Profile
In 1925 Walt married Lillian Bounds, an ink and paint artist at the studio. They raised two daughters, Diane Disney and Sharon Disney. Disney maintained a public image as a genial host and storyteller, while behind the scenes he acted as a demanding producer with a keen eye for detail. He involved himself in civic and industry affairs, including the Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals, and testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1947, reflecting the political tensions of the era. Over decades, he became synonymous with American mass entertainment, blending homespun presentation with a commitment to technique and showmanship.

Final Years, Death, and Recognition
A lifelong smoker, Disney faced serious health problems in 1966 and died on December 15 of that year in Burbank, California, from complications of lung cancer. He was cremated and interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale. His career garnered a record number of Academy Awards, including both competitive and honorary Oscars, more than any other individual in the Academy's history. In 1964 he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Even in his final months he remained engaged with plans for Florida and with ongoing productions, including The Jungle Book, which was completed and released after his death.

Legacy
Walt Disney's legacy spans art, technology, and urban imagination. He advanced character animation from novelty to nuanced performance, fostered a studio culture that trained generations of artists, and linked storytelling to engineering through WED Enterprises. His brother Roy stewarded the opening of Walt Disney World in 1971 and affixed Walt's name to the project, underscoring the transformative nature of the original vision. The studio alumni he mentored, from Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston to Wolfgang Reitherman and Marc Davis, continued to influence animated filmmaking, while designers like John Hench and Rolly Crump shaped theme park design as a discipline. Through films, television, and parks, Walt Disney helped define family entertainment in the 20th century, leaving a framework that continues to evolve in new media and public spaces.

Our collection contains 51 quotes who is written by Walt, under the main topics: Witty One-Liners - Motivational - Art - Learning - Overcoming Obstacles.

Other people realated to Walt: Salvador Dali (Artist), Ray Kroc (Businessman), Robert Benchley (Comedian), Roald Dahl (Novelist), Dodie Smith (Dramatist), Sergei Eisenstein (Director), Leopold Stokowski (Musician), Art Linkletter (Journalist), Roy E. Disney (Businessman), Rod Taylor (Actor)