Fantasia is released

Fantasia is a 1940 American animated feature produced by Walt Disney and the third film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series.

Fantasia features animation set to classical music and no dialogue—only spoken introductions by host Deems Taylor before segments. The music was recorded under the direction of Leopold Stokowski and seven of the eight pieces were performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra. Animated artwork of varying degrees of abstraction or literalism was used to illustrate or accompany the concert in various ways. The film also includes live-action segments featuring Leopold Stokowski, the orchestra and American composer and music critic Deems Taylor. Fantasia was notable for its avant-garde qualities and for being the first major film released in stereophonic sound—using a process dubbed "Fantasound".

Walt Disney intended Fantasia to be more than just a film. It was to be an event, complete with reserved seating and fancy dress. Special program books were prepared for the film, featuring production artwork and photographs, dedications by both Walt and Stokowski, and the credits and synopsis for each segment. Each theater was rigged with 30 or more speakers, all lined around the perimeter of the ceiling, to provide the full Fantasound experience. The format of the film follows that of a concert rather than a motion picture. Besides the Deems Taylor narration passages, a proper presentation of Fantasia features a 15-minute intermission, which falls between The Rite of Spring and the Meet the Soundtrack segment.