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'American Experience: Walt Disney' premiering September 14-15 (9/8c) on PBS.

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Spike Spiegel

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EDIT:

Watch 'Walt Disney' (Complete) @ PBS.org (expires 10/12/2015)

Watch Part One @ PBS.org



Press Release

(BOSTON, MA) June 4, 2015 -- In 1966, the year Walt Disney died, 240 million people saw a Disney movie, 100 million tuned in to a Disney television program, 80 million bought Disney merchandise, and close to seven million visited Disneyland. Few creative figures before or since have held such a long-lasting place in American life and popular culture.

AMERICAN EXPERIENCE offers an unprecedented look at the life and legacy of one of America’s most enduring and influential storytellers in Walt Disney, a new two-part, four-hour film premiering Monday and Tuesday, September 14-15, 2015, 9:00-11:00 p.m. ET on PBS (check local listings). Executive produced by Mark Samels, directed and produced by Sarah Colt, and written by Mark Zwonitzer, the film features rare archival footage from the Disney vaults, scenes from some of his greatest films, and interviews with biographers and historians, animators and artists who worked on Snow White and other early films, and designers who helped create Disneyland.

"Walt Disney is an entrepreneurial and cultural icon," said AMERICAN EXPERIENCE Executive Producer Mark Samels. "No single figure shaped American popular culture in the 20th century more than he."

From Steamboat Willie to Pinocchio to Mary Poppins, Disney's movies grew out of his own life experiences. He told stories of outsiders struggling for acceptance and belonging, while questioning the conventions of class and authority. As Disney rose to prominence and gained financial security, his work became increasingly celebratory of the American way of life that made his unlikely success possible.

Yet despite the success he achieved, he was driven and restless, a demanding perfectionist on whom decades of relentless work and chain-smoking would take their toll. He wanted his films to make people feel deeply, yet often buried his own emotions. Aspiring to create great artistic films, he felt he wasn't taken seriously by the movie industry, and was stung when critics panned his productions. Never satisfied with his previous efforts, he always pushed forward to a "new adventure," but his attention to detail and quest for innovation frequently meant delays and cost overruns. When his employees organized and went on strike, Disney felt betrayed, not able to understand how people who worked for him could be unhappy; years later he called them "communists" before the House Un-American Activities Committee.

A polarizing figure -- though true believers vastly outnumber his critics -- Disney's achievements are indisputable. He created one of the most beloved cartoon characters in history, Mickey Mouse; conceived the first ever feature-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs; pioneered the integration of media and marketing with thousands of branded products; and conceived Disneyland, the world's first theme park and a three-dimensional realization of his own utopian universe.
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Part One (airing September 14, 9/8c)

Part One (1901-1941) explores the complex life and enduring legacy of the iconic filmmaker, from his early days creating Mickey Mouse through the triumph of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the first full-length animated film.

Born in 1901 in Chicago, Walter Elias Disney grows up determined not to be like his father, an imperious man whose business ventures frequently ended in failure. When Walt is four years old, the family moves to a small farm in Marceline, Missouri, a place he would go on to immortalize as the symbol of idyllic childhood.

An artist and cartoonist in his youth, Walt Disney is only 17 when he returns from World War I and moves to Kansas City, landing a job as a commercial artist and soon starting his own animation studio. Although Laugh-O-grams goes bankrupt, Disney is undeterred, moving to Los Angeles to join brother Roy and break into the booming Hollywood movie business. Before long the Disney Brothers Studio is churning out a new short every 16 days. In 1928, Steamboat Willie premieres, making Mickey Mouse the newest Hollywood celebrity; Roy sees another stream of revenue in Mickey’s popularity -- licensed merchandise.

Disney then focuses on his next obsession: creating the first-ever feature-length, story-driven cartoon based on the tale of Snow White. With this huge artistic and financial gamble, Disney is determined to elevate animation to the level of dramatic feature films. His perfectionism slows the pace of production but the gamble pays off. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs grosses $8 million in its first year — the equivalent of over $100 million today.

Walt Disney develops plans for Bambi, Pinocchio, and Fantasia, the film that excites him the most. With three major films in production simultaneously, the studio nearly doubles the number of full-time employees and Disney builds his new dream studio in Burbank. But while audiences and critics praise Pinocchio, ticket sales are slow. To make matters worse, critics are divided over Fantasia and the film is a financial failure.

By 1940, the Screen Cartoonists Guild has organized every studio except the Walt Disney Studio. Believing he has the right to run his company as he sees fit, Disney’s attitude alienates the workers, who overwhelmingly vote to strike. On May 29, 1941, Disney has to drive through a picket line with more than 200 workers -- some of whom are his most trusted animators. Surprised, angered, and feeling betrayed, Disney is devastated.
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Part Two (airing September 15, 9/8c)

Part Two (1941-1966) continues to explore the life and enduring legacy of Walt Disney, as he makes films such as Cinderella and Mary Poppins and realizes his dream project, Disneyland.

With the coming of World War II, funding for feature films dries up and the studio is faltering. When Bambi is released in 1942, critics give mixed reviews, but the film does not make its costs back, and the company faces a mountain of debt.

Soon another wave of union organizing takes place in Hollywood, and studio bosses are determined to fight back. Along with a dozen other Hollywood executives and celebrities, Walt Disney testifies before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1947 as one of the “friendly witnesses.”

In the latter half of the 1940s, Disney travels to England to launch a series of live-action films and also visits Alaska, where the Academy Award-winning nature documentary Seal Island (1948) is shot. The studio begins production on Cinderella, but Disney, nearing fifty, is beginning to physically wear down.

When Cinderella premieres in 1950, the film is a critical and box-office hit, but Walt Disney is more interested in a personal obsession: building scale model trains, first at his studio and then in his backyard in Holmby Hills. The project leads to Walt’s most wildly audacious idea: the creation of Disneyland, a living movie, and a three-dimensional make-believe world where real people can experience adventure. To fund Disneyland, Disney exploits the growing medium of television, making a deal with ABC to create a weekly television series that provides much of the $5 million needed for construction.

When the gates open on July 17, 1955, visitors flood in; nearly half of America watches a live telecast of the events. Disneyland draws a million visitors in its first ten weeks; soon there are five million per year and Walt’s creation has become a must-see.

By 1960, Walt Disney stands atop one of the world’s most profitable entertainment enterprises. The steady stream of revenue from Disneyland means Walt is free from interference from his bankers for the first time in his forty-year career. But whether he was making improvements on his theme park, or overseeing his TV shows and the half-dozen movies his studio is producing every year, he seems more interested in his legacy than in taking the artistic risks that made him famous.

Debuting in the summer of 1964, Mary Poppins is based on one of Walt Disney’s children’s favorite books. A novel about a dysfunctional family, it is Disney’s most deliberate refashioning of his own hard-hearted father story. The film becomes a box-office smash and is nominated for 13 Oscars, giving Disney his first and only nomination for Best Picture.

In 1965, news breaks that Walt Disney is planning another project on a massive scale in central Florida: the Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, or EPCOT.

He does not live to see its creation, passing away at the age of 65 on December 15, 1966 from lung cancer. He has won more Academy Awards ® than anyone else in history and received two Emmys. His death is front-page news around the world.
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'American Experience: Walt Disney' Preview (Youtube)


American Experience Producer Mark Samels: Why We Made 'Walt Disney' (Youtube)


'American Experience: Walt Disney' Playlist (Youtube)


'Walt Disney' Part 1, Chapter 1 (PBS Video)

News and Reviews

The New York Times: "PBS’s ‘Walt Disney’ Explores a Complex Legacy"

SF Gate: "'Walt Disney' and the American Dream on PBS"

Los Angeles Times: "Walt Disney - Hero or Villain? A PBS Documentary Tries for a Balanced Portrait"

USA Today: "PBS Doc Shows Darker Side of Disney"

Variety: "'Walt Disney' Life, Legacy Chronicled by PBS Documentary (Review)"

Rotoscopers: "‘American Experience: Walt Disney’ Brings Professional, Eye-Opening Bio to PBS"
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But wait, there's more!

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In Their Own Words is a unique and stylish new biography series that explores an elite few of the 20th century’s greatest figures. The inaugural season features episodes on a diverse trio of extraordinary subjects: three-time World Heavyweight Champion boxer Muhammad Ali, Muppets creator Jim Henson and Britain’s long-reigning monarch Queen Elizabeth II.

Each chapter in these artfully crafted biographies is inspired and marked by some of the most memorable words spoken by these world icons: words that describe the subject creatively and intimately. These memorable quotes keynote the storytelling, as each sequence sheds new light on key moments in our subjects’ lives — illuminating their fascinating personalities and spotlighting their profound cultural and historical impact for a new generation of television viewers. Stylized, evocative recreations of significant moments in the subjects’ lives add texture to the visual storytelling and also serve as background for some of the featured quotes.

This non-linear approach to the top of each episode alerts veiwers to the fact that In Their Own Words is a biography series unlike anything they’ve seen. The majority of the narrative is carried by deeply personal interviews with those who know the subjects intimately: family, co-workers, colleagues, biographers, etc.

[...]

The film follows Henson’s career from his first work with his Muppets in the early 1950’s during television’s Golden Age up to his sudden and shocking death in 1990, as he transcended puppetry to become one of the most creative, prolific and influential artists of his time. Key events include his early television work with the Muppets while still a student at the University of Maryland, his commercial work and network appearances in the late 1950s and early 1960’s, his breakthrough with Sesame Street, The Muppet Show, Fraggle Rock, and his groundbreaking fantasy films, Dark Crystal and Labyrinth.

Among those interviewed for the Jim Henson episode are his children, Lisa, Cheryl, Brian and Heather Henson, actors Neil Patrick Harris and Candice Bergen, Willard Scott, director John Landis, former Disney CEO Michael Eisner, and Sesame Street cast members Bob McGrath and Carroll Spinney.
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'In Their Own Words: Jim Henson' Preview (Youtube)

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I've been looking forward to this one for a while now; should make for an amazing two nights of public television. Cannot wait. :D
 
D

Data West

coaches in the WNBA
Any idea if they'll upload this stuff online? I'll be at work. I"m already bummed out I missed the last Disney TCM thing.
 
S

Spike Spiegel

Member
Data West said:
Any idea if they'll upload this stuff online? I'll be at work. I"m already bummed out I missed the last Disney TCM thing.
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Maybe? I mean, there's a page on PBS.org where episodes of American Experience can be viewed online for free. Plus, the great thing about PBS is that they re-air content several times throughout the week and weekend, so check the schedule for a time when you might be able to view it.
 
A

Amir0x

Banned
American Experience has some astonishing historical documentaries. I'm sure they'll do justice to Walt Disney as well. Fantastic choice of subject.
 
B

brianmcdoogle

Member
In one of the Walt Disney biography's I've read, one of my favorite stories is that he went around collecting German helmets and shot his gun at them and later sold them as war souvenirs because helmets with gunshots in them sold better.

Disney is great. I love him, but he's human, and I think you need to acknowledge great people are human. He made true works of art, was a real artist, and created Disneyland, which I, without any irony, believe is one of the "happiest places on earth", but his view of his workers, unions, and other things are real and problematic. He was human.

I really look forward to this. I hope it is honest and fair.
 
B

brianmcdoogle

Member
Amir0x said:
if it helps assuage your fear, I've never seen an American Experience documentary be anything but honest and fair. They can be brutal sometimes.
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Oh, very true. American Experience is great. I think my hesitation is personal; I really love Disney but I fully recognize his flaws, and in many works by others that I've read or encounters in film and documentary, it tends to always skew to hagiography or hatchet-job. I hope they find a fair middle ground with it.
 
A

Amir0x

Banned
brianmcdoogle said:
Oh, very true. American Experience is great. I think my hesitation is personal; I really love Disney but I fully recognize his flaws, and in many works by others that I've read or encounters in film and documentary, it tends to always skew to hagiography or hatchet-job. I hope they find a fair middle ground with it.
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That makes sense. Well, in American Experience terms, they did profile Ford, and he is a much worse person than Disney ever was. And that was a pretty even-handed profile of Ford.
 
S

Shiv47

Member
Will be interested to watch, but the NYT review said they really gloss over the negative stuff, as in mention it in a sentence and move on without really exploring it.
 
N

Nelo Ice

Banned
Oo this looks like it'll be good and I like this blurb from the LA Times review. Sounds like they got no input from the Disney company.

He also took the hard line that Disney could have no editorial input into the project. Samels believes that his unyielding stance ultimately led to the project's approval, as it absolved everyone up and down the Disney corporate chain of responsibility over the content. Days before airing, no one from Disney has seen the documentary.
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S

Spike Spiegel

Member
Amir0x said:
American Experience has some astonishing historical documentaries. I'm sure they'll do justice to Walt Disney as well. Fantastic choice of subject.
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American Experience is a program that I will immediately stop and watch, even if it's an episode that I've seen before. They're amazing documentaries. I couldn't tell you how many times I've watched the Freedom Riders episode.
 
B

BigMack

Member
Ooohh nice! Thank you for sharing this. I had no idea this was airing.

I just saw the Walt Before Mickey trailer yesterday and was thinking how I needed to go read up on him before the movie. So this is great timing.
 
K

Kitoro

Member
Totally read the title American Express: Walt Disney, and thought it was a show about a new Disney credit card.

Can't wait to watch this, though!
 
B

BertramCooper

Banned
Good stuff. Can't stay up for all of it, so I'm setting it to record.

Anyone enjoying this should check out Neil Gabler's biography of Walt. Gabler's one of the folks interviewed for this and his Walt bio is phenomenal.
 
U

User 463088

Banned
I enjoyed it.

I'm glad they actually didn't make Walt out to be perfect nor perfectly flawed. Way too often documentaries about him are either rose colored, or he's the son of Satan. The truth, like it often is, is somewhere in the middle. I'll definitely tune in tomorrow night, same Batchannel, same Battime.
 
B

brianmcdoogle

Member
Glad I stayed up for all of it. The union strike is the natural act break in his life. Now, we get to see the bad years during the war and postwar.

Only thing I wish is that they focused a little more on his childhood and war years and the early work as a cartoonist. They mention the overbearing father, but he actually had Walt work for hours before school every morning and all of Walt's money went to his father; he got nothing for his work.
 
B

BertramCooper

Banned
brianmcdoogle said:
Only thing I wish is that they focused a little more on his childhood and war years and the early work as a cartoonist. They mention the overbearing father, but he actually had Walt work for hours before school every morning and all of Walt's money went to his father; he got nothing for his work.
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Yep, there was very little on both his childhood and his early career - especially the Alice shorts and Oswald.

For that reason I'd definitely recommend people check out a good biography of Disney.
 
F

FlyinJ

Douchebag. Yes, me.
Is anyone getting really annoying stutter when watching from the PBS website? I get these 1 second pauses every 10-60 seconds. Driving me crazy.
 
D

Data West

coaches in the WNBA
I finally watched the first part and enjoyed it. Though if I'm going to be honest, I'm more excited about the second part and the Henson doc(which I assume will be put up on the site tonight)

Lots of great footage in it. Kind of wish there were more interviews, but I imagine a lot of the people you'd want to interview aren't around anymore.
 
V

VGChampion

Member
Haven't had a chance to watch yet. Have it on the DVR and was going to watch tonight but.... I bought Furious 7! Hopefully I'll get around to it tomorrow. Hope the second half is good. :)
 
T

The Albatross

Member
nicoga3000 said:
After watching it a few months ago, I didn't get what all the fuss was about. I was expecting a lot worse.
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It's just because Disney works pretty hard to bury the shit that just isn't acceptable. It's less racist than Gone With the Wind, Breakfast at Tiffany's, or just about any classic adaptation of Peter Pan, but because Disney so historically buried this movie it's gotten a lore around it. Incidentally, that is has one of the most memorable jingles associated with it (Zippity Doo Da) and one of the best rides in Disney World keeps it around as well.
 
G

Gallbaro

Banned
nicoga3000 said:
After watching it a few months ago, I didn't get what all the fuss was about. I was expecting a lot worse.
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The animation is fine and entertaining, but unfortunately the surrounding live action scenes in combination with the rather tame (Pixar like) moral, make it pretty damn racist.

But splash mountain is awesome.
 
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