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Feature of the Month

December 5, 2001, marks the 100th anniversary of Walt's birth. To mark this important event, the Walt Disney Family Museum is proud to present a special multimedia exhibit highlighting some of the most significant milestones in Walt's life.

 

Walt and Ruth

1901
WALT IS BORN IN CHICAGO
Walt was born in Chicago on December 5, 1901. Here he poses at age 5 with his younger sister, Ruth, in front of the Disney home in Chicago. All of the Disney children except Herbert were born in this house, which Walt's father, Elias, had built with his own hands. (More about Walt's early years)

 

 

1918
OFF TO POST-WAR FRANCE
Walt wanted to join the US Army Corps fighting in Europe during World War I, but he was too young. He did, however, enlist as a driver for the Red Cross Ambulance Corps, and was sent to France shortly after the Armistice of November, 1918. Here he poses with his longtime friend Russell Maas. (More about Walt in France)

 

Walt at his drawing table

1920
WALT LEARNS ABOUT ANIMATION
Upon his return from France, Walt decided to make a living as an artist. Here he is at his drawing table at the Kansas City Film Ad Company around 1920. The company produced brief cartoon commercials, using pin figures stuck on a registration board. (More about Walt in Kansas City) To see a film of Walt describing these early cartoons, choose either 56K modem or DSL/ISDN.

 

Laugh-O-grams

1922
WALT'S FIRST STUDIO
Buoyed by the success of his first animated cartoon for the Newman's Theater in Kansas City, Walt founded his first company, Laugh-O-grams Inc., in Kansas City in May, 1922. He was only 20 years old. Unfortunately, Walt's distributor, Pictorial Clubs, went bankrupt before they could pay Walt for all the cartoons they had ordered. (More about Laugh-O-grams)

 

 

1923
"ALICE'S WONDERLAND"
Undaunted, Walt scraped together enough money to begin his most ambitious film to date: a cartoon combining live-action and animation entitled "Alice's Wonderland." It was still unfinished when Walt's money finally ran out, and Laugh-O-grams went out of business. Walt wasn't discouraged; he simply headed for the capital of movie-making, Hollywood. (More about "Alice's Wonderland")


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