Resumen

1928–1934: Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies

Original poster for Flowers and Trees (1932)
In 1928, to recover from the loss of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Disney came up with idea of a mouse character named Mortimer while on a train headed to California drawing up a few simple drawings. The mouse was later renamed Mickey Mouse and starred in several Disney produced films. Ub Iwerks refinedDisney's initial design of Mickey Mouse.[4] Disney's first sound film Steamboat Willie, a cartoon starring Mickey, was released on November 18, 1928[ChWDC 3] through Pat Powers' distribution company.[4] It was the first Mickey Mouse sound cartoon released, but the third to be created, behind Plane Crazy and The Gallopin' Gaucho.[ChWDC 3] Steamboat Willie was an immediate smash hit, and its initialsuccess was attributed not just to Mickey's appeal as a character but to the fact that it was the first cartoon to feature synchronized sound.[4] Disney used Pat Powers' Cinephone system, created by Powers using Lee De Forest's Phonofilm system.[ChWDC 3] Steamboat Willie premiered at B. S. Moss's Colony Theater in New York City, now The Broadway Theatre.[5] Plane Crazy and The Galloping Gaucho werethen retrofitted with synchronized sound tracks and re-released successfully in 1929.[ChWDC 3]
Disney continued to produce cartoons with Mickey Mouse and other characters,[4] and began the Silly Symphonies series with Columbia Pictures signing on as Symphonies distributor in August 1929. In September 1929, theater manager Harry Woodin requested permission to start a Mickey Mouse Club which Waltapproves. In November, test comics strips are send to King Features, who request additional samples to show to the publisher, William Randolph Hearst. On December 16, the Walt Disney Studios partnership is reorganized as a corporation with the name of Walt Disney Productions, Limited with a merchandising division, Walt Disney Enterprises, and two subsidiaries, Disney Film Recording Company, Limitedand Liled Realty and Investment Company for real estate holdings. Walt and his wife held 60% (6,000 shares) and Roy owned 40% of WD Productions. On December 30, King Features signed its first newspaper, New York Mirror, to publish the Mickey Mouse comic strip with Walt' permission.[ChWDC 4]
In 1932, Disney signed an exclusive contract with Technicolor (through the end of 1935) to produce cartoonsin color, beginning with Flowers and Trees (1932). Disney released cartoons through Powers' Celebrity Pictures (1928–1930), Columbia Pictures (1930–1932), and United Artists (1932–1937).{cn|date=November 2012}} The popularity of the Mickey Mouse series allowed Disney to plan for his first feature-length animation.[4]
1934–1945: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and World War IIDeciding to push theboundaries of animation even further, Disney began production of his first feature-length animated film in 1934. Taking three years to complete, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, premiered in December 1937 and became highest-grossing film of that time by 1939.[6] Snow White was released through RKO Radio Pictures, which had assumed distribution of Disney's product in July 1937,[ChWDC 5] afterUnited Artists attempted to attain future television rights to the Disney shorts.[7]
Using the profits from Snow White, Disney financed the construction of a new 51-acre (210,000 m2) studio complex in Burbank, California. The new Walt Disney Studios, in which the company is headquartered to this day, was completed and open for business by the end of 1939.[ChWDC 6] The following year on April 2, WaltDisney Productions had its initial public offering.[ChWDC 7]
The studio continued releasing animated shorts and features, such as Pinocchio (1940), Fantasia (1940), Dumbo (1941), and Bambi (1942).[4] After World War II began, box-office profits declined. When the United States entered the war after the attack on Pearl Harbor, many of Disney's animators were drafted into the armed forces. The...