So Dear To My Heart was a movie that was truly dear to the heart of Walt Disney, since it re-created on film one of the most memorable times of his life, growing up on a small farm in Marceline, Missouri at the turn of the Twentieth Century.
Based on the acclaimed 1943 novel Midnight and Jeremiah by American author Sterling North, So Dear To My Heart takes place in the fictional Fulton Corners, Indiana in 1903. A young boy named Jeremiah Kincaid (portrayed by Bobby Driscoll, who had just finished filming Song of the South) adopts a mischievous black lamb named Danny (named after Dan Patch). Jeremiah struggles to earn enough money as well as train Danny so that the lamb can be entered into competition at the Pike County Fair. Of course, there are some tough challenges along the way that help Jeremiah grow as a person as well as a surprising but satisfying ending.
When Disney historian J. B. Kaufman visited The Walt Disney Family Museum recently, the Interpreter team had the pleasure of engaging him in conversation about the Disney Studio during the early 1930s. “There was a tremendous explosion of creative energy going on...
Each month, we’ll introduce you to one of our Members, so you can see the varied and frequently fascinating people, who have come together to learn and experience more about the life, work, philosophies, and ideals of Walt Disney. This month, we’d like you to meet Wes Hansen.
Museum co-founder and Walt Disney's grandson Walter E.D. Miller has announced the new Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Family Museum: Gabriella C. Calicchio!
Roll up your sleeves and prepare to get dirty because in honor of August's film of the month--The Absent-Minded Professor--we're going to teach you how to make your very own homemade Flubber!
In observance of National Aviation Day, here is the soaring tale of how a filmmaker and a flyer formed an unlikely partnership as storytellers: Walt Disney and Roald Dahl.
Today marks the 225th birthday of David "Davy" Crockett (August 17, 1786 – March 6, 1836), a celebrated 19th century American folk hero, frontiersman, soldier and politician. He represented Tennessee in the U.S. House of Representatives, served in the Texas Revolution, and died at the Battle of the Alamo. In 1955, Walt Disney’s television serial based upon Crockett’s legendary exploits created the first national television “craze.”
On Saturday afternoon, Disney historians J.B. Kaufman and Russell Merritt presented a program in our state-of-the-art digital theater on the subject of Comedic Influences and Walt Disney.
In September, The Walt Disney Family Museum will celebrate the family. Our Film of the Month will be a favorite of Walt's, the 1948 family classic So Dear to My Heart, and our programming and Storyboard entries will focus around families, and all those around us who are so dear to our hearts.