Portal:Disney

Portal topics: Activities; Culture; Geography; Health; History; Mathematics; Nature; People; Philosophy; Religion; Society; Technology; Random portal

Introduction

The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California. Disney was founded on October 16, 1923 as an animation studio, by brothers Walt Disney and Roy Oliver Disney as Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio; it also operated under the names Walt Disney Studio and Walt Disney Productions before changing it to its current name in 1986. In 1928, Disney established itself as a leader in the animation industry with the short film Steamboat Willie. The film used synchronized sound to become the first post-produced sound cartoon, and popularized Mickey Mouse, who became Disney's mascot and corporate icon.

After becoming a major success by the early 1940s, Disney diversified into live-action films, television, and theme parks in the 1950s. However, following Walt Disney's death in 1966, the company's profits, especially in the animation division, began to decline. In 1984, Disney's shareholders voted Michael Eisner as CEO, who led a reversal of the company's decline through a combination of international theme park expansion and the highly successful Disney Renaissance period of animation in the 1990s. In 2005, under new CEO Bob Iger, the company continued to expand into a major entertainment conglomerate with the acquisitions of Pixar, Marvel Entertainment, Lucasfilm, and 21st Century Fox. In 2020, Bob Chapek became the head of Disney after Iger's retirement. However, Chapek was ousted in 2022 and Iger was reinstated as CEO.

The company is known for its film studio division, the Walt Disney Studios, which includes Walt Disney Pictures, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, 20th Century Studios, 20th Century Animation, and Searchlight Pictures. Disney's other main business units include divisions in television, broadcasting, streaming media, theme park resorts, consumer products, publishing, and international operations. Through these divisions, Disney owns and operates the ABC television network; cable television networks such as Disney Channel, ESPN, Freeform, FX, and National Geographic; publishing, merchandising, music, and theater divisions; direct-to-consumer streaming services such as Disney+, ESPN+, Hulu, and Hotstar; and Disney Experiences, which includes several theme parks, resort hotels, and cruise lines around the world. (Full article...)

Refresh with new selections below (purge)

Selected article

Disneyland is a theme park that is located at 1313 South Harbor Boulevard in Anaheim, California, USA. It opened on July 17, 1955. The park is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company. Currently the park has been visited by more than 515 million guests since it opened to the public, including presidents, royalty, and other heads of state.

In 1998 Disneyland was renamed Disneyland Park in order to distinguish it from the larger Disneyland Resort complex. Today, there are three other parks which share the Disneyland name, Disneyland Resort Paris in Paris, France, Hong Kong Disneyland Resort in Hong Kong, China, and Tokyo Disneyland in Tokyo, Japan. These resorts are in addition to Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, whose Disneyland-like park is called the Magic Kingdom.

More selected articles • Read more

Selected image

Credit: J-E Nyström

Carl Barks visiting Finland in June, 1994.

More selected pictures • Read more...

General images - load new batch

These are images of Disneyland, Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, The Walt Disney Company, and Walt Disney in their respective articles.

Image 1Grave of Walt Disney at Forest Lawn, Glendale (from Walt Disney)
Image 2An aerial shot of Walt Disney World in 1982 (from Walt Disney World)
Image 3Walt, Florida Governor W. Haydon Burns, and Roy announcing the plans for Disney World in November 1965 (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 4The 1996 version of The Walt Disney World logo (from Walt Disney World)
Image 5Hollywood Studios' park icon, the Chinese Theatre (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 6Excerpt of Steamboat Willie (1928), the first Mickey Mouse sound cartoon. (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 7Disney bought The Muppets from the Jim Henson Company in 2004. (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 8The original logo of Walt Disney World from 1971 to the mid-1990s (from Walt Disney World)
Image 9A Disney Cruise Line bus which takes guests to and from Terminal 8 from Orlando International Airport; as well as around Walt Disney World. (from Disney Cruise Line)
Image 10Disney drawing Goofy for a group of girls in Argentina, 1941 (from Walt Disney)
Image 11Frontierland
(Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in 2008) (from Disneyland)
Image 12Bayou Country
(Tiana's Bayou Adventure) (from Disneyland)
Image 13The original animation building at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California, which they fully moved into in 1940 (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 14Disneyland aerial view, 1963, which includes the new Melody Land Theater at the top of the photo (from Disneyland)
Image 15Roy O. Disney inspecting design plans on-site in Florida (from Walt Disney World)
Image 16One of four arches welcoming guests to the resort (from Walt Disney World)
Image 17Michael Eisner replaced Ron Miller as CEO. (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 18Jeffrey Katzenberg was chairman of the Walt Disney Studios from 1984 to 1995. (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 19The Walt Disney World Monorail System provides free transport across the resort.
Image 20Walt (right) dressed as a gaucho next to Donald Duck in Argentina while on the company's South American goodwill trip in 1941. (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 21An aerial view of Disneyland in 2004 (from Disneyland)
Image 22One of Disney's first animated characters Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, which Disney regained the rights to in 2006. The initial run of Oswald shorts by Disney have all entered the public domain as of January 1, 2024. (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 23Roy E. Disney, Roy O. Disney's son, was head of the animation department until 2003. (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 24Disneyland Railroad Engine 2 at the New Orleans Square station. (from Disneyland)
Image 25Disney with film roll and Mickey Mouse on his right arm in 1935 (from Walt Disney)
Image 26Adventureland entrance
(2006) (from Disneyland)
Image 27Walt Disney's business envelope featured a self-portrait, c. 1921 (from Walt Disney)
Image 28Disney shows the plans of Disneyland to officials from Orange County in December 1954 (from Walt Disney)
Image 29Mickey's Toontown
(pictured in 2010) (from Disneyland)
Image 30Fantasyland
(Peter Pan's Flight in the foreground and the Matterhorn Bobsleds in the background) (from Disneyland)
Image 31Map of the resort as of May 2015 (from Walt Disney World)
Image 32The Sherman Brothers in 2002. They composed many Disney songs in the 1960s. (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 33Wedding Pavilion at the Seven Seas Lagoon (from Walt Disney World)
Image 34New Orleans Square
(the Haunted Mansion) (from Disneyland)
Image 35Disney receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1964 from President Lyndon B. Johnson. (from Walt Disney)
Image 36Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge
(Star Wars: Millennium Falcon – Smugglers Run in 2019) (from Disneyland)
Image 37Disney next to a cat and a drawing of Mickey Mouse (by Harris & Ewing), 1931 (from Walt Disney)
Image 38Disney security vehicle, picture taken July 2, 2009 in front of Epcot (from Walt Disney World)
Image 39Disney (left) with his brother Roy O. Disney (right) and then Governor of Florida W. Haydon Burns (center) on November 15, 1965, publicly announcing the creation of Disney World (from Walt Disney)
Image 40Main Street, U.S.A.
(2010) (from Disneyland)
Image 41Characters from Alice in Wonderland host "Disneyland Musical Chairs" at Coca-Cola Refreshment Corner, accompanied by a ragtime pianist in 2005. (from Disneyland)
Image 42Tomorrowland
(Space Mountain in 2010) (from Disneyland)
Image 43Walt Disney (center) showing Orange County officials plans for Disneyland's layout, December 1954 (from Disneyland)
Image 44A portrait of Disney with cartoon representations of different nationalities on a 6-cent U.S. postage stamp, 1968 (from Walt Disney)
Image 45Disney in 1954 with Wernher von Braun (from Walt Disney)
Image 46Monorail Red travels over the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage in Tomorrowland in 2008. (from Disneyland)
Image 47Fantasmic! finale on July 4, 2010 (from Disneyland)
Image 48Walt Disney (left) with his brother Roy O. Disney (right) and then Governor of Florida W. Haydon Burns (center) on November 15, 1965, publicly announcing the creation of Disney World (from Walt Disney World)
Image 49Disney in 1954 (from Walt Disney)
Image 50Team Disney – The Michael D. Eisner Building, the main building at the Walt Disney Studios, which houses the offices of Disney's CEO and several other senior corporate officials. (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 51Disney's promotional logo for its centennial. (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 52Main Street at Disneyland, as seen from a horseless carriage (from Disneyland)
Image 53Disney's childhood home (from Walt Disney)
Image 54The 2018 version of The Walt Disney World logo. (from Walt Disney World)
Image 55Walt (center) showing the plans of Disneyland to officials from Orange County in December 1954 (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 56Walt Disney introduces each of the seven dwarfs in a scene from the original 1937 Snow White theatrical trailer (from Walt Disney)
Image 57Disney's video streaming subscription service Disney+ was launched in 2019, which has a total of over 135 million subscriptions as of June 2022. (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 58Disneyland fireworks from Sleeping Beauty Castle (from Disneyland)
Image 59View of Disney Springs (from Walt Disney World)
Image 60Disney Magic at Port of Venice (from Disney Cruise Line)
Image 61Overlay of Walt Disney's original 1966 plans for Disney World and the proposed EPCOT city (orange) and contemporary situation (blue) (from Walt Disney World)
Image 62Disney family at Schiphol Airport (1951) (from Walt Disney)
Image 63Bob Iger became CEO of Disney in 2005, expanding the company's properties (from The Walt Disney Company)
Image 64The "Happiest Homecoming on Earth" celebrated the 50th anniversary of the theme park. Sleeping Beauty Castle was altered for the occasion. (from Disneyland)

Selected biography

Hilary Erhard Duff (born September 28, 1987) is an American actress, singer-songwriter, entrepreneur, and author. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, Duff appeared in local theatre plays and television commercials before coming to prominence in the title role of the Disney Channel television series Lizzie McGuire. Established as a teen idol, Duff reprised that role in the The Lizzie McGuire Movie and subsequently ventured into motion pictures, appearing in a string of successful films that include Agent Cody Banks, Cheaper by the Dozen, A Cinderella Story and Cheaper by the Dozen 2. Most recently, she has performed in a legion of television dramas and independent films. Duff expanded her repertoire to include pop music and has released three RIAA-certified platinum albums including Metamorphosis (2002), her debut studio album which was certified triple platinum, Hilary Duff (2004) and Most Wanted (2005), which were both certified platinum. Her most recent studio album Dignity (2007) was certified gold and spawned her highest charting US single to date "With Love". Followed by Best of Hilary Duff (2008), a compilation of her greatest hits, Duff has since sold thirteen million records worldwide. Branching into the fashion industry, Duff has launched her own clothing lines Stuff by Hilary Duff and Femme for DKNY Jeans in addition to being signed with IMG Models and releasing two exclusive perfume collections with Elizabeth Arden. Her other business ventures include writing a series of young adult novel, including Elixir (2010) and Devoted (2011), while working as an executive producer for According to Greta and as a producer for Material Girls and Beauty & the Briefcase.

More selected biographies • Read more

Did you know (auto-generated)

... that the ferry General Joe Potter at Walt Disney World is named in honor of Major General William Everett Potter?
... that John Oliver dared Disney to sue him over his version of Mickey Mouse?
... that Scarlett Johansson filed a lawsuit against The Walt Disney Company alleging that the release strategy for Black Widow breached her contract?
... that a revival of the comedy series Lizzie McGuire was ordered in 2019, but canceled mid-production after Disney deemed it not family-friendly enough?

Selected quote

It is difficult to classify the characteristics of the Goof into columns of the physical and mental, because they interweave, reflect and enhance one another. Therefore, it will probably be best to mention everything all at once. Think of the Goof as a composite of an everlasting optimist, a gullible Good Samaritan, a halfwit and a shiftless, good-natured hick.

— Goofy

More selected quotes • More at Wikiquote

More Did you know...

...that Harriet Burns designed the original prototype models of Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle, Pirates of the Caribbean and New Orleans Square?

...that Alan Wagner, the first president of the Disney Channel, was also an opera critic and radio personality?

...that The Nightmare Before Christmas was originally released by Touchstone Pictures, a label owned by the Walt Disney Company, because it was considered inappropriate to use the Walt Disney Pictures banner due to the darker content displayed in this film.
...that The Reedy Creek Improvement District in Florida is the immediate governing jurisdiction for the land on the Walt Disney World Resort.
... that the most valuable cartoon movie poster was a poster for the Walt Disney short, Alice's Day at the Sea (USA 1924), was sold in London England at $36534.00 in 1994.

More did you know facts

Topics

Recognized content

Extended content

This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by JL-Bot (talk · contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is tagged (e.g. {{WikiProject Disney}}) or categorized correctly and wait for the next update. See WP:RECOG for configuration options.