Snow White is a very special princess because her story is the first fairytale Disney animated. Actually, it is the VERY first full-length Disney animated film ever made. I am so glad there are still Snow White references, rides, and character meet and greets in the Disney Parks to pay homage to the princess that is part of the foundation of the Disney company. The rich history of Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs interests me a lot so I want to share with you some Snow White Trivia you may find interesting.
Snow White Trivia
Walt Disney came up with the idea for the film when he was only 15, working as a newsboy in Kansas City. He saw a major presentation of a silent film version of Snow White (1916) starring Marguerite Clark. Snow White was released in 1937 as the first full-length, full-color animated feature film to come out of the United States. Walt dreamed big even though according to the Hollywood film industry, Snow White would be “Walt Disney’s Folly”. I am so glad Hollywood was wrong!
Another first is that Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs became the first release in Disney’s new Platinum Edition DVD series, hitting stores on October 5, 2001. On its first day, more than 1 million copies were sold. Today Snow White is still the highest-grossing animated film of all time (adjusting for inflation).
Because of the success of Snow White, Disney Studios in Burbank was built from the profits. Without Snow White, we wouldn’t have Elsa, Moana, Princess Elena, or my favorite, Cinderella.
How Disney Changed the Original Story
Many fairy tales are actually pretty terrifying and not something that young children should read. The Walt Disney Company always waters down and changes some aspects of the original story. The film was going to include all three of the Queen’s assassination attempts (poison comb, bodice suffocation, and the poison apple) but eventually streamlined it to just the apple.
In the original tale, by the Grimm brothers, the Dwarfs have no individual names.
In the original Snow White story, Snow White was just 14. To skirt around the issue of how old Snow White was supposed to be, Walt instructed his animators to make Snow White appear “old enough to marry.”
In the original story, Snow White vandalizes the Dwarf’s house instead of cleaning it.
Another change is how the queen dies. In the original, the Queen is invited to the wedding and is made to wear heated iron shows and dance to her death. Disney instead started its’ tradition of killing evil people by them falling off a cliff.
Fun Facts about the Seven Dwarfs
Rejected names for the dwarfs included: Jaunty, Blabby, Dirty, Gabby, Biggy-Wiggy, Gaspy, Gloomy, Awful, Deefy, Hoppy-Jumpy, Hotsy, Nifty, and Shifty.
Six of the dwarfs have eyebrows modeled after Walt Disney’s. Happy was the exception, his eyebrows were white and bushy.
Dopey was originally slated to be a chatterbox, but producers couldn’t find a voice that was quite suitable for the bald dwarf. Rather than outfit him with vocals they thought were wrong, Dopey went silent instead.
Things to Look For In Snow White
Since Snow White was the first full-feature animated film there are no Easter Eggs (hidden things that reference older movies). There are a couple of Hidden Mickeys. When Snow White is scrubbing the stairs before the prince comes, she throws water over the area she scrubbed. When the water starts to dry up, one dry spot looks like a mickey, the other one is just a blob. The second HIdden Mickey is found when Snow White meets the Prince and they are singing to each other, the pigeon flies down and lands on the prince’s finger. When it flies away, there is a Mickey in the upper left corner of the screen in the center of a blossom of the tree.
Snow White’s Prince’s Name
The Prince was the first “realistic” human male that the Disney animators attempted to bring to life. It was found that the Prince was the hardest of all characters to animate. For this reason, his role in the film was minor; he only makes two appearances in the film (source). He is not named in the film.
Many Disney fans believe that the Prince’s name is Ferdinand because Shirly Temple made mention of that name during the Oscars. She was actually referring to Ferdinand the Bull.
Official Disney resources use different names or no name at all other than “Prince”. Some Disney on Ice promotional materials call him Florian. Supposedly, there are name references in the original drawings in the archives. Since it is not confirmed, I will just say that he is Snow White’s Prince and even though he “saves” her he gets no credit.
Where to Find Snow White in Walt Disney World
You can meet Snow White next to Main Street’s Town Hall or at Epcot in Germany near her Wishing Well. During the Very Mery Christmas Party, you can meet the Seven Dwarfs. At the Magic Kingdom, you can ride the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Ride and you can see Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in the Festival of Fantasy Parade.
Do you like Snow White and Seven Dwarfs? What is your favorite part? Let me know in the comments!