Walt Disney is one of the most recognized individuals of the early 20th century. A pioneering businessman, animator, and filmmaker, he is best remembered for his numerous contributions to American popular culture. These include co-creating the iconic character Mickey Mouse alongside legendary animator Ub Iwerks, co-founding the Walt Disney Corporation in 1923 with his brother, Roy O. Disney, and his theme park, Disneyland, which opened in 1955. A heavy smoker, Walt died on December 15, 1966, due to complications from lung cancer, but his company went on to become one of the largest media conglomerates in the world.
Up until the opening of Disneyland, Walt worked closely with his animators and writers when it came to creating his animated films. Due to his love of fairy tales and his personal story of rags to riches, Walt made sure to inject his stories with love and heart so that they would resonate with audiences. He also loved pushing the boundaries of what animation could achieve and frequently let his animators go wild. Some of his films present this better than others, and these movies are still regarded as some of Disney’s best movies.
11 ‘The Jungle Book’
First released in 1967
Following the box-office disappointment of Sleeping Beauty, Disney needed to find a way to save money. They achieved this by using a Xerox machine to copy the animator’s rough sketches directly onto an animation cell. This resulted in the films having a sketchy and unfinished look. During this time, Walt also focused more on his theme parks and live-action films, so one of his best animators, Wolfgang Reitherman, took over directing them. Though the films made money, Walt was disappointed with the art style, and when The Sword in the Stone under-performed, he decided it was time to get involved with the production of their next film, The Jungle Book.
Disney’s veteran writer Bill Pete wrote a script that was dark and faithful to Rudyard Kipling’s original book, but Walt wanted something more fun and family-focused. After Pete left the studio, Walt tasked Larry Clemmons with writing a new script, and the first thing he told him was to not read the original Jungle Book. The result is an enjoyable and light-hearted movie with catchy songs, fun gags, and some of Disney’s best side characters. Walt’s personal touch can be felt throughout, and his death before the film’s release makes The Jungle Book a fitting sendoff to Disney’s Silver Age.
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10 ‘Peter Pan’
First released in 1953
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As a child, Walt played Peter Pan in a school play adaptation of J. M. Barrie’s classic story of the boy who never grew up. He fell in love with the story just as hard as he did with the classic fairy tales and wanted it to be his second animated film after Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Unfortunately, Paramount Pictures secured the film rights first, and it would be a few years before Walt could negotiate something. By that time, he was focusing on other projects, and in 1942, America would be pulled into World War II.
Peter Pan went through even more delays during the 40s, as Walt was also working on the Wartime Era films and future releases like Alice in Wonderland and Cinderella. At a time, Walt felt that the story was getting too dark, resulting in moments from the play like Captain Hook being eaten by the crocodile and Tinker Belle drinking poison for Peter being scrapped. Ultimately, the film was released to critical praise for its gorgeous animation (especially during the flight scenes), and its good mix of comedy, action, and timeless themes of the inevitability of growing up. Captain Hook (Hans Conried) is also one of Disney’s most beloved villains from this era.
Peter Pan
- Release Date
- February 5, 1953
- Director
- Clyde Geronimi , Wilfred Jackson , Hamilton Luske
- Cast
- Bobby Driscoll , Kathryn Beaumont , Hans Conried , Bill Thompson , Heather Angel , Paul Collins
- Rating
- G
- Runtime
- 77
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8 ‘Lady and the Tramp’
First released in 1955
The story of Disney’s iconic canine love story dates back to 1937, when Joe Grant approached Walt with a story based on his dog, named Lady, and how she was accidentally overlooked following the birth of his child. Walt felt that the story needed more conflict, and with America joining World War II in 1942, the idea had to be shelved. Things picked up again after the war when Disney read a short story by Ward Greene and decided to pair Grant’s Lady with a cynical partner. Walt then asked Greene to write a novelization of his short story in 1953, so audiences would be familiar with the characters.
Lady and the Tramp overcame a lukewarm reception and is now seen as a Disney classic thanks to its timeless themes and its iconic spaghetti-eating scene. Amusingly, Walt initially wanted this scene cut from the film but was convinced to keep it when Frank Thomas finished it himself. One of Walt’s ideas was the opening scene of Jim Dear (Lee Millar) gifting Lady (Barbara Luddy) to Darling (Peggy Lee), which was based on when Walt gifted a puppy to his wife. Walt also wanted to experiment with CinemaScope in this film, resulting in much wider backgrounds that help present the film from a dog’s perspective.
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7 ‘Sleeping Beauty’
First released in 1959
After the success of Cinderella, Disney wanted to produce more fairy tales, and approved an adaptation of Sleeping Beauty. He wanted this movie to be his masterpiece and aimed for an ambitious, tapestry-like art style to show the abilities of hand-drawn animation. He also wanted to expand the role of the prince, who in previous films had been side-characters due to the animators having a tricky time depicting realistic men. Walt also pushed for some of the film’s most iconic fairy tale moments, such as Princess Aurora (Mary Costa) and Prince Philip (Bill Shirley) dancing on clouds at the end, and the good fairies rescuing Philip.
Unfortunately, such an ambition required a lot of time and money, and delays began to pile up as Walt focused more on Disneyland. This cut into his enthusiasm for Sleeping Beauty, and when the film was released, it bombed hard, and Disney wouldn’t adapt another fairy tale until 1989s The Little Mermaid. Fortunately, it has been re-evaluated over the decades as one of the most acclaimed animated films for its unique art style gorgeous music, and possessing one of animation’s greatest villains in Maleficent (Elanor Audley).
Sleeping Beauty (1959)
- Release Date
- January 29, 1959
- Director
- Clyde Geronimi , Wolfgang Reitherman
- Cast
- Mary Costa , Bill Shirley , Eleanor Audley
- Runtime
- 75
- Rating
- G
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6 ‘Dumbo’
First released in 1941
To fund Bambi, Walt needed a movie that could be produced quickly and on a cheap budget. His head of merchandise licensing, Kay Karman, approached him with a Roll-A-Book about a little elephant struggling to fit in at a circus. Disney fell in love with the concept and quickly bought the rights. He kept the cost down by not relying on as many special effects, like in Pinocchio or Fantasia, and limiting the film to just over sixty minutes long.
Dumbo faced difficulties from the 1941 animators’ strike but ended up being everything the company needed. The more simplistic colors and character designs worked with the film’s smaller stakes and bright circus aesthetic. The story has a timeless appeal of outcasts coming together and turning perceived weaknesses into strengths, which has given the film amazing staying power. Walt was especially proud of the film and considered it among his favorites.
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5 ‘Bambi’
First released in 1942
After acquiring the rights to Felix Saulton’s novel about a roe deer trying to survive in the wild, Walt wanted the movie to be his second animated feature after Snow White. Unfortunately, his animators weren’t ready to depict realistic animals, and the story had to go through several rewrites to make it more accessible to family audiences. This proved to be challenging, as Walt and his crew often went on numerous tangents thinking of creative side-stories, only to drop them because they had nothing to do with the main story. The animators, meanwhile, studied the movements and anatomy of real deer until they got a design they liked.
Bambi was another financial failure due to the war, but its legacy can be seen in future animal-led animated films like The Lion King and Don Bluth’s The Land Before Time. The film has minimalistic dialogue, allowing the story to mainly be told through the interactions of the characters and the expressive animation. While the story was made less dark, it still retains many dark moments, such as the tragic death of Bambi’s mother (Paula Winslowe). It remains an artistic masterpiece in terms of capturing the beauty and harshness of nature in a way that audiences of all ages can enjoy.
Bambi
- Release Date
- August 21, 1942
- Director
- James Algar , Samuel Armstrong , David Hand
- Cast
- Hardie Albright , Stan Alexander , Bobette Audrey , Peter Behn , Thelma Boardman , Janet Chapman
- Rating
- G
- Runtime
- 69 minutes
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4 ‘Cinderella’
First released in 1950
Due to World War II, Disney suffered a terrible string of financial disappointments, which were made even worse when America joined and many of the company’s animators were drafted. To stay afloat, Walt decided to combine several ideas into package films. Once the company’s debt began to shrink, Walt decided it was time to gamble and try another full-length animated film. He was even willing to use live-action references again, which had been dropped for cost efficiency, and pushed for a comedic sub-plot involving Cinderella’s (Ileen Woods) mice friends and the family cat, Lucifer (June Foray).
Ultimately, the gamble paid off, and Cinderella was a massive financial success that has perhaps aged the best of all of Disney’s 1950s-era films. This is thanks to its timeless story about compassion and how one act of kindness can inspire more. Walt’s passion for Cinderella’s story can be felt constantly: he identified with her more than any of his characters because of their mutual struggles for success. He especially loved the scene where Cinderella received her dress, calling it his favorite moment in any of his movies.
Cinderella (1950)
When Cinderella’s cruel stepmother prevents her from attending the Royal Ball, she gets some unexpected help from the lovable mice Gus and Jaq and from her Fairy Godmother.
- Release Date
- March 4, 1950
- Director
- Wilfred Jackson , Hamilton Luske , Clyde Geronimi
- Cast
- Homer Brightman , Erdman Penner
- Runtime
- 1 hr 14 min
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3 ‘Pinocchio’
First released in 1940
As Walt was getting ready to begin production of Bambi, he was made aware of The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. When Bambi had to be put on hold, Walt chose to make Pinocchio the studio’s second feature. The largest change came from the character of Pinocchio himself, who was more of a rude troublemaker in Collidi’s story. Walt wanted him to be someone audiences would empathize with, so the decision was made to change him into a more innocent and childish character. The writers also expanded on the role of the cricket, giving him the name Jiminy (Cliff Edwards) and making him Pinocchio’s (Dickie Jones) conscience.
Pinocchio failed to turn a profit due to World War II, but it created perhaps the most impressive legacy out of any animated film. It contained innovative special effect techniques, such as sparkles on the Blue Fairy’s () wand. The greatest achievements of Joshua Meador and his team were how they depicted realistic water, be it as pouring rain, ripples in puddles, or capturing the feeling of being underwater. Its story is remembered fondly as well, both for how dark it is and for the important life lessons it teaches children regarding morality.
Pinocchio
- Release Date
- February 23, 1940
- Director
- Hamilton Luske , Ben Sharpsteen
- Cast
- Mel Blanc , Don Brodie , Walter Catlett , Marion Darlington , Frankie Darro , Cliff Edwards
- Rating
- G
- Runtime
- 88
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2 ‘Fantasia’
First released in 1940
By 1938, Disney’s mascot, Mickey Mouse (Walt Disney), was declining in popularity, so he decided to create a new short to give Mickey a fresh new look. He settled on the poem The Sorcerer’s Apprentice and decided to use music from the 1897 symphony of the same name by Paul Dukas. Unfortunately, the production cost soon rose too high for a short to win its money back. The solution was to expand the short into a feature film with separate segments told through a blend of animation and music.
Fantasia is Disney’s most ambitious film, and though it didn’t make its money back, Walt was happy that it was created. Over the years, the film has been called Disney’s masterpiece thanks to its inventive animation and the variety of its shorts. Some contain traditional stories, while others range from a series of unrelated events to abstract images matching the music. Though Walt was never able to make a proper sequel to Fantasia, he continued to experiment with music in Make Mine Music and Melody Time,and an official sequel was released in 1999 titledFantasia 2000.
Fantasia
- Release Date
- November 13, 1940
- Director
- James Algar , Samuel Armstrong , Ford Beebe , Norman Ferguson , Jim Handley , T. Hee
- Cast
- Leopold Stokowski , Deems Taylor , Julietta Novis , Corey Burton , Walt Disney , James MacDonald
- Rating
- G
- Runtime
- 120
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1 ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’
First released in 1937
Despite the success of his early shorts, Walt feared that they wouldn’t be enough to bring in profits and considered making an animated feature film. His Silly Symphony shorts became more experimental as his animators trained for this monumental task. Walt was so passionate about the project that he mortgaged his house to get the needed funding and even acted out the entire film in front of his artists. As the film’s cost continued to grow, it was dubbed « Disney’s Folly ».
Against all odds, Snow White was a smashing success and paved the way for the modern world’s diverse and ever-increasing landscape of animated films. Its story is simple and runs on emotion over logic, like the original fairy tale, which allowed it to convince audiences at the time to care for the well-being of characters brought to life through pencil and ink. Even today, the film remains a visual marvel, particularly through the backgrounds, which look like an old picture book come to life. The spirit of Walt and his belief in the power of good storytelling can be felt in every moment of joy, sorrow, fear, and excitement.
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
- Release Date
- February 4, 1938
- Director
- David Hand
- Cast
- Roy Atwell , Stuart Buchanan , Adriana Caselotti , Zeke Clements , Eddie Collins , Pinto Colvig
- Rating
- G
- Runtime
- 83
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