What Was Disney Doing in 1923? Founding the Disney Brothers Studio and the First Alice Comedies

1923 wasn’t the year of Mickey Mouse. It was the year of a rented room, a risky letter, and a two-brother bet that a new kind of cartoon could pay the rent. If you’re wondering what Disney was actually doing in 1923, here’s the short answer: Walt and Roy set up a tiny studio in Los Angeles, signed a distribution deal for a live-action/animation hybrid series, and shipped their first release right after Christmas. No theme parks. No Mickey. Just grit, a camera, and a contract.

• Walt and Roy founded Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio on October 16, 1923.
• They landed a distribution deal with Margaret J. Winkler for the Alice Comedies.
• Walt had shot a pilot, Alice’s Wonderland, earlier in Kansas City to pitch the idea.
• The first distributed short, Alice’s Day at Sea, released on December 26, 1923.
• The operation ran from a modest rented space in Los Angeles with bare-bones gear.

Disney in 1923 often gets boiled down to one date: October 16. That date matters. But the full picture is the move from Kansas City to Hollywood, the scramble for a distributor, and the birth of a workflow that mixed a real child with hand‑drawn animation. That’s the real story.

What you’ll get here:

• A clear timeline of what happened in 1923 and why it mattered.
• Who did what: Walt, Roy, Virginia Davis, and Margaret Winkler.
• How the early studio actually worked (process, tools, constraints).
• A quick-reference checklist and a compact table to keep dates straight.
• Answers to common follow-ups: Was Mickey around? What can I watch today?

1923, step by step: from collapse to a tiny studio to the first release

If you only remember one arc, make it this: a failed Kansas City studio forced a move, a promising pilot opened doors, and a distribution contract birthed a company.

1. Spring-Summer 1923: The Kansas City chapter closes. Walt’s earlier outfit, Laugh‑O‑Gram Films, ran out of cash. He had just finished a clever pilot called Alice’s Wonderland, where a live child wanders through an animated world. The business folded, but the idea held up. That idea would power the next chapter.

2. July 1923: Walt heads to Los Angeles. He joins his brother Roy, who handles the books and the practical side. Los Angeles has studio infrastructure and more distribution contacts than Kansas City. Also, the weather helps when you’re shooting live action on a shoestring.

3. Late summer 1923: Pitching the hybrid. Walt mails the Alice’s Wonderland pilot to distributors. The hook is simple and fresh for the time: a real girl inside a cartoon world. It’s not a gimmick-it's a way to get audiences curious while the team builds animation muscle.

4. October 1923: The Winkler deal comes through. Margaret J. Winkler, a major New York distributor best known for handling Felix the Cat and (soon) Oswald, agrees to take a series of Alice shorts. This is the lifeline. With a buyer, the brothers can form a real company.

5. October 16, 1923: The company is born. Walt and Roy register Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio. That date is widely marked as the founding of what’s now The Walt Disney Company. It’s a two‑person core: Walt focuses on creative and production; Roy manages finances, contracts, and deadlines.

6. Late 1923: Production ramps. The team hires child actress Virginia Davis to play Alice and begins shooting new episodes. The workflow is scrappy: shoot live action first, then draw animation around it, matching the movement frame by frame. No multiplane camera, no big staff-just careful compositing and tight schedules.

7. December 26, 1923: First release hits theaters. The debut entry in the series, Alice’s Day at Sea, opens. It’s proof of life: the new studio can deliver a film, get it distributed, and get paid. The machine is moving.

So what was a working day like? Walt splits time between drawing, scene planning, and directing the live-action bits. Roy chases invoices, tracks costs, orders film stock, and handles correspondence with Winkler’s office. The set is bare-think makeshift backdrops and a camera on a sturdy stand. It’s all function, zero flash.

If you’re used to the polished 1930s shorts, this era can feel handmade. That’s the point. The 1923 work is about building a pipeline: write a gag, shoot the actress, plan the animation, register drawings, photograph cels, ship a releasable reel. Repeat.

Two quick guardrails so you don’t get tripped up by myths:

• Not Mickey yet. Mickey Mouse arrives in 1928. In 1923, the focus is Alice Comedies.
• Not a big studio yet. The team is small. Ub Iwerks, Walt’s key collaborator from Kansas City, joins in Los Angeles early in 1924.

People, deals, and the work itself: who did what in 1923

Names matter in this story because the company is basically a family shop plus one crucial distributor.

Walt Disney (age 21-22). He’s the creative engine and a hustler by necessity. He directs the live-action portions, draws layouts, animates sequences, and edits. He also writes letters, courts distributors, and keeps morale up when the cash runs thin.

Roy O. Disney (age 29-30). He’s the business spine. Roy opens bank accounts, negotiates terms, tracks paper, and keeps the studio solvent. You don’t get a release on December 26 without someone watching invoices and lab costs. Roy also acts as a brake on overpromising when Walt’s ambition runs ahead of the budget.

Margaret J. Winkler. She’s the gatekeeper. As an established distributor, Winkler has relationships with theaters that independents dream about. She’s betting that the live-action/animation hook will draw crowds. Her contract gives the Brothers a schedule and a path to payment-two things you can’t animate without.

Virginia Davis. She’s Alice, the child star who sells the premise on screen. Walt directs her in simple, readable actions that the animators can key off later. The performance has to be precise because animators will match her movement frame by frame.

The crew. In late 1923 it’s slim. Assistants, inkers, and photographers rotate in and out early on. Much of the heavy lifting-especially the style decisions-sits with Walt. The steady growth comes in 1924 when more hands arrive.

How did they pull off the hybrid look in 1923 without fancy gear? Here’s the gist:

• Shoot live action first. Get clean, well-lit footage of Virginia on simple backgrounds. The simpler the set, the easier the animation match.
• Plan the gags on paper. Walt maps where cartoon characters will intersect with the actor-where a cat grabs a skirt hem, where a chair slides, where a door slams.
• Animate to the footage. Using frame-by-frame registration, artists draw characters so they line up with the live-action plate. Precise marks and steady camera work are everything.
• Composite with optical tricks. Double exposure and careful matte work blend drawings with the live image. It’s meticulous, but it works if you keep scenes short and clear.

What did success look like in 1923? Not profits; a delivered, paid-for reel. The goal was to meet the delivery schedule and prove the pipeline. Once that’s happening, the studio can hire, refine, and take bigger swings. That next chapter starts in 1924 and accelerates later with Oswald and then Mickey.

If you want to double-check the essentials, these primary keepers of record line up on the dates and people above: Walt Disney Archives (company founding and contracts), The Walt Disney Family Museum (early studio timeline and personal letters), the Library of Congress and the American Film Institute Catalog (release dates and film entries). For a school report or a serious timeline, those are your anchors.

Quick references: timelines, checklists, FAQs, and what to do next

Bookmark this section if you just need the highlights during a late-night cram or a pub debate.

1923 in one line: Move to L.A., sign Winkler, form the studio on October 16, release Alice’s Day at Sea on December 26.

Fast checklist (use this to sanity-check any source):

• Company name in 1923: Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio (not yet The Walt Disney Studio).
• Key date: October 16, 1923 = founding.
• Series in production: Alice Comedies (hybrid live action + animation).
• Distributor: Margaret J. Winkler.
• First released title from L.A.: Alice’s Day at Sea (Dec 26, 1923).
• Mickey Mouse? Not until 1928.
• Ub Iwerks in L.A.? Early 1924, not 1923.

Mini‑FAQ

• Was Mickey Mouse around in 1923?
  No. Mickey debuts in 1928. In 1923 the studio’s energy goes into Alice Comedies.

• What exactly happened on October 16, 1923?
  Walt and Roy formed Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio after securing a distribution deal. That date is treated as the company’s birthday by the Walt Disney Archives.

• What was the first film released by the new studio?
  Alice’s Day at Sea, released December 26, 1923, through Winkler. The earlier pilot, Alice’s Wonderland, was shot in Kansas City as a proof-of-concept to land the deal.

• Where was the studio?
  In a modest rented space in Los Angeles. Think tight quarters, not a backlot.

• Can I watch the 1923 films today?
  Availability varies. Some early Alice shorts survive in archives; others are incomplete or lost. For viewing notes, check the American Film Institute Catalog and the Library of Congress. The Walt Disney Family Museum also provides context.

• Who is Margaret Winkler?
  A top distributor of the 1920s who handled major animated series. Her deal with Walt and Roy gave the new studio cash flow and reach.

Heuristics for judging a 1923 Disney claim:

• If a source says “Mickey in 1923,” it’s wrong.
• If it forgets the Winkler deal, it’s missing the core business reason the studio existed.
• If it calls the company “Walt Disney Studios” in 1923, be cautious. That name comes later.

Want to use this info fast?

• Student on a deadline: Use the table above and cite Walt Disney Archives for the founding date; AFI or the Library of Congress for the December 26 release.
• Disney parks fan: Connect the dots: no Alice Comedies in 1923, no studio to grow into Oswald (1927) or Mickey (1928), and much later no parks. The 1923 bet funds the first rungs of the ladder.
• Film buff: Look for the hybrid technique-live action first, then animation-echoed in later experiments across the industry.
• Parent with a curious kid: Tell it as a three‑beat story: two brothers, a brave letter, and a cartoon that made a little girl walk with drawings.

Common pitfalls to avoid when researching 1923:

• Mixing up the pilot (Alice’s Wonderland, shot in Kansas City) with the first distributed short (Alice’s Day at Sea).
• Backdating team arrivals (Ub Iwerks hits L.A. in early 1924).
• Assigning modern company names to 1923 events.

Where this fits in the bigger Disney timeline: 1923 plants the seed. In 1924 the team scales the Alice pipeline. In 1927, they land Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. In 1928, after losing Oswald, they create Mickey. That entire chain depends on the 1923 deal making the studio real.

Credible sources to cite (no links, just names you can search): Walt Disney Archives (company founding and internal milestones), The Walt Disney Family Museum (letters, early timeline), American Film Institute Catalog (film entries and release dates), Library of Congress (catalog records and preservation status). These align on the October 16 founding date and the December 26 release of Alice’s Day at Sea.

If you need a one‑sentence answer for a slide or a report: In 1923, Disney was moving to L.A., forming Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio on October 16 after landing a distribution deal, and releasing the first Alice Comedies-starting with Alice’s Day at Sea-by year’s end.