Wednesday with Walt: Just Daddy!

Walt and Lillian Disney tried very hard to keep their daughters unaware of their daddy’s fame. Few studio people were invited to the house and they never talked about the studio in front of the girls. They wanted a normal life for them. One day, after an afternoon party, little Diane came home, threw herself into her father’s arms, embraced him and asked “Father, are you THE Walt Disney?”

I can imagine that being the daughter of someone so well-known must have been such a feeling of pride. I have to say that I felt the same way about my father, although he was not well-known, famous or the creator of the happiest place on earth.

Boys have special relationships with their fathers. They play ball together, go fishing and hunting and they learn about life and becoming a good man. To a little girl, though, her daddy is the most important man in the world. “Daddy’s little girl” is a phrase you hear pretty often, but you have to look deep into the meaning. To a little girl, Daddy is the strongest man in the world; he can do anything, just like a super hero; he is her protector, her knight in shining armor; he is the person she strives to please; he sees the princess inside her; he is fun to be with and the best person with whom to share an ice cream sundae; he is her hero, and the only person alive who can truly scare all the monsters away.

Walt Disney’s daughters didn’t see him in our eyes. Sharon said, “We weren’t raised with the idea that this is a great man who is doing things that no one else had ever done. He was Daddy. He was a man who went to work every morning and came home every night.”

Diane has often said that, no matter how busy Walt was, he never missed a father-daughter event. She would try to discount something and say it wasn’t important and he didn’t have to come; but he would be there, right on time.

Father’s Day is coming in just a few weeks. My sisters and I were blessed to have our father until well into our adulthood. Tragically, we lost our daddy to the same horrible disease that took Diane’s and Sharon’s daddy. The greatest thing in the world is that memories can never be taken away. Running the filmstrips in our minds is the saving grace for daddy’s little girls.

To all you fathers out there, I hope this Father’s Day is your very best one yet. You deserve all the praise and recognition you can get. The best way I can think to celebrate is to grab up the kids and head to Walt Disney World for a much-needed vacation.:)

Here’s an early wish for a Happy Father’s Day!

Related articles

• Wednesday with Walt: Poor Henpecked Father (chipandco.com)
• Wednesday with Walt: Sunny-Side Up (chipandco.com)

Let our friends at Destinations to Travel help you book your next Disney Vacation. They are the preferred Travel Agency of Chip and Company and Disney Addicts, and who we use ourselves.

Get started below for your FREE No Obligation Quote.

Book With our friends at Destinations to Travel

Who is your Travel Agent?(Required)

Let us pick for youEric HilesStacy ReedAbbey JohnsonAlisa SullivanAlli WillisAmanda FolsomAmanda VannAmber BrillhartAmber FisherAmy SieburnAndrea SmithAngela AndersonAngie BaycuraAnna PetrilliAnnabelle DuboseApril StefanskiAshley RamseyBeth ParsonsBetsy SantoroBrandie McQueenBrian BuckleyBridget HatchBryan SchwartzCandice SneedCarrie ButlerCarson DockumCasey BoltCharleen HortonChelsea RoyChelsea WuebkerChris BoyerChristie GrubeChristina FratturaChristina SmithCourtney WhiteCraig YoderDan MercedDanielle NorcrossDarby MouritsenDavid ForrestDeborah AlvaradoEmilee BiegelEmily MorrisFaith HakesGail HatchGreg MatzkerHelen HummerHolly CurryJackie CavistonJaclyn PepitoneJamie SwansonJeanine JordanJeff CallahanJenni MaierJennifer BrownJennifer StephensonJennifer StoessnerJessica HatfieldJessica HuffJessica WunderJoe GuertinJon CarpentierJoseph SliwaJulie McCombJustin BrownKat AttridgeKathryn EberhartKathy AndersonKatie HarrellKatie PrevotKayla CookKelsey SullensKim HelmsKimberly HutchinsonKristi GallagherKyle RamsdenLauren DewlenLeanne MonterLinda DurhamLindsay AckermannLindsey VromanLissette BritoLori HardyMallory MorrisonMandi QuinnMaranda PerkinsMarisa AlvaradoMegan TeismannMeghan BlairMelissa ReedMichele KlineMike BeyerMissy McCormickMisty DickersonNancy CasteelNicole ThorntonPatrick O'ConnorPaul SulPeyton Ward-KubikRaylene CooganRegan OstranderRobbie BulusRobert ThomasSara SolbergSarah McCandlishShanna BrowningShelley BennettShelly MetzStacy CristStacy KrzyminskiStacy SmithStephanie DraganoStephanie FerencStephanie WalshSusannah McCordTara SlusserTerri MillerTiffany DobraskiTiffany DrenkhahnTina FarmerTonya LesiukTracy DaneTroy DuncanVeronica RenteriaVicki FesslerWendy CarllWendy HauserWendy KellehanWendy Shelley

Name(Required)

First Last

Email(Required)

Phone(Required)

Destination(Required)

Walt Disney WorldDisneyland ResortDisney Cruise LineAulani, A Disney Resort and SpaAulani, A Disney Resort and SpaUniversal FloridaUniversal HollywoodRoyal Caribbean, Carnival, Norwegian or other Cruise LineI don't know yet

# of Adults(Required)

# of Children(Required)

Check-in-Date(Required)

MM slash DD slash YYYY

Check-out-Date(Required)

MM slash DD slash YYYY

Comments, Questions or Special Requests

Name

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Δ

For the BEST in Disney, Universal, Dollywood, and SeaWorld Theme Park News, Entertainment, Merchandise & More follow us on, Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube. Don't forget to check out the Chip and Company Radio Network too!