Bill Walsh

Bill Walsh

Bill Walsh was born in New York to immigrant parents (father from Canada, mother from Ireland). In his teen years he lived with relatives in Cincinnati, OH, and later attended the University of Cincinnati. In 1933 he joined the stock touring company of husband / wife team Barbara Stanwyck and Frank Fay as a writer, but the couple divorced the next year and Walsh found himself stuck in Hollywood with no job and no prospects. He wound up working as an agent for a publicity agency, one of his clients being ventriloquist Edgar Bergen. Walsh joined Walt Disney Studios in 1943, working for both the Publicity and Story departments. One of his jobs was to write jokes for the syndicated Mickey Mouse comic strip (he continued doing that on a voluntary basis for more than 20 years, long after he left those departments). Walsh brought his former client Edgar Bergen to Disney to narrate some cartoons and TV shows. Walt Disney, who at first saw television as basically a tool to promote his films, was impressed with Walsh's publicity savvy and chose him to head the studio's television division. His first few projects were resounding successes, and when Disney made a deal with ABC Television to invest in its Disneyland amusement park in exchange for Disney developing a TV series, Walsh was named the series' producer. The show turned out to be The Mickey Mouse Club (1955). Walsh developed the show basically by himself, with little input from Disney, who was more concerned with developing Disneyland. He hired both the child performers and adult hosts on the show, came up with the basic format--rotating "theme" days, animated opening and closing sequences and recurring live-action series, among other innovations--and even helped to develop the famous Mousketeer "ears" each performer wore. After several seasons on "The Mickey Mouse Club", Walsh wanted to get out of television production and left the show to produce live-action films. He produced quite a few of Disney's comedies and adventure films, the most famous being Mary Poppins (1964), which was one of the studio's biggest successes and pleased critics as much as it did fans. Most of the films he produced, however, were derided by critics as dull and low-quality and helped to cement Disney's reputation for turning out unimaginative, repetitive, assembly-line pap. The films made money for the studio, though, and Walsh and Walt Disney remained close until Disney's death in 1966. Bill Walsh died of a heart attack in 1975.

  • Title: Bill Walsh
  • Popularity: 3.112
  • Known For: Writing
  • Birthday: 1913-09-30
  • Place of Birth: New York City, New York, USA
  • Homepage:
  • Also Known As: William Walsh
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Bill Walsh Movies

  • 2006
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    The Shaggy Dog Kids

    The Shaggy Dog Kids

    1 2006 HD

    Reminiscences by the kids from the original 1959 Disney film.

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  • 1957
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    Along the Mohawk Trail

    Along the Mohawk Trail

    1 1957 HD

    Two episodes of the 1957 TV series "Hawkeye and the Last of the Mohicans" edited together and released as a feature.

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  • 1964
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    Mary Poppins

    Mary Poppins

    7.6 1964 HD

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  • 1974
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    Herbie Rides Again

    Herbie Rides Again

    6.1 1974 HD

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  • 1971
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    Bedknobs and Broomsticks

    Bedknobs and Broomsticks

    7 1971 HD

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  • 1971
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    Bedknobs and Broomsticks

    Bedknobs and Broomsticks

    7 1971 HD

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  • 1997
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    The Love Bug

    The Love Bug

    5.6 1997 HD

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  • 1997
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    Flubber

    Flubber

    5.7 1997 HD

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  • 1964
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    The Misadventures of Merlin Jones

    The Misadventures of Merlin Jones

    6.5 1964 HD

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  • 1959
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    The Shaggy Dog

    The Shaggy Dog

    6.124 1959 HD

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  • 1961
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    The Absent-Minded Professor

    The Absent-Minded Professor

    6.4 1961 HD

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  • 1974
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    Herbie Rides Again

    Herbie Rides Again

    6.1 1974 HD

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  • 1968
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    Blackbeard's Ghost

    Blackbeard's Ghost

    6.7 1968 HD

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  • 1968
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    Blackbeard's Ghost

    Blackbeard's Ghost

    6.7 1968 HD

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  • 1963
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    Son of Flubber

    Son of Flubber

    5.895 1963 HD

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  • 1968
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    The Love Bug

    The Love Bug

    6.531 1968 HD

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  • 1975
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    One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing

    One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing

    5.8 1975 HD

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  • 1950
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    One Hour in Wonderland

    One Hour in Wonderland

    7 1950 HD

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  • 1959
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    The Shaggy Dog

    The Shaggy Dog

    6.124 1959 HD

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  • 1956
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    Davy Crockett and the River Pirates

    Davy Crockett and the River Pirates

    6.3 1956 HD

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  • 1955
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    Davy Crockett's Keelboat Race

    Davy Crockett's Keelboat Race

    7 1955 HD

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  • 1955
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    Davy Crockett Goes to Congress

    Davy Crockett Goes to Congress

    10 1955 HD

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  • 1975
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    One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing

    One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing

    5.8 1975 HD

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  • 1965
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    That Darn Cat!

    That Darn Cat!

    6.5 1965 HD

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  • 1961
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    The Absent-Minded Professor

    The Absent-Minded Professor

    6.4 1961 HD

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  • 1971
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    Scandalous John

    Scandalous John

    6.3 1971 HD

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  • 1960
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    Toby Tyler or Ten Weeks with a Circus

    Toby Tyler or Ten Weeks with a Circus

    6.1 1960 HD

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  • 1971
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    Scandalous John

    Scandalous John

    6.3 1971 HD

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  • 1956
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    Westward Ho, The Wagons!

    Westward Ho, The Wagons!

    5.5 1956 HD

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  • 1966
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    Lt. Robin Crusoe U.S.N.

    Lt. Robin Crusoe U.S.N.

    5.6 1966 HD

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  • 1955
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    The Littlest Outlaw

    The Littlest Outlaw

    5.5 1955 HD

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  • 1950
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    One Hour in Wonderland

    One Hour in Wonderland

    7 1950 HD

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  • 1964
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    Mary Poppins

    Mary Poppins

    7.6 1964 HD

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  • 1965
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    That Darn Cat!

    That Darn Cat!

    6.5 1965 HD

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  • 1963
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    Son of Flubber

    Son of Flubber

    5.895 1963 HD

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  • 1951
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    The Walt Disney Christmas Show

    The Walt Disney Christmas Show

    6.3 1951 HD

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  • 1957
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    The Hardy Boys: The Mystery of the Ghost Farm

    The Hardy Boys: The Mystery of the Ghost Farm

    1 1957 HD

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  • 2006
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    The Shaggy Dog

    The Shaggy Dog

    4.9 2006 HD

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  • 1957
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    The Best Doggoned Dog in the World

    The Best Doggoned Dog in the World

    7 1957 HD

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  • 1973
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    The World's Greatest Athlete

    The World's Greatest Athlete

    5.3 1973 HD

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  • 1954
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    Davy Crockett, Indian Fighter

    Davy Crockett, Indian Fighter

    6.5 1954 HD

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  • 1954
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    The Disneyland Story

    The Disneyland Story

    7.5 1954 HD

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  • 1954
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    The Disneyland Story

    The Disneyland Story

    7.5 1954 HD

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  • 1959
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    Disneyland '59

    Disneyland '59

    6.5 1959 HD

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  • 1968
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    The Love Bug

    The Love Bug

    6.531 1968 HD

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  • 1952
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    The Riddle of Robin Hood

    The Riddle of Robin Hood

    1 1952 HD

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  • 1970
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    8 1970 HD

    Adventure in Dairyland is a television serial that aired in 1956 on ABC as part of the second season of The Mickey Mouse Club. The serial starred...

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  • 1970
    imgS1 E14

    6 1970 HD

    The Adventures of Clint and Mac is a 1957 television serial that aired on ABC as part of the third season of The Mickey Mouse Club.

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  • 1970
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    6 1970 HD

    Mickey Mouse Club serial starring Mouseketeer Darlene Gillespie.

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  • 1970
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    8.8 1970 HD

    The sons of the great detective Fenton Hardy, Frank and Joe are eager to impress their father with their mystery solving skills.

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  • 1970
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    5.964 1970 HD

    A variety show featuring a cast of child performers.

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