“…..Walt was in a state of high anxiety. He had no idea how the audience was going to respond.
Reporter (archival audio): Well Walt, I think you're due to do all the talking tonight. Tell us a little bit about this picture will you?
Walt Disney (archival audio): Well, it's been lot of fun making it and we're very happy that it's being given this big premiere here tonight and all these people are turning out to take a look at it. And I hope they're not too disappointed.
Reporter (archival audio): Well I'm sure they won't be, I've seen the picture Walt...
Steven Watts, Historian: He didn't know if it would really WORK. And one part of him was almost agonizing over "Well, if people don't buy this, this will just fall flat, and then I will be done."
Narrator: Audience members gasped at the opening shots of the Queen's castle.
Evil Queen, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): Slave in the magic mirror. Come from the farthest space, through in from darkness I summon thee -- Speak!
Narrator: They howled in laughter at the antic dwarfs.
Dwarves, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): Ah, soup! Hooray!
Snow White, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): Uh-uh-uh, just a minute!
Evil Queen, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): The heart of a pig! And I've been tricked.
Narrator: They hissed disapproval at the Evil Queen. And still, Walt was anxious.
Evil Queen disguised as Old Woman, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): Don't let the wish grow cold!
Snow White, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): Oh, I feel strange...
Narrator: He sat gripping Lillian's hand for nearly 75 minutes, nervously anticipating the scene that would put the power of his personal vision to the ultimate test.
Snow White, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): Sigh
Evil Queen disguised as Old Woman, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): [Cackling laughter] Now I'll be fairest in the land!
Narrator: When it arrived -- the apparent death of Snow White -- the theater was hushed.
Seven Dwarfs, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): [Quiet crying and sniffling]
Neal Gabler, Biographer: The audience started weeping. And that's when Walt knew. That's when they all knew. The audience had suspended its disbelief so thoroughly, so believed in the reality of the situation and of the dwarves, that they were crying. That was really the triumph of the film.
The Prince, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival audio): One song, only for you. One heart, tenderly beating...
Ron Suskind, Writer: Clark Gable and Carole Lombard are WEEPING. They don't know what hit them. You know, what hit them is that they crossed a barrier, from the life they live to the internal world where myth lives in all of us, and Disney provides the passage. And it ain't AIN’T Kid stuff!
"How did we never notice before...how much the others mean to us?" - an eternal question if there ever was one. Thanks GM
“…..Walt was in a state of high anxiety. He had no idea how the audience was going to respond.
Reporter (archival audio): Well Walt, I think you're due to do all the talking tonight. Tell us a little bit about this picture will you?
Walt Disney (archival audio): Well, it's been lot of fun making it and we're very happy that it's being given this big premiere here tonight and all these people are turning out to take a look at it. And I hope they're not too disappointed.
Reporter (archival audio): Well I'm sure they won't be, I've seen the picture Walt...
Steven Watts, Historian: He didn't know if it would really WORK. And one part of him was almost agonizing over "Well, if people don't buy this, this will just fall flat, and then I will be done."
Narrator: Audience members gasped at the opening shots of the Queen's castle.
Evil Queen, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): Slave in the magic mirror. Come from the farthest space, through in from darkness I summon thee -- Speak!
Narrator: They howled in laughter at the antic dwarfs.
Dwarves, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): Ah, soup! Hooray!
Snow White, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): Uh-uh-uh, just a minute!
Evil Queen, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): The heart of a pig! And I've been tricked.
Narrator: They hissed disapproval at the Evil Queen. And still, Walt was anxious.
Evil Queen disguised as Old Woman, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): Don't let the wish grow cold!
Snow White, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): Oh, I feel strange...
Narrator: He sat gripping Lillian's hand for nearly 75 minutes, nervously anticipating the scene that would put the power of his personal vision to the ultimate test.
Snow White, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): Sigh
Evil Queen disguised as Old Woman, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): [Cackling laughter] Now I'll be fairest in the land!
Narrator: When it arrived -- the apparent death of Snow White -- the theater was hushed.
Seven Dwarfs, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival): [Quiet crying and sniffling]
Neal Gabler, Biographer: The audience started weeping. And that's when Walt knew. That's when they all knew. The audience had suspended its disbelief so thoroughly, so believed in the reality of the situation and of the dwarves, that they were crying. That was really the triumph of the film.
The Prince, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves (archival audio): One song, only for you. One heart, tenderly beating...
Ron Suskind, Writer: Clark Gable and Carole Lombard are WEEPING. They don't know what hit them. You know, what hit them is that they crossed a barrier, from the life they live to the internal world where myth lives in all of us, and Disney provides the passage. And it ain't AIN’T Kid stuff!