By Michael Aronson

March 27:

• 1901: Donlad Duck illustrator and the father of Scrooge McDuck, Carl Barks is born is born in Oregon on this day. In 1935, he heard of work at the Disney Studio and he decided to apply. Shortly after he was hired, Barks submitted a gag about a mechanized barber chair for the Donald Duck cartoon ‘Modern Inventions’. This gag meant a promotion to the story department where Barks co-worked Donald cartoon shorts for the next decade.
  After leaving the Studio to set up a chicken farm. To supplement his income, Barks wrote to Western Publishing saying that he was available to draw Disney comic-books. Although he hoped to develop his own set of characters to create his own independent comic-strip, he never got the chance to do so. Western hired him immediately to draw Donald Duck stories, and kept him at it for the next 25 years.
• 1930: Handkerchiefs become the first official piece of Disneyana as George Borgfeldt issues the first Disney merchandising license to a company in Switzerland.
• 1952: The Burbank Daily ran an article announcing a “Walt Disney Make-Believe Land Project Planned Here — $1.5 Million Dreamland To Rise On Site In Burbank." While this never materializes, a bit of larger project is started a few years later in neighboring Anaheim.
• 1995: The ‘Lion King’ roars over the Oscars as the Elton John and Tim Rice composition ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight’ win the Oscar for Best Song and Hans Zimmer is awarded for Best Original Score
• 1999: After a complete restoration, one of the original Disneyland opening day steam engines, the E.P. Ripley, is rededicated.
  

March 28:

• 1910: Happy Birthday Jimmie Dodd, the leader of the Mickey Mouse Club. Not only the leader on screen, but also the composer of the ‘Mickey Mouse Club March’ as well as most of the other music on the show.
• 1929: The Mickey Mouse short ‘The Opry House’ is released and MIckey is sporting an new sartorial addition - white gloves.
• 1958: The Disneyland roundhouse has a new resident as Engine No. 3, the Fred S. Gurley, is commissiond for service at the Magic Kingdom
  

March 29:

• 1951: ‘In Beaver Valley’, a Disney True Life Adventure wins the Academy Award for best short subject of 1950.
• 1993: Disney’s is granted two wishes by the Academy Awards as Oscars go to Alan Menken and Tim Rice for ‘A Whole New World’ and to Menken for best Original Score.
  

March 30:

• 1913: Animator, Imagineer, Disney Legend, and one of Walt’s ‘Nine Old Men’, Marc Davis is born on this day in Bakersfield. Davis would be the hand behind pixies, princesses, and villains (Tinker Bell, Cinderella, Cruella deVille) and would be credited with animation what was reputedly Walt Disney favorite piece of animation - the transformation of Cinderella’s dress from rags to ball gown. Marc would then turn his magic touch to the Disney Theme Parks designing classic attraction such as the Jungle Cruise, Pirates of the Caribbean, the Haunted Mansion, and the Country Bear Jamboree.
• 1955: The Oscars again shine on Disney with awards for ’20,000 Leagues Under the Sea’ (Art Direction, Special Effects) and ‘The Vanishing Prarie’ (Best Documentary).
  

March 31:

• 1958: 306 feet of continuous canvas is revealed to Railroad passengers as the Grand Canyon Diorama opens at Disneyland.
  

April 1:

• 2001: The Main Street Electrical Parade ends is run at the Magic Kingdom in Florida opening the way for SpetroMagic to return the following year.
• 2006: The tradition on this day continues as all Disney Parks once again let all guests in for free. (Please see above date for further details).