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9 The Story of Walt

Disney

Warm Up

● Do you watch cartoons?
● What is your favourite cartoon?

● Why do you like cartoons?

Reading skills

Have you heard of Walt Disney before? Walt Disney was an American film and TV
producer, a pioneer of animated cartoon films, and creator of the characters, Mickey Mouse
and Donald Duck.

Walt was born on December 5, 1901, a little over 100 years ago in Chicago.

Even as a young boy, Walt loved to draw cartoons and read stories about success and
adventures. But he had to take up odd jobs to contribute to the family income. Walt had

little time to play. His father bought a newspaper
business and forced Walt to deliver newspapers
before dawn.

One cold morning, Walt was delivering

newspapers for his father’s business. As he
crossed the street he kicked a piece of ice and felt
a sharp pain. A horseshoe nail pierced through

his boot and jammed into his toe.
“Help! Help!” he yelled in pain. Not a single person

on the street stopped to help him as he lay on the
ground. Much later, a driver saw him and brought him to a doctor. “I am sorry, I have got

nothing to give you for the pain, child,” said the doctor. “You will have to just bear the pain.”
The doctor removed the nail with pliers. It took two whole weeks for Walt to recover from his
injury. Being in bed for so long encouraged Walt to think about his future. He knew that he
would not obtain a prestigious job like a doctor, a lawyer or an engineer. He could not even

afford the luxury of attending college.

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