How death influenced Walt Disney, his work, and the Disney Parks

I have always had an interest in Disney in every form, be that that films, the parks and Walt Disney himself. I have also had an interest in the death industry and how we, as humans, react to death. Due to my fascination in both these topics, I thought it would be interesting to research into how death has affected Disney the Company and Walt Disney.

Throughout his lifetime, Walt Disney was obsessed with the theme of death and this became obvious in not only his work but also within the Disney parks.

Disney was born in Chicago, 1901, and his obsession with death became prevalent when he was only seven years old. One night, Disney saw an owl perched on a low-hanging branch, Disney grabbed the owl and flung it to the ground, in his excitement he stomped on the bird and killed it; that was Disney’s first encounter with death. I don’t know anyone that would kill an animal out of excitement but – you do you, Walt!

When Disney started work in the animation industry, he was a part of I-Works studios, the studios that created animations such as ‘The Skeleton Dance’, ‘Hell’s Bells’, and ‘The Haunted Mansion’. At the time these were released they were deemed too macabre and even banned, (the spoil sports). I-Works also created the first images of Mickey Mouse, who was originally called Mortimer; Mort being the Latin word for ‘death’. Even in Disney’s early works it is clear to see his obsession with death and all that links to it.

Disney’s death obsession can be linked to the appearance of death throughout his life. Disney made it clear to his wife that he wanted a plethora of children and started development on the family nursery when she fell pregnant. However, Disney’s wife suffered several miscarriages before finally conceiving their daughter, Diane, in 1933. After this, Disney and his wife adopted another daughter, Sharron, in 1936.

Another example of death weighing heavy on Disney was after the success of ‘Snow White’. Disney and his brother, Roy, bought their parents a house in North Hollywood, a suburb of Los Angeles. One day, their parents complained about a strange smell coming from the furnace; when the housekeeper arrived, she found the couple unconscious on the floor. The housekeeper tried to pull their bodies out to the front lawn, but it was too late. Disney’s father would survive but his mother, Flora, died from carbon monoxide poisoning a couple days later and Disney blamed himself. We can see how much his mother’s death affected him through his films, as there are several Disney characters that are motherless. You are probably thinking ‘Really? You are overexaggerating, there can’t be that many motherless characters. Well, there is Snow White, Cinderella, Belle, Jasmine, Pocahontas, Ariel, Tarzan, Bambi, Pinocchio, Anna and Elsa, Tod, Peter Pan, Arthur, Mowgli, Penny, Olivia Flaversham, Aladdin, Quasimodo, Oliver, Kuzco, Kida, Lilo and Nani, Nemo, Koda and Linguini. See! Only a few.

When thinking back on the multitude of Disney films I’ve seen, it’s easy to forget how much death is referenced on screen. Everyone remembers the harrowing moments they watched as a child, such as the death of Bambi’s mother or Mufasa; however, there are many more films that also reference death. In Frozen, for example, when you watch the ship that Elsa and Anna’s parents were on sink. Another scene that I remember vividly is from Tarzan, when Clayton is trying to cut himself free from some vines, Tarzan notices a vine around his neck and tries to warn him; Clayton doesn’t listen to him and ends up hanging himself. When this happens, we are able to see Clayton’s silhouette hanging as lightning flashes in the distance. Death can also be used to present poetic justice; this is clear in The Lion King and The Princess and The Frog. In The Lion King, Scar is killed by the hyenas when he is unable to provide them with what he promised; whereas in The Princess and The Frog, Dr Facilier is dragged into ‘the other side’ by the spirits he has allied with throughout the story. It is heavily implied that the act of entering ‘the other side’ is entering the underworld, and the viewer perceives this as his death. Before both characters are killed by their allies, their power is taken from them because they allies know that they can no longer give them what they were promised. 

In the early 30s, Disney went to a party and spoke to the fortune teller that was there. She told him that he would die at the age of thirty-three. Apparently, this premonition ‘plagued’ Disney, so much so that he avoided funerals where he could, and when he did attend them, he fell into long and brooding depressions. I don’t blame him, not one bit.

We may feel that, nowadays, Disneyland operates with clockwork precision, but in 1955, when Disneyland first opened its gates to paying customers, it was a disaster!

15,000 people were inviting to the opening, but over 28,000 people showed up due to counterfeit tickets and people using ladders to hop the fence. As well as this, it was one hundred degrees, which was hot enough to melt the asphalt on Main Street (At least everyone got a souvenir to take home with them, but it’s probably not the souvenir the guests were expecting). There was a plumber strike so most of the drinking fountains didn’t work, and what little food and drink there was for sale quickly sold out. To add even more insult to injury, most of the main rides didn’t work or broke down, the Mark Twain Riverboat sank, and Sleeping Beauty’s Castle almost caught on fire from a gas leak. All this chaos was broadcast in national television, and the day was deemed ‘Black Sunday.’ Well, that’s a story to tell the grand kids.

Most of the original, or early, rides at the parks where based on carnival rides and attractions which centred around the theme of death. These are more commonly known as Nineteenth Century Dark Rides. An example of this would be Mr. Toads Wild Ride where you visit hell during the ride, as well as It’s A Small World and Pirates of the Caribbean; many of these dark rides are also water rides.

One of the rides that Disney had planned before the parks even opened was a Haunted Mansion, however it would be fourteen years before it would be materialised in the parks. Unfortunately, Disney did not live to see the opening of The Haunted Mansion as it didn’t open until 1969. If you ask me, I’d say that the real haunted ride is It’s A Small World. Next time you visit a Disney park, look into one of the audio-animatronics’ eyes and tell me that they aren’t planning your demise. 

Walt Disney died in 1966, and a common misconception surrounding his death is that he was cryogenically frozen. Sorry to disappoint anyone who was hoping on seeing Disney live among us again, but this is simply not true. In fact, Disney was actually cremated, and his remains were buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery, also known as The Disneyland of Death. Allegedly, Disney wanted to be frozen but didn’t specify in his writing, so his family decided to cremate him instead.

Around the Haunted Mansion, there are some death-inspired features to better add to the atmosphere and tell the story before you even enter the ride itself. To start, there is the pet cemetery and the white horse-drawn hearse; these are more examples of Disney’s death obsession. It is rumoured that stain on the inside of the hearse is a corpse-fluid stain from when the hearse was in use many years before. Disgusting, yet intriguing. 

In a separate land of the park, there is the 1764 archway which is all that is left of an attraction that never was. The plan was to have the archway lead down to the Secret Catacombs, this would be a graveyard and crypt inspired by the catacombs of Paris.

When Disneyland was creating the Pirates of the Caribbean water dark ride (my personal favourite of all the Disney rides), it was evident that they needed skulls to display and decorate the rides scenes. Disneyland reached out to UCLA’s (University of California at Los Angeles) medical centre anatomy department. UCLA gave them several real skulls and skeletons to place in the ride; (yeah, because that’s legal). Nowadays, the real bones have been replaced by fake ones and, allegedly, the original skeletons were identified and returned for proper burial. However, there may still be as many as three real skulls remaining on the ride today.

As well as bones, there is said to be several haunted rides, such as the ‘The Bell Hop Ghost’. It is said that one of the bell hops working on one of the platforms, platform Delta, suddenly dropped dead. Ever since that day, there have been sighting of ‘The Bell Hop Ghost’ and has, apparently, been caught on camera. The ghost has not been known to harm anyone; however, he is very keen on playing tricks on the staff members; he randomly switches off lights, freezing the ride, and making loud unexplainable noises. Another ghost that has been spotted at Disneyland is ‘Mr. One Way’. People have reported to seeing a man standing next to them whilst queuing for the popular rollercoaster Space Mountain. He has also been known to sit in an empty carriage seat beside people during the ride (there better not be a ghost sitting next to me when I next go to Disneyland). The man is said to have reddish hair and a red face. He always disappears before the ride ends, hence the name ‘Mr. One Way’. Legend has it that he is the ghost of a man who died on the ride in the 1970s.

There is also an urban legend that a ghost of one of the welders (George) of the Pirates of the Caribbean haunts the ride; some say the worker fell while others say he was pushed. No guests have seen the ghost; however, staff members claim to have heard mysterious footsteps, had phone calls from an empty control room, and have even seen him show up on the ride’s monitors. Apparently, the burning town screen is said to be where George’s spirit lurks, and guests have said they felt a chill around that specific part of the ride (I just find the entire ride rather cold, if you ask me). People say that the worker is a nice ghost who likes to have a little fun now and then, sounds like my sort of guy. Hi George! Many cast members say, ‘good morning’ and ‘goodnight’ to George over the PA system, and it’s said that if a cast member doesn’t speak to George then the ride will have malfunctions throughout the day.

There was also a gift shop called Memento Mori in Magic Kingdom where you could buy death certificates and other death-themed souvenirs. I kind of want a death certificate, I mean think about it, how cool would it be to just hand over a legitimate certificate of death. Fantastic decoration for your living room, especially on Halloween, just saying.

One of the most recent entries to the Disney repertoire is Coco; this film revolves around Mexico’s day-of-the-dead, where death is front and centre, however the people are not represented within the film just the culture. Many in the Mexican and African American community have spoken up about this appropriation. In 2013, Disney tried to trademark ‘dia de los muertos’ and ‘day of the dead’ as phrases.

Now, in todays age, death is still prevalent in the Disney parks but not quite as you may expect. Isn’t Disney a wonderful, child-friendly place? All the Disney parks have been come a popular place to scatter cremated remains. In fact, once a month people are caught scattering ashes, and those are only the people that are caught. People have been known to carry their loved one’s ashes in a special bag and hold it whilst getting a final post-mortem picture with the loved ones favourite character; they may also be treated to a final go on their favourite ride.

People may be scattering ashes left, right and centre in the parks, but what is the actual law? In the state of California, the law states that you can legally scatter cremated remains on private property if two rules are followed:

1. You have permission from the property owner.

2. The remains are scattered in a manner that is not distinguishable to the public.

I think if you decide to scatter granny in one of the bushes during a firework display then you’re breaking the law.

Okay, I’ve talked about death represented in the parks, but what about actual death?

Even though Disneyland is, to many, the place of dreams, not even Disney can stop death from occurring. People have been declared dead in the parks.

• 1984 – A plane crashed in the Epcote car park.

• 1985 – Another reported death in the Disneyland car park.

• 1964 – A fifteen-year-old boy unbuckled his seatbelt whist on a ride and proceeded to stand up near the top of the mountain. He fell out of the sled and hit the track, fracturing his skull. He was declared dead three days later in the hospital.

• 1967 – A seventeen-year-old boy jumped from car to car on the People Mover. He was crushed to death by an oncoming car.

• 1980 – History repeated itself when another boy was jumping from car to car and he fell and was crushed. His lifeless body was dragged several hundred feet before a cast member stopped the ride.

• Summer, 2019 – A contractor working at Disneyland was killed after being hit by a falling steel plate. He was rushed to hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Several of the incidences mentioned just seem to equate to being a teenage boy and making bad decisions with their not fully developed brains.

Throughout the parks, Disneyland does not allow memorials or references to death, even going as far as to ban the words ‘In memory of’ on memorial bricks. This is because they don’t want to remind visitors of death. I find this extremely amusing due to the fact that there is a reference death in several of the attractions and rides throughout the many parks.

Have you ever considered the influence death had on Disney? Probably not, but I’m glad I could explore this morbid topic with you regardless. Maybe next we could look at audio-animatronics, as I seem to have an unhealthy obsession with them too. Don’t you just love the deathly and scientific sides of life?

Sources

Ask A Mortician (YouTube) 

Death and Disney: Walt's Morbid Obsession

Uncle Walt's Cryogenically Frozen Head

Nobody Ever Dies At Disneyland?