Twilight Sparkle's Retro Media Library
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On April 18, 1983, the Walt Disney Company launched America's fifth premium cable network -- The Disney Channel. The first movie that originally aired on this channel was Tiger Town, and the first animated feature to air there was Alice in Wonderland (1951). Prior to December 1986, The Disney Channel aired programming for 16 then 18 hours daily, before operating 24 hours a day.

Several of Disney's 1940s films that often never got VHS releases in North America until the end of the century aired on The Disney Channel, such as Melody Time, Saludos Amigos, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, and Make Mine Music, all in their original theatrical versions.

There were also some instances when non-Disney movies aired on The Disney Channel. The Goonies was one of them. First known to air on June 6, 1992, The Goonies was presented as an extended version of itself, with all additional scenes included, and possibly no censorship whatsoever, unlike any broadcasts on over-the-air and basic cable television.

The Disney Channel's first official website (www.disneychannel.com) launched online on December 8, 1995.[1]

Transition to basic cable[]

Starting on September 1, 1990, the Disney Channel gradually transitioned from a premium to a basic cable network. By January 1995, 12.6 million cable subscribers now had the channel, and by 1999, the channel was made available nationwide as a basic cable network.

Programming[]

Title Premiere date
(first known)
Ended
(or last aired)
Dumbo June 3, 1983 January 1, 1997
Alice in Wonderland January 1, 1984 December 31, 2007
Robin Hood June 2, 1985 April 10, 1998
Pinocchio (1984 print) September 20, 1986 October 20, 1986
Mary Poppins (original version) November 22, 1986 May 31, 2000
The Hoober-Bloob Highway April 6, 1987 November 13, 1993
The Lorax May 27, 1987 November 28, 1993
Sleeping Beauty (1986 print) October 3, 1987 November 7, 1987
Grinch Night October 23, 1987 October 31, 1992
Lady and the Tramp (1987 print) May 7, 1988 June 16, 1988
Pontoffel Pock and His Magic Piano May 18, 1988 August 28, 1993
The Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat June 16, 1988 September 26, 1993
Cinderella (1988 print) October 14, 1989 November 25, 1989
The Kidsongs TV Show (1987-1988) March 5, 1990 November 12, 1992
My Little Pony: The Movie (1986) November 3, 1987 September 3, 1995
Barney & the Backyard Gang November 5, 1990 October 11, 1992
Bambi February 3, 1991 March 31, 1991
The Little Mermaid May 5, 1991 June 26, 1991
Peter Pan September 15, 1991 October 30, 1991
The Jungle Book May 3, 1992 July 25, 1992
My Little Pony August 3, 1992 August 30, 1996
My Little Pony Tales September 1, 1992 May 30, 1997
101 Dalmatians April 17, 1993
Dr. Seuss on the Loose June 19, 1987 November 13, 1993
The Cat in the Hat December 28, 1986 March 2, 1994
Beauty and the Beast May 15, 1994 July 16, 1994
The Making of The Lion King June 16, 1994 September 18, 1996
Pinocchio (1992 print) January 1, 1995
Aladdin May 14, 1995 August 13, 1995
Pocahontas: The Legend Comes to Life June 21, 1995
The Fox and the Hound November 5, 1995
The Making of The Hunchback of Notre Dame June 16, 1996 July 3, 1996
The Lion King September 8, 1996 August 15, 1998
Cinderella (1995 print) January 12, 1997 April 7, 1997
Pocahontas April 6, 1997 present
The Aristocats July 12, 1997 present
Toy Story (original version) November 29, 1997 July 12, 2005
Bambi (1997 print) January 31, 1998 February 5, 1998
The Hunchback of Notre Dame March 14, 1998 March 25, 1999
The Jungle Book (1997 print) January 1, 1999 January 7, 1999
Hercules February 27, 1999 October 13, 1999
Sleeping Beauty (1997 print) March 28, 1999 April 14, 1999
The Little Mermaid (1997 re-release) June 12, 1999 September 8, 1999
Lady and the Tramp (1998 print) November 6, 1999 February 2, 2000
Mulan February 12, 2000 October 22, 2000
101 Dalmatians (1999 print) March 25, 2000 June 20, 2000
A Bug's Life November 30, 2001 present
Toy Story 2 (original version) July 12, 2002 August 11, 2005
The Lion King 1½ September 12, 2004 July 11, 2005
Mary Poppins (40th Anniversary Edition) December 26, 2004 December 2010
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone January 21, 2005 October 22, 2011
Aladdin (Platinum Edition) February 14, 2005 August 16, 2014
Monsters, Inc. (original version) February 18, 2005 October 13, 2005
The Lion King II: Simba's Pride May 29, 2005 February, 13, 2006
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets August 7, 2005 October 22, 2011
My Little Pony: A Very Minty Christmas December 5, 2005
Finding Nemo (original version) May 5, 2006 July 2012
The Incredibles February 1, 2008 present
Cars March 14, 2009 September 6, 2018
Ratatouille August 15, 2009 present
My Little Pony: Twinkle Wish Adventure November 7, 2009
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs March 20, 2010 March 21, 2010
Ice Age August 5, 2010 January 8, 2022
WALL-E September 17, 2010 September 2, 2017
Toy Story 2 (2009 re-release) December 26, 2010 present
Toy Story (2009 re-release) February 13, 2011 present
Up September 9, 2011 present
Surf's Up December 31, 2011
The Lion King (Diamond Edition) February 11, 2012 present
The Princess and the Frog March 23, 2012 present
Toy Story 3 August 3, 2012 present
Despicable Me December 31, 2012 August 10, 2021
Tangled January 4, 2013 August 27, 2021
Monsters, Inc. (2012 re-release) April 27, 2013 present
Ice Age: The Meltdown May 11, 2013 present
Cars 2 September 28, 2013 present
Toy Story of Terror! October 19, 2013 October 31, 2021
Finding Nemo (2012 re-release) February 17, 2014 present
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs June 24, 2014
Brave September 5, 2014 present
Rio September 20, 2014
Hop September 27, 2014 March 30, 2018
Wreck-It Ralph October 3, 2014 July 28, 2020
The Smurfs November 8, 2014 May 7, 2018
Arthur Christmas December 21, 2014 December 11, 2021
Horton Hears a Who! May 9, 2015 November 21, 2021
Monsters University October 11, 2015 October 9, 2021
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs December 20, 2015 June 20, 2021
Frozen February 14, 2016 August 27, 2021
Big Hero 6 January 6, 2017 November 14, 2021
Inside Out October 1, 2017 July 22, 2018
The Good Dinosaur January 28, 2018 May 28, 2019
Zootopia March 25, 2018 present
Finding Dory August 19, 2018 October 6, 2019
Hotel Transylvania October 14, 2018 October 3, 2020
The Lego Movie November 25, 2018 November 26, 2018
Ice Age: Continental Drift December 14, 2018 December 15, 2018
Moana January 11, 2019 January 16, 2021
The Lorax January 13, 2019 April 25, 2020
Shrek (Universal Print) June 9, 2019 July 22, 2019
The Secret Life of Pets June 14, 2019 present
Hotel Transylvania 2 October 19, 2019 October 1, 2021
Smurfs: The Lost Village December 15, 2019 August 21, 2021
Sing December 27, 2019 September 18, 2021
Despicable Me 3 January 10, 2020 June 5, 2021
Coco July 10, 2020 present
Ferdinand September 11, 2020 September 25, 2021
Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation September 18, 2020 present
My Little Pony: The Movie September 27, 2020 September 28, 2020
Minions December 11, 2020 present
The Grinch December 13, 2020 present
Rio 2 April 22, 2021 present
Ice Age: Collision Course June 18, 2021 present
Despicable Me 2 August 10, 2021 present
Toy Story 4 August 13, 2021 TBA
Incredibles 2 June 3, 2022 present

Original programming of animated television series on Disney Channel began on September 15, 2001.

Weblinks[]

Gallery[]

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