Walt Disney: Co-founder of The Walt Disney Company
Business Owner · Media & Entertainment
Walt Disney created Mickey Mouse in 1928, pioneered the animated feature film and opened Disneyland in 1955. He holds the record for the most Academy Awards won by an individual, with 22.
About Walt Disney: Co-founder of The Walt Disney Company
Walter Elias Disney (December 5, 1901 to December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor and entrepreneur, a pioneer of the American animation industry who introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film producer he holds the record for the most Academy Awards won (22) and nominations (59) by an individual, and he received two Golden Globe Special Achievement Awards and an Emmy Award, among other honors. Born in Chicago in 1901 and raised largely in Missouri, Disney developed an early interest in drawing, took art classes as a boy and became a commercial illustrator at 18. He moved to California in the early 1920s and set up the Disney Brothers Studio, now the Walt Disney Company, with his brother Roy. With Ub Iwerks he developed the character Mickey Mouse in 1928, his first highly popular success, and voiced the character himself in the early years. As the studio grew he introduced synchronized sound, full-color three-strip Technicolor, animated feature films and camera innovations, seen in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), Pinocchio and Fantasia (both 1940), Dumbo (1941) and Bambi (1942). After World War II new films followed, including Cinderella (1950), Sleeping Beauty (1959) and Mary Poppins (1964), the last of which won five Academy Awards. In the 1950s Disney expanded into the theme park industry, opening Disneyland in Anaheim in July 1955. Several of his films are in the National Film Registry, and the American Film Institute has named some among the greatest films ever. Sources: English Wikipedia (Walt Disney, accessed September 2026).
Basic Information
Co-founder, The Walt Disney Company (1901-1966)
Company Details
The Walt Disney Company
Animation, Film, Theme Parks