Walt Disney Tribute
The Boy, The Man, The Legend
Episode 5 — Walt Disney
Trenton Larkin: Voiceover is everywhere and you hear it every day from radio… “number one for new country 96.3 Hawkeye in the morning”…to TV… “My name is, Lady Whistledown, You do not know me, but I know you”…to movies… “My name is Optimus Prime, Autobots, roll out”…to animation… “I am vengeance, I am the knight, I am Batman”,…and so much more… “Ba da ba ba ba I’m lovin’ it”…Welcome to Episode Five.
Announcer: Welcome to Who Did That Voice. The show where we take an in-depth look at the world of voiceover including movies, TV, animation, and more. And now here’s your host, Trenton Larkin.
Trenton Larkin: Hello, everyone and thank you so much for joining us today on the very first tribute episode of Who Did That Voice. On today’s story we will be learning about Walt Disney, the boy, the man, the legend.
Walt Disney: During the last few years, we’ve ventured into a lot of different fields. And we’ve had the opportunity to meet and work with a lot of wonderful people. I only hope that we never lose sight of one thing. That was all started by a mouse.
Trenton Larkin: Now sit back, relax and enjoy the show.
Trenton Larkin: When you hear the name Walt Disney iconic images are sure to follow. Maybe your thoughts take you back to the first time you’ve heard Mickey’s laugh. Or maybe your mind races to your first trip to Disneyland or Walt Disney World. Perhaps nostalgia transforms you into a kid again while watching your favorite classic Walt Disney Feature Film or animation. No matter what memories come to mind. It is almost certain that hearing the name Walt Disney warms your heart and brings a smile to your face. Walt Disney wasn’t always the world renowned legend that we know today. In fact, his life started out in very humble beginnings. Walter Elias Disney was born on December 5th, 1901 in Chicago, Illinois to parents Flora and Elias Disney. At age seven, Walt and his family moved to a town called Marcelin, Missouri. It was at this point in his life when he became interested in drawing. Even as a seven year old boy he already expressed a real talent for sketching and drawing and even sold his first sketches to his neighbors. Only two years later, Walt Disney began to lead a dual life in his schooling. During the week he attended elementary school, but every Saturday he would hone his artistic skills in classes at the Kansas City Art Institute. It has been said that some of his first animal sketches came from books he borrowed from the Kansas City Library, Walt was always very fascinated with the fluid movements and motion of animals because he felt they had an elegance and a grace about them. Several years later, while Walt was exploring a movie house, he examined a canister of film, only to realize that the movies were just a series of moving pictures. It was at this moment in his young teenage life when Walt first realized how he could animate and bring his drawings to life on the big screen. The year is now 1918, and Walt was attending his freshman year of high school. While it was just a lad of 16 at this time, and decided to drop out of school to join the Navy. Due to his age, however, the Navy would not allow him to enlist. This did not, however, stop him from trying to find a way to join. He eventually found a Red Cross ambulance unit who would take him despite his age. During his time in France, he continued to draw and used his ambulance as the canvas to which he shared his art with the world. Walt’s passion for art never faded, but the war did keep his mind diverted until he returned home to the United States. After returning to America, Walt’s passion, direction, and his motivation to become an artist were stronger than ever. When he returned home to Missouri, he got a job with a studio in Kansas City. Shortly after being hired, Walt met and became friends with Ub Iwerks, who was another very talented young artist. Iwerks was a very shy and reserved young man, where Walt was one of the outgoing visionary types who was very business minded. In less than a year Iwerks in Disney decided to leave the studio where they met in order to start their own company. They called their first startup Iwerks Disney, which unfortunately was a very short lived venture. Walt eventually found work with an advertising agency in Kansas City, and soon after being hired convinced the company that they needed the talents of Iwerks as well. While together at the ad agency, Walt and Iwerks became more and more fascinated with animation. It wasn’t long before they both decided it was time to pack their bags leave the ad agency and set off on a new business venture. The next business Walt created was an animation company called Laugh-O-Grams. This company was created in the early years of animation and was said to have had a short life due to financial troubles. Laugh-O-Grams was also said to have been home to many of the early pioneers of the animation industry. The company had some successes despite financial shortcomings, but in the end, they had a run of bad luck that left the company in bankruptcy. Walt never let his failure stop him because he kept pressing onwards. Looking for a fresh start, he decided to pack his bags and head out for Hollywood. When Walt arrived in Hollywood, it was 1923. Once arriving, he sought out the help of his brother Roy and asked if he would partner with him to create a new company. Now with the two Disney brothers teamed up, they started Walt Disney Brothers Studios. Their company came into being on October 16th, 1923. Just a short time after the company’s creation, it was decided per Walts request of his brother Roy to rename the company to The Walt Disney Studios. Another heartbreaking setback for Walt occurred in 1927, when he was forced to part ways with his first iconic character, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. It was Universal Pictures, Charles Mintz, who was Walt Disney Studios distributor at the time, who informed Walt that Oswald was property of Universal Pictures due to a stipulation in his contract. Thus, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Walt’s first iconic creation was lost to him and co-creator Iwerks, adding insult to injury Mintz informed Walt that most of his staff had left Walt Disney Studios, having already signed contracts to work for universal instead. This put Walt in an extremely difficult place as his company was now very low on staff. However, he stuck to his beliefs and decided to part ways with Universal even if it meant losing Oswald and a big portion of his animating team behind. After losing Oswald in 1927, Walt began brainstorming ideas for the creation of his next iconic character. You might think it was our beloved Mickey Mouse, but in actuality, the character he created was named Mortimer Mouse. Upon discussing the name choice with his wife Lillian, she said that Mortimer sounded too pompous and suggested that the name Mickey should be used instead, Walt loved the name and decided his new icon would be called Mickey Mouse. In the end, Walt decided to use Mortimer mouse as Mickey’s polar opposite. Mortimer was tall, not short, he was lean instead of round, and he was mean instead of nice. Once Walt decided that Mortimer would be a separate character from Mickey, he later created a cartoon entitled, Mickey’s Rival, which released in the year 1936. As Walt was finally coming into a run of successes, the unimaginable happened, the start of what came to be known as the Great Depression. During this time of economic crisis, people lost their jobs, savings, wealth, entire companies and so much more. Walt, however, was a very fortunate man as his company and the people who worked for him were able to stay in business during these trying times. Right as the Great Depression was nearing its end, Walt Disney released his first feature length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, which released on December 21st, 1937, Walt had invested everything he had to make this film into a reality. And if this project had failed, Disney would have faced bankruptcy yet again. Thankfully, the animated feature did better than anyone could have ever imagined. Furthermore, it’s thanks to Snow White being such a success that Disney Animation films are still being made to this very day. One of the most well known milestones in Walt’s career was the iconic 1928 production of Steamboat Willie featuring Mickey Mouse. This animated short was said to be the debut of Mickey and Minnie Mouse. However, what really made this such a revolutionary animation for its time was its use of the Cinephone which brought sound to the film. This technology and Walt’s imagination created a cultural phenomenon in the animated film world that is still talked about to this day, as it fundamentally changed the animation world forever. Disney was also a trendsetter in the film industry as he produced the first cartoon that used the three color Technicolor process in his 1932 production of Flowers and Trees. In 1937, Disney would also be the first to produce a film that had both sound and color in his version of Snow White in the Seven Dwarves. Like most people who are great visionaries. Walt was known for being a man who sought perfection in all he did especially when it came to animation, if something had his name on it Walt wanted and expected it to be the best, he always strove to come up with new and unique concepts that would set him apart from others in the animation industry. One particular technique Walt created was dubbed the pencil test, which acted as a form of quality control during the animation process. Artists would painstakingly redraw and paint the animators pencil sketches onto a transparent cell. The pencil test art was used as a reference to make sure the characters features, emotions, and postures were kept intact during the animating process. This would allow the characters to have a smooth and natural look that helped them come to life on the big screen. Walt Disney had a variety of different talents to use to help his dreams come true. He was an animator, a businessman, a writer and an Imagineer, just to name a few. Today, a more commonly known talent is that Walt Disney himself was the very first voice of our beloved Mickey Mouse. A less widely known fact is that Walt is credited as being the second voiceover in history, but is credited as being the very first cartoon voiceover ever in history. Walt would come to use his voice for several of his smaller characters as time went on, but his most famous voices were those of Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Walt’s dreams, ingenuity and creativity helped to inspire a new generation of animators and voiceover artists. Chances are, whether you’re a child, a teen, or an adult, Walt Disney has probably touched your life in one way or another. To this very day, The Walt Disney Company is still creating and taking us to places beyond anything we could have ever imagined. Walt Disney is still a vital part of our lives and culture almost 55 years after his passing. Walt died on December 15th, 1966, at the age of 65. This December 15, 2021, will mark 55 years since this great man’s passing, and although Walt is no longer with us, his dreams continue to live on inside of each and every one of us. As long as the ideals, dreams, and fantasies that Walt sparked in our hearts stay alive, he is never truly gone. Walt’s legacy to us all is the reminder that behind every great success was a little boy or girl with a dream. As the songs in his movies often say, with hard work, dedication, and the power to persevere, you can make all your dreams come true.
Trenton Larkin: Thank you all for listening today. This has been a tribute episode. These episodes are done to commemorate and honor the voice over artists who have gone before us. We do these episodes so that their memories may live on forever in the joy they continue to bring us long after they have gone.
Trenton Larkin: Hey, everyone, thanks so much for listening today to Walt Disney, the boy, the man the legend, I have just a couple of Walt Disney quotes that have been inspirational to me. And I wanted to share those with you today. The first one is, “If you can dream it, you can do it”, which I wholeheartedly believe, because this podcast wouldn’t be here without the inspirations of people like Walt Disney, my family, my wife, and other people in the industry who have made voiceovers, what they are today. So I say a special thank you to all of them for being an inspiration to me, and to this show. The next Walt Disney quote is, “I would rather entertain and hope that people learn something, then educate people and hope they were entertained”. It’s a very inspirational word to me, especially because I want to be able to educate, motivate, and inspire people who listen to this show. Whether you’re interested in voiceover, because it’s a career industry you’re looking at, or whether it’s just something you find fascinating, or maybe it’s something you’ve never heard of before and today’s your first exposure. Welcome to all of you. And thank you for listening. I have one final quote before we go. And this one, I think sums it all up. “Animation offers a medium of storytelling and visual entertainment, which can bring pleasure and information to people of all ages everywhere in the world”. Thank you all again for listening to Walt Disney, the boy, the man, the legend.
Jimmy Cricket: Thanks, folks, for making this little gathering of ours so extra magical, from our family and friends to yours. Goodnight. And may all your wishes come true.
Walt Disney: Disneyland is your land. Here age relives fond memories of the past-and here youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future. Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams and the hard facts that have created America-with the hope that it will be a source of joy and inspiration to all the world.
Trenton Larkin: Hey everyone, and thanks so much for listening to today’s episode of who did that voice. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please check us out online on all social media platforms at whodidthatvoice and on YouTube at whodidthatvoice24. Also remember to check out our website whodidthatvoice.org. Again, that’s www.whodidthatvoice.org
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Announcer: Thank you for joining us today. We’ll see you next time for more discoveries on Who Did That Voice.
