Walt Disney: a Cultural Transformation

Walt Disney: A Cultural Transformation “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” Walt Disney believed in this passionately. This is one of the many reasons Walt Disney accomplished so many things in his lifetime. With hard work and a great imagination you can truly do anything just as Walt Disney did. Even today Walt Disney’s company is extremely successful. All of the different things that Walt Disney and his company have done have contributed to the world’s popular culture. Walt Disney was born on December 5th, 1901. His parents were Elias and Flora Disney. Walt had a good childhood although it is said that his father had a bad temper that at times he could not control. Walt started to become interested in acting and drawing at a young age. At school, instead of focusing on his work, he would draw endlessly. Among his classmates he was known as Walt Disney, the artist. In 1917 Walt attended the Chicago Art Institute where he gained more experience. He dropped out of school in an attempt to join the army but was too young. Instead of the army, Walt joined the Red Cross where he drove an ambulance for a year. In 1919, Walt moved back to Chicago and started drawing for a living. After a couple fail attempts he and his brother were able to open Disney Brothers Studios. In 1927, Walt had created Oswald the lucky rabbit. Oswald turned out to be a huge success but Walt was betrayed. Universal pictures bought out Walt’s staff and he lost all rights to the character. Walt was desperate to create another successful character like Oswald. In 1928, Walt and his small circle of associates came up with a mouse character. The new character was named Mickey Mouse. At the time they didn’t know how much this little mouse would impact America. Mickey Mouse hit stardom when Steamboat Willie, the first animated short with sound and movement, was released. That’s when Walt Disney Productions was formed. During the time in which Mickey Mouse was