Walt and Roy Disney founded the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio in 1923. Three years later, that business evolved into the global juggernaut that we know as The Walt Disney Company. And whenever a company is in business for that long, mistakes are made. To its credit, Disney does a great job of protecting its brand, but some of their worst mistakes linger. Here are some of the most shameful incidents in Disney history.
Aladdin alienates Robin Williams
Image: DisneyAs Disney filters through its cycle of live-action remakes of animated classics, the timing of this story matters. During 2019, Disney released an updated version of Aladdin, the number one worldwide blockbuster of 1992 and the seventh-biggest movie ever at that time.
While history remembers Aladdin as a massive success, it was once a mess of a project seemingly doomed to fail. Then, Robin Williams returned a favor for a friend. The comedian felt he owed Jeffrey Katzenberg, a then-Disney employee, for taking a chance on him with Good Morning, Vietnam and Dead Poet’s Society.
Katzenberg understood that Aladdin was in trouble and asked his friend, Williams, to come by Disney’s studio and spitball ideas. Everyone involved with those meetings would agree that Williams saved the project with his thoughts and manic energy.
Image: DisneySince the actor had little expectation for the box office of Aladdin, he agreed to take less than his standard fee of $8 million. In fact, he earned much less. Robin Williams was paid only $75,000 for one of the most memorable roles of his career.
In exchange for his generosity, all he asked from Katzenberg was a promise that Disney would not promote Williams or The Genie. You can guess how well that went. Angered over the broken promise, Williams swore never to work with Disney again, a vow he largely maintained for the rest of his life.
Don Rosa
Image: DisneyYou may not be familiar with his name, but Don Rosa is an Eisner Award-winning author and illustrator. His work on licensed Disney comics like Scrooge McDuck and Donald Duck is seminal. Most of the stories that you love about these characters from 1987 through 2006 came from Rosa. Then, he suddenly stopped creating.
Rosa explained the why of his retirement. “[T]hey broke my spirit.” Sadly, the “they” in question is Disney. Even though he was one of the most successful Disney artists of the late-20th century, Rosa received mediocre pay from the studio.
Image: DisneyDisney’s contract structure doesn’t allow for royalties. Instead, artists receive pay based on pages of output. All of the success that Scrooge McDuck and Donald Duck claimed thanks to Rosa never benefitted the artist himself.
Instead, Rosa wrote a detailed epilogue that explained the how and why of Disney’s business practices. It’s an enlightening introduction into how Disney creates contracts with freelance illustrators. And it doesn’t speak well of a respected company.
Girls can’t be cartoonists
Image: DisneyA few years ago, Vox reminded people of how far the world has come in a few generations. They posted an absolutely ridiculous rejection letter that a Disney employee had sent in 1938.
The recipient of the letter, Mary V. Ford, learned that: “Women do not do any of the creative work in connection with preparing the cartoons for the screen, as that work is performed entirely by young men.”
The rejection goes on to detail the ways that women can apply at Disney and what their assigned work would be. It then adds that since so many “girls” apply, this person shouldn’t pack up her stuff and head to Hollywood. Her chances of success are too low.
As far as rejection letters go, it’s as condescending and soul-crushing as they come. Vox even tracked down a second version of the same letter for confirmation. And my favorite part of this story is that the person who signs this letter is a woman.
I should add something in Disney’s defense, though. They hired Mary Blair in 1940, less than two years after they sent this letter. So, it wasn’t that all girls can’t be cartoonists, just the ones who are less talented than Mary Blair…which is everyone on the planet.
Snow White afterparty
Image: DisneyWhen you think about Disney, you don’t think sex, drugs, and bacchanalia. You certainly wouldn’t link those things to Snow White, Disney’s first beloved Princess. For an odd reason, the two have a connection, though.
Back in 1938, Walt Disney wanted to reward his employees for their shocking triumph, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. He hosted a wrap party for them at the Norconian Resort in the California Desert. It was actually the second wrap party, as the original one had been done in 1937 at the Hyperion. But no one at the time could have anticipated the blockbuster box office for the film.
The Norconian party was everyone’s reward for doing the impossible. The party’s host named it Walt’s Field Day. Uncle Walt generously paid for everything, stating that “the entire facilities of the Lake Norconian are offered for the day of June 4th. There will be no charge for either luncheon, dinner or dancing.”
Image: DisneyThe longtime Disney employees invited to the event perceived it differently from their boss. He presumed a stately affair befitting mature adults. They envisioned a rare opportunity to kick back, get drunk, and…let’s say “date” a co-worker or two.
The situation quickly declined from patrician golf club outing to scenes from a 1980s teen sex comedy. One Disney illustrator swears that a co-worker got so drunk that he rode a horse into the resort swimming pool.
Then, the naked swim parties began.
According to legend, the drunken hook-ups and wife-swapping happened next.
Image: DisneyNo, I’m not joking. Whether it’s true or apocryphal, the stories made their way through the company. Walt Disney was by all accounts appalled, even though some swore that he’d been drunk at the party, too.
Among the animation crowd, Walt’s Field Day is one of the most scandalous drunken sex parties ever. According to Disney historians, it was also a contributing factor to the Disney Strike of 1941. Disney and some members of his staff never felt the same about one another afterward.
Song of the South
Image: DisneyDisney+ will unlock the Disney vault and exhibit almost all of the company’s classic animated movies. It’ll be missing one infamous title, though. To the surprise of absolutely no one, company officials have chosen to keep 1946’s Song of the South locked away from the public.
Song of the South is one of the strangest titles in the Disney catalog. It was an unqualified hit during its theatrical run and claimed one of the best soundtracks in Disney history. Whenever you ride Splash Mountain, you’re listening to classic songs like How Do You Do, Ev’rybody’s Got a Laughin’ Place, Sooner or Later, and Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah. That last song even won an Academy Award!
Given these successes, someone with no knowledge of Disney history would be mystified about the disappearance of Song of the South. Those of us who follow Disney, however, recognize that the racial elements of this film are *ahem* uncomfortable.
Image: DisneyAnyone who watched Song of the South would believe that plantation life was terrific for slaves. Even a quick viewing of film clips on YouTube will make you wonder how in the world this thing ever got made. It seems abhorrent today, which demonstrates how much societal mores have evolved over the years.
Let’s be clear that the shame of Song of the South won’t go away. Disney knows it, too. CEO Robert Iger recently stated that the film “wouldn’t necessarily sit right or feel right to a number of people today.” There’s an understatement for the ages.
To Iger’s and Disney’s credit, they’ve chosen not to make a cheap buck on such deplorable subject matter. Iger firmly stated, “It wouldn’t be in the best interest of our shareholders to bring it back, even though there would be some financial gain.”
