Walt Disney

My latest dive into the pool of highly recommended literature has landed me in the depths of Neil Gabler's Walt Disney: The Triumph Of The American Imagination. Some time back, before my much loved subscription ran out, I read an article in Forbes by the always interesting Rich Karlgaard in his Digital Rules segment, called "Seven Lessons Of Walt Disney". What stood out to me about his review was this pithy quote: "Walt Disney is the best business book I've read in years." Karlgaard is one of my fav's when it comes to biz advice columns, so if he says a biography about a cartoonist is the best there is concerning business books in recent years, then I couldn't be anything but all over it. I'm only about 10% of the way through, but already the reading is fireside-with-a-cup-of-java good, and is living up to the hype concerning practical business ideas. Sometimes the reminders of the old-fashioned, tried-and-true methods of an intense focus and solid work ethic, alongside a passion to succeed, serve to inspire me in a get-rich-quick fascinated society. The life of Walt Disney seems to project just these qualities, and I'm intrigued as well as motivated to continue putting my shoulder to the wheel in my attempt to accomplish my goals and fulfill my dreams.

I hadn't read anything by Gabler before that I recall, but his journalistic skills come highly lauded, and his abilities can probably be understood as almost magical seeing that he "is the first writer to gain complete access to the Disney archives". Seeing that Walt Disney died a shade over forty years ago, this seems a remarkable feat.

Perhaps this bit from the Amazon.com page will wet your whistle just a bit:

You Don't Know Disney: 10 Things That May Surprise You

1. He is not frozen. His body was cremated, and his ashes are interred at the Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale, California, near his studio.
2. Mickey Mouse's original name allegedly was Mortimer but Disney's wife Lillian objected because she thought it too "sissified."
3. Some of the names originally considered for the dwarfs in Snow White were: Deafy, Dirty, Awful, Blabby, Burpy, Gabby, Puffy, Stuffy, Nifty, Tubby, Biggo Ego, Flabby, Jaunty, Baldy, Lazy, Dizzy, Cranky and Chesty.
4. Walt Disney suffered a nervous breakdown in 1931 and descended into depression after the war, concentrating his attention on model trains rather than on motion pictures.
5. Fantasia was the result of a chance meeting between Walt Disney and symphony conductor Leopold Stokowski at Chasen's restaurant.
6. During World War II the Disney studio became a war factory with well over 90% of its production in the service of government training, education and propaganda films.
7. The studio stopped production for six months on Pinocchio because Walt felt the title character wasn't likable enough. During this time he devised the idea of introducing Jiminy Cricket as Pinocchio's conscience.
8. Walt Disney received more Academy Awards than any other individual--32.
9. Disney modeled Mickey Mouse on Charlie Chaplin and that Chaplin later assisted the Disneys by loaning them his financial books so they could determine what kind of proceeds they should be getting from their distributor on Snow White.
10. MGM head Louis B. Mayer once rejected the opportunity to distribute Mickey Mouse cartoons shortly after Walt had invented the character because Mayer said that pregnant women would be frightened by a giant mouse on screen.

After reading the book I think I may launch into a plan to watch all of the Disney films with a renewed sense of wonder, and a little more knowledge as to both where they came from, and the work involved in making them possible. Plus, with 2 kids it ought to be a blast just being with them through the magical journey...

*****UPDATE 5-9-07*****
I finished the book (finally!) tonight, and I must say it has been a thrilling and enlightening read. Walt Disney was an important icon while he was alive, and is no less a legend today better than 40 years after his death. From his humble beginnings and the years & years of struggles in getting his company off the ground, to the explosive growth that took place in his later years with the advent of television, the construction of Disneyland, and the massive land-grab in Florida for EPCOT & Disney World, this work chronicles every magical moment. I give it a 9.5/10.