From ‘When You Wish Upon a Star’ to ‘Let It Go,’ Disney Has a History of Making Pop Culture Hits
Jon Burlingame When directors Dan Abraham and Trent Corey were preparing “Once Upon a Studio,” their animated tribute to 100 years of Disney animation, they knew they wanted two musical elements: Cliff Edwards, as Jiminy Cricket, singing “When You Wish Upon a Star,” and songwriter Richard Sherman playing piano for “Feed the Birds.” Those two songs are emblematic of Walt Disney’s commitment to memorable, meaningful tunes as part of every Disney project dating back to the early Mickey Mouse days and the “Silly Symphonies” cartoon series. “When You Wish Upon a Star,” the Oscar-winning song from 1940’s “Pinocchio,” has become the studio’s unofficial musical signature, and “Feed the Birds,” from 1964’s “Mary Poppins,” was Disney’s personal favorite.