Disney Treasures » (BOOK & CD)

Selected from the vast archives of the Walt Disney Company, this historic collection includes handwritten letters and notes of Walt's, rare character sketches from the 1930's and 1940's, replicas of Disneyland's opening-day tickets, photos, movie theater programs, comic strips, greeting cards, commissary menus, and other treasures, reproduced in facsimile form. Many of these special features are designed to be removable so readers can touch and hold masterfully reproduced bits of history. In addition, the book comes with a 60-minute CD that features previously unheard audio of Walt Disney , radio commercials from the 1950s, and never-before-released sound tracks from the parks' most popular attraction.

Publishers Weekly

This lavishly produced volume offers a nostalgic, five decades-long chronicle of the Walt Disney Company, from the birth of the Disney Bros. Studio in 1923 to Walt Disney's death in 1966. Disney devotees will delight in poring over the book's vivid pages, as each highlight from the company's history is illustrated with a collage of photos, sketches, finished full-color drawings, brochures and posters, plus pull-out reproductions of memorabilia including Walt Disney's correspondence, tickets to Disneyland from 1955, even paper masks of Pinocchio characters issued by Gillette in 1940. Walt Disney Archives manager Tieman captures key episodes in meticulous but brisk chapters, from the birth of Mickey Mouse in 1928, to Disney's first feature film (Snow White and Seven Dwarfs, 1933), to Walt Disney's proposal for Disney World in Florida. Throughout, readers learn of the process behind Disney's groundbreaking accomplishments: the first cartoon synchronized with sound, the first cartoon in full Technicolor, the first feature-length animated film, the studio's entrance into live-action films and television and its revolution in character-merchandising. The volume includes a 60-minute CD with tracks of radio commercials plus selections from Walt Disney's interviews and speeches. (Sept.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.