ٍSuccess Stories: Walt Disney
Walt Disney was born on December 5, 1901, in Chicago, Illinois. He was the fourth of five children born to Elias and Flora Disney. Walt showed an early interest in drawing and art, and he spent much of his childhood drawing cartoons and creating characters.
In 1917, Walt enrolled in McKinley High School in Chicago, where he took art classes and became the cartoonist for the school newspaper. After graduating from high school in 1919, Walt moved to Kansas City to pursue a career as a commercial artist.
In Kansas City, Walt worked for several different advertising agencies, where he honed his skills as an illustrator and animator. In 1923, he formed his own animation studio with his brother Roy called Laugh-O-Gram Studio.
The studio produced a series of short animated films that were shown at local theaters. However, the studio struggled financially and eventually went bankrupt.
Undeterred by this setback, Walt moved to Hollywood in 1923 with just $40 in his pocket. He started a new animation studio called Disney Brothers Studio with his brother Roy.
Their first big success came with the creation of Mickey Mouse in 1928. The character became an instant hit and led to a series of successful animated shorts featuring Mickey and other characters such as Donald Duck and Goofy.
In 1937, Walt released his first full-length animated feature film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The film was a huge success both critically and commercially, grossing over $8 million at the box office.
Walt continued to produce successful animated films throughout the 1940s and 1950s including Pinocchio (1940), Fantasia (1940), Bambi (1942), Cinderella (1950), Alice in Wonderland (1951), Peter Pan (1953), Lady and the Tramp (1955) and Sleeping Beauty (1959).
In addition to his work in animation, Walt also had a keen interest in theme parks. He opened Disneyland in Anaheim, California in 1955, which became a huge success and led to the creation of other Disney theme parks around the world.
Walt Disney died on December 15, 1966, at the age of 65. However, his legacy lives on through the many successful films and theme parks that bear his name.
Today, the Walt Disney Company is one of the largest media companies in the world with a market capitalization of over $300 billion. The company continues to produce successful films and television shows and operates numerous theme parks and resorts around the world.
