It is not an exaggeration to say that the fairy tale world for many children around the world is associated with the two words Walt Disney.
After 100 years of formation and development, the animation production company has gradually become more widely known by the affectionate name "Disney World". On TV, at the cinema or when traveling, it is easy to see this familiar brand. It is the result of the process of rising from a garage in the film capital of Hollywood to a separate cultural kingdom.
Just as an animated film is created by assembling drawings, today's Walt Disney Entertainment began as an animation studio and expanded to comic books, live-action films, radio shows, theme parks, television channels, sports channels, musicals, video games, and streaming services.
The important milestones that shaped the Walt Disney fairy tale world began in 1923 when Walter Elias Disney and his brother Roy started a joint studio project in Hollywood in a garage. The studio's first success was the birth of the character Mickey Mouse. First appearing in 1928 in the short film "Steamboat Willie", the mouse's name was supposed to be Mortimer but was changed to Mickey at the suggestion of Walt Disney's wife, Lilly. The "generous and good-natured" Mickey Mouse gradually became an indispensable friend in the childhood of children around the world.
It wasn't until nearly 10 years later, when Disney's first color animated film, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," was released in 1938, that the company had another shot at overcoming the enormous success of Mickey Mouse. The film "pocketed" an Oscar the following year. In 1940, Walt Disney went public, creating 1,000 jobs at its studios in Burbank, California.
Following the success of its animated characters, the company expanded its investment in theme parks. Disney opened its first park in Anaheim, California, in July 1955, and opened its second park, "Magic Kingdom," in Orlando in 1971. The parks were quickly recognized as important factors in revolutionizing the American tourism industry and expanded overseas, to Tokyo, Japan, in 1983, before moving to Paris, Hong Kong, China, and Singapore.
In 1966, Walt Disney died at the age of 65, but to this day, he still holds the record for most Oscars in a lifetime, with 22. After his death, his brother Roy took over the company for 5 years.
1984 marked a new chapter in the legendary studio's development when Michael Eisner took over. During Eisner's 21 years in charge, Disney transformed into a multinational entertainment company with skyrocketing revenues. The Disney Corporation acquired ABC, ESPN, Miramax, and expanded into other businesses such as clothing, video games, games, recordings, and cruise ships. The company even had its own currency, the "Disney Dollar," which circulated in theme parks for 30 years until 2016.
After many years of expanding its business, in 2006, under the leadership of CEO Bob Iger, Disney returned to the animation industry with a $7.4 billion purchase of Pixar in 2006, followed by a $4 billion purchase of Marvel in 2009 and Lucasfilm with the superhero series "Star Wars" (Star Wars in 2012 for $4.05 billion.
Entering the streaming era, Disney launched Disney+ in 2019, a streaming channel that offers a wide range of movies and shows from Disney, Marvel, Lucasfilm, and 21st Century Fox. The success of Disney+ has helped offset some of the sharp declines in revenue from theme parks and movie theaters due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the development process, the company also encountered many difficulties with the ups and downs and fluctuations of the times and at times had to lay off thousands of employees, but for many people, the fairy tale world that Walt Disney created is still something that remains forever.
To celebrate its 100th anniversary, Walt Disney has released a short film featuring over 500 characters from 85 of its iconic films. Titled "Once Upon a Time in the Studio...", the film combines digital images with hand-drawn drawings and live-action scenes to celebrate the studio's monumental work, with the theme that lives up to founder Walt Disney's wish: "We will never forget one thing: It all began with a mouse."
According to Tin Tuc newspaper