The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company, also known simply as Disney, is an American media and entertainment conglomerate, founded in 1923 by the brothers Walter Elias Disney and Roy Oliver Disney.
Tolkien's thoughts
For J.R.R. Tolkien, the products of the Disney company were an especially prominent example of bad style.
A remarkable critique of Walt Disney was given by Tolkien in a 1964 letter to a fan:
In 1946, he rejected suggestions for illustrations by Horus Engels for the German edition of the Hobbit as "too Disnified",
Moreover, throughout his life Tolkien had a deep concern and strong opinions about adaptations of his legendarium. when certain producers became interested in movie adaptations of Tolkien's works, (he had sold the film, stage and merchandise rights of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings to United Artists in 1968), he forbade Disney should ever be involved:
In another letter, Tolkien writes in 1965 that neither he nor his publishers (George Allen and Unwin) intend to give Walt Disney permission to make a film based on his books.
Tolkien-related Disney products
Nevertheless, Disney's Disneyland and Buena Vista record labels were to release six audio products based on the Rankin/Bass The Hobbit and two based on Rankin/Bass The Return of the King in the 1970s and 1980s.
- 1977: The Hobbit: The Complete Original Soundtrack
- 1977: The Hobbit (Disneyland Read-Along)
- 1977: The Hobbit (Disneyland Storyteller)
- 1980: The Return of the King: A Story of the Hobbits
Disney has also in its possession the television network ABC, the original television network of Rankin/Bass The Return of the King, which acquired it in 1996.
Moreover, Disney has released through Fox Searchlight Pictures the biographical film Tolkien (2019), which covers the early years of J.R.R. Tolkien until the World War I.
Referencias
1. Esta ficha se ha importado inicialmente de TolkienGateway.net el día 30/05/2026.
