August 22, 2014
Location: Main Street, USA, Magic Kingdom
Anyone who has seen or heard of
the Disney Company can most likely tell you who
Walt Disney or Mickey Mouse are. The two of them
got their big break back in 1928 with Mickey's
debut in "Steamboat Willie" and have since gone
on to create one of the largest businesses in
the world. Due to this outstanding partnership,
the two of them received a statue with the two
partners standing side by side in the hub at the
Magic Kingdom. The statue, appropriately named
"Partners," is easily the most photographed and
recognizable statue on Disney property. However,
today we are going to be looking at a statue
which deserves just as much recognition as the
one sitting in front of Cinderella Castle.
Just after entering into the Magic Kingdom, guests
enter town square, a quaint little area that instantly transports
guests to a town at the turn of the 20th century. Sitting in the
center of town square is a flag pole, and near the base of the pole
sits a bench with two figures sitting upon it. The two guests
occupying the seat are Roy O. Disney, Walt's older brother, and
Minnie Mouse. The name of the statue? Sharing the Magic.

I know, I know! Why is it called Sharing the Magic?
Great question! Let's do a little bit of background on Walt and Roy
and Minnie and Minnie before we get to that answer. Since Walt was
young, his brother Roy had often looked out for him to make sure
Walt was happy. Walt and Roy were best friends and due to Walt's
admiration for his brother, Walt would follow Roy wherever he would
go. Eventually, Roy moved to Los Angeles, so naturally Walt went
there as well. It was here that the two of them established the
Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio back in 1923.
As time went on, the two decided that the company
should have one brother step forward and be the face of the company.
Walt, who had the creative vision and a unique way of telling
stories, stepped into the spotlight, while Roy, who was often more
reserved, became the financial wizard of the company.
As I pointed out earlier, Mickey made his debut in
1928. Unfortunately, one little bit of trivia most people overlook
is the fact that Minnie also made her debut in 1928 in the same
short cartoon, "Steamboat Willie!" Throughout the years, Minnie
Mouse would never get her own series of short cartoons, but would
often be there for Mickey to help launch him into the megastar role
we all know and love him in today. Much like Roy, Minnie was never
the main person in the spotlight.
So why Sharing the Magic? The name pretty much sums
it up: Roy and Minnie share the magic with us just as much as Walt
and Mickey do, however, the placement of the statue is the true fun
find! Why on earth would we find Roy and Minnie, the secondary
characters to the company, first, while we see Walt and Mickey
second after entering the park? One obvious reason is due to the
Partners statue being at a location that results in better photo
ops, but that isn't the true reason behind it. The real reason we
see Minnie and Roy before seeing Mickey and Walt is so guests never
forget that if it weren't for Minnie and Roy, Mickey and Walt may
never have been as successful as they have become, thus making
Minnie and Roy, the true stars of Disney!