Via-DisneyParksBlog
Cast members at Carthay Circle Restaurant in Disney California Adventure park are accustomed to being surrounded by Disney history, but they were especially excited to be among the first to see Walt Disney’s honorary Academy Award® for “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” on display at the iconic restaurant to mark the upcoming Oscars® broadcast on ABC.
“This is exciting for us; we’ve always wanted to have it here,” said Steven Olson, manager of the restaurant, which itself is a tribute to the original Carthay Circle Theatre in Hollywood where the classic movie premiered in 1937.
The award, on special loan from The Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco, was presented to Walt at the 11th annual Academy Awards in 1939 by child star Shirley Temple, and featured a full-size Oscar statuette along with seven miniature-sized versions (a framed photo of the moment is featured on the restaurant’s second floor, pictured above). Although “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” is considered a groundbreaking movie for The Walt Disney Company as well as a watershed moment for animation, its status as the first feature-length animated film kept it out of consideration in the Best Picture category.
“The success of ‘Snow White’ was a pivotal moment for our company’s future success,” Steven said as cast members posed for photos around the Oscar, which will be on display in the entry of the restaurant during restaurant hours through March 20.
Between 1932 and 1969, Walt was honored with 32 Academy Awards and still holds the record for the most won by an individual.
The company received a total of 22 nominations from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the 95th Oscars, including two for Best Picture for 20th Century Studios’ “Avatar: The Way of Water” and Searchlight Pictures’ “The Banshees of Inisherin.” Tune in to watch the Oscars on Sunday, March 12, at 8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT on ABC.
