Walt was a self-motivated individual with lots of energy which was constantly seeking some outlet. (People have written much about this trait of his.) He was more the giver than the taker in relationships. (In the first few years, when he was responsible for making business contracts, he often gave away his work without setting prices for profits. He even wrote letters to his boss to the effect that his first priority was good cartoons not profits, and that he’d work without profits, but he did want some appreciation for his work. That was his sensitive nature showing.)
Walt wouldn’t wait for others to come up with an idea or someone else to make a move – he was there first. He could communicate his ideas with clarity and ease and move easily from idea to another. (He would storm into Disney Productions and spew one idea after another into his workers’ ears.) He enjoyed competition. He had a quick mind and keen perception. He frequently acted on intuition and impulse, taking chances and endangering his own security. (He frequently gambled all his life savings and everything he could scrape together on a project). Long projects bored him. (Fortunately the real tedious work of cartooning was done by a large staff of artists.)
House chores and repetitive chores bored him and he avoided them. (He was absolutely a total slob around the house as a bachelor). He was impatient with vague philosophies, he liked concrete realities. He was difficult to get along with because he had both a playful side (even to the point of cruel practical jokes) to his personality and an aggressive intolerant impatient side that wanted to achieve. Naturally, people around him were disconcerted because on a subconscious level they never knew which side of him they would deal with. (The reference series Current Biography ‘Disney’ article p. 248 gives the following Walt Disney quote: ‘We don’t even let the word ‘art’ be used around the studio. If anyone begins to get arty, we knock them down.’) He was geared for action. He was always inventing ways to get what he needed. He could be explosive when provoked. (The old time associates of Walt remember his explosive temper). He was a person of dynamic energy, sensuality and keen thinking, and a disciple of the pleasure principle.”
The Character of Walt Disney (2)
“But here is how he was in the 1920s.
Walt was a self-motivated individual with lots of energy which was constantly seeking some outlet. (People have written much about this trait of his.) He was more the giver than the taker in relationships. (In the first few years, when he was responsible for making business contracts, he often gave away his work without setting prices for profits. He even wrote letters to his boss to the effect that his first priority was good cartoons not profits, and that he’d work without profits, but he did want some appreciation for his work. That was his sensitive nature showing.)
Walt wouldn’t wait for others to come up with an idea or someone else to make a move – he was there first. He could communicate his ideas with clarity and ease and move easily from idea to another. (He would storm into Disney Productions and spew one idea after another into his workers’ ears.) He enjoyed competition. He had a quick mind and keen perception. He frequently acted on intuition and impulse, taking chances and endangering his own security. (He frequently gambled all his life savings and everything he could scrape together on a project). Long projects bored him. (Fortunately the real tedious work of cartooning was done by a large staff of artists.)
House chores and repetitive chores bored him and he avoided them. (He was absolutely a total slob around the house as a bachelor). He was impatient with vague philosophies, he liked concrete realities. He was difficult to get along with because he had both a playful side (even to the point of cruel practical jokes) to his personality and an aggressive intolerant impatient side that wanted to achieve. Naturally, people around him were disconcerted because on a subconscious level they never knew which side of him they would deal with. (The reference series Current Biography ‘Disney’ article p. 248 gives the following Walt Disney quote: ‘We don’t even let the word ‘art’ be used around the studio. If anyone begins to get arty, we knock them down.’) He was geared for action. He was always inventing ways to get what he needed. He could be explosive when provoked. (The old time associates of Walt remember his explosive temper). He was a person of dynamic energy, sensuality and keen thinking, and a disciple of the pleasure principle.”