2005:
Seventy-five six-foot tall Mickey Mouse statues begin their visit at Disney's California Adventure. They will be on display until February 22.
"Mickey is the symbol of American hopefulness: We'll get through this, we'll whistle through bad times. Americans put their dreams into this little character. He never lost his cheerfulness,
never became a cynic. People identify with his personality,
his eternal optimism." -Roy E. Disney (born on This Day in Disney History 1930)
1904:
Actor Ray Bolger is born in Dorchester, Massachusetts. Best known for his role as the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz, Bolger played the role of Barnaby in Disney's 1961 live-action feature Babes in Toyland.
1927:
1930:
Roy Edward Disney, a longtime senior executive for Disney
and the nephew of Walt Disney, is born to Roy Oliver and
Edna Disney in Los Angeles, California. He will begin working for
his Uncle Walt after graduating from college in 1951 as an assistant director.
He'll continue to work as a writer, director, and producer until 1967 when he is elected to the Board of Directors of
the company. A strong supporter of Disney animation, Roy E. will best be known for organizing the ousting of two
top Disney executives: first, Ron Miller in 1984, and then Michael Eisner in 2005.
1932:
The first Silly Symphonies color comic page - "Bucky Makes His Name" - is
published in Sunday editions of newspapers. The strip features a new character named Bucky
Bug created specifically for the strip by Earl Duvall (and later drawn by Disney comic artist Al Taliaferro). Bucky is
the first Disney character to make his first appearance in a comic strip outside "The Mickey Mouse Universe."
1970:
Walt Disney World's Preview Center, located on Buena Vista Boulevard near
the intersection of Interstate 4 and State Road 535 in Florida, opens. Housed
in a modern glass, concrete and steel structure, the center features displays of models and drawings of the soon-to-be-open Florida theme park.
1999:
Elton John and LeAnn Rimes perform his "Written In The Stars" (from Disney's Broadway show Aida) at the 25th Annual People's Choice Awards broadcast on CBS-TV.
2001:
Disneyland Paris welcomes its 100-millionth visitor; Stefan and Andrea Seyffardt and their daughters Lisa, 6, and Marie, 4, from Germany.
2003:
The Disney Channel Original Movie You Wish! premieres. Based on Jackie French
Koller's 1991 novel "If I Had One Wish," the film stars A.J. Trauth and Spencer Breslin as brothers Alex &
Stevie, Lalaine as Ruby and Tim Reid as Larry. The soundtrack includes "You Wish!" sung by Lalaine.
2006:
The soundtrack to Disney Channel's High School Musical is released. (It will debut at number 143 on the Billboard 200, selling 6,469 copies in its first week!)
Roy E. Disney voiced a cameo of himself in the animated series Disney's House of Mouse where Mickey accidentally sends him
an angry fax meant
for Mortimer Mouse.
JANUARY 10
JAN
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2008:
Disney's newest Broadway production The Little Mermaid has its official opening night at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. (The show also debuts its original cast album exclusively on PlaybillRadio.com on the same evening - although the album won't be released until February.) The stage adaptation, directed by Francesca Zambello, features new songs by Alan Menken and Glenn Slater and stars Sierra Boggess as Ariel. In attendance is Jodi Benson - the original voice of Ariel for Disney's animated version. An "opening night after party" takes place at the Roseland Ballroom.
1941:
Disney's Donald Duck short Timber is released. Donald steals Pete's supper ... so Pete puts him to work as a lumberjack to work for his meal;
a job that Donald does not exactly enjoy.
WDW Preview Center opens
Little Mermaid debuts on Broadway
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JANUARY 10
THIS DAY MADE
IN THE
USA
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2010:
Adriano Bastos wins his sixth straight Walt Disney World Marathon
crossing the Epcot finish line in 2 hours, 22 minutes and 8 seconds
ahead of a field of an estimated 24,000 runners!
The late Roy E. Disney is honored (on what would've been his 80th birthday) at
a memorial service at Hollywood’s El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood. About 1,000
people attend, including many animators, actors and studio heads. During the memorial, Disney's CEO and
President Robert Iger announces that the main animation building in Burbank will be renamed the Roy E.
Disney Animation Building.
17th Annual Walt Disney World Marathon
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"My dad was there from the beginning, so he had that connection with Walt and the connection
to the beginning, so he understood the core of what this place really is, and he understood how important it was and how important
good story telling is, no matter what form." -Roy P. Disney (Roy E. Disney's son)
1910:
An 18-year-old named Joyce Clyde Hall from Nebraska steps off a train in Kansas City, Missouri for the first time. Equipped with little more than two shoeboxes of picture postcards and his entrepreneurial spirit, he will start what today is Hallmark Cards, Inc.
(Interestingly, Hall will only live about a mile away from Walt Disney in Kansas City ... though they won't meet until they begin doing business in 1931!)
