Company History The Walt Disney Company was built on the foundation of its animated characters. Disney eventually ventured into other businesses with the intentions of bringing happiness to families through several different, yet similar family-friendly ventures. In October 1923, Walter and Roy Disney established the Disney Brothers Studio and began creating animated films that would eventually be the foundation of Disney (www.waltdisney.com). Mickey Mouse was the animated character created by Walt in 1928 and was the breakthrough that helped Disney Brothers Studio start on their road to success. In 1932 Disney won a special Academy Award for the creation of Mickey Mouse. Mickey Mouse is now one of the most recognizable figures in the world. The first full-length film to be created by Disney was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, in 1937. This film is the only animated film to rank in the American Film Institute’s list of the 100 greatest American Films of all time (C. Hayashi. 2007). Throughout the year’s success continued to be with Disney as they opened their first theme park, known as Disneyland, in 1955 located in Anaheim, California. This park spanned over 160 acres. On opening day, the park faced many issues, which caused negative press. Through all of the negative press on opening day, Disneyland has still been one of the most successful, frequently visited theme parks in history. Eleven years after opening the doors to Disneyland, in 1966 Walt Disney passed away from lung cancer, however the death of Walt did not stop his brother Roy from continuing to build on his brother’s dream. In 1971, Walt Disney World opened its doors in Florida and Roy Disney passed away soon after in late 1971. After the deaths of both Disney brothers the company went through tough times and took many years to recover. In 1983 Disney continued to expand, with the launch of the Disney Channel. They also made the decision to become more of an intern