General Fun Facts and Secrets About Disney

Orig Art
Original Art
  1. The Walt Disney Company was founded in 1923, so our 50th anniversary would have been in 1973. Next year will be the 75th anniversary.
    REPORTED: Walt Disney Archives 22 MAY 97
  2. Football announcer John Madden left ABC to broadcast NFL games on NBC. NBC also wanted his partner, Al Michaels, but he was still under contract to ABC (which is owned by Disney). So to get Michaels, NBC sold to Disney the rights to "Oswald the Lucky Rabbit", a 1927 cartoon character in 26 silent cartoons created by Walt Disney a year before Mickey Mouse. The first trade of a broadcaster for a rabbit!
    REPORTED: Ed 18 MAR 06
  3. Retlaw was Walt's own personal company which took in his income for the rights to his name, stock income and other income paid to him, hence the name "Retlaw" - "Walter" spelled backwards. It was never a subsidiary of the Disney corporation. As most people know, Walt was an avid train buff, and when he built Disneyland, he wanted complete control over the steam trains, so that he could take them out when ever he wanted. Thus, he placed the steam trains, and then later the monorails under the ownership of Retlaw and leased them back to the park. In 1982, the family decided to sell the assets of Retlaw, including the rights to Walt's likeness and name to the Disney Company, and a holding company, Walt Disney Incorporated was formed. Eventually, the steam trains and monorails became "officially" Disneyland's property.
    REPORTED: Kevin Lee 21 SEP 97
    Retlaw was not a Disney subsidiary, which was disbanded after Walt's death. It was a personal company of Walt Disney's, unaffiliated with Walt Disney Productions (aka The Walt Disney Company). Founded in 1953, it licensed the rights to Walt Disney's name and likeness, and owned the steam train and monorail operations at Disneyland. Walt Disney Productions purchased the name, likeness, and the train/monorail operations from Retlaw in the early 1980's. Retlaw still continues to thrive, as the owner of radio and television stations, among other properties.
    CONFIRMED: Randy Ballier 22 SEP 97
    CONFIRMED: Doug Davis 01 OCT 97
    CONFIRMED: Marty 18 NOV 98
  4. Roy Disney owns the gym I work out at in North Hollywood, Ca. He is Walt's brothers son. He is about 40.
    REPORTED: Dave Hawk 02 JAN 99
  5. Jackson Pollock used to say the hidden Mickeys in his paintings would be the death of him. If someone three dots that formed the Mickey head, it would drive him crazy. Bill S Burroughs used to blow away posters of Mickey mouse with a double barrel shotgun as a tongue-in-cheek protest to this not uncommon occurrence.
    REPORTED: anon 07 FEB 99
    REPORTED: Sonny Snarr 01 AUG 00

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