Walter Elias Disney atau lebih dikenal sebagai Walt Disney (lahir di Chicago, Illinois, Amerika Serikat, 5 Desember 1901 – meninggal di Burbank, California, Amerika Serikat, 15 Desember 1966 pada umur 65 tahun) adalah seorang produser film, sutradara, animator, dan pengisi suara berkebangsaan Amerika Serikat. Ia terkenal akan pengaruhnya terhadap dunia hiburan pada abad ke-20. Sebagai tokoh pendiri Walt Disney Productions (bersama Roy O. Disney), Disney menjadi salah satu produser film paling terkenal di dunia. seorang penerbit film tersohor di dunia. Perusahaan yang didirikannya, kini dikenal sebagai The Walt Disney Company, kini memiliki pendapatan tahunan sekitar $ 35 miliar.Disney terkenal sebagai produser film dan showman, dan juga inovator dalam bidang animasi dan desain taman bermain. Ia dan anak buahnya menciptakan berbagai karakter terkenal dunia, seperti Miki Tikus yang disuarakan oleh Disney sendiri. Ia telah memenangkan 26 Academy Awards dari 59 nominasi.[2] Selain itu, Disney juga meraih 7 Emmy Awards. Pada tahun 1925, Disney menikah dengan Lillian Bounds. Usaha pertama mereka untuk memiliki anak berakhir dengan Lillian mengalami keguguran. Selanjutnya, Lillian melahirkan seorang anak perempuan yang bernama Diane Marie Disney pada tanggal 18 Desember 1933. Keluarga Disney juga mengadopsi Sharon Mae Disney (31 Desember 1936 – 16 Februari 1993).
Pada akhir 1966, Disney dijadwalkan menjalani operasi leher akibat cedera lama dari bermain polo. Pada 2 November 1966, selama operasi, dokter di Providence St. Joseph Medical Center mendapati bahwa Disney mengidap tumor di paru-paru kirinya. Lima hari kemudian, Disney kembali ke rumah sakit untuk operasi, tetapi tumor telah menyebar. Disney kemudian diberitahu bahwa hidupnya hanya tinggal enam bulan lagi.[65] Pada 30 November 1966, Disney roboh di rumahnya, tetapi berhasil diselamatkan oleh paramedis, lalu dibawa kembali ke rumah sakit, tempat ia menghembuskan napas terakhirnya pada 15 Desember 1966, pukul 09.30 pagi, sepuluh hari setelah ulang tahunnya yang ke-65. Jenazahnya dikremasi pada 17 Desember 1966, lalu abunya disimpan di Forest Lawn Memorial Park di Glendale, California. Setelah kepergian Walt Disney, Roy Disney menguasai sepenuhnya Walt Disney Productions dan WED Enterprises.
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney (/ˈdɪzni/;[1] December 5, 1901 – December 15, 1966) was an American entrepreneur, animator, voice actor and film producer. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film producer, Disney holds the record for most Academy Awards earned by an individual, having won 22 Oscars from 59 nominations. He was presented with two Golden Globe Special Achievement Awards and an Emmy Award, among other honors. Several of his films are included in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.Born in Chicago in 1901, Disney developed an early interest in drawing. He took art classes as a boy and got a job as a commercial illustrator at the age of 18. He moved to Hollywood in the early 1920s and set up the Disney Brothers Studio with his brother Roy. With Ub Iwerks, Walt developed the character Mickey Mouse in 1928, his first highly popular success; he also provided the voice for his creation in the early years. As the studio grew, Disney became more adventurous, introducing synchronized sound, full-color three-strip Technicolor, feature-length cartoons and technical developments in cameras. The results, seen in features such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), Fantasia, Pinocchio (both 1940), Dumbo (1941) and Bambi (1942), furthered the development of animated film. New animated and live-action films followed after World War II, including the critically successful Cinderella (1950) and Mary Poppins (1964), the latter of which received five Academy Awards.
In the 1950s, Disney expanded into the amusement park industry, and in 1955 he opened Disneyland. To fund the project he diversified into television programs, such as Walt Disney's Disneyland and The Mickey Mouse Club; he was also involved in planning the 1959 Moscow Fair, the 1960 Winter Olympics, and the 1964 New York World's Fair. In 1965, he began development of another theme park, Disney World, the heart of which was to be a new type of city, the "Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow" (EPCOT). Disney was a heavy smoker throughout his life, and died of lung cancer in December 1966 before the park or city was completed.
Disney was a shy, self-deprecating and insecure man in private, but adopted a warm and outgoing public persona. He had high standards and high expectations of those with whom he worked. Although there have been accusations that he was racist or anti-semitic, they have been contradicted by many who knew him. His reputation changed in the years after his death, from a purveyor of homely patriotic values to a representative of American imperialism. Nevertheless, Disney is considered a cultural icon, particularly in the United States, where the company he co-founded is one of the world's largest and best-known entertainment companies.
