Roy O. Disney
Encyclopedia
Roy Oliver Disney was, with his younger brother, Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...

, the co-founder of what is now The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...

.

Early life

Roy was born to Irish-Canadian Elias Disney
Elias Disney
Elias Disney was the Canadian father of Roy Disney and Walt Disney.-Early life:Disney was born in the rural village of Bluevale, Ontario, Canada, to Irish-born immigrant Kepple Elias Disney and Mary Richardson who was of English descent. He became a farmer and a businessman with little success...

 and German-American Flora Call Disney
Flora Call Disney
Flora Call Disney was the mother of Walt Disney and his brother Roy Disney.-Family:Call was born in Steuben, Ohio, the daughter of Henrietta , and Charles Call, who were neighbors of Kepple Disney, father of Elias Disney, her husband. Her family originated from Germany...

 in Chicago, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

. Roy served in the US Navy from 1917-19; a year later his brother Walt tried joining the US Army, only being refused due to being under age. Roy was later discharged from military duty after suffering an injury, and became a banker in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

. In 1923, Walt moved to Hollywood, joining Roy, together founding the Disney Bros Studio. Roy and Walt ordered and built kit house
Kit house
Kit houses, also known as pre-cut houses, ready-cut houses, mail order homes, or catalog homes, were a type of prefabricated housing that was popular in the United States in the first half of the 20th century...

s from Pacific Ready Cut Homes (a Los Angeles company) and in 1928, they built their homes side by side on Lyric Avenue. Their homes were slightly customized and enlarged, and do not exactly match the original homes featured in the Pacific Ready Cut Homes catalogs.

Walt Disney Productions

While Walt was the creative man, Roy was the one who made sure the company was financially
Finance
"Finance" is often defined simply as the management of money or “funds” management Modern finance, however, is a family of business activity that includes the origination, marketing, and management of cash and money surrogates through a variety of capital accounts, instruments, and markets created...

 stable; Roy and Walt both founded Disney Studios as brothers, but Walt would buy out most of Roy's share in 1929 and, unlike Max
Max Fleischer
Max Fleischer was an American animator. He was a pioneer in the development of the animated cartoon and served as the head of Fleischer Studios...

 and Dave Fleischer
Dave Fleischer
David "Dave" Fleischer was an American animator film director and film producer, best known as a co-owner of Fleischer Studios with his two older brothers Max Fleischer and Lou Fleischer...

 of rival Fleischer Studios
Fleischer Studios
Fleischer Studios, Inc., was an American corporation which originated as an Animation studio located at 1600 Broadway, New York City, New York...

, Roy was not a co-producer.

Roy became the company's first CEO in 1929, although the official title was not given until 1968. He also shared the role of Chairman of the Board with Walt from 1945. Walt however dropped the Chairman title in 1960 so he could focus more on the creative aspects of the company. After Walt Disney's death in 1966, Roy postponed his retirement to oversee construction of what was then known as Disney World, and later renamed it Walt Disney World as a tribute to his brother. During the final weeks of Walt's life, Roy was given a series of instructions in how to continue the growth of the company for the next 5 years, and explained in detail plans for Walt Disney World. Roy became the president of Walt Disney Productions on December 15, 1966, and remained so until 1968.

Personal life

Roy was married to Edna Francis (1890–1984) from April 1925 until his death; their only child Roy Edward Disney, was born on January 10, 1930. Throughout his life, Roy rejected the publicity and fame that came with being Walt's brother. He was extremely camera shy, and a passive individual resulting in few public photos being in existence.

Death

After Walt Disney World opened in October 1971, Roy Disney finally retired. In early December of that year, he complained of a "spot" over one of his eyes and was scheduled to visit his optometrist for a new eyeglass prescription. He was discovered in a dazed condition, collapsed, next to his bed by family members; he died from a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...

. He was supposed to visit Disneyland with his grandchildren that day. His interment was located in Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery
Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)
Forest Lawn – Hollywood Hills Cemetery is part of the Forest Lawn chain of Southern California cemeteries. It is at 6300 Forest Lawn Drive in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California, on the lower north slope at the far east end of the Santa Monica...

.

Tributes

A statue of Roy O. Disney seated on a park bench beside Minnie Mouse
Minnie Mouse
Minerva "Minnie" Mouse is an animated character created by Ub Iwerks and Walt Disney. The comic strip story "The Gleam" by Merrill De Maris and Floyd Gottfredson first gave her full name as Minerva Mouse. Minnie has since been a recurring alias for her. Minnie is currently voiced by actress Russi...

 is located in the Town Square section of Main Street, U.S.A., at the Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom Park is one of four theme parks at the Walt Disney World Resort located near Orlando, Florida. The first park built at the resort, Magic Kingdom opened Oct. 1, 1971. Designed and built by WED Enterprises, the park's layout and attractions are similar to Disneyland in Anaheim, California...

 theme park in Florida. A duplicate is located outside the Team Disney
Team Disney
There are at least four buildings in the United States which carry the Team Disney title. Each serves as the administrative headquarters for key businesses of The Walt Disney Company....

 building at Disney's corporate headquarters in Burbank, California. There is a third statue at the Tokyo Disneyland
Tokyo Disneyland
is a 115 acre theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Disney park to be built outside of the United States and opened on April 15, 1983...

 theme park. Roy O. Disney was the father of Roy E. Disney
Roy E. Disney
Roy Edward Disney, KCSG was a longtime senior executive for The Walt Disney Company, which his father Roy Oliver Disney and his uncle Walt Disney founded. At the time of his death he was a shareholder , and served as a consultant for the company and Director Emeritus for the Board of Directors...

, who died on December 16, 2009. There is a Roy O. Disney Suite on the top floor of the Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel
Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel
Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel is the second Disney hotel in the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort in Penny's Bay, Lantau Island, Hong Kong. The theme of the hotel is of a Victorian style, and is located near Disneyland Harbour...

. The suite is one of the two largest suites of the hotel.

External links

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