DVDizzy Forum

Dear Disney Enthusiasts,

I haven't read the book Walt Disney: Hollywood's Dark Prince, but I've read ABOUT the book, and I've gotten quite a spyful eyeful, with regards to what people are saying online about it.

Some people claim that the book is a load of hooey, while others claim that every word of the book is 110% true. The book apparently makes such claims as the following:

* Walt Disney was notoriously germphobic. I really can't necessarily believe that, because Walt was constantly shaking hands with other people...

* Walt may have molested his adopted daugher, and he had pedo-bear tendencies, due, in part, to the fact that children were instructed to call him "Uncle Walt", "Uncle" being slang for a male pedophile. It is claimed that Walt had a thing for Bobby Driscoll, but that he then cruelly cast him aside when he began to grow up.

* Walt was an illegitimate child.

* Walt made cartoon porno movies, but he just didn't release them to the public.

* Walt was obsessed with cryogenics.

The list goes on and on...and, of course, certain religious groups claim that ALL things Disney have been created for the purpose of brainwashing everybody via mind control techniques.

If anybody here has read the book, what do YOU think of it? Have you heard outrageous rumors about Walt, as I have, and do you believe them?

I don't know WHAT to think...

Thank you in advance for your replies.
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Jackoleen wrote:If anybody here has read the book, what do YOU think of it?

It's one of the most amusing pieces of fiction I've ever read.

albert

I read that book back in 1995, and it's chocked-full of factual errors.

Wow.... That's a lot of bullshits about Walt.

As I understand, many of the people that wrote books about Walt after his dead "hated" (or at least despiced) him and what he stood for, and those books have created an image of Walt as tyrant, a "black prince", etc, etc. I recomend you read Neal Gabler fairly new book about Walt, I think it describes Walt, his ways and his empire fairly accurate. And he basicly denounces all those utterly ridicilous stories and urban legends about Walt. The book is called "Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination" (2006).

I believe this book is the very definition of a hatchet job. Walt Disney molest his daughter? That is a disgusting claim to make without any foundation. Isn't this the same daughter who spearheaded the construction of the Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Walt Disney Family Museum in memory of her father? Walt Disney wasn't perfect but I don't believe for a second he was anything like the monster this so-called "biography" would have us believe.

Jackoleen,

How on earth can anyone believe the outrageous claims made in the book "Hollywood's dark prince"? Even if you know nothing about Walt Disney the man you must be able to detect that there is something fishy about such a book. I 'm almost certain the author wrote it just to cash in a lot of money, and the best way to him seemed to be to come up with some 'shocking revelations'.
I've never bought the book, but I've read part of it an a book retail store. On how Walt was constantly beaten up by his father for instance (another false claim). On the back it read that Walt's wife an daughter accused the author of character assasination. I think this is how the book should be labeled.

Neal Gablers' biography has been mentioned here. I like to add that Walt's daughter Diana was not pleased with this biography at all. Yet compared to "HDP' it's very decent. But I suggest you read Michael Barrier's biography "The Animated man". That one is factual.

Jackoleen wrote:Dear Disney Enthusiasts,

I haven't read the book Walt Disney: Hollywood's Dark Prince, but I've read ABOUT the book, and I've gotten quite a spyful eyeful, with regards to what people are saying online about it.

Some people claim that the book is a load of hooey, while others claim that every word of the book is 110% true. The book apparently makes such claims as the following:

* Walt Disney was notoriously germphobic. I really can't necessarily believe that, because Walt was constantly shaking hands with other people...

* Walt may have molested his adopted daugher, and he had pedo-bear tendencies, due, in part, to the fact that children were instructed to call him "Uncle Walt", "Uncle" being slang for a male pedophile. It is claimed that Walt had a thing for Bobby Driscoll, but that he then cruelly cast him aside when he began to grow up.

* Walt was an illegitimate child.

* Walt made cartoon porno movies, but he just didn't release them to the public.

* Walt was obsessed with cryogenics.

The list goes on and on...and, of course, certain religious groups claim that ALL things Disney have been created for the purpose of brainwashing everybody via mind control techniques.

If anybody here has read the book, what do YOU think of it? Have you heard outrageous rumors about Walt, as I have, and do you believe them?

I don't know WHAT to think...

Thank you in advance for your replies.
[/i]

That's all true!!

Super Aurora wrote:That's all true!!

lawl

Suprisingly, this does not say that Walt was Anti-semitic or a Communist hater so, like many other things that are here
IT'S NOT TRUE!IT'S NOT TRUE!

avonleastories95 wrote:Suprisingly, this does not say that Walt was Anti-semitic or a Communist hater so, like many other things that are here
IT'S NOT TRUE!IT'S NOT TRUE!

Well, I believe that Walt hated Communism, but so do a lot of other people. (I do). There's nothing particularly wicked about that.

He did hate communism but not without basis; he was suspicious that communists had infiltrated the studio and corrupted his artists into going on strike in the 1940's. All of Hollywood suffered from the same type of paranoia at the time as the unions began to gain power so Walt was not alone in this.

BelleGirl wrote:

avonleastories95 wrote:Suprisingly, this does not say that Walt was Anti-semitic or a Communist hater so, like many other things that are here
IT'S NOT TRUE!IT'S NOT TRUE!

Well, I believe that Walt hated Communism, but so do a lot of other people. (I do). There's nothing particularly wicked about that.

I hate it too!

While I disagree with quite a bit of the "Walt was evil" stuff found in the likes of the Dark Prince book, I can understand why it happens in the first place. Walt was human, and obviously made mistakes or pissed some people off no matter how good he was. The Disney Company, however, have made Walt out to be a practical reincarnation of Jesus; anybody whose feathers were ruffled by Walt somewhat will obviously get a kick out of denouncing such a contrived image. There is probably going to be some truth in the likes of the Dark Prince book, only it's just sensationalised and paired with rumour and gossip (something ultimately unsatisfactory as far as respectable journalism goes). The Neal Gabler books are so good as they portray Walt as a normal person, and neither as some deviant nor as some saint.

Let's not forget the gay rumors. Outing a dead man never gets old.

Wonderlicious wrote:The Disney Company, however, have made Walt out to be a practical reincarnation of Jesus;

There was a funny, but also sad story about the decision to establish Touchstone Pictures, which was to make more adult movies for Disney. At the time, the company was badly stigmatized for making only kids stuff. Even though Splash is safe by today's standards, it was so radical for Disney at the time that many old time staff members protested...with a prayer meeting!

Wonderlicious wrote: The Disney Company, however, have made Walt out to be a practical reincarnation of Jesus;

Bah, look at it this way: you gotta be a little bit nutty to a be a talented storyteller like Walt.

BelleGirl wrote:I've never bought the book, but I've read part of it an a book retail store. On how Walt was constantly beaten up by his father for instance (another false claim).

Actually, I believe that part was true. I remember reading somewhere else that that's why Walt was so unhappy with his own short temper: because it reminded him of his violent father. I also believe this is were Donald Duck's bad temper came from.

avonleastories95 wrote:Suprisingly, this does not say that Walt was Anti-semitic or a Communist hater so, like many other things that are here
IT'S NOT TRUE!IT'S NOT TRUE!

Walt Disney most certainly was a staunch anti-communist, something every serious biographer will confirm, and which was already mirrored in the short Alice-cartoon 'Alice's eggplant', in which Little Red Henski from Moscow infiltrates Alice's eggplant and gets the chickens to go on strike.

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Walt saw the strike at the studio on 1941 as a 'communist plot', and after the matter was finally settled and Art Babbitt got fired, he bad-mouthed Babbitt all over Hollywood, accusing him of being a communist sympahtiser. Walt also was one of the so-called 'friendly witnesses' of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), meaning he ratted out on colleagues in Hollywood with leftist sympathies, who were then put on blacklists and had their careers destroyed.

Animator Bill Melendez, who had worked for Disney before moving to Warner Brothers, has said Walt made anti-semitic remarks from time to time. Melendez made these remarks in a British Channel Four documentary.

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A revelation of the darker side to Walt Disney's character looking at his racist, anti-Semitic, misogynist tendencies which finally led to a pathological hatred of communists and an active particpation in McCarthy's House Committee on Un-American Activities.

Can you remember where you read that information on Donald Duck being based on Walt's father? I've never heard that before so I would be interested in reading into it further.

I've seen that particular documentary but I'm unsure of what to make of it. It's things like when Melendez says Walt flew into a rage when he saw a Hindu animator working there and had him fired that make me sceptical; would someone with the standing of Walt Disney do something so blatant and racist in front of his employees. No one else has made a claim like that and Melendez can't be the only person who saw it. Based on his friendship with and public support of people like James Baskett, I've always had doubts about those who claim Walt was racist, though that could be possible considering the segregation and prejudice that was so prevelent at that time.

DisneyAnimation88 wrote:Can you remember where you read that information on Donald Duck being based on Walt's father? I've never heard that before so I would be interested in reading into it further.

I've read it in a Dutch book, called 'Mou$e Entertainment', published in 1999 and written by Rein van Willigen, who has written extensively about Disney and animation in general in Dutch in the past.

DisneyAnimation 88 wrote:I've seen that particular documentary but I'm unsure of what to make of it. It's things like when Melendez says Walt flew into a rage when he saw a Hindu animator working there and had him fired that make me sceptical; would someone with the standing of Walt Disney do something so blatant and racist in front of his employees. No one else has made a claim like that and Melendez can't be the only person who saw it. Based on his friendship with and public support of people like James Baskett, I've always had doubts about those who claim Walt was racist, though that could be possible considering the segregation and prejudice that was so prevelent at that time.

Well, I would find it hard to believe that a high-quality channel like Channel Four, with a high-standing reputation, would air just a bunch of rumors and sensationalized stories without making sure its integrity is intact. But then again, highly respected media like The New York Times have made collosal blunders, too (Iraq War, anyone?), so I guess everything is possible. Walt may have been close with Baskett, but that's like saying you're not a racist because you have a black neighbour and you get along great. You know what I mean? Like people who always talk negatively about muslims, but say: "but there are a few good ones, too". Like you said, Apartheid was still very much part of daily life in the US at that time. So that's a good point you brought up. I'm not saying I believe everything in the documentary and certainly not everything in the book, as I'm very sceptical of everything I watch and read. But Disney fans do have a tendency to dismiss any criticism of Walt out of hand, which also isn't a smart thing to do.