The Disney Channel's It All Started With a Mouse - The Walt Disney Story (1989)

This documentary narrated by Mason Adams was produced by the Disney Channel to serve as a way to claim Eisner's Disney was built on the foundation of Walt and Roy's Disney. It features interviews with Disney Legends like Marc Davis, Ken Anderson, Ward Kimball, Frank Thomas, Ken O'Conner, Ollie Johnston, Jimmy MacDonald, and others as well as then contemporary figures such as Richard Williams, Roy Disney Jr, Michael Eisner, Jefferey Katzenberg, and more. However, this documentary isn't without flaws.

It's not nearly comprehensive but focuses on some interesting anecdotes about projects like Pinocchio. Some of the name pronunciations, facts, and dates in the narration are wrong (How do you get basic information like the year Mickey Mouse debuted or the name Ub Iwerks wrong...) so don't treat this as gospel. The real gem is the vintage footage, rare home movies, and interviews with people who collaborated with Walt. Nevertheless, you can see the seeds of PC Disney being planted here within the content of this program.

This documentary aired on the Disney Channel until the early 1990's when Jeffery Katzenberg left the Walt Disney Company and Michael Eisner put an embargo on his contributions to projects ever being mentioned again in company history. That has since gone away. This is still an interesting part of Walt Disney history and a snapshot of what the Walt Disney Company was like on the eve of the animation renaissance it would soon enjoy.

Original air date March 10, 1989

Posted for historical purposes. This channel is not affiliated with the Walt Disney Company.