THE WOMAN BEHIND THE MAGIC

Steering clear of the spotlight, Lillian Disney (neé Bounds) found her own way to leave her mark on the Disney legacy.

Born the last of 10 siblings in 1899, Lilly had a knack for finding magic in the everyday despite her tough beginnings—after her father died when she was 17, she helped her mother make ends meet. She stumbled upon the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio after moving to Los Angeles. Though women were rarely hired in animation at the time, Walt and Roy Disney took a chance on Lilly. She became an inker and a painter, filling animators’ drawings with pigment, cell by cell. Enamored by her boss’s creativity, Lilly fell in love with Walt, and they were soon married. When Walt sketched a cartoon mouse named Mortimer, Lillian suggested that “Mickey” would be a catchier name. Though Lilly preferred to stay behind the scenes while supporting her husband, she left a lasting impact on the company: dreaming up cartoon ideas, testing theme park rides, and even innovating Disneyland’s trash-collection system. Richman sprinkles pixie dust on one woman’s influence on the Disney we know today; still, young readers eager to take center stage may be frustrated with Lillian’s willingness to play second fiddle to Walt. Digital illustrations are rendered with a muted palette that evokes the period but feels a bit dull, directly depicting the events described in the text rather than building on them.

Peek behind the scenes and celebrate a woman whose achievements shaped Disney magic.