Introduction

Every Christmas for years, I have been asked to share Disney-related stories about Christmas. Disney and Christmas seem to share many of the same core values: magic, family, joy, caring, celebrating.

Disney and Christmas is an opportunity for people to reconnect with the wonders of childhood. Christmas might seem incomplete without some element of Disney whether it is a cartoon, a toy, a book, or a visit to a theme park.

I decided it was time to collect some of those stories into one book as my own Disney Christmas gift. The stories fall into the same categories of my previous Vault of Walt books, so I realized I could write a special edition devoted just to the holiday.

This is not a definitive collection of Disney Christmas information. There are certainly more than enough other Disney Christmas stories to fill another edition, like the story behind the Santa Clause films, the tradition of the gingerbread houses at the WDW resorts, the Disney Christmas cards (including not just the ones sent out annually by the Disney studio but the ones produced by Hallmark since 1932 and the personal ones created by Disney artists), and Christmas-themed merchandise. For this collection, I simply chose some of my favorites, usually the ones that I get asked to tell every holiday season.

While working for Disney Adult Discoveries at Walt Disney World, I was lucky enough to be an instructor for the inaugural season of the Yuletide Fantasy backstage tour for guests and was able to contribute some research to the original script. It gave me a much greater appreciation for the attention to detail and effort involved in transforming the parks for the holiday season.

Working at WDW during the Christmas season is a different experience than during the rest of the year, and I marveled first hand at how Holiday Services decorated the parks and resorts so quickly and completely and how guests were entranced anew by the theme parks as they saw them through a new perspective.

Some of the most treasured gifts I have received for Christmas over the decades from friends and family were Disney oriented, from the Art of Animation Kit available at the Art Corner in Disneyland, to an inscribed copy of The Illusion of Life by Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, to the Disney Treasures DVD with episodes of Zorro that I had not seen since I was a kid who dressed up in a black cape and mask while brandishing a plastic sword in the air to right wrongs.

I could fill several pages just listing all these wonderful Christmas surprises that still make me happy, so it was not hard to get into the proper mood to document a Disney Christmas even while the heat and humidity of Florida engulfed me.

When I worked at Epcot, every night during the holiday version of IllumiNations I heard the voice-over by newscaster and Disney fan Walter Cronkite that echoed around the lagoon:

During this glorious time of year, there is one message that rings out around the world in every language. Peace on earth, good will to men.

It is a wish to hold in our hearts throughout each passing year. A gift of immeasurable value. A treasure being handed down with care, from generation to generation. And so our holiday wish is that everyone, everywhere share in the spirit of the season. Peace on earth, good will to men.

It was Walt Disney himself who insisted that even though the Candlelight Processional was to celebrate Christmas that there would be no Santa Claus and no Disney characters so that the focus could be on the real reason for the season.

I think it does us all good to take a moment to look back on earlier, simpler times and treasure those things that warmed our hearts. Those memories are the true gifts of Christmas.

May the real spirit of Christmas fill our hearts for the entire year as we enjoy Walt’s gift of these magical memories that give us a little hope and happiness as we face another new year.

God bless us everyone!