Earliest known drawings of Mickey Mouse
Courtesy Walt Disney Family Foundation
© Disney

The first thing Richard Benefield wants you to know about Walter E. Disney is that he was a storyteller. He was also an artist, in the purest sense of the word. This becomes abundantly clear when you visit the soon-to-be completed Walt Disney Family Museum, of which Benefield is director.

The Museum, which is located in the Presidio and will open October 1, traces the history of Disney, the man, presenting in great depth the unprecedented scope of his influence and accomplishments. Spaced throughout ten galleries, the museum reveals, in chronological order, all of the many and varied milestones of Disney’s entire life, from birth into modest beginnings in Missouri through his sudden and internationally mourned death. From his early days teaching himself how to create animation to his Alice comedies, the birth of Mickey Mouse to feature-length animated films, television, nature documentaries, exhibits at the World’s Fair, and Disneyland. To launch into the story of Disney, the museum entrance features a selection of the over nine hundred major awards Disney received in his life, including twenty-nine of the thirty-two Academy Awards he received (among those on view is the only unique Oscar ever granted: it features one regular sized Oscar with seven smaller Oscars at its feet; a tribute to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs)—this was a man much revered.

Art and Innovation

As much as this museum is about the person Disney was, it is about what he, and the talent he surrounded himself with, created and developed. It is a unique opportunity to view, in some cases for the first time ever in public, artwork from some of the most recognized movies, and some of the most popular characters created in modern history. Among the highlights: the earliest known drawings of Mickey Mouse, concept drawings for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, story sketches of Dumbo, as well as early cartoons Disney drew for his high school newspaper. Mary Blair’s concept paintings for Peter Pan stand on their own as artworks. What emerges is further realization that the Disney company, at its heart and removed from being an enormous commercial venture, was a company of artists—individuals who tirelessly explored the limits of convention—and tremendously creative imagination. Every single movement of every single character was a sketch or painting; stories ranged widely, from delightful and light, such as Pinocchio, and Steamboat Willie, to experimental—the best example of which is surely Fantasia, or perhaps The Three Caballeros, and Mary Poppins, some of the first examples of melding live action and animation in a feature-length movie.

Of course, Disney was, almost from the very beginning, a multi-media artist. He was continually innovating to achieve exactly the effects he sought and utilizing the most advanced technology. “For decades,” states Benefield, “he was always on the cutting edge.”

Walt and Lilly Disney on the deck of Rex

Some of the advancements the Disney Studios brought to the world of art and entertainment include: synchronization of sound and image, first animated film in Technicolor, use of new sound technology, first animated feature to use widescreen, first to produce regular color programming for television, and use and refinement of the two-story multiplane camera, which brought greater depth to animated film. Disney also created the storyboard as well as some of the first nature documentaries (and the first of that genre to receive an Academy Award).

Visitors can get first-hand experience behind several of the technologies with the many interactive displays throughout the museum. One such area allows visitors to practice merging sound and images; a miniature version of the multiplane camera provides the viewer with a tangible understanding of how it works; another display explains how the optical printer was used, which allowed live-action and animation to be seamlessly integrated. Also on display, in addition to the original book, is a digital reproduction of Disney Studio’s employee Herman Schultheis’s special-effects notebook for Fantastia; featured are highly detailed notes, photographs, sketches, and other documentation. Several displays also feature video of Disney and his family, as well as many of the talented studio employees, giving an in-depth look at all aspects of the studio’s output.

Future Inspiration

The story of Disney, certainly, extends far beyond the days he lived, as his creations and contributions continue to inspire. This museum does us the service of granting greater access not only to the man, but to everything he created, his wisdom, whimsy, and drive, and the many others who contributed to the numerous achievements made under the banner of his eponymous company.

One can’t help but get caught up in the wonder of fantasy and imagination that permeates the telling of this iconic man’s life, and the thrill of his many successes, so beloved were they worldwide. The museum will embrace this momentum by featuring screenings, lectures, classes, and performances to further enlighten and educate future generations about the joy and artistry of storytelling, as well as pushing boundaries to discover innovating ways of presenting such creations. And perhaps this is the most important impact this museum journey will make: through experiencing in such great detail the enormous passion Disney had for bringing such fantastical and joyous experiences to the world, we are each delightfully infused with his magical world, and inspired, even in a small way, to bring some part of that to our today.

Chérie Turner is the editor of the Nob Hill Gazette