Children are naturally curious about the world around them, and

curiosity is a powerful motivation for reading. Studies show that

informational reading is critical to success in school. National

Geographic Kids Readers allow you to feed your children’s interests

and create readers who not only can read, but also want to read!

To sustain children’s excitement about reading, we have created a

special program called NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC KIDS SUPER READERS. As kids read each National Geographic Kids Reader, they cross off its picture on a free National Geographic Kids Super Readers poster that parents can download from kids.nationalgeographic.com/ superreaders.

Throughout the process, kids and parents go to the website and

download specially designated prizes that reward their effort. Kids

can have even more reading fun online, with lively book-related

activities, quizzes and games, fascinating excerpts, and sneak

previews of upcoming books.

The National Geographic Kids Super Readers program appeals to

kids’ love of accomplishment while providing them with incentives

to keep reading. When the reading experience is fun, children learn

more and achieve more. What could be better than that?

Sincerely,

Mariam Jean Dreher

Professor of Reading Education

University of Maryland, College Park

To my sisters, Kathy, Marilyn, and Susan —B.K.

Copyright © 2017 National Geographic Partners, LLC

Published by National Geographic Partners, LLC,

Washington, D.C. 20036. All rights reserved.

Reproduction in whole or in part without written

permission of the publisher is prohibited.

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC and Yellow Border Design

are trademarks of the National Geographic Society,

used under license.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Kramer, Barbara, author.

Title: National Geographic reader. Walt Disney /

Barbara Kramer.

Description: Washington, DC : National Geographic

Children’s Books, 2017. | Series: National Geo-

graphic reader | Includes index. | Audience: Ages

6-9. | Audience: K to Grade 3.

Identifiers: LCCN 2017010736| ISBN 9781426326738

(paperback) | ISBN 9781426326745 (hardcover)

ebook ISBN: 978-1-4263-2675-2

Subjects: LCSH: Disney, Walt, 1901-1966--Juvenile

literature. | Animators--United States--Biography

--Juvenile literature. | BISAC: JUVENILE NON-

FICTION / Readers / Beginner. | JUVENILE NON-

FICTION / Biography & Autobiography / General. |

JUVENILE NONFICTION / People & Places /

United States / General.

Classification: LCC NC1766.U52 D54515 2017 | DDC

741.58092 [B] --dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017010736

The author and publisher gratefully acknowledge the

expert content review of this book by Dan Viets, Walt

Disney historian and lecturer, and coauthor of Walt

Disney’s Missouri: The Roots of a Creative Genius, and the

literacy review of this book by Mariam Jean Dreher,

professor of reading education, University of Maryland,

College Park.

Photo Credits

AL=Alamy Stock Photo; GI=Getty Images; LOC=Library

of Congress Prints and Photographs Division;

SS=Shutterstock

COVER: (background), RSBPhoto1/AL; (RT), HO Images/

AL; INTERIOR: (throughout), corund/SS; 1, Alfred

Eisenstaedt/GI; 3, Gene Lester/GI; 4 (LE), A.F. ARCHIVE/

AL; 4 (CTR), Everett Collection/AL; 4 (UP), urbanbuzz/

AL; 4 (RT), James Clews/AL; 5, Hulton Archive/GI; 6

(UP), Hulton Archive/GI; 6 (CTR), Bettmann/GI; 7 (UP),

Bettmann/GI; 7 (LO), Buddy Mays/AL; 8, Hulton Archive/

GI; 9 (UP), Apic/GI; 9 (LO), Iakov Filimonov/SS; 10, Walt

Disney Hometown Museum; 11 (UP), Eric Farrelly/

AL; 11 (LO), Apic/GI; 12, ClassicStock/AL; 13, Chicago

History Museum/GI; 14 (CTR), Olivier Le Queinec/

Dreamstime; 14 (LO), Chicago History Museum/GI; 15

(UP), Screenprod/AL; 15 (CTR), Richard Thornton/SS;

15 (LO), Bettmann/GI; 16, NG Maps; 17, Popperfoto/GI;

18, Thank You Walt Disney; 19 (UP), © Can Stock Photo/

HomoErectus; 19 (LO), Alfred Eisenstaedt/GI; 20-21

(LO), Mitch Diamond/GI; 21 (CTR), Alfred Eisenstaedt/

GI; 22 (UP), Hulton Archive/GI; 23 (UP), Bettmann/GI; 23

(LO), Ullstein Bild/GI; 24, Everett Collection, Inc./AL; 25,

Ewing Galloway/Bridgeman Images; 26 (LO), Ullstein

Bild/GI; 26 (CTR), Ullstein Bild/GI; 27 (UP), Ronald Grant

Archive/AL; 28, Everett Collection, Inc./AL; 29, NBC/

GI; 30 (UP), HeikeKampe/GI; 30 (CTR), Gene Lester/

GI; 30 (LO), Hulton Archive/GI; 31 (UP), Bettmann/GI;

31 (CTR), Bettmann/GI; 31 (LO), Gene Lester/GI; 33,

Earl Theisen Collection/GI; 34, Pictorial Press/AL; 35,

Walt Disney Pictures/Ronald Grant Archive/AL; 36, AF

Archive/AL; 37, ABC Photo Archives/GI; 38, Earl Theisen

Collection/GI; 39 (CTR), Ullstein Bild/GI; 39 (UP), Carol

M. Highsmith/LOC; 40-41 (LO), Julia-art/SS; 40 (CTR),

AF Archive/AL; 41 (UP), dpa/ullstein bild/The Image

Works; 42-43 (LO), Julia-art/SS; 42 (CTR), tim gartside

usa america/AL; 43 (CTR), Bloomberg/GI; 44 (UP),

Paul Stringer/SS; 44 (CTR), Chicago History Museum/

GI; 44 (LO), Thank You Walt Disney; 45 (UP), Ronald

Grant Archive/AL; 45 (CTR RT), Earl Theisen Collection/

GI; 45 (CTR LE), imageBROKER/AL; 45 (LO), Carol M.

Highsmith/LOC; 46 (UP), © Can Stock Photo/Homo

Erectus; 46 (CTR LE), Hulton Archive/GI; 46 (CTR RT), AF

Archive/AL; 46 (LO LE), Ascent XMedia/GI; 46 (LO RT),

Hulton Archive/GI; 47 (UP LE), Heiti Paves/SS; 47 (UP

RT), Pictorial Press/AL; 47 (CTR LE), Al Greene Archive/

GI; 47 (CTR RT), Ewing Galloway/Bridgeman Images; 47

(LO LE), Scherl/Süddeutsche Zeitung Photo/Granger,

NYC—All rights reserved; 47 (LO RT), Paul McErlane/AL

National Geographic supports K–12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.

Visit natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information.

Who Was Walt Disney? 4

Early Years 8

In His Time 14

A Young Artist 16

Back in Business 20