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Tortured childhood - Walt Disney was born in Chicago in 1901. However, he was largely raised in Kansas City, Missouri, and it’s said he had a tough childhood, with a strict father who was borderline abusive.

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Parents -

Walt Disney’s birth certificate also seemed suspicious (it listed him as being 10 years older than he thought he was, making him think he was illegitimate). This lead the animator to feature tough child-parent relationships in his work. One of the only Disney films that features both parents is ‘Peter Pan’.

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Career beginnings - When he was in his twenties, Disney was a commercial artist by day and animator by night. His work was popular, and Disney even formed an animation studio called Laugh-O-Grams.

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A failed project -

However, Laugh-O-Grams would not last. The studio eventually declared bankruptcy, and many lost their jobs.

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"House devil" -

According to the Belfast Telegraph, Disney was a "street angel, house devil." News of his wife’s pregnancy drove the animator to a breakdown eight years into his marriage.

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Breakdowns -

Apparently, Disney became a heavy drinker and consumed 60 cigarettes a day. He also had nervous breakdowns, and obsessively washed his hands every hour.

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Walt vs. workers -

Walt Disney and workers didn’t quite get along, especially when it came to low wages. Animators went on strike in 1941.

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Walt vs. workers - They also wanted to join the Screen Cartoonists Guild, but Disney blocked his workers from unionizing, and even fired his pro-union animators.

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Walt vs. workers - The strike lasted nine weeks. This apparently led Disney to call out workers as communists, as part of his involvement with the Motion Picture Alliance.

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Mutiny - Disney had a dastardly relationship with his employees, and at one point they turned on him in cartoonish fashion, no pun intended.

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"A pointed metaphor" - For his 35th birthday, the animators threw a birthday bash where they screened an explicit cartoon featuring Mickey and Minnie. According to The Irish Independent, it was a “pointed metaphor for the way they felt they were being treated by Disney."

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Didn't see the funny side - Disney applauded the animation, and asked to meet those who were responsible. When they revealed themselves, he fired them on the spot and left the party in silence.

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The UPA - It’s said that Disney sacked his animators like it was nothing. Eventually, many of them banded together and founded UPA, a rival company.

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An accidental death - One of the darker facts here, Walt Disney indirectly caused his own mother's death.

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A gas leak - Upon finding success, Disney bought his parents a nice house. When the furnace broke, Disney sent some employees to fix it. However, the inexperienced workers caused a gas leak, which led to his mother’s death.

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Allegations of antisemitism and racism - Walt Disney’s legacy has been haunted with allegations of antisemitism and racism. Offensive stereotypes can be found in films like ‘Fantasia’, ‘Dumbo’, and the infamous ‘Song of the South.’

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Allegations of antisemitism and racism -

Disney associated with the Motion Picture Alliance, which was seen as an antisemitic group. ‘Song of the South’ was also released without approval from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

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Allegations of antisemitism and racism - What’s more, Disney personally hosted Leni Riefenstahl, a Nazi propagandist, at his studio. She later said it was “gratifying to learn how thoroughly proper Americans distance themselves from the smear campaigns of the Jews," as reported by Paste Magazine.

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Walt vs. women workers - To be fair, Disney’s reputation with women workers is more down to the social norms at the time. However, it’s said that Disney was determined to keep women workers in menial positions.

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Walt vs. women workers - During the 1930s and ‘40s, women would work as inkers, hand-painting every cell in animated films. When making ‘Snow White,’ it’s said women would work more than 80 hours a week.

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"Women do not do any of the creative work" - Back in the day, Disney sent out an infamous rejection letter to a woman. “Women do not do any of the creative work in connection with preparing the cartoons for the screen, as that work is performed entirely by young men," the message read, as per the Daily Mail.

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Dubious politics -

Time to get political. Walt Disney was heavily involved in anti-communist attitudes in America. He supported companies and initiatives with dubious tactics, and even outed his own animators as potential communists.

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Dubious politics - Disney also supported the Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals. The group has been documented as being antisemitic.

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Facial hair hypocrite -

Walt Disney had big dreams for his theme park, and wanted it to have a “wholesome appearance," according to the Belfast Telegraph. That meant no beards, goatees, and mustaches.

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Facial hair hypocrite - Disney was famous for having a mustache, but Disneyland workers weren’t allowed to have a mustache until 2000.

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Family feud -

Disney was something of a family business between Walt and his brother Roy (right). The former was the creative force, while Roy was more of a businessman.

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Family feud -

It’s said that the duo were rivals, which divided loyalty at Disney studios. The creative team were dubbed “Walt’s boys’, while “Roy’s boys” ran the financial department.

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Family feud - Divisions in the Disney studios were no good for business, and Roy was always tasked with managing Walt’s frenetic financial movements.

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A nightmare to work with? - Walt Disney was said to go from “Uncle Walt” to a living nightmare. He divided Disney up by gender, and refused to negotiate with workers on wages.

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A nightmare to work with? -

Disney kept his hands on company policy. Apparently, he controlled everything from theme park designs to researching how far trash cans should be from the desk.

See also: Fun facts about Disney that you probably didn't know

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