SHSMO Center for Missouri Studies
605 Elm St.
Columbia
Disney author and historian Dan Viets picks up on Walt Disney’s life after the family moved from Marceline to Kansas City where he spent ten years, learning art and pioneering the field of animation. At age 20, Walt started Laugh-O-Gram Studio on the second floor of the McConahay Building, 1127 East 31st in Kansas City, which operated until 1923. Walt hired talented artists at Laugh-O-Gram, and together, they created early animation films that influenced Disney's famed career in film and theme parks. Before he opened his studio, Disney's first art class was at Kansas City’s Benton School, and later, at the Kansas City Art Institute. Many of the young artists who worked with Disney in Kansas City followed him to Los Angeles where they revolutionized the animation film industry.
Be sure to check out Daily Disney exhibition in the SHSMO Art Gallery, which runs through March 2025.