This Week in Disney History: April 12-18, 2020
There’s always a great, big, beautiful tomorrow at The Walt Disney Company, because every day is tied to a milestone in the heritage and rich history of a company that has been entertaining millions of people every year. Published every week, this interesting series features highlights from all the divisions of The Walt Disney Company. Let's see what happened this week:
April 16, 2001 – Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge opens at the Walt Disney World Resort
Jambo! After your day exploring Disney’s Animal Kingdom or experiencing all the adventures of Walt Disney World, come home to the resort that offers a true taste of Africa. Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge boasts its own 43-acre nature preserve, home to 33 species and approximately 200 individual hoofed animals and birds, greeting Guests from right outside their balconies.
African culture exudes from the architecture, including the 60- to 80-year- old “King’s Door” located just inside the entrance to Jambo House, plus its collection of authentic African art and its welcoming family of Cast Members. Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge has expanded to include Disney Vacation Club villas and Sanaa (Swahili for “work of art”), a dining location overlooking the savanna that offers sumptuous African cuisine.
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
PHOTO: © Walt Disney World Resort. All Rights Reserved.
Post a Comment