1994:
A new sports tradition at Walt Disney World begins on this cold morning
when approximately 12,000 runners from around the world line up for the very first
annual Walt Disney World Marathon. The 26.2-mile route runs along normal and backstage
roads, past several resorts, and literally through all three theme parks. Leonid Shetsov of Russia and Judit
Nagi of Hungary are the winners.
1977:
The New Mouseketeers appear on TV's Wonderama. These Mouseketeers are the stars of a new Mickey Mouse Club series to be released in television syndication the following day.
1890:
Edna Francis is born to pioneer parents in Reece, Kansas. She will go on to work, in the early days of the Disney Studios, as an ink artist. In April 1925 Edna will marry Roy O. Disney (a friend of her brother's) and five years later give birth to their only son Roy E. Disney. She will be named a Disney Legend in 2003.
2005:
Starting on this day the NFFC (the Club for Disneyana Enthusiasts) host a Strictly
Disneyana Show & Sale at the Radisson Parkway Hotel in Kissimmee, Florida.
1932:
Disney's Silly Symphony cartoon The Bird Store, directed by Wilfred Jackson, is released.
1936:
The New York Journal reports that film director Rene Clair feels that Charlie
Chaplin and Walt Disney are both outstanding figures in the movies at this
time. "They have no outside interference," she explains, "they act as their own producer, director,
and even attend to their own stories and musical scores. Their artistry is sublime."
1949:
Actor Roger Mobley, the star of Disney's Gallegher television serial, is born in Evansville, Indiana. His Disney credits also include The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again and Emil and the Detectives.
1957:
The Disneyland television series airs "Your Host, Donald Duck." Donald
Duck convinces Walt to let him take over the hosting duties for this episode!
1959:
The TV series Walt Disney Presents airs the episode "Noik."
1963:
Disney's live-action black-and-white feature film Son of Flubber (a sequel to the film
Stevenson, Professor Ned Brainard (played by MacMurray) gets into trouble again because of his experiments
with a gravity defying substance. The cast includes Nancy Olsen (as Betty Brainard), Tommy Kirk (as Biff Hawk),
and the father-and-son team of Ed and Keenan Wynn (as A. J. Allen & Alonzo Hawk). The film will be generally
released January 18.
2002:
The Writers Guild of America TV program nominations are announced with the
Disney-owned network ABC taking 5 nominations and Disney itself receiving 1
nomination for the children's pilot "Lizzie McGuire."
(Winners will be announced in March.)
2003:
It is announced that Walt Disney Records will release two of their best-selling children's titles in Spanish for the very first time. The first album, "Favoritas de las Princesas de Disney," spotlights Disney's most beloved heroines with Spanish versions of classic songs from films such as Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid. The second release, "Disney Presenta Cantar y Jugar," is a collection of children's favorite playtime songs from Latin America.
2004:
Disney's animated Teacher's Pet is released. Based on the animated television series, it features the voices of Nathan Lane, Kelsey Grammer, Debra Jo Rupp, David Ogden Stiers, and Jerry Stiller.
 | ||||||
In 1934, the Encyclopedia Britannica gave
Mickey Mouse
his very own entry. First published between 1768 and 1771, The Britannica is the oldest English-language encyclopedia still in print!
JANUARY 16
JAN
"Roy and I were just going together ... We stopped at a drugstore to get a soda, and Walt came to see Roy because he wanted a quarter or a half-dollar for paper to draw on. Even then, Roy provided the money for Walt's artistic ambitions." -Disney Legend Edna Francis Disney
1952:
Walt Disney presents cartoonist George McManus, creator of the comic strip Bringing Up Father, with a "Silver Lady" award at a luncheon in Beverly Hills.
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WDW Marathon debuts
advertisement
JANUARY 16
THIS DAY MADE
IN THE
USA
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Son of Flubber generally released
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1930:
Summer, a Silly Symphony short, is released. Directed by Ub Iwerks, it is the second
"4 seasons Symphony."
1942:
Disney's Donald Duck short The Village Smithy, directed by Dick Lundy, is released.
Donald's patience, as a blacksmith, is put to the test when he attempts to shoe a donkey named Jenny.
SEASON 3 EPISODE 13
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2010:
Movie critic and author Leonard Maltin receives the very first Heritage Award presented by the NFFC-Disneyana Fan Club. The award was established to honor individuals outside the Walt Disney Co. who have made significant contributions to promoting the awareness and preservation of Disney history. Composer Richard Sherman makes the presentation to Maltin at the Disneyana Fan Club luncheon (part of its convention that is being held over this weekend at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Garden Grove, California).
