The Disney Look... to the Past! (April 12-18)

Hello, and welcome to the latest edition of the weekly feature known as "The Disney Look... to the Past!"

Enjoy reading all of the following interesting facts about the Walt Disney Parks, Resorts, Movies, and more:

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This Week in Disney History: April 12-18

April 15, 1983 — Tokyo Disneyland opens

On a site overlooking Tokyo Bay in the suburb of Urayasu, fifteen minutes on a Keiyō Line train from the heart of the world’s most populous urban area, lies an incredible piece of Disney magic. The expansive, glass-ceilinged World Bazaar welcomes Guests to the eastern hemisphere’s most popular theme park, with Cinderella Castle overlooking the central plaza leading to seven themed lands, each featuring Disney Parks favorites spanning from the Haunted Mansion to Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters. Tokyo Disneyland operates under a unique partnership between Disney and the Oriental Land Company. Card Walker, the Disney president fundamental in the building of the Walt Disney World Resort and Epcot, gave the opening day dedication, modeling his words after Walt’s address at the opening of Disneyland Park. Now a full resort with the companion park Tokyo DisneySea, Iksipari shopping district and resort hotels connected by a monorail line, Tokyo Disneyland’s 30th anniversary marks the start of “The Happiness Year,” featuring a new parade plus the opening of Star Tours: The Adventures Continue later this spring.

April 18, 1983 — Disney Channel goes on the air

Launched at 7 a.m. with the first broadcast of “Good Morning Mickey,” Disney started its flagship cable network that expanded to become one of the biggest brands in television. Kid-driven and family friendly from its founding, Disney Channel began as a premium cable network with a 16-hour broadcast day. Children’s shows like “Welcome to Pooh Corner” and “Dumbo’s Circus” aired during the morning and afternoon, while classic Disney movies and original specials aired in the evening. The tween variety show “Kids Incorporated” became a breakout hit, and by 1986 the channel was a 24-hour operation. Lauded for educational programming like “Adventures in Wonderland” and “Bear in the Big Blue House,” Disney Channel also spawned monumental pop culture moments like “The New Mickey Mouse Club” and the “High School Musical” franchise. Disney Channel finished 2012 as the number-one U.S. cable network for kids from 2 to 11, with the age set’s most-watched animated show (“Phineas and Ferb”) and live-action show (“Good Luck Charlie.”) Disney Channels Worldwide features more than 100 cable channels airing in 169 countries and territories, in 35 languages.

Also this week in Disney history:

April 12

1946 — The cartoon short “Pluto’s Kid Brother” debuts

1992 — Disneyland Paris opens

1995 — ‘Ohana opens at Disney’s Polynesian Resort

1996 — Walt Disney Pictures releases “James and the Giant Peach”

April 13

1935 — “Mickey’s Kangaroo,” the last black-and-white Walt Disney Studios cartoon short, debuts

April 14

1934 — “The Big Bad Wolf” (Silly Symphony) debuts

1984 — An updated version of the Alice in Wonderland attraction opens at Disneyland Park

2008 — Ollie Johnston, Disney animator and the last of Walt’s “Nine Old Men,” dies at age 95

April 15

1932 — The Mickey Mouse animated short “Barnyard Olympics” debuts, coinciding with the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles

1938 — The animated short “Donald’s Nephews” debuts, featuring the first appearances of Huey, Dewey, and Louie

1962 — The television special “Disneyland After Dark” debuts on Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color

1973 — The Walt Disney Story opens at Magic Kingdom Park

1975 — Flight to the Moon closes at Magic Kingdom Park

1983 — Tokyo Disneyland opens

2012 — The nighttime street celebration ElecTRONica ends at Disney California Adventure Park

April 16

2001 — Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge opens at the Walt Disney World Resort

2007 — Disneyland Resort announces the entire Disneyland Railroad fleet has been converted to run on biofuel instead of diesel

April 17

1958 — The Circarama film “America the Beautiful” debuts at the World’s Fair in Brussels, Belgium; the first Disney attraction ever to open outside a Disney Park

April 18

1953 — The final classic Mickey Mouse theatrical short, “The Simple Things,” debuts; the next released, three decades later, was “Mickey’s Christmas Carol” (1983)

1983 — Disney Channel goes on the air

1994 — “Beauty and the Beast: A New Musical” premieres at the Palace Theatre in New York City

2002 — Primeval Whirl opens at Disney’s Animal Kingdom

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Thank you for reading, and have a great rest of your weekend!

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