Obscure Drug Use References in Disney Movies

The magical world of Disney!

A beloved (yet very scary) character from the movie.

One of my favorite lines of the movie: "We're ALL mad here..." :D

What first comes to your mind when you hear "Disney"? For many of us who grew up on Disney, it brings back childhood memories, cute characters, and lovey-dovey songs. As such, people consider Disney movies to be the purest form of entertainment possible! In fact, the only movies many parents would allow their young children to watch are Disney movies. I personally grew up on Disney movies, and recall loving them. Now that I am a mature adult, however, I am about to expose another side of the story. If you firmly love and believe in the purity of Disney movies, you may not want to read on.

            When parents present their children with Disney movies, they assume that they are protecting their young from the influence of drugs, sex and violence. The fact is, however quietly or subliminally, all three of these things are very much present in many Disney films! We already know that many of these beloved tales have violence; like the poisoning of Snow White by an evil witch or the homicidal murder of Mufasa in the Lion King. In addition, sexual innuendo may not seem too far off, what with half-naked, cleavage-bearing princesses like the Little Mermaid or Jasmine. But drugs? Most of us would be quite surprised to know of the extent to which drug references and allusions run rampant in many of the Disney Classics!

How and why could this be? We might start by taking a closer look at Walt Disney, the legendary man behind our favorite childhood films.  One might assume that the person behind Disney movies must be very sweet in nature, and loving of children, sort of like a Mr. Rogers. Well, there is no doubt that Walt Disney was a very creative man who loved to bring to life stories for children. But what others have to say about this man, who lived from 1901-1966, show us that he may have had a darker side.

            Starting with the darkest side of the spectrum, Frink Springmeier goes so far as to insist that Walt, as well as the entire Disney Company, are part of the Illuminati. For those who need a briefing on the Illuminati, they are essentially governments and large corporations who work behind the scenes to control world affairs. They may or may not actually exist today, but their idea is based on the historical Bavarian Illuminati group, which dates back to the 1700's. If you are the type to believe in brainwashing, and evil powers who "hide themselves behind perfect fronts", in the hopes of one day bringing about a New World Order, I would refer you to read Springmeier's The Disney Bloodline. It quotes an Illuminati Grand Master as saying, "If the world only had the eyes to see the fibers which lay under the surface of Walt Disney's image, they'd tar and feather him, and drag him through the streets. If only they knew what Disney's primary goal is" (Springmeier, 1998). This idea of Walt being part of the Illuminati may help explain, in part, his reason for using subliminal drug (as well as sexual) messages in his movies; a topic we shall explore again later.

            Whether Walt Disney was actually part of the Illuminati or not, there seems to be evidence in favor of a more common, every day vice: the use of drugs. In addition to smoking "specially rounded brown cigarettes", Walt was quite a fan of "expensive Scotch Whiskey" (Springmeier, 1998). Now there is nothing wrong with enjoying a drink now and then, but "…unfortunately with the progression of time, by the 1960's Walt had become a sadistic egotistical alcoholic" (Springmeier, 1998). In addition, sleep problems led him to consistently "…take alcohol and tranquilizers" (Springmeier, 1998).

            Were there any other drugs Disney was involved with in his lifetime? According to several individuals, including artist Paul Laffoley, the answer is yes, mescaline. An interesting story lies behind Walt's favorite drug of choice. How did he get introduced to it in the first place? Enter Black Mountain College, an art school taught by the late renowned German artist Josef Albers. In 1935, Disney, who sought artistic advice for his animations, rushed to Black Mountain to meet Albers. What Walt found was an impossibly narcissistic man who, looking down on his American students, taught with "…the European attitude of paternalism" (Laffoley, 2008). Needless to say, Walt never got his advice (rather, his animations were ripped apart by Albers), but he did get to "…discover the way students 'escaped' from the school in the summer. They all went to Chihuahua in Northern Mexico. There the students would eat wild peyote…(In its refined form…mescaline)" (Laffoley, 2008). As a result of hanging out with these students, "By 1936 Disney was taking mescaline on a regular basis…" (Laffoley, 2008). This is where the drug part of the story at Black Mountain College ends, but as a side note, any Fantasia buffs might be interested to know where the inspirations for the Night on Bald Mountain animations came from. It has been suggested that in Night on Bald Mountain, the devil was inspired from the "tyrant" Joseph Albers, and that "Bald Mountain" actually stood for "Black Mountain" College (Laffoley, 2008). In addition, the little creatures the devil plays with "…before he destroys them…" symbolize the students at the college, and how they were treated by Albers (Laffoley, 2008).

Back to the drug story, one year after Disney's purported regular use of mescaline began, in 1937, Walt Disney came out with his first classic, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Now Snow White may have been a poster-child for the fairest and most innocent of them all, but according to Urbandictionary.com, Snow White is now a street term for cocaine! Snow White and cocaine may both be powder-white, but let us take it a step further. Why did one construction worker at Disney world quit? According to his story, "Walt Disney had been a cocaine addict. He insisted that 'Snow White was (symbolizing) cocaine, and the seven dwarves were the symptoms of various stages of cocaine addiction: Grumpy, Sleepy, Grouchy [sic], Dopey, Sneezy, Happy and so fourth'" (Klimov, 2007). The same theory is also explored on http://filmguide.wikia.com :"…Snow is cocaine, which causes exhaustion (Sleepy), mood swings (Happy, Grumpy), allergies (Sneezy) and alteration of personality (Bashful, Dopey) eventually resulting in a trip to the doctor (Doc)". Shocked yet?

            The next Disney Classic, which came out in 1940, is Pinocchio. In my own personal opinion, no discussion of drugs in Disney movies could be complete without mentioning this film. Recall in your mind Pleasure Island, a type of Sin City for juvenile delinquent boys. Tricked by the so-called Honest John and the seemingly pedophilic Coachman, a truckload of young boys are taken to the Island. There they are allowed to smash in windows, get into fist fights, and, most covetable of all, to smoke. "Get your cigars, cigarettes, and chewing tobacco! Come in and smoke your heads off!", yells a voice over the loudspeaker (Pinocchio, 1940).

            One or two scenes later, the viewer witnesses the ultimate demonstration of peer pressure. Pinocchio finds himself in a pool hall with bad-boy Lampwick. Both boys hold mugs foaming over with beer, and cigars in their hands. After watching Pinocchio delicately puff his pipe, Lampwick, unimpressed, yells "Come on! Take a big drag! Like this!" (Pinocchio, 1940). Obediently, Pinocchio sucks in a large amount of tobacco, until the point where his face turns red and his large eyes water. The camera switches to Pinocchio's view, shaking, and vision blurry. We see poor Pinocchio's face go from red to sickly green and watch his eyes rattle about in his head.

To a young child, witnessing a beloved character undergo such ill effects is quite scary! Scary enough, perhaps, for them to avoid smoking for a while. Pinocchio's smoking episode is not the worst thing that happened at Pleasure Island, however. Lampwick, and eventually all the other boys who engaged in smoking, drinking, and bad behavior turn into (pun perhaps intended) jackasses! In this way, Walt's Pinocchio is didactic in nature, warning kids at an early age of the negative consequences that come with drugs and alcohol.  As the Coachman put it, "You boys have had your fun! Now pay for it!" (Pinocchio, 1940).

            The year 1940 was quite a productive one for Walt Disney. In addition to Pinocchio, he also introduced Fantasia, a film of epic proportions, far ahead of its time. The brilliant masterpiece, a collection of classical music brought to life by animation, was not appreciated at first. As critic Dorothy Thompson put it, "I left the theater in a condition bordering on nervous breakdown. I felt as though I had been subjected…to an assault [by Disney and conductor Leopold Stokowski, who] were responsible for the brutalization of sensibility in this remarkable nightmare…Since the chief characteristic of this…century is the collapse of the civilized world…Fantasia is [best taken as] a social symptom [of that collapse]" (Brode, pg.18). Such a strong review, although negative in light, adequately portrays Fantasia's capability to alter the state of its viewer's mind! It wasn't until the rerelease in 1970, however, that Fantasia's ability to grab you and shake you was fully appreciated!

            By 1970, the hippie revolution and post-Woodstock culture was in full swing. Part of life for young people had become the rebellious, and the self-exploratory, adventurous use of drugs. As summarized by Dr. Timothy Leary, "the rage on campus was to tune in, turn on, and drop out" (Brode, pg.16). It was precisely this audience, the college students, who embraced the rerelease Fantasia with open arms. To paint the picture, "Theaters located near universities were filled with long-haired freaks, surrounded by sweet-smelling fumes worthy of a Grateful Dead concert" (Brode, pg.17). "They even sat in the aisles to drink in the experience" (Hoffmann and Bailey, pg.120).  In other words, the 70's counterculture helped to lift Fantasia from flop to blockbuster status. It's "…clear the [Disney] studio not only anticipated, but hoped to exploit, the drug culture's reaction, judging by its advertising slogan for Fantasia's rerelease: "the ultimate trip!" (Brode, pg.17)

            So what was it that made Fantasia so magnetic to its viewers? "With so much color splashed on the screen and great music shifting moods, those in the audience not under the influence of drugs still succumbed to Fantasia's spell. But for hippies high on drugs the film was surrealistic and a better acid trip than the real stuff…" (Hoffmann and Bailey, pg.120). Fantasia combined "animation and classical music, cartoon humor and classical mythology, geological science and religious piety, whimsy and intellectual seriousness," and acted through "bizarre images that dug deep into the unconscious" (Brode, pg.17). With that, let us now take a look at a few of the scenes in more detail.

Fantasia unfolds with its first piece classical piece, Paul Dukas's The Sorcerer's Apprentice, starring Micky Mouse. In this scene, apprentice Mickey gets so carried away with magic that he dreams he can move the stars and the waters at his command, playing God as it were. He wakes up from his dream to find the entire sorcerer's lair flooded with water, and panics! Micky, once high and mighty, is now faced with a situation quickly spiraling out of control. The viewer sympathizes with poor Mickey as he struggles to stop a broom from pouring more buckets of water into the lair. Things take a violent turn when Mickey resorts to chopping the broom to pieces with a hatchet. This only causes the broom to start multiplying. Eventually the sorcerer comes down, and like Moses parting the Red Sea, moves the flooded water aside. Spanking guilty-faced Mickey like a parent would, the sorcerer sends him off running.

What does all this have to do with drugs? In a way, I believe Micky's experiment with magic could be seen as a teen or child experimenting with drugs, finding out what a disaster it could be, and then learning from the experience. What was at first a power trip turned into quite a bad trip indeed! Later on we shall see how this parallels to Alice from Alice from Alice in Wonderland.

Another composition from Fantasia, Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite, alludes to drugs with its "set of magic mushrooms dancing about hippie-style" (Brode, pg.19). I recall seeing the Nutcracker Suite as a ballet when I was a child, and there were certainly no mushrooms involved in the dance. Thus, for whatever reason, it was Disney himself who chose to animate the music in this peculiar way.  Watching this scene, the mushrooms, with their bobbing heads, are somewhat disturbing to behold, and have no particular face, except for two little slits that could perhaps be eyes. The final composition in Fantasia, however, is ten times more terrifying. Night on Bald Mountain (or Black Mountain, perhaps) is truly a nightmare on screen. No "ultimate trip" (drug-induced or otherwise) could be complete without a visit to hell, and Night on Bald Mountain takes you there. In addition, if there were ever a more appropriate place to point a finger to Walt's suggested sexual perversion, this would be it. Not exactly appropriate for children's eyes, the Devil himself plays with fire, turning it into tiny, dancing naked women.  Later, screaming topless women are literally thrown at the screen, expressions of terror on their faces. So yet again we see, Walt Disney's mind was, in the words of a former Micky Mousy club member, "Not That Innocent."

            Moving swiftly along the Disney Classics timeline, the next movie to be released was Dumbo, in 1941. By now you are probably ready to stop reading, thinking that this is ridiculous. What could a movie about a cute little elephant learning how to fly have anything to do with drugs? Well before you go, let me remind you of one particular little scene.  Half-way through the movie, poor little Dumbo gets depressed and discouraged, thinking that perhaps he will never be able to fly. Now think about what happens to us when we have a rough day, what do we do? A lot of us would head to the bar and have a drink. This is pretty much the same advice that Timothy Mouse gives to down-in-the-dumps Dumbo! "Well, ain't nothin' a little water won't cure", he says happily (Dumbo, 1941). The only problem with this so-called water is that it is actually a tub full of champagne! Dumbo goes ahead and "takes a trunkfull", upon which his face turns red, and, like a true drunk, starts hiccupping. After Timothy Mouse dives into the champagne, he too emerges as a drunk, laughing and hiccupping and falling all over himself.

Up to this point, the drug of influence has been alcohol, but that all changes as soon as Dumbo starts blowing pink elephants out of his trunk. One elephant turns into two, two turns into four, and before you know it a whole "parade" of wildly colored elephants are assaulting the screen. This "psychedelic sequence…begins the surreal fantasy of design, space, color, light, and gags, all to the tune of this minor-key march" (Brode, pg.20). Can you say acid-trip? If not, take a look at these lyrics to the song "Pink Elephants on Parade", sung by a man in the background:

            "Look out! Look out… Pink elephants on parade! What'll I do? What'll I do? What an unusual view! I could stand the sight of worms, And look at microscopic germs, But Technicolor pachyderms, Is really too much for me! I am not the type to faint, When things are odd or things are quaint, But seeing things you know that ain't, Can certainly give you an awful fright! What a sight! Chase 'em away! Chase 'em away! I'm afraid I need your aid! Pink elephants on parade!" (www.stlyrics.com).

            The lyrics clearly convey a person who is quite distressed with his or her hallucinations of pink elephants. The fact that the person knows they are seeing "things that ain't", or things that are not real, gives us reason to believe that they are experiencing a drug trip. So too does the fact that they "need aid" or help! After witnessing the entire pink elephants scene, many viewers would conclude that the "water" Dumbo drank from was spiked with a little something more than just alcohol. It has been suggested that this very scene "…serves as a prelude to (and, perhaps, inspiration for) Ken Kensey's Merry Pranksters, who drove across America, dropping "acid" in reservoirs, as detailed by Tom Wolfe in The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test (1968)" (Brode, pg.20).

            In contrast to Dumbo's single drug-related scene, Disney's Alice in Wonderland is a drug trip from start to finish! First released in 1951, the movie is based on the book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll. It has been suggested that Lewis Carroll was on drugs the entire time he wrote his creative novel. As mused in the book, Alice in Acidland, "There is little reason why Carroll's creative vision could not have included instinctively, what are now referred to as mind-bending drugs…He may have been, in fact, the original proponent of the use of these drugs" (Fensch, pg.13). Whether or not this is true is up for debate, as there are others who have dismissed such claims as pure slander and an insult to Carroll's natural creative genius. Book aside, the movie version by Disney, much like Fantasia, went over quite well with hippies and druggies when it was rereleased in the 70's. Also like Fantasia, it was a movie ahead of its time. As one individual put it, "Walt's incarnation of the heroine foreshadows, two decades before the fact, every straight girl who went crooked over drugs and lived to regret it" (Brode, pg.21).

Alice in Wonderland is a film that embodies the idea of the counterculture. "Rather than Carroll's typical late-Victorian child, Disney's Alice seems more a progenitor of America's flower-power hippie girls" (Brode, pg.22). Indeed, it is Alice's rejection of an "uptight Victorian society" in favor of a world of nonsense that gets her started on that fascinating, life-altering trip in the first place (Brode, pg.21-22). The journey starts when Alice follows a White Rabbit down a rabbit-hole, into another world completely different from her own. For some, the drug-references start right here with the White Rabbit signifying cocaine. Besides being white (like Snow White), the rabbit is always full of neurotic energy; one of cocaine's side effects. In addition, for no apparent reason, Alice is always chasing after the White Rabbit, just like many addicted cocaine-users track down cocaine.

            Even before Alice can enter Wonderland, she is faced with a challenge: how to get through a talking door-knob keyhole! The answer to her problem? Size-altering drugs! First, Alice drinks a bottle labeled "DRINK ME" to get smaller. Then, when she has to get larger to reach a key, she eats a cake from a little box, whose instructions are "EAT ME." Alice's rapid change in size (from a few inches tall to over ten feet tall) mimics the mental effects of drugs like LSD. "A common characteristic of LSD is distortion. Acidheads often experience space distortions" (Fensch, pg.32). Also, the little cake that Alice eats "…predates by almost one hundred years the recipes for making brownies laced with marijuana…" (Fensch, pg.35).

            Alice's changes in size continue several times throughout her journey through Wonderland, indicating that she is tripping the entire time. One of the most unforgettable creatures she encounters, a hookah-smoking caterpillar, gives her pieces of his magic-mushroom stool when she needs to grow taller. As advice from druggie to druggie, the caterpillar tells Alice "One side will make you grow taller, and the other side will make your grow shorter." Throughout his entire dialogue with Alice, the caterpillar speaks in his own cryptic language, "…half nonsense and half poetry" which makes it "…clear that the Caterpillar is stoned out of his mind" (Brode, pg.23-24). Another thing is also clear, and that is that Alice and the caterpillar are on very different drugs, probably acid and marijuana or hashish, respectively. While Alice is in a mild state of panic, the caterpillar is "…languid, sleepy…", and slow to speak (Fensch, pg.64). When he does speak, large, perfectly formed "O's" slip out of his puckered mouth and cloud Alice's confused face. After the caterpillar departs with his final words of advice, Alice "…not only eats of the mushroom to alter her state, but packs pieces of it away for further experimentation" (Brode, pg.24).

            Alice's level of confusion and frustration with the large, blue caterpillar are nothing compared to what happens at her next stop, a Mad Tea party. At this point, "…the drug-induced state becomes utterly unbearable" (Brode, pg.24). Now would be an appropriate time to introduce you to the term "rapping", not as we know it, but in terms of druggie-lingo. "Rapping" in this sense means "to talk incessantly while undergoing an acidtrip, whether to oneself or to someone else" (Fensch, pg.146). Watching the Mad Hatter, March Hare, and little Doormouse blabber on, seemingly inflicted with diarrhea of the mouth, one can get a pretty good picture of what it means to rap. As the three stooges crunch on plates dipped into hot tea, and butter broken watches belonging to white rabbits, Alice "…becomes truly threatened for the first time" (Brode, pg.24). At this point, "pushing Romantic thinking to the limit has proven as unbearable as was its opposite; "weird" has finally lost all charm for Disney's heroine as the drug trip turns bad" (Brode, pg.24). As alluded to earlier with Micky's magic experience in the Sorcerer's Apprentice, Alice is learning that the fun experience that drugs can provide will eventually turn sour. Echoing the words of the Coachman in Pinocchio, she mourns, "I should have known that there would be a price to pay, someday" (Brode, pg.24). However, when Alice leaves Wonderland and heads homeward back toward Victorian society, she "…still carries remnants of the magic mushrooms, and there's no reason to believe she won't continue to consume the pieces, if now in moderation" (Brode, pg.24).

            As we have seen with these five classic Disney movies, an underlying drug theme was present in each of them. However, the point of this discussion has not been to completely slander Walt Disney, dampen the genius of his work, or suggest that parents should prevent their children from seeing Disney movies. In reference to that last point, all of the drug-related Disney movies were released during the years before Walt died, and there have not been any more since. In this way, our study of drugs in Disney movies has been retrospective, looking back that the classics, the charming heirlooms of past decades, now far too old to be banned.

            The point of this discussion has really been to turn over a shiny, perfect-looking coin to reveal another side. This other side does not necessarily have to be ugly, but just different. The fact that references to drugs existed in some of Walt's movies does not mean he was a terrible person, or one without creativity and talent. So why was it that drugs were present in movies like Snow White, Dumbo, and so forth? Perhaps drugs were so much a part of Walt's life that they just naturally worked their way into his films. Or perhaps he really was part of the Illuminati, and his goal was to subliminally get children to start thinking about drugs in their ripe, early age. Still another possibility is that he was doing kids a favor all along, warning them about the ill effects of drugs through the trials and experiences of characters like Micky Mouse, the boys of Pleasure Island, and Alice. What do you think? As for me, I believe a mixture of two possibilities, that drugs were naturally part of Walt's life, and that his films were partially didactic, to be the closest to the truth. Perhaps when they unfreeze Walt's body (as it is rumored cryogenically frozen), we will be able to ask him ourselves!

Bibliography:

1) Brode, Douglas. From Walt to Woodstock how Disney created the counterculture. Austin: University of Texas P, 2004.

2) Dumbo. Dir. Ben Sharpsteen. Prod. Walt Disney Productions. VHS. 1941.

3) Fensch, Thomas. Alice in Acidland. Cranbury: A.S. Barnes and Co., Inc., 1970.

4) Hoffmann, Frank W., and William G. Bailey. Arts & entertainment fads. New York: Harrington Park P, 1990.

5) Klimov, Blagoy. There! Did you see it?; Care! They do see you...Subliminal messages in advertisement, moving-making and cartoons in a 'not so-innocent world'. Profit driven or 'dark' conspiracy? Munich RePEc Personal Archive. 07 Nov. 2007. Central European University-Budapest. 10 Mar. 2009 <http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/4257/1/MPRA_paper_4257.pdf>.

6) Laffoley, Paul. "Walt Disney and Joseph Albers." Interview. Weblog post. Official Paul Laffoley Blog. 21 Nov. 2008. 09 Mar. 2009 <http://paullaffoley.net/blog/>.

7) Pinocchio. Dir. Hamilton Luske and Ben Sharpsteen. Prod. Walt Disney Productions. VHS. 1940.

8) Springmeier, Fritz. Blood Lines of the Illuminati. New York: Ambassador House, 1998. The Revelation. 10 Mar. 2009 <www.theforbiddenknowledge.com>.

Funny pics!

Kimmy on October 24, 2015:

I honestly doubt that ALL of this is true but in reality none of us know the entirety of his truth or the inspiration behind his movies so who are we to make an opinion about it. I'll continue to watch Disney and my children will also

Johnc830 on August 03, 2014:

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renada95 on April 10, 2013:

HELLO????!!!!!! are guys out of your mind?? A main character in a story has to go through struggles , do bad things and learn from his mistakes!!! Also in order to sympathize with the character, he has to be missing something in his life so that people like him in real life would be able to relate to him. You guys are just thinking too much!

Stargazin1 on March 24, 2013:

wow. It's all a bit of a streeeeeetch. I can see the Alice in Wonderland theory somewhat, but the others? Eh, I think the information was twisted to meet the theory. Overall, I don't believe it. This is on the same level as all those videos on Youtube warning of explicit messages in Disney movies where the puddle ripples spell out "SEX" if you squint your eye and tilt your head.

DoLittle on December 08, 2012:

I really think people have way to much time on there hands , to site and watch this classic fav , and when they think they see something , and shows it to another , etc etc etc , Why can't people site and watch it with there kids as it was intended to be , with out with out ripping it apart to see something they want to see ,

thatrussian_ on November 07, 2012:

This is amazing, I am writing an essay on how Disney movies claim to be so pure and family oriented, but Disney's work subliminally suggest otherwise. I'm still constructing the thesis though. I find your information very interesting and brought new insight to mind that I would have never considered to be drug related. Likewise, I wish we could bring Walt Disney back to the world and interrogate him about these films. I will definitely be re-watching these cartoons next time I go home.

Alina on August 24, 2012:

Bro, none of yall kno the full truth, nor do i. But yall needa chill and watch some disney movies!;P

mike on August 10, 2012:

i see your points on the drug influences, however, when referring to alice in wonderland, lewis carrol wasn't alive when Acid was around, his drug choice was that of opium, and alice was a girl who lived next to him when writing the book, however its a highly drugged influnced book, which is why i love it

tiffany love on August 06, 2012:

Its so funny how some peeps try to stick up for dat foo walt... Damn but yet who's taking who's money lmao oops don't cry now cuz he's liviing tha good life n ur not! Jus do what he does go get ur high on.... Since u all luv dat jerk so much watch tomorr someone u luv is gonna end up in the hospital cuz she or he did snow white for da first time n couldn't handle it! Or maybe cuz the person they luv beat them down because they were on drugs? Who's knw I'm jus gonna sit back turn the news on n see who else passed on cuz that's all they freakin show... Fuk disney they can eat a big one ha ha ha...

tiffany love on August 06, 2012:

Damn so I see there's drugs n booze behind all this madness, we got some crazy people in this world killing each other n there kids... Why because there goin poor n can't afford them or they jus don't have money to by theses stupid drugs n there stupid beer!!!! U got drugs name after theses creatures n let's see what the new drug is gonna be named after cinderalla because she lots her shoe... There gonna name it that because they want young girls to be slaves n work hard. N have them be easy to guys so they can take there v-gin away! Man Idtk I think people need to open up there eyes n take a look around cuz ur kids didn't go to jail on there own they had help or ur daughters didn't pop that baby out for no reason its probably cuz she grew up with a baby doll n watching cartoons with cute babys in it! All theses things on tv have nothing but naked people on it or someone smoking a joint or sniffing cain its freakin crazy!!!! Open ur eyes up n look around this world is gonna end n u people r helping it! With all dis hate n anger n lust... All I can say is grab ur life well u can judgement day is coming I hope u all are ready??? True story!

tast-t on July 19, 2012:

LSD was not brought to the USA until 1949. "Dumbo" was released in 1941. Nice try, though.

TANYA on June 15, 2012:

DRUGS IN A MOVIE FOR LITTLE KIDS I MEAN REALLY????????:]

Pinnochio from Tokyo on June 09, 2012:

This is idiotic. Disney rules. If Disney sucks so much why does everyone one the old Disney back? Because it was cool. Get over it. Walt's private life was his own business. If President Clinton (isn't a president supposed to represent his country's values?) could do whatever he wanted, why not Disney (?) who's private life was incredibly watered down compared to Clintons. Everyone uses prescription drugs and if not what are the alternatives(?) living in misery? Go pick on George Washington or something, but leave Disney alone.

bogus on May 31, 2012:

gumff!

Me on May 15, 2012:

I have a few things to say. Ask around, see who watched disney movies and who didn't, the people who did are always the better people, ALWAYS. Also, all of the points you brought up seemd to speak badly of drugs. Lastly, I don't know why this would be such a problem. I never did drugs, my choice, I never thought about it. I think if you feel you NEED to do it, you are stupid. If you want to, that's fine. What say do I have about what you do? Don't try to run other people's lives.

bookwormsglo from Waltham, Massachusetts on May 14, 2012:

Very interesting ... I think you might like to read Carl Hiassen's book, Team Rodent. It's one of his more scurrilous journalistic works. I've written about Disney some on my Hub too. Let me know what you think.

Dee on May 11, 2012:

Night on Bald Mountain is the name of the piece of music that accompanies the animation. It has nothing to do with Black Mountain college, and is even followed by an Ave Maria, showing the contrast between good and evil, or did you not actually view the film in its entirety and listen to the accompanying summaries of the pieces? The champagne Dumbo drank was accidentally spilled into the water tub. They had no intention of drinking alocohol purposefully, as is obvious when you actually WATCH the movie. And the pink elephant parade succeeded in scaring me about alcohol as a child, so I'd call it a good thing. Alice is a girl with a wild imagination. Lewis Carroll may have been on drugs, but the Disney adaptation of the movie is a piece of entertainment for children, not a metaphor for drug-use, regardless of whether the original material was or not. It suggests nothing more than the fact that Alice has quite the ability to daydream a world not full of strict learning and rules, but color and fancy. All of it, in fact, turns out to be a daydream, not a drug-induced freakout. Most children would rather play in a fun-filled world than sit and learn, but that doesn't mean they will do drugs! They even learn from her sadness at missing home and her eventual happiness to return to the real world that fun must be balanced with serious learning and rules, or one could get swept away in fantasy and never truly be a socially-contributing adult. The purpose of Pinocchio being taken in by Honest John to Pleasure Island is to teach him a lesson about being honest and doing what he's supposed to do, as instructed by his father. He learns from the mistakes he made, even getting ill from the substances he puts into his body. It teaches children (myself included) to listen to their parents and go to school, instead of talking to strangers on the way, who might put them in potentially life-threatening situations. It tells them that drugs and rule-breaking, drinking and anarchy are not positive things and will only land them in trouble, or jail. I've grown up watching Disney films and all of them appealed to my growing imagination and morality. I am proud to say that I have always known drugs and alcohol are bad for you, I have never tried any of them and I still love Disney films as much as I did 20 years ago, knowing full well they only assisted in my learning to stay away from such bad things. Disney is a large corporation, always coming up with ways to get more money out of people who enjoy their products. They have amusement parks worldwide and are always making new rides and products to introduce to the clamoring masses. But that doesn't mean they are the product of an evil (and non-existant) world-dominating group. If you honestly believe it's all about drugs and drinking or even sex, don't show the films to your children. The rest of us who not only know better, but can also think for themselves enough to not become one of the sheep, will continue to enjoy the films for what they are; good entertainment.

as;dfj;fs on May 09, 2012:

CheckUrFacts-

Walt Disney was the creator of disney, meaning he was obviously born when those movies came out. Walt wrote most of the scripts for these movies but died right before the Jungle Book came out.Sleeping Beauty,Snow White, Cinderella, and Pinocchio were all in fact written and produced by Walt Disney. It is rellevent beacause Walt was secretly hiding things within the movies about drugs and sex that subconciously we pick up on, but make no real note of it as kids. Next time, you may want to "check your facts"

mousefan on April 24, 2012:

you misspelled MICKEY

CheckUrFacts on April 18, 2012:

okay what ever u guys see in disney movies are your own opinions, but most of the disney stories like sleeping beauty, snow white, cinderella and pinocchio where not written by anyone associated by disney and many were written a long time before walt disney was even born so whether or not walt disney was a drug addict is irrelevant, and either way, what's the point of tainting good children stories that have obvious 'good triumphs evil' themes?

Kevin F. Disney on April 12, 2012:

Taking the time to Hub this is a real drug heating mission . It was different n cool , like going to Pleasure Island .

Becca Rae88 on April 07, 2012:

Needless to say, regardless of whether Walt Disney was on drugs 'Alice in Wonderland' is about a drug trip. The white rabbit refers to cocaine and as mentioned in the article the other drugs are as stated.

Walt Disney was a sexist though. Hence all women in Disney movies were either Evil Step Mother or the Beautiful step daughter/princess. Ever noticed how all Disney movies only consist of one parent. This parent is either an evil step mother or a caring father. The daughter plays the role of the obedient daughter or the vicarious girl looking to get herself in trouble with society.

There's no doubt drugs played a vital role in Disney movies. Drugs have played a vital role in all movies. Watch Fantasia on Shrooms.. it'll blow you're mind, literally (Though the Beatles 'Yellow Submarine' is a bit more fun.) Drugs are a minimal issue at the time.

I questioned why no Disney movie portrays a main character that is the product of a happy marriage. Was Walt predicting that the divorce rate would be higher then 50% at one point? Further more.. why was it always an evil step-MOM and not dad?

Drugs are fun. Who cares if Walt used them or the illiustrators/Writers used them. The movies are good. What we should questioned is why nearly all Disney movies involve one parent.

D. Powers on April 02, 2012:

One thing many people do not know. Walt Disney was dishonorably discharged from the U.S. Coast Guard for drug use. He was incarcerated in the brig at Governors Island NY. His DD is hung upside down behind his desk in the old Disney shows. He did this as a direct snub, they told him the DD would ruin his chances at a career.

Mercedes on March 13, 2012:

We see where you're coming from with your theory but I think its safe to say you went a little overboard with the situation. I doubt Walt Disney intended on making these things seem "wrong" for children. Most of the Disney stories are old folk stories or historical events rewritten by Walt Disney that he sugarcoated to make acceptable for children to watch, so you cant really hold him completely accountable. Back then their "G" rating is now our "PG-13" and they educated the kids more about day to day life than we do now due to lawsuits from overprotective psycho parents who seclude their kids and think their child is never going to eventually learn about sex, drugs, or anything else that happens in life. Also, you got your information from unreliable resources and I don't think you should believe everything thats on the internet.

i know the truth on March 07, 2012:

very well put together article, and well beyone a theory there is so much more to the whole one world gov. illuminati, behind close doors theory, but as far as the disney i personally have been aware of this for so long, even in lion king look in the clouds you see sexuall content and so many others but yes disney is in deed a huge part in the new age illuminati, the originall illuminati is gone all the inner circle is decised but the ones in the suits at the highest corperations that controll all the media , record companies, and production have taken on the name illuminati as well and there very real, go head and look at your dollor bill from the year of the formation to the little owl on the front but anyways i love this kind of shit great article again its crazy that so many people don't pick up on the obvious

Deejay on February 06, 2012:

I loved the disney movies as a child but its crazy that the main movies you named always kinda freaked me out.. And as I got older and more street educated so to speak I understand now why I was so freaked.. Glad to know Im not the only that thinks this...

ang on January 27, 2012:

i agrree wit all of this and deff agree disney is part of the illuminatti. in beauty and the beast the beginning there are 3 females being held up a guy and they're singing on that bench he's holding up, look at their hands on that scene, and they are representing the devil.

issy on November 06, 2011:

i am doing a project on secret societys and conspiracy theories. At the begining it was all just curiousity, but now i am really questioning the truth.

rider on March 02, 2011:

this is all amzaing information! however, i don't believe it has to do with the illuminti...drugs (hallucinate ones specifically) open doors in your mind which help you think deeper and have crazy idea. Illuminati want to brain wash people, they want to think for the people, they don't want people thinking to themselves. They want to control everything, which is why i heard recently that hallucination drugs have a bigger penalty if caught with because of what they do to you

carlos on February 06, 2011:

ahahaha ok maybe it all adds up but even if it does why haven't we seen the consequences? or is diney guilty of aaaaall evil nowadays?

Ariej on January 19, 2011:

Dear author of Drugs in Disney Movies,

Your article is very interesting in terms of the connections made between drugs and Disney movies. The idea proposed was unexpected yet amusing. However, your information regarding drugs in Disney Movies is misleading. I understand where you come from in terms of connecting the seven stages of cocaine to the seven dwarfs in Snow White; however this is just a notion and there is no reliable evidence that proves it.

First, your usage of untrustworthy resources such as www.urbandictionary.com and http://filmguide.wikia.com reflects the falsehood of your information as these WebPages are articles written and modified by everyday uncertified people.

According to http://snopes.com/disney/films/drugs.asp, "Walt Disney and his main animators are well-known figures about whom much has written, and no one who knew or worked with them suggested that they were involved with recreational drugs."Although drug abuse was a social concern to prompt educational scare films such as The Cocaine Fiends and Reefer Madness back in the 1930's, the "drug" of choice in Walt Disney's era was far more likely to be alcohol than anything else (Recall the small elephant accidentally drinks a tubful of champagne in Dumbo). As for LSD, it wasn't even brought to the USA until 1949, which is too late to have been the driving force behind Disney's classic animated films.

In addition, the plot aspects of Alice in Wonderland which "suggests drugs" were present in Lewis Carroll's original work; Disney merely adapted them for the screen.

Furthermore, in terms of the original example, Walt Disney didn't "invent" Snow White. The film was based on the European version of the fairy tale created over a century earlier. Disney did however create names and distinctive personalities for each of the seven dwarfs not present before. Also, although cocaine addiction might be considered to have identifiable stages, no set of physical symptoms complements each stage. Nevertheless, not only many types of drug abuse but also physical and mental illnesses can produce symptoms such as changes in sleep/wake patterns (sleepy), mood swings (happy, grumpy) alteration of personality (dopey, bashful), and allergies (sneezy) – eventually necessitating a trip to the (doc). Therefore, a conclusion associating drugs and specifically cocaine with these seven characters is drivel as many other conditions such as mental and physical illnesses have shown to produce similar symptoms.

The sources used to support the abovementioned arguments are trustworthy, reliable, known sources and can be seen in the works cited below.

Works Cited

Koenig, David. Mouse under Glass: Secrets of Disney Animation & Theme Parks. Irvine, CA: Bonaventure, 2001. Print.

Maltin, Leonard. The Disney Films: [from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to Pocahontas, a Comprehensive Look at All of Disney's Classic Films, with Discussions of Every Feature Length Movie as Well as Surveys of the Cartoon Shorts and TV Shows]. New York: Hyperion, 1995. Print.

Miller, D. M. What Would Walt Do?: an Insider's Story about the Design and Construction of Walt Disney World. San Jose, CA: Writers Club, 2001. Print.

"Snopes.com: Do Disney's Seven Dwarfs Represent the Seven Stages of Cocaine Addiction?" Snopes.com: Urban Legends Reference Pages. Web. 17 Jan. 2011. .

Simon on January 17, 2011:

An extremely interesting read. I grew up watching all of these films, and now having some of these facts presented to me it really opens my mind to more opinion. Its interesting to think about.

Brooke Maines on November 29, 2010:

Hey, don't go calling people scumbags! That's rude. Very enlightening Thank you Miss Khali

Wayne C. Perelman on November 10, 2010:

All is jaundiced to the jaundiced mind!! Walt Disney was NOT a member of the Illuminati, and NEVER advocated drugs. He would have fired anyone of his employees who took them! Alice is an imaginative little kid whose creative mind conjures up this dream full of colorful, funny characters! None of his other works were drug oriented either! Now you can go back to hitting your bong, SCUMBAG!!!

Nadine on August 30, 2010:

You have expressed my thoughts exactly..an excellent read. I applaud you :)

geegee77 from The Lone Star State!! on July 19, 2010:

Wow your hub was very interesting as I read all of it, (I usually don't read such long hubs, because they get kinda boring sometimes) but I was enthralled by yours very good read thumbs up, and cant wait to read more from you:) ge

alex on January 15, 2010:

OMG i knew there was something going on with disney lol

now can you find out if a Munchkin From wizard of oz hung himself in the backround of one scene? that would be great

Bengali Bratisha from Italy on October 23, 2009:

I love this!! Completely with you on your Walt Disney theory - although I have to say I plump for the illuminati theory. Do you write stuff on conspiracy theories by any chance? I'd be interested in that!

MissKhalil (author) from United States on August 17, 2009:

lol this is my first time doing a hubpage, I have no idea why the pictures came out so large!! I just added them from my desktop, where they appeared a lot smaller and clearer.

Angel Of Love on August 15, 2009:

What's wrong with your photos?

Obscure Drug Use References in Disney Movies

Source: https://discover.hubpages.com/entertainment/Drugs-in-Disney-Movies

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