Walt Disney Family Museum Opens October 2009
Archives Will Chronicle Life and Work of Walter Elias Disney
Aug 5, 2009
The Walt Disney Family Museum will officially open its doors to the public on October 1, 2009. Tickets have been available for purchase on the website since August 1. General admission for adults is $20.00.
The museum was personally initiated by Walt Disney's family. The president of the museum is Walt Disney's grandson.
Be Our Guest
WDM is located at the Presidio in San Francisco. The complex is part of the Golden Gate Recration Area which is in turn part of the National Park Service. Considering that one of the museum exhibits is billed as the first nature documentary and Walt Disney's known personal love of nature, this is a fitting location for the collection.
It is also a touching coincidence that this space was once a former army barracks. During World War I, a teenage Walt Disney was rejected for Army enlistment due to his young age. Instead he joined the Red Cross as an ambulance driver. A replica of the ambulance that he drove in France is located in the exhibit.
Exhibits in the Archives
Other highlights in the collection include:
- The Lilly Belle train that was built for his Hollywood home. Walt personally drove the train for many Hollywood children including Candace Bergen when they were guests at his home.
- Cartoons drawn by Disney as a child, Disney studio film scripts, musical scores, animation cells, and orginal movie posters
- The specialty created Academy Award that was issued for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and the accompaning seven miniature castings of the award
- Personal photos and keepsakes that belonged to Disney
- A model of Disneyland as Disney first imagined it
In addition to the ten galleries that divide Walt's life into his early years, the formation of his animation business then his studio, and the creation of the theme parks, the museum also features a 114 seat theatre, a learning center, store, cafe, and a separate exhibit gallery.
In a press release issued by the Museum Secretary and Walt Disney's only surviving child, Diane Disney Miller, she stated "We are committed to telling the story of Walt Disney's life in his own words and in the words of others who knew him well and worked with him".
A new book about the collection can be purchased at the museum or online. "The Walt Disney Family Museum: The Man, The Magic, The Memories" is written by J.B. Kaufman and includes an introduction by Disney's daughter Diane. (Disney's other child Sharon died in 1993).
Go to waltdisney.org for more information.
