Walt Disney

Walt Disney (http://projects.latimes.com/hollywood/star-walk/walt-disney/ ())

This world is choked with media and art, and who else could be better known for this art other than the world renowned creator Walt Disney. Most people do not know about where Walt Disney came from or who the important people in his life were, so here it is. In Chicago, German-American Flora Call, and Irish-Canadian Elias Disney had their son, Walter Elias Disney (DiMeglio). As children, the Disneys didn't have the life of a normal child because their father never gave them joys of toys and games (DiMeglio). During Walt's childhood, his family moved to a town in Missouri called Marceline which helped to create his vision of Main Street U.S.A. in Disneyland, California (Bosley). At the age of 17, Disney dropped out of high school to serve overseas during World War I as an ambulance driver ("Walter Elias Disney"). After he came back from war, he met Ub Iwerks, a man that helped Disney build up his astounding empire (Bosley). In 1919, Disney returned to Kansas City to take a part in internship to make animated advertisements ("Walter Elias Disney"). Walt Disney was a motion picture and television producer that created animated cartoons such as Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. In 1928, Disney and Iwerks finished two Mickey Mouse cartoons: Plane Crazy (1928) and Gallopin' Gaucho (1928) (DiMeglio). In 1965, Disney was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Lyndon B. Johnson ("Walter Elias Disney"). On December 15, 1966, Walt Disney died in St. Joseph's Hospital in Los Angeles from respiratory complications due to him being a smoker ("Walter Elias Disney"). As a hero, a person should be hard-working and possess creativity. As a hard worker, they get important things done and get them done well. Their creativity would help blossom fantastic opportunities and help to achieve dreams. Walt Disney was a hard-working business man who had creativity that had constructed theme parks and outstanding motion pictures, which is what makes him a hero.

Walt Disney Animation Studios (http://bobbypontillas.blogspot.com/2011/09/walt-disney-animation-studios_7285.html ())

Walt Disney strove for the best by working hard and all of that hard work paid off. Before he became known as a world renowned cartoonist, Walt Disney helped people in Germany. "His progress was interrupted by World War I, in which he participated as an ambulance driver for the American Red Cross in France and Germany" (Bosley). Alongside being an amazing cartoonist, Disney worked to help save lives by working with Red Cross during World War I. Disney was able to balance his creative life while having a life dedicating his time saving others. As a cartoonist, he was at the top of his game and was even proposed that, "Disney himself was acclaimed as one of the two top geniuses in filmmaking" (DiMeglio). Disney was a businessman. He created a world for children to live out their dreams. He aided in the creation of many cartoon shorts, over 10 full motion pictures, and 2 amusement parks before his death. He made sure that he got motion pictures done adequately to kick start his business, so that if he were to leave, it would progress even more. Even after he passed away, the Disney movies kept popping out and each one was an instant success. "Few individuals have had a greater impact on both the entertainment industry and the popular culture of the 20th century than Walter Elias Disney" ("Walter Elias Disney"). Disney's hard work created a world largely imprinted with the 'Disney stamp'. Everyone knows about Mickey Mouse or about the princess stories but nobody would know about them if it weren't for Walt and his artistic capabilities. He had the ability to get the hardest things done but it wouldn't have been possible if he didn't have the drive and the motivation from his dreams to get it done.

Walt and Mickey (http://your-cartoon-wallpaper.blogspot.com/2012/02/walt-disney-and-mickey-mouse-wallpaper.html ())

Disney constructed a world where things that seemed impossible were made possible and it would not have been achievable without his creativity. Based on the tiny creature that he found hiding away in his office, his character Mickey Mouse proved to be a real hit. "The growing popularity of Mickey Mouse and his girlfriend, Minnie, however, attested to the public's taste for the fantasy of little creatures with the speech, skills, and personality traits of human beings" (Bosley). With his artistic abilities, Disney was able to create imaginary characters based off of the barn animals that he grew up with. He created a whole persona off the top his mind, a mouse with red trousers with the ability to talk and dance. This character is known throughout the whole world and is a major part of some children's lives. One of his dreams was to open up a theme park in which he deemed, "The Happiest Place on Earth". "Opened in 1955, Disneyland quickly became one of the world's most popular tourist attractions. Dubbed 'The Happiest Place on Earth,' Disneyland became the real-life version of the fantasy world Disney had escaped to in his youth" ("Walter Elias Disney"). One of Disney's dreams was to open up an amusement park, which he fulfilled. His mind and talent helped to create the Disneyland we have come to know today, with the music, lights, and helpful and friendly staff. This is what he imagined the "Happiest Place on Earth" would be like. When he was a young child, this would the place he would escape to whenever he was abused. Disney was able to turn something ugly and unanimated into something beautiful and full of life. "Disney was said to have the facility of seeing things no others saw, from chairs being reshaped into acrobatic animals to swamps converted into paradises" (DiMeglio). Disney had capabilities that matched no other. He turned the most ordinary day-to-day things and made things that leave one's mind-blown. Not only are his works impressive, they have significant meaning. Without Disney's ability to create things out of nothing, children would be without their favorite cartoons and we would be living without the good morals that he incorporated into his works.

As a hero, Walt Disney worked hard and utilized his creativity to create beautiful things and to achieve his dreams. He was a cartoonist that made his dreams come true. He created an empire where kids can dream and aspire to be anything that they want to be. He has made many movies that we know today, and not only are they funny and witty, they have good morals. His biggest achievements would be the building and completion of his first theme park, Disneyland. Disney serves as a great inspiration to me and others because although he came from a rough place, he does not let it show.  He is a perfect example that shows that you do not have to be perfect to get to where you want to be.  He had a weak relationship with his father, others thought his ideas were ridiculous, and he was a smoker that suffered from lung complications.  But he did not let any of that stop him from doing what he did. He loved to help others in need, like when he went to help in World War I. He also helped to show me that, it is possible to achieve your dreams no matter how huge or small, how possible or farfetched. Although others shot down the idea of Disney's cartoons, he kept them,  pursued his dream, and kept cartooning with these characters. After more than 50 years, the characters that were once shut down are a major staple in today's media and culture. I find it to be inspiring that even though others thought his idea wasn't the smartest, he trudged along and ended up successful. What I find to be such a great idea may not seem the greatest to others, but if I stick with it, I could end up like the next Walter Elias Disney. If I can try, I can make it happen.

 Works Cited

Bosley, Crowther. "Disney, Walt." Britannica Biographies (2011): 1. Biography Reference Center. Web. 3 May 2012

DiMeglio, John E., and DiMeglio John E. "Walt Disney." Great Lives From History: The Twentieth Century (2008): 1. Biography Reference Center. Web. 3 May 2012.

"Disney's Secretariat Movie Currently Filming." Disney's Secretariat Movie Currently Filming. Web. 18 May 2012. .

"Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse Wallpaper." Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse Wallpaper. Web. 17 May 2012. .

"Walter Elias Disney." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Gale Biography In Context. Web. 8 May 2012.

"Walter Elias Disney." Entrepreneur. Web. 09 May 2012. .

"Walt Disney." Hollywood Star Walk. Web. 18 May 2012. .