Celebrate Disney 100 | 100 Facts From A Centenary of Magic!

Celebrate Disney 100 with these amazing facts from a centenary of Disney magic and wonder!

Today, we celebrate Disney 100. The day the House of Mouse celebrates its epic centenary. Disney is one of the most influential companies of all time. What it has managed to build, grow, and create over the past 100 years is nothing but impressive. Disney has an impressive catalog of movies, starting in 1937 with the release of Snow White, which grew into a huge collection of animated and live-action films. Disney is the home of some of the largest film franchises. The Marvel Cinematic Universe, Toy Story, Cars, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Princess films. Disney theme parks known as the ‘happiest place on Earth’ are another huge asset. Disney is constantly evolving, creating new and innovative technology which is what has kept it so relevant for 100 years. So, to celebrate Disney’s 100 birthday, enjoy this list of 100 Disney Facts.

A LEGACY OF MAGIC

Steamboat Willie, released in 1928, was the first cartoon to use fully synchronized sound.
Tangled was the most expensive animated film ever made.
Women’s high hills sunk into Main Street U.S.A’s still drying asphalt on the day Disneyland opened.
Walt Disney and Roy Disney co-founded the Walt Disney Company.
Disney Purchased Pixar in 2006.
Mickey Mouse was originally called Mortimer but Walt’s wife Lillian suggested he be called Mickey.
For a few years, Disney held the patent for technicolor. Making him the only animator able to make color films.
Disneyland Resort in California opened on the 17th of July 1955.
Walt Disney has an apartment built for his family on Main Street U.S.A at Disneyland California. A lamp on the window signaled that Walt was in residence. There is a light permanently lit in that window now in remembrance of Walt.
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, released in 1937, was the first full-length animated feature film made.
Beauty and the Beast was the first animated feature to win a Golden Globe for Best Picture – Musical or Comedy.
Disney purchased Marvel Studios in 2009.
There are hidden Mickeys throughout the Disney Parks…
…There are also Donald Duck faces waiting to be discovered.
While working on Pinocchio, the animators had to build real-life versions of the clocks in Geppetto’s workshop to get Walt’s approval.
Walt mortgaged his home to finance the production of Snow White.
The first Disney film produced after Walt’s death was The Aristocrats, but he did approve of the film’s production.
The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is based on the Disney ride of the same name. However, the Shanghai version of the ride is based on the films.
It’s a Small World ride was originally designed for the 1964 World’s Fair with the theme ‘peace through understanding.’
Beauty and the Beast was the first animated film to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards.
Rapunzel is the first Disney Princess to have magical powers.
Walt received a full-size Oscar and seven miniature ones for Snow White when it won an Academy Honorary Award.
Disney purchased Lucasfilm in 2012.
There is a documentary about the production of The Emperor’s New Groove, but it has never been released.
Walt Disney left school at age 16.
The directors of Atlantis: The Last Empire had t-shirts printed saying ‘Fewer songs, more explosions’ which matched the direction of the film.
Disney personally oversaw the preparation of railroad tracks running through Disneyland’s Main Street U.S.A.
Dumbo is the only title character that never speaks in a film.
All of the dog barks in 101 Dalmatians were created by the voice of Donald Duck.
In Hercules, the Fates show Hades a prophecy of only six planets aligning because the ancient Greeks only knew of six planets.
Jungle Cruise was originally intended to be a serious ride.
Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World opened on the 1st of October 1971.
Walt Disney said that his favorite piece of animation was Cinderella’s dress transformation.
Disney was originally known as Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio until the name changed in 1926.
Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, 1993, was Disney’s first stop-motion animated film.
Space Mountain in Florida was the first fully computer-controlled roller coaster.
The Little Mermaid was the first Disney film to incorporate Pixar’s computer animation process.
The Pizza Planet delivery truck from Toy Story makes a cameo in every Pixar film except The Incredibles.
The Disney World Resort in Florida is about the same size as San Francisco.
Disneyland stemmed from Walt’s obsession with model trains.
Pirates of the Caribbean was the last attraction Walt supervised to completion before his death.
Epcot at Walt Disney World opened on the 1st of October 1982.
Disney parks have an exclusive members club called Club 33.
Mickey Mouse was the first animated character to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
There is a 30-year gap between two princess films – Sleeping Beauty and The Little Mermaid.
Wall-E and R2-D2 have the same ‘voice’ – both created by Ben Burtt.
‘When You Wish Upon A Star’ from Pinocchio was the first Disney song to win the Oscar for Best Original Song.
The Haunted Mansion ride is the only ride to be in different lands at all four parks it features.
Disney purchased 20th Century Studios in 2019.
Walt wanted everything bigger, better, more surprising, and more innovative, both in his movies and theme parks.
Tokyo Disneyland opened on the 15th of April 1983.
Frozen was the first Disney animated movie to be directed by a Woman.
Disney Pixar’s lamp mascot is named Luxo Jr.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios park at Walt Disney World opened on the 1st of May 1989.
There are 10,297 balloons in Pixar’s movie Up.
Mickey Mouse has worn around 300 outfits.
A worker died on The Haunted Mansion ride in Disneyland Paris when working on the electricity.
Walt helped spray paint the night before Disneyland opened.
Disneyland Paris opened on 12th April 1992.
There is a 650ft apartment in Cinderella’s Castle in Florida.
The prince in Cinderella was never given a name, now we know him as Prince Charming.
Mickey Mouse was the first animated character to talk, his first words, in the 1929 cartoon episode ‘The Karnival Kid’, were ‘Hot Dog!’
Each Pixar film holds an easter egg that features the code A113 – which is the classroom number used by animation students at the California Institute of the Arts.
Oswald ‘The Lucky Rabbit’ was Walt’s first original character.
The minimum score you can get on Buzz Lightyear Lazor Blast is 1,300 – which puts you at level two.
Disney Purchased ABC in 1996.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World opened on the 22nd of April 1998.
The first Disney movie to inspire a sequel was the film The Rescuers.
The horses that are found on Main Street U.S.A. have rubber-soled shoes.
The names on the windows along Main Street U.S.A. reflect people who are significant to the Disney story.
‘Elias Disney, Contractor Est.1895’ is a window sign dedicated to Walt’s father.
Shanghai Disneyland’s castle Enchanted Storybook Castle is the largest Disney castle.
Disney’s California Adventure Park at Disneyland opened on the 8th of February 2001.
Duffy and his friends are characters that feature only at the Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Tokyo Disney parks. He has not been featured in a movie or TV Show.
Disney is home to ‘Feral’ cats, that are fed and cared for, these cats keep the population of rodents down.
The Lion King, 2019, is the highest-grossing Disney film.
Anna (Frozen) is the first Disney Princess to have a duet with a villain.
Tokyo Disney Sea opened on the 4th of September 2001.
You can spot Mickey, Goofy, and Donald in the audience of King Triton’s concert in The Little Mermaid.
Walt placed bins at Disney World 25 steps from the hot dog stand, as this was how long it took him to eat a hot dog.
Disney currently co-owns Hulu with NBCUniversal.
The final film that Walt personally oversaw was The Jungle Book.
The Matterhorn rollercoaster at Disneyland has a secret basketball court inside it for staff to use.
Walt Disney Studios park at Disneyland Paros opened on the 16th of March 2002.
There are Disney stores in seven countries: USA, UK, Japan, France, Hong Kong, China and Germany.
Real skeletons were used on The Pirates of the Caribbean ride when it opened in 1967.
To achieve a natural skin tone for Snow White, real rouge was applied to the animated cells.
Hong Kong Disneyland opened on the 12th of September 2005.
Disney was sued by a hyena biologist for their portrayal of hyenas as sole villains in The Lion King.
Phillip (Sleeping Beauty) was the first Disney Prince to be given a proper name.
Hong Kong Disneyland is the only part that has completely rebuilt its castle, it now pays homage to 13 Princesses.
in 1975, Magic Kingdom welcomed real astronauts as they attended the opening of Space Mountain.
Discoveryland at Disneyland Paris is based on the works of Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, and Leonardo Da Vinci.
Shanghai Disneyland opened on the 16th of June 2016.
Walt once played Peter Pan in a school play
Walt’s brother Roy purchased the first Disney ticket.
Disneyland cost $17 Million to build, largely because Disney was never satisfied.
The Tree of Life at Animal Kingdom was built over a 14-story oil ring, at 145 feet it is covered in 100,000 leaves.
Walt voiced Mickey Mouse until 1947.
Walt Famously said that ‘All dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them’

CELEBRATION

How will you be celebrating Disney’s centenary? Is an animated movie marathon on the cards? Or will you be diving into the adventures from a galaxy far, far away? Sound off in the comments below. Be sure to subscribe to our newsletter at the top of our homepage for all the latest news and reviews from Future of the Force.

Happy birthday, Disney. Thank you for 100 years of movie magic!

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Darcie

Darcie Gray is the Fashion Editor of The Future of the Force. Aside from being a passionate Star Wars fan, she loves every genre of movies and she channels her passion for film into her personal blog Just Another Film Blog. Follow her on Twitter where she shares her love of film regularly.